Summer Outdoor Fun

SIDEWALK CHALK PAINT:
- liquid food coloring
- box Corn Starch
- water
- 8 oz individual containers for each color

- Measure 1/4 cup cornstarch into each cup.
- Add 1/4 cup water to each.
- Drip in 5-10 drops of food coloring.
- Stir it up.
At first it will seem as though the cornstarch just won't mix in, but all at once it comes together.
- Add more color for intense colors, less for pastel shades.

Pre test on the driveway, fence, and brick to see if paint will come off - It should though.


ICE TREASURE:
Using a ice cream pail, put a small amount of water in bottom.
Add treasures. Freeze.
Add another layer of water, add treasures, freeze.
Add another layer of water, add treasures, freeze. Etc.

All these layers will ensure treasures throughout the ice block rather than them all frozen on the bottom.

Treasures:
Marbles, stones, shells, coins, plastic animals, etc.

Put in a shallow plastic bin and let the kids excavate their treasures using toothbrushes, spray bottle, eye droppers, spoons, etc.

Great cool activity for hot summer day!

Frozen Paint:
Water down some paint, pour into ice cube trays. Lay foil over top and poke toothpicks through to act as holder. Freeze.
Let kids hold their paint cubes and paint their pictures outside.

ICE CUBES: coloured or plain, they’re fun to watch melt

Bathtub Paints

2T liquid soap
1T cornstarch
Food Colouring (just a drop, mix, then see if you need more)

Mix up and put in ice cube trays.
This will float in the tub and they can fingerpaint!

if they dunk it in the water, the paint gets too watery and won't be easily applied with fingers - perhaps a paint brush would still work though.

Edible Peanut Butter Playdough Recipe

1 cup Peanut Butter (smooth)
1 cup Milk Powder
1 cup Oats
1/4 cup Honey

Mix all together!

(Makes enough for 3 kids to have a good size chunk to play & snack)

If you are tempted to add more dry ingredients, STOP! It needs to be a bit sticky and once it's all mixed thoroughly it won't stick to your hands.

**
This is my favourite edible playdough recipe. The majority of peanut butter playdough has icing sugar for the second dry ingrediant (rather than oats in this one) and since Peanut Butter is made up of lots of sugar, that is just way too much for my little one. This one is healthy and still quite yummy - trust me cause I like to eat it too!

link for ideas on tools & accessories with edible playdough: http://123mytoddlerandme.blogspot.com/2009/04/playdough-tools-from-around-house.html

Bubble Recipes & Tools

My daughter loves bubbles!

During the winter months, we enjoy bubble blowing during bath time. Now that spring has finally arrived, we'll be heading outdoors with them!

RECIPE:
1/4 cup liquid dishwashing detergent
1/2 cup water
1 Tbsp. sugar
Put the dishwashing detergent in the water. Carefully stir in sugar trying to avoid suds.

RECIPE:
1/4 cup sugar
2 quarts warm water
3/4 cup liquid detergent (Joy or Dawn)
Mix 1/4 cup sugar with 2 quarts of warm water. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Add 3/4 cup liquid detergent.

Recipe Tip: Be careful not to whip up small bubbles while mixing!


Bubble Tools:
- Plastic strawberry basket
- Pipe Cleaners bent into different shapes
- String tied in a loop to a stick - now dip in mixture and run!
- Flyswatter
- Slotted Spoon
- Frozen juice can with both ends removed
- Six-pack plastic rings
- Funnel
- Wisk
- Cookie Cutters

Make some Bird Treats!

(taken from http://www.familycorner.com/ - check it out, there is so much stuff there!)

* 1 slice of sandwich bread for each hanger
(perfect use for stale bread you are about to toss!)
* Cookie cutter or Paring knife
* Yarn or other strong piece of string or cord
* Peanut butter or Vegetable shortening
* Wild bird seed

Use a cookie cutter to create shapes from slices of sandwich bread.

Let bread sit on the counter until dried out.

Line a plate with bird seed.

Use a toothpick or wooden skewer to poke a hole through the bread for the string. Be sure that you leave enough room above the hole so that it doesn't tear.

Thread string through the hole and gently tie in a knot.

Spread both sides of bread shape with peanut butter.

Coat with bird seed by laying it on the bird seed lined plate and turning over to coat thoroughly.


BIRD FEEDER:
1/2 Large Orange or Grapefruit
*Scrape fruit out and eat for snack. Use skewer to poke three holes along rim about 1/2'' from top. Thread & hand with string or twine. Fill with birdseed.


PINECONE FEEDER:
Go on a nature walk with your child to collect pine cones (bigger the better). Smear with Peanut Butter and roll in Bird Seed. Tie a string and hang from tree!


Hang your creation outside within view of your window!

My daughter loves watching the birds!

