I actually posted an update or two on here about how life has changed now that the kids are no longer toddlers, but in true 2020 fashion, those blogs seem to have mysteriously vanished.
Global pandemics sure have their problems, but I'm hoping I might be able to help with one in my own small way.
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| Enough room to work, but narrow enough to be out of the way in our dining room. |
We're gearing up for a new school year and our district has opted to start with remote learning. (Which is apparently different from virtual learning. Woe to those that confuse the two!) That said, the kids needed a dedicated learning space. While I'm a huge fan of cheap Ikea furniture, when you're under threat of losing the one income your family has, you don't want to be shelling out a ton of cash to buy each of your kids a desk. I needed something fast. I needed something even cheaper than the cheap Ikea desks. I needed it NOW. And by now, I mean instantly--way back in March when school was abruptly cancelled. We've now been living with our home-built, 2 person desk for 6 months and have been extremely happy with it.
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| Building it was a home school project itself! The kids measured, Mom cut, we assembled together! |
We already had tools, so I didn't include those in the build price, but all the materials made a 6 foot long double desk (perfect for both kids to sit side-by-side with a bit of space between) for under $32. If it was in stock anywhere (because everyone is buying desks right now, either learning or working from home) we were looking at at least double that price, having to purchase a desk for each kid. The tools you need to make this are nothing fancy...a tape measure, something to cut your 2x4's (if you're really in a pinch, the store can most likely do that for you) and a drill to screw it all together. SUPER SIMPLE and it can be completely finished in a single afternoon!
Once it's built you can customize it as much or as little as you want! We didn't finish ours, but you can easily stain or paint it. (I bet the kids would love choosing a paint color for their custom desk!) I added 2 hooks so the kids could hang their headphones at their workstation, and some cord management underneath because Jake kept tangling his toes in the laptop power cords (on purpose) while he worked. Now that the job situation has stabilized a bit more, I've considered getting a peg board to attach to the back and give us more storage space for school supplies. This is the only change I've considered making, but I haven't done it yet. (Really hoping they go back to school in person after October. 🙏) If you'd like to build your own, I have the materials, dimensions we used, and the instructions available in this PDF. Come back and share your custom builds!