St Patrick’s Day Play Dough!

So I tend to be a planner- well that is an understatement. I have been trying to prepare for a wonderful St. Patrick's Day. We have our Leprechaun House all decorated and our Leprechaun Trap ready to go. The shoes are going to be placed by the door and I can't wait to see what kind of shenanigans those Leprechauns bring! Green milk and green pancakes/ yogurt are on the menu for breakfast and possibly a rainbow cake for dessert after dinner that night. The creative possibilities are endless! I might even have the little neighbor next door come over for a treat later on after school.

I have been cooking up wonderful home-made play doughs and have decided that I prefer the cooked dough to the kind of recipe where you add boiling water and stir. I feel that the glutens in the flour work better when cooked and the result is a better put together kind of play dough that is not too dry or crumbly or sticky. Some recipes call for the food coloring and glitter (if adding) to be added after the cooking process and be kneaded into the dough. That is fine and dandy, but I tried a different way.

I added the food coloring and the glitter while mixing the ingredients in the pot BEFORE cooking them. It came out beautifully! I could adjust the depth of the color and the level of sparkle. As it cooked the color deepened and the bling, well it was awesome. My pictures do not do it justice.  I used the following recipe from The Tinker Lab and it is really great!

The Best Play Dough Recipe

Supplies

• 2.5 cups water
• 1 1/4 c. salt
• 1 1/2 tbsp. cream of tartar
• 5 tbsp. vegetable oil
• 2.5 cups flour
• Food coloring or liquid watercolors. 

She suggests Wilton food colors but I used other kinds and it was still gorgeous.

 

Mix everything but the food coloring together in a large pot until somewhat smooth. It will be lumpy. Not to worry, the dough will get smoother as it cooks. *** Cook the dough over a low heat. Mix frequently. The water will slowly cook out of the mixture and you’ll notice it starts to take on a sticky dough appearance. Keep mixing until the edges of the dough along the side and bottom of the pan appear dry. Pinch a piece of dough. If it’s not gooey, the dough is ready. Store the dough in a large Ziplock bag or sealed container. Unused, it’ll keep for months.

*** I want to add that this is where I put in the food coloring and the glitter. It saves time and keeps things less messy all around. The end result is the same and I used green food coloring and gold glitter. Gorgeous!!!

Here is my dough!!!

It is really hard to see the gold glitter but it shimmered constantly from every angle. The finer the glitter the more "Tinker Bell-ish" it looks and I LOVE it!

 

Our little Leprechaun is going to bring it to Kayleigh for St. Patrick's Day. I figured I would help him as I worry about his safety with the stove. Those little guys also make a mess! Always good to stay on his good side- don't want to get pinched.

 

Don't forget to join the google member board! It's getting lonely here with just little ol' me! Please feel free to leave a comment too! I'd love to have requests for party ideas or crafts!

 

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

 

Ariane :)

St Patrick’s Day fun and a Little Leprechaun shenanigans!

Who doesn't love a little shenanigans close to St. Patty's?! I am Irish so I love everything to do with the Irish culture and bringing the magic of the rainbow into our house each year is just as much fun as Christmas!

This year, I decided to introduce a "Leprechaun Trap" and a "Leprechaun House" to Kayleigh, who is old enough to decorate them. Maybe if we catch one, he or she will want to live with us in their special little house right? We shall see......

So of course I visit my mecca.... AC Moore and JoAnn's and check out the cute little notions that will become our house and trap for the wee folk.

This is our finished product-

 

The Leprechaun trap is still under construction.... but here it is so far....

 

She is so excited to catch her little leprechaun! Just in case he/she is extra sneaky and mischievous and is not able to convince him or her to stay..... I have made my little wee folk after an elf pattern that I purchased on Craftsy.com.

Here they are! May I present, Finn and Fiona!

Happy St Patrick’s Day!

 

Testing Out My Calm Down Jars, Sensory Doughs, and Cloud Doughs!

So let me just say that I LOVE my new toys! I was going to bring in the new additions today but we have a snow day so..... Kayleigh and her friend are testing them out instead. Of course I made extra for Kayleigh to have at home, but it never hurts to get it "Kid Pre-Approved". Kayleigh used her pink calm down bottle last night as a timer. When the glitter settled, it was time to turn out the lights and go to sleep. Worked like a charm!

I made up 4 different calm down jars using "Fiji" brand water bottles. It got me to drink a lot more water. Then I made cloud dough with flour and some with cornstarch- I have to say that the flour mixture was much more pleasing to my tactile senses and ears. I also made up some cloud play doh with sliver and iredescent glitter. So pretty! I will make more and add Peppermint to it.  I tried to make glitter slime, and I think that you definitely need Elmer's brand glue and the Stay Flo Liquid Starch brands to make it work. Otherwise it is really watery.

Some additional helpful tips:

1. Make sure that you put the glitter glue in the empty bottle first and then add the water. Failure to do so will result in clumpy glue and lots of bubbles when you shake it to mix it up.
2. I used my Keurig to get instant hot water- no microwave or stove top for me! It worked fabulously.
3. Baby oil can be substituted for the vegetable oil- it will keep the dough (both play doh and cloud/moon dough) from spoiling and going rancid. I used lavender scented for the lavender dough and actually, all of the dough- it came out smelling great! 

Here are my photos!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I love the way the snow dough came out. It was so sparkly and Kayleigh used it to make "Sugar Cookies".  So cute and a great Snow Day activity!

 

Enjoy!

Sensory Play!!!!

 

(photo courtesy of My Crazy Blessed Life)

 

For those of you who may not know, I am a school-based Occupational Therapist and Massage Therapist. I LOVE sensory play! There are so many great ideas out there! I have been incorporating lots off scented homemade play-doh into treatment sessions and the kids cannot get enough of it. Kayleigh LOVES her home-made play-doh too. We did gingerbread play-doh for Christmas time and her and my students loved to make snowmen, snakes, and letters with the dough. They said it smelled great and it adds another level to learning! Engaging as many senses as possible is fabulous for activating the many centers of the brain when learning something new.

Here are some play-doh recipes and sensory bins! I have also included links to moon dough, slime, and mind/stress relief jars that are great for calming kids down. The website Growing a Jeweled Rose has amazing ideas for sensory bins, play doh and other crafts and educational ideas. Fun at Home with the Kids is another website full of great ideas!

Aromatherapy Play Doh
Gingerbread Play Doh
Lavender Play Doh
Peppermint Play Doh
Lemon Play Doh
White Sparkly Snow Play Doh
Strawberry Play Doh
Chocolate Play Doh

Snow Slime
Golden Slime

Moon Dough
Lavender Moon Dough
Snow Dough
Cloud Dough
Moldable Sand Dough


Mind Jar Recipes

Here is a great Mind Jar Printable that you can attach to the jar. What a great idea! Cannot wait to make mine!

Recipe from Here We Are Together
Calming Down Jar from Family Sponge
Fairy Light Jar
Hush Bottles from In Lieu of Preschool 
Kids Crafts Sensory Bottles- tons of ideas here!
Untrained Housewife
My Crazy Blessed Life- this one is really pearlescent and shimmery! It is by far my favorite recipe for a Calming Jar out there! So pretty!