We absolutely love discovering other companies with similar values as ours and if you haven’t heard of the subscription box service Outside the Box, we are thrilled to introduce you. OUTSIDE THE BOX is an alternative to the typical toy or gift or craft DIY. I don’t know about y’all, but do you find yourself drowning in stuff? With baby #3 having just arrived, I am in major purge mode and I can’t believe how much stuff we have accumulated in such a short time. There are just so many toys that my kids don’t even play with (until they see me putting it in the donate box, then it’s suddenly their favorite, long-lost toy rediscovered). I’m sure you all can relate.
Part of why we just love Outside the Box is that each curated box comes with EVERYTHING you need to complete crafts and activities that inspire creativity (but don’t clutter your house). The box comes full of goodies that encourage quality time together, and meaningful conversations about the values that really matter and make us successful. As if that weren’t enough, the box also inspires children to give back to their community through small, but impactful acts. It also teaches kids through the joy of play about kindness, sharing, gratitude, diversity and why they are unique and can make a difference. To top it all off, every box supports a non profit and empowers kids through play to give back and create change. It’s basically Mary Poppins delivered to your doorstep, but dare we say it? A whole lot more fun. Plus, my kids absolutely freak when the doorbell rings and they see a package on the doorstep.
Here is Anistyn’s “hurry up with the picture so I can rip open the box already,” face.
So here’s a quick rundown of what you can find in your Outside the Box subscription each month (recommended for ages 2-7):
Children’s t-shirt or wearable
One hand selected children’s book with a message related to the monthly theme
2-4 crafts/activities that reinforce the montly theme.
Community cards that spark children’s creativity and offer intentional ways to share the crafts, activities and lessons outside the box
Spotlight on a Non-Profit, Community Service or Give-Back Company
A special surprise
Here is what we found in our June box:
The first thing Anistyn went for were these adorable cat and dog socks from Pals Socks.
This company is amazing because they somehow figured out a way to incorporate teaching your children about diversity with something as simple as socks. The socks don’t match which kids think is fun anyway. But there is actually a great reason behind it. Pals Socks teaches kids that it’s fun to be friends with someone different and that “you don’t have to match perfectly with your perfect match.” A super fun way to teach your kids about how it’s ok to be different.
Next out of the box was this caring box from the idea box kids. Each box contains 30 caring acts on 15 coins that encourage kids to do kind acts. We love that the coins have specific acts on them that help the younger kiddos who might need a little extra help getting started-my personal favorite is the “help mom do chores” coin. Stay tuned to see if it works.
You know how I was complaining earlier about having too much “stuff?” Well, this doesn’t apply to books. I love discovering meaningful and fun books to share with my kids and this one is a new favorite. It’s called “It Came in The Mail” by Ben Clanton. It’s a story about a kid who wishes for a bunch of stuff to come in the mail, but soon discovers how much more fun it is to share his stuff with friends. I’m really hoping the message of sharing rubs off on Anistyn. She needs a little help in this department.
The box also came with a little dragon figurine for your child to use while reading the story or to play with while recreating the story later. As you can see, Anistyn LOVES dragons.
The crafts the box came with were both fun and thoughtful. There are materials to make a card (they suggested including it in a care package the troops or to mail to a friend of leave with a neighbor). There were instructions on how to create your very own dragon headpiece (A’s favorite of the 3). The last craft was a picture frame ornament for you to customize and decorate. We love crafts around here and it’s great to see how you can incorporate kindness, giving, and imagination into them.
The box also included this hand and cuticle salve from Whispering Willow, a company that handcrafts sustainable, natural apothecary products. I have to say that this stuff is amazing and I can’t get enough of it. Unfortunately, my two year old shares my sentiment and continues to find it in the numerous spots I try hiding it. Let’s just say his skin is extra, extra soft and smells amazing right now.
Overall, I can’t get over how well curated Outside the Box is. They do an amazing job of including a variety of thoughtful and useful tools to teach, encourage, and uplift your child. It’s definitely a must for any parent out there looking for a great tool to supplement what you might already be doing to raise good humans. The box makes it super easy to incorporate the contents of the box into your routine and includes a list of activities to do each week for four weeks that is a part of the #withlovechallenge. We encourage you to see for yourself what Outside the Box is all about. It’s such a great way to really bond with your child and show them the impact that we all have on one another. Spread love!
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