I had never heard of the Kiwi Company until my friend Margaret told me about it. She wanted to send the kids a “crate” every month. My kids LOVE them! If you have children (any age), these are perfect for those rainy days when they cannot go outside and play. We had a few of those rainy days recently and the projects kept our kids pretty busy.
I love these because they keep the kids off tablets and away from the TV. Each “crate” has a theme. Some recent themes we got were Caterpillars & Butterflies, Camping, Star Gazing, and Exploring nature. Each crate has a project or two (and sometimes a bonus one) that will keep the kids busy.
There is also a little book that comes with each crate. Ours features a koala, alligator and a parrot who are all friends. The story in the book is often related to the theme of the crate. My kids love those books and puts them up on their bookcase.
Here are a few of the projects we worked on in the past month or two. Our nature kit came with a bag, a magnifying glass and a box to keep things from nature. We went out in the yard looking for rocks, sticks, grass, leaves, clovers and flowers. There were a few different cards that could be used to find other things, too.
The camping box came with a fabric sheet to build a tent. It also came with a camp “fire” that you put together (and the light makes it look like fire), a red and white checkered blanket for a picnic, and of course, ants.
In one of the nature boxes, they had the kids make flowers from felt. At the same time, it encouraged them to find sticks and other things that might fit and look good with the felt items.
In the space crate, there were stars and sticks that you could make constellations with. There was glow in the dark paper that you could punch star “holes” in to show a starry night. Finally, some paint to paint your own galaxy.
From top to bottom: Andrew’s, Ella’s and my paintings.
One of the crates had a “polar” theme to it. The kids fell in love with these penguins. It comes with little wooden fish that you stand up. The penguins have a pull string that makes them vibrate and “walk.” The idea is to get your penguin to knock down the fish. They were happy to just snuggle with them.
My favorite one we did was the Caterpillar/Butterfly crate. This tied right in with what Ella’s Preschool class did at the end of the year. They watched a caterpillar curl up in a chrysalis and waited for a butterfly to emerge.
This crate had a plush caterpillar that comes with a bag (chrysalis). You put the caterpillar in the bag and wait …
That caterpillar turns inside out. When it does, you have a butterfly.
The kids thought this was very cool!! Heck, so did I.
We also got to make a butterfly that flaps its wings.
My wife and the kids took “Ice paint” and made pictures yesterday. The crate comes with food coloring and a little “popsicle” maker. Add the coloring to water, freeze it, and pop them out to color on the paper/postcards provided. Too fun!
We’ve probably been doing these crates for 2-3 years now. They just keep getting better. As I said, they have crates designed for various age groups. We’re getting the 3-6 year old crates now. They even have crates for ages 12-100, in case you want to do one yourself.
Knowing how difficult it can be to have the kids in the house all day, having something like this is an amazing way to teach your kids and spend quality time with them.
I am not being paid to talk about Kiwi Company. I am just a satisfied dad who is sharing a great idea. Learn more at their website HERE.
Various Ramblings of a Nostalgic Italian 