A few weeks ago, a post of mine about “The Secret to a Successful Quiet Bag” was reposted. It really sparked my thinking.
I have been immensely blessed in my life with several older moms who have shared their wisdom, experience, and humor with me. They have done so with grace, with understanding, and with much love. They help keep me grounded and they help keep me going, even when it seems I will be swallowed by dishes, dirty laundry, and discipline!
I asked several of them the practical “how-to” of putting together a quiet bag for little ones. The following is a compilation of their wisdom and one or two ideas of mine:
The Quiet Bag
- Do only put quiet items in there. (The noise-making trucks and dolls that cry are mesmerizing to kids, but are like your cell phone ringing–they only ever make noise during the quietest point of worship!)
- Do switch it out monthly. (Everyone gets bored with the same stuff.)
- Do store it in a place where your child can’t play with it during the week. (That way, by Sunday, those items are “new” and therefore more exciting.)
- Do try to wait to open it till the sermon (or perhaps the Lord’s Supper. When my little guy was younger, I would have a special book and fun jewelry for him to look at during the Lord’s Supper and then would open his special quiet bag during the sermon). Don’t waste your bag of tricks until you really need it!
- If your child has a snack mid-morning, do include a snack in your quiet bag! Just make sure that it is easy to clean up. There WILL be spills. Often on yourself.
- Try to include things that are church- or God-oriented if you can. (This doesn’t always work, but if you have some Bible board books, it is great to get your little one thinking about Godly things and associating God with worship time!)
- Do have everything prepared BEFORE Sunday morning. That saves your sanity as well as your time. Somehow, Sunday mornings don’t seem to have as much time in them as other days of the week!
- Don’t feel bad if your kid doesn’t like what you put in there! He/she is a person too, with their own likes and dislikes. Just switch out the items for something they enjoy more.
Items you could include in your quiet bag
- Coloring book and crayons
- Stickers and notepad
- Fake wallet (It may be unwise to hand them your actual driver’s license and debit card!)
- Books
- Soft toys/stuffed animals
- Lacing cards
- Mirrors
- Jewelry
- Snacks
- Aquadoodle
- EtchaSketch
- Puzzles
- Items that button, zip, or snap (an old wallet, old Bible cover, etc.)
What would you add? God bless you and your littles as you train them to know and worship God!
Wife, mom, daughter, teacher, blogger, crafter, organizer - but most and best of all, I am a Christian. I am passionate about my family and my God. I am married to my best friend and am blessed with a one year old son who keeps me busy all the time staying at home with him. And I am glad to be in the service of our incredible and awesome God.
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This is such a good idea! Why have I never heard of this before? I’m about to gather a quiet bag right now!
These are great ideas. I wish I would have thought of this when my girls were young. This is so much better than handing them a pencil and a piece of paper to draw on. Thanks for sharing. – Amy
http://stylingrannymama.com/
“Somehow, Sunday mornings don’t seem to have as much time in them as other days of the week!” – Ha! That seems to be so true!! If I brought my kids a snack I would take it out of the original packaging and put it into a ziplock bag. Easier for little hands to open and not so loud with the crinkle wrappers!
Great post and very applicable to moms! I carry a bag filled with things for church so these other ideas will be helpful!