Edible Playdough Recipes (without Peanut Butter)

Got these from http://www.familycorner.com/:

Oatmeal Play Dough
1 part flour
2 parts oatmeal
1 part water
Mix ingredients together and form into shapes.

Note: The items made from this play dough recipe can be painted when they are dry.

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Cream Cheese Play Dough
8 oz. package of cream cheese
1/2 cup non-fat dry milk
1 tablespoon honey

Combine cream cheese, milk and honey in a bowl and mix until well blended. Mold sculptures on was paper.

Storage: Unused portions MUST BE STORED in an airtight container and kept refrigerated!
Use the expiration date on the cream cheese package as your guide for how long you can keep this play dough.

Note: The shapes can then be placed on crackers or bread slices, decorated with edibles (celery or carrot slivers, raisins, dried fruit pieces, nuts, or seeds for a healthy snack... then eat!

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Chocolate Play Dough
8 oz. semisweet chocolate
1/4 cup plus one tablespoon light corn syrup

1. Melt the chocolate in a metal bowl set over a pan of simmering water (a double boiler). Stir the chocolate with a spoon until smooth, then stir in the corn syrup.
2. The chocolate will stiffen almost immediately but stir completely combined.
3. Transfer the chocolate to a sturdy plastic bag and refrigerate until firm; the consistency will be that of Play Dough.
4. When firm, the dough can be worked by kneading. If it is too hard, cut off small pieces and knead until pliable.
5. If the dough sticks to the counter when rolling, lightly spray counter or breadboard with vegetable spray or lightly grease with vegetable oil.
6. Hand shape the dough into a rope or braid, making two or three long ropes and twist or braid them together -- can be used as the outside edge on top of a cake or around the base.
7. Make ribbons to cover the cake. To do this, pat your dough into a disk shape and roll dough out to desired thickness using a rolling pin or else use a manual pasta machine.Flowers, too!

Storage: When not using, MUST be stored in an airtight container and refrigerate.

Utensil for Toddler

These spreader knives that you purchase for use with dips or cheese balls are great for a toddler to learn how to properly use a knife.

My daughter uses it to cut up her playdough and Ive also let her cut up her banana at snack time. They have no sharpness to them but will cut soft foods.

Gift Wrap Ideas

Candy Style (using a toilet paper roll or oatmeal can and covering in tissue paper with paper bunched at ends) **It would be fun if the present was several smaller items to give the child several presents wrapped candy-style.

Wine Bag - doesn't have to contain wine, could hold a cool toy!

Plastic Container w/ lid - Presenting the toy in a box (could cover in stickers for decoration) gives the child a storage bin for toys as well!

Basket - Put the toy inside and then wrap all in cellophane or beach towel or blanket or neat Pillowcase - whatever!

Beach Towel - Wrap gift in towel and then tie with ribbon

Trashcan - (What?!) Put the gift in a new & neat trashcan - especially if it's a funky colour or cartoon themed can

More Birthday Party Ideas:

Bug Theme – caterpillar cake, make caterpillars from egg cartons, eat gummy worms, etc. Activity: Bucket of dirt/water mix (mud!) with various plastic bugs & creatures inside. Kids have 1 min. to find as many as possible.


ALPHABET Party – Primary colours, Alphabet Posing, Find something that starts with letter “__”, Alphabit cereal & pretzel snack mix, letter cookie cutters used to make jello jigglers, sandwiches, etc. Alphabits on Cupcakes.

S is for Sophie Party (or whatever the birthday child's name is) – all games, snacks that start with that letter.
For S, you could have sandwiches, strawberries, S shaped cookies, have a sock hop (dancing), and give silly putty & shoestring licorice in loot bags. That's all I could think of at the moment but if you gave it some thought and looked around the house, cookbooks and dollar store, Im sure you could find other things.

Barnyard Party: Various animals for decorations. A cake shaped like a favourite animal, an animal toy & animal crackers in the loot bag.

Face Painting: What about letting the kids paint their own face?
When they arrive they go to the face paint station. There would be multiple colours of face paint (you could create your own face paint, I think Ive got a recipe in the craft recipes section) and little hand mirrors. Maybe the hand mirrors could be part of their take home package.

Green Birthday Ideas

Working on ideas for my daughter's upcoming 2nd birthday. Thought that perhaps we'll try an Eco theme of Green.

Location: Summer Birthday outside in the yard. I won't purchase any games but will find some ideas for games on the internet. Most activity will just be free-play on swings, sandbox, wading pool, etc. If in future years I need a theme for this same style of birthday, I can say butterfly celebration, bug safari, or garden party.

Craft Activity: Trinket Boxes. I have several little containers from Maxwell Cafe Cappucinno, Hot Chocolate, Fancy Tea, etc. They are all sturdy little containers with nice lids. I'll let the kids decorate them with craft supplies I have on hand (glitter, ribbons, stickers, markers, buttons, etc.) It's recycling & keeping them occupied at the same time. After they've made their creation, I will write their name on the bottom and hand back with the loot bag later.


