perfect procrastination

yesterday i completed a small project that i had planned to do shortly after moving into our rental home in ann arbor in august. at the time ella was only two months old, but i couldn't wait for the days when she might play on the floor near me as i worked in the kitchen. well those days have quickly arrived. ella is now 8 months old and is crawling all over the house, finding things that i, well, forgot i had (thank you ella). because most stainless steel appliances do not provide the traditional magnetic surfaces we all used to find on the appliances of our childhoods, i decided to pick up a magnetic board at IKEA and mount it horizontally and low to the ground so that ella could play and explore near me while i was doing any number of kitchen related duties. our kitchen is very small, so i chose to mount it in the adjacent dining room where i can keep an eye on her. this project has been a hit! even when we're hanging out in the living room, ella makes a beeline to the dining room to play with her magnets. next project: making more magnets!