Sparkles squishy

Toilet rolls! They seem to multiply at our house very quickly! I'm forever trying to find new ways to use them and this one got the kids AND our pets excited!

Tara calls this "Sparkles Squishy"

Ever since she started eating sushi, she misheard me and still to this day calls sushi-squishy and i just cant correct her its too cute!

Sparkles is her 9 month old guinea pig who loves squishy so i set up a tray of veggies cut into strips and the kids stuff their toilet rolls full of them.

Squishy completed!

Sparkles cant decide what to eat first! She will sometimes nibble on the toilet roll but that is fine, roll and all she enjoys her squishy!

Tapioca Pearl tub

If your familiar with water beads, you will know how many learning experiences they can provide and how much fun you can have. There are however some who find it hard to use a material in play that is not really used for eating. Here i have found the perfect solution....Tapioca Pearls!

These gorgeous little beauties are FOOD! Found at your Asian grocer sometimes called Boba and are used for making bubble tea which i think was originated in Taiwan. Only cost me a $2 per pack so i purchased 3 packs and put them uncooked into the tub with chopsticks,spoons,bowls and tweezers to use for transferring. These are hard when uncooked so supervision is important but once cooked i think any age would be suitable!

I put out a paint tray and Tara sorted the colours

After the dry pearls exhausted themselves in play, we cooked them up as per the directions on the pack. Very simple just place them in a pot of water and once they have risen to the surface they are ready.

Drain them and you can see they are VERY similar to waterbeads,squishy,rolly and a little more mushy!

We thought we should try the recipe of bubble tea and peach tea with bubbles but both kids thought it was very beautiful but a little strange :/

Playing with them was much more fun. They found them stickier than waterbeads but for all the carers that just cant bring themselves to use waterbeads these are a great alternative

They were soo sticky we found we could stick them to paper and make a picture from them..check out Mason's tummy to see HOW sticky they get!

These lasted us nearly two days,they are food so will not last that long at room temperature but they were a great addition to our weekend and bought up plenty of conversations about other countries foods and tastes!

Spiderweb find

I had noticed on Pinterest an idea of using string or wool to make a spiderweb laser game where children had to navigate their way through without touching the string. I loved the idea and wondered how i could make it more educational.

 I made the spiderweb with some wool i had leftover and tied it to all the furniture in the room. Then i scattered some items on the floor and sat at the end of the web and asked Tara to find all the items that started with a certain letter.
This got her thinking, moving and having a laugh. Body awareness and knowing how to move your body around objects effectively is a skill that is learnt at all ages. This activity can be altered for younger children by asking to "find the blue objects" for example and for older children "find the land animals" 

Tara's tuckerbox

We have had a few play dates over the last few weeks and thought id share with you what we made to share with our friends....

Kale Chips

These are super quick to make. Tear bite sized bits of fresh kale off the bunch, leaving the stalk behind. Spread on an oven tray with a dash of oil and salt and bake till just about browning(10 mins). As another variety we make with soy sauce instead of oil/salt. Doesn't sound yummy but if you have a child who refuses to eat greens, this is worth a try.Promise they are yummy!

This lion is a rice cake topped with peanut butter, banana eyes and mouth. Mandarin nose and mane. Date eyes.

 Healthy but fun!

 

Lolly teacups are always a hit at a little girls play date! Ice cream cones cut down with a bread knife. Using a glue (icing sugar and water) connect to a round biscuit. Use a jelly ring cut in half and stick to side of cone and fill with lollies!

Matchsticks Vs Play dough

Our play dough tray was upgraded this week with an addition of a bowl of coloured matchsticks. The play dough makes for a great foundation to poke the matchsticks into. For older toddlers try plasticine, as the firmer it is the harder the muscles in the child's hands will need to work.

Condensed milk painting

Condensed milk painting has been one of Tara's favourite activities lately -and i think i know why!
What other paint would taste so sweet???
Simple add a drop of food colouring into some condensed milk and you have a glossy new type of paint.
Its a pleasure to use, very thick in consistency so the paint stays in place perfectly. We have paintings that are months old now and are still shiny and no sign of mould or stickiness.
When finished allow to dry for 24 hours to make sure the stickiness has hardened. Do not leave outside on a bench as we did once, as the ants also seem to like the sweet taste :0

Elastic transferring

These squishy elastic bands make for perfect transferring objects for toddlers. This activity tray was put out for Mason with the elastics scattered all over the tray and a pair of tongs on top. A basket sat on the left side as he is showing right handed preference at the moment but swapping the basket side would be idea for a challenge.
I used the tongs to pick up a single elastic and squeeze to keep it held the released it over the basket and then offered the tongs to Mason. Great for fine motor skills!