Ode to Ikea

Oh, Ikea, what did I ever do without you?!

Ever since I found out you were opening a new store just one month before we moved to Charlotte, I was all atwitter with excitement. About 45 seconds after we unloaded our moving van, I was at your store.

Desperately seeking organization.  Desperately searching for a way to contain the kids’ toys that not only worked, but looked good.   Something that didn’t cost a fortune since it would most likely be trashed over the next few years.  Something that was NOT PLASTIC.

And I found it.

Dear dear Expedit bookcase, you make my life complete.  I wish I had one of you for every room in my house.  For now, I will settle for the playroom.

The children and I lovingly printed out pictures of their toys and made labels for each of your baskets, and we no longer have to mess around at clean-up time.   The children know exactly where their things go, and exactly where to find their light saber/Legos® /cooking pots/you-name-it.

We finally have space for the 900 books we’ve collected, and a place for The Boy’s football helmet. The top of you is for me to stash things I don’t want the kids freely accessing, like beads and other messy craft stuff  [Mason jars, your poem will come later].

You have also brought more peace to our home: when the kids fight too much over a particular toy, the top of  the bookcase becomes the “toy jail.”  How long a toy is incarcerated depends on a) how ugly the fight got and/or b) how annoyed Mama is by said fighting.  It usually only takes one reminder to get the kids to play a bit nicer.

Maybe I never dust you quite as often as I should, but I just wanted to let you know, you lovely hunk of furniture, how much I really appreciate you.

Ikea.  Ikea.  You’ve made my playroom dream come true.  Thank you.

Love,

LRR