Dishes: no disposables, we'll use our plastic camping plates & cups for the kids. Im thinking of finger foods so I don't have to worry about utensils. Parents can use the glass plates.


Cake: Homemade


Loot Bags: Reusable cloth bags that I'll make myself. Internet has various instructions for making easy drawstring bags. Ive got tons of fabric scraps I can use. The bag can then be later used by the child for their cars, snacks, doll clothes, etc.



(Here's how they turned out!) --->

You could also take two squares of felt and sew up three sides. Cut a rectangle for the handle. They could be left as is or decorated with paints or markers (party craft!)

Or purchase small canvas bags from a craft store that can be decorated at the party.

*check out another post I made on loot bags for various other ideas*

Loot Bag Fillers: No plastic junk that will just get tossed. Some ideas so far are:
*homemade playdough w/ recipe & cookie cutter
*clay pot (kids decorate at party) with baggie of soil and seed packet
*homemade decorated cookies
*notebook & fancy pen
*homemade chunky toddler crayons (see separate post)
etc.

Anything that is practical and either usable or edible. Any candy I buy will be bought in bulk to reduce packaging.

Stay away from the mult-pack of plastic junky lootbag stuff (ie. sunglasses that break before they are out of the packaging, whistles, etc.) Most moms are tossing that stuff out before the end of the day cause they're broken or annoying.

Also including in the Loot Bag a Thank You Card made from cutting various artworks (that Sophie has done lately) into little folded cards. Inside is a simple "Thank you for coming to my Birthday Party, love Sophie"

Decorations:
~ Tablecloths that I already own rather than the one-time use plastic version. Or if I feel creative, I could take a bed sheet that isn't in our bedroom's colour scheme anymore and add some felt flowers or butterflys or circles to dress it up.
~ Happy Birthday Banner that I'll be using for a few years. (see separate post for more detail)
~ Pictures of friends & family from Sophie's 1st birthday party and perhaps some from the day she was born.
~ Paper Garlands from colourful flyers & catalogues.
~ Birthday Crown - make from felt and decorate with puff paint & glitter. Let them use this for years to come (even a picture with it for sweet 16 would be great memories!)

Gifts: Im going to somehow (have to think of the best way to word it on the invites) ask my friends for gently-used toys or books. My daughter will be two and won't care if it's a used toy, we love second hand stuff. This will save lots of packaging (it's amazing how much plastic & cardboard one toy comes packed in). Also asking for gifts to be wrapped in newspaper, flyers, pre-used gift bags or fabric!

Still looking into other ideas to help keep it green...

Wooden Spoon Puppets

Wooden Spoons make great puppets. I saw this in a magazine for a Birthday Party activity.

As each guest arrived, they got to make a puppet by decorating a wooden spoon with googly eyes, fabric scraps, markers, yarn etc. Then the kids put on a puppet show and took their puppet home with them. Great rainy day craft too :-)

When we get around to making these I'll post some pictures!

Keep your Sanity at Birthday Parties

Keep it simple!


Have party last 2 - 3 hours maximum.


Eat sweets in last half hour


Have back up indoor activities planned if having an outdoor party


Letting kids do a craft as you wait for everyone to arrive keeps things organized.


Pick a theme and run with it.


Google for ideas, invites, recipes, and everything thing else on the internet


Give your camera to someone else to take pictures, you may be to busy to remember the important shots



Have another adult (or older child) to help you if needed

Poster Paint Tips

My parenting magazine recommended storing Non-Toxic Poster Paint in baby food jars. Adding a squirt of dishwashing detergent helps take out future paint stains.

Fun & Unusual paint brushes could be toothbrushes, sponges, plastic scrubber, Qtip, etc.

Im Bored Jar

Saw or read this idea somewhere of writing out various activities onto small pieces of papers and putting them in a small jar. When your child comes whining "Im Booored!", they pick out an activity from the jar. Maybe things like Create a Storybook, Draw a picture for a relative, Make Cookies, etc.

For a toddler version, I figure it would be more of an "Im Stressed" jar for me when my childs getting into everything she shouldn't because she's bored. Hers would have various activities like Make a Cave, Craft Ideas, Sink Play, etc.

Bath Toys when staying at someone's house

Don't pack bath toys if you're staying over at someones house. You can probably raid their cupboards and find some neat stuff. (basically the same stuff I like to have my daughter use for playing in the sink full of bubbles)

Such as:
Funnels
Measuring Cups
Spoons
Measuring Spoons
Sieve
different sizes of tupperware

Create some bubble fun with homemade bubble solution and the above kitchen items!

If it's something they don't normally get to play with then they would probably be intrigued.

ALSO: Shaving Cream! Spray some on the bathtub wall and let them draw!