Showing posts sorted by relevance for query messy play. Sort by date Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by relevance for query messy play. Sort by date Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by relevance for query messy play. Sort by date Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by relevance for query messy play. Sort by date Show all posts

Happy Birthday, Dr. Seuss - Daisy-Head Mayzie Activities and Craft

Daisy Head Mayzie Crafts and Activities

Today's Companion Craft and Story is themed on Dr. Seuss' book, Daisy-Head Mayzie not Maisy. We have lots of Dr. Seuss activities. You might Also like Dr. Seuss's Sue Snue and a fake cake messy play craft to celebrate his birthday! This is a fun project to do with Daisy Girl Scouts. Enjoy!



Cute Monster Paperbag Puppets: Video, Monster Trouble: First in our KCC Kid's Creative Play Series for Kids

Make your own paper bag monster puppets for Halloween

In honor of my favorite holiday (Halloween) we explore Monsters. Special thanks to Alex Toys for providing the crafts and toys in this post. These Paper Bag Monster Puppets came in a kit but you could make your own with construction paper shapes and lunch or colorful party bags. Play a Monster Game too.

Explore Monsters in a Pretend Play Monster Hunt Outdoor Creative Play


Paper Bag Monster Puppets are fun for a Preschool or Toddler Birthday Party.
 Paper Bag Monster Puppets are fun for a 
Preschool or Toddler Birthday Party.



Creative Play allows children to forget about stress and school work and let their imaginations run wild. 


I'm a huge fan! The Play Connection, Inc. offers many opportunities through our Sensory Messy Classes, Costumes/Puppets and Kiddie Play Productions.

First, we made Paper Bag Monster Puppets. The kits includes 5 colorful paper bags but with the leftover supplies you can make even more with white or brown paper lunch sacks.



cute monster paper bag puppets to make
Paperbag Monster Puppets.

After monster making, we went on a CREATIVE PLAY adventure and filmed it for you! The monster in the video is wearing the Face Paint Kit by Alex Toys and his weapons of choice are the Connect a Giant Monster discs. 

We hope you'll join us over the next few weeks as I find my inner videographer and the kiddos explore their improvisational skills in our first video production, The KCC Kids Creative Play Series Videos


The KCC Detective Agency presents MONSTER TROUBLE.




Find the Undercover Spy Gear here. After tracking monsters, you can get some much needed target practice when you clean up in the bath with this Screaming Monster Tub Target.



Monster Bath Tub Toys.

Each month, we'll go on a fun adventure and share it with you. Stay tuned next month for our tribute to Thanksgiving and the Wampanoag Indians.

We'd love to hear from you! Do you have ideas for future KCC adventures? Do you want to join in the fun? Leave a comment below or subscribe to our posts.


Recommended Reading:

Monster Toilet Paper Roll Cardboard Tubes

Birthday Party Game Kids Love

Monster Birthday Book by Boynton

Car Covers for Backseat: Bench Seat Cover with Split

Split Rearseat Cover for Car

Messy Kids? Ready for a big Chaotic Confession? We've got one super messy child dubbed, Mayhem. We needed car covers for the backseat for the past year. So, when Versa Via asked if we'd like to do a review, we jumped at the chance. The Versa Via split rearseat cover for car worked like magic, alas for our car, it was too late. Maybe, it isn't too late for your car? Keep scrolling for our car seat cover giveaway. Enjoy!


This post contains Amazon and other affiliate links.


Car Covers for Backseat: Bench Seat Cover with Split
Easy to install rear seat cover for car.

So, the Car Covers for Backseat were a necessity for us. We've had the car for almost 2 years now, so it is practically a new car, right? Not so much. Here goes... You might want to avert your eyes.


Split Rearseat Cover for Car
We desperately needed a Split Rearseat Cover for our Car.

What is that stuff? Well, there's some purple putty, blue candy, maple syrup, ketchup, chocolate milk, Florida sand, and maybe even some duck or chicken poo remnants. Yes, that's a big confession.


One day, after some Nerds (the candy) entered into the backseat, the seatbelt clicker broke. We tried to vacuum them out, but it was too late. RIP seatbelt.

Messy backseats. This fabric is unforgiving.


Another confession, we did attempt to clean the seat before installing the VersaVia Car Cover. We spent $5 sweeping it out and sprayed lots of vinegar and peroxide on it, but it was to no avail.

A bit of good news, we found lots of change and a few Nintendo DS games! Bad news, we even clogged the industrial vac at the carwash.

Mommy refused to sit in the backseat, so did Jake. Daddy would sit on a towel or chair pad. Sigh.

Then, our Split Rearseat Cover for Car arrived. It sat in the front entry for a week. We knew prepping the car was going to take some time. We also worried that the rear seat cover would be difficult to install. Wrong!

This installs in under 5 minutes. Super easy. It adjusts to the size of your seat, and it stays in position even when Mayhem is climbing around back there. If only, we had one BEFORE the mess.

Since we've installed it, The Littlest Pet Shop tiny bits don't fall between the fold or get stuck in the seat belt clicker...




Recommended:





Dr. Seuss Sue Snue: Celebrate Theodore Geisel's Birthday with this April Fool's Joke Cake Activity Trick for Kids

When is Dr. Seuss's Birthday? Celebrate with Sue Snue Birthday Party Activities

I bet Dr. Seuss, Theodore Geisel, liked to celebrate April Fool's Day. Why not celebrate his birthday with this joke shaving cream cake trick activity and read Sue Snue. Dr. Seuss's Birthday is March 2, 1904. Remember, it is Seuss, not Suess. Enjoy!


When is Dr. Seuss Birthday?
Theodore Geisel: Dr. Seuss.

Shaving Cream is Versatile. Mix up one batch and enjoy three fun, messy activities for kids. This is a fun way to celebrate