Here's what you need to make your very own Pumpkin Pie Playdough, just in time for the fall season! 2 cups flour 1 cup salt 4 tsp cream of tartar 3 tsp cinnamon 6 tsp pumpkin pie spice 2 cups water 2 T vegetable oil red and yellow coloring (optional) Simply combine the ingredients in a large pot and heat on the stove top until it begins to form a firm playdough consistency. … [Read more...]
Discipline Sticks
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Naughty Sticks, Discipline Sticks, Consequence Sticks- whatever you want to call them! This is an idea that I came up with along with the help of my husband. He and I have often come to heads when discussing a consequence for a negative behavior with our kids. We sat down together a couple of months ago and talked through the problems at hand: When our kids see us disagree on a consequence they have learned that they have the upper hand because they saw that we don't agree. Because we didn't agree on discipline they often shopped for answers (they would go to one parent and get an answer and then go to the other to see if their answer was better). Time outs just didn't make a change in their behavior. The kids actually would "take the time out" just so they could continue on with the negative behavior. Cue the "naughty sticks!" My husband and I sat down for about an hour after the kids were in bed and discussed a handful of consequences they we both agreed upon. They … [Read more...]
Naked Egg–Pinned it, Did it!
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When I saw the naked egg experiment on Pinterest I just knew I had to try it with my girls. This one even fascinated me and my husband! To do it with your kids you'll need: One to two raw eggs A see through glass or container Vinegar Corn syrup Water Spoon Time Time is the biggest issue with this experiment. Each phase takes 24-48 hours to complete. My girls got a bit anxious at first and actually broke two eggs! 1) Start by gently placing a raw egg into a clear glass or container. 2) Next add vinegar to the glass until the egg is covered. Pretty much right away you'll notice bubbles forming on the egg. This is the beginning of the vinegar (an acid) eating away the egg's calcium shell. 3) Leave the egg alone for 24 hours. 4) After 24 hours, gently pour out the vinegar. 5) Grab your egg and gently rinse it under water. You'll notice that the shell is beginning to rub or peal off. DO NOT FORCE IT! My girls learned the hard way not to pick too … [Read more...]
Gross Touch Guessing Game for Halloween
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Having a Halloween party this year? You'll need some fun things to do and we've got a great game to play! It's a gross touch guessing game. Here's what you'll need: Grapes as eyeballs--Pealed grapes make the perfect eyeballs. Pull/break (not cut) few apart so that they can feel the inside of the eyeball too. Add a little bit of corn syrup to the bowl to make it even more slimy/gross. Spaghetti as intestines--Cooked, room temp (thick) spaghetti noodles feel like intestines when you put your hands into them. Corn syrup as blood--A bowl full of warm corn syrup makes the perfect pool of blood. Tomatoes as hearts--Peel a tomato and it will feel like a heart in your hand. Cauliflower as a brain--Cooked cauliflower with a little corn syrup or oil over it feels like a brain. Un-popped popcorn as teeth--Nothing like putting your hand into a bowl full of "teeth." Dried apricots as ears--Add just a tiny bit of oil to slime up dried apricots and they'll feel like … [Read more...]
50 Ideas for Road Trip Bags
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Tis the time to start thinking about Holiday traveling. After all, Thankgiving and Christmas are just around the corner and I'm sure many of you travel. Twice a year we make the journey up north to Papa Tractors house....it is a six-hour drive each way. Over the years I have fine tuned our trip to include things to pass the time. This year I put all those things together into one bag! Each kiddo got their own, personalized, basket for the road trip. Here are a list of 50 things you could pack into a road trip bag to keep the kids entertained. Crayons Sheets to color on (I found 100 foot rolls of coloring paper in the dollar section!) Traffic BINGO (didn't we all play this as a kid?) Library books (This was a huge hit because they were something new, not books they've seen before) One snack for each hour (this helps our kids know the answer to the dreaded question "how much longer?") Water bottle (gotta stay hydrated) Batteries (for any electronic device) InnoTab … [Read more...]
Playdough of the Month- Candy Corn
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Want to make this month's playdough of the month? It's just in time for fall! Candy Corn playdough!!! Not just the look of candy corn but the smell too...yippie!!!!!!!!!!!! Here is the recipe: 1 cup flour 1/2 cup salt 1T honey 2 T cream of tartar 2tsp almond extract 1 cup water 1 T vegetable oil Mix all the ingredients well over a warm stove top and once the playdough has cooled you can divide it into three equal parts. One part leave natural colored, another part dye yellow, and the last part dye orange. … [Read more...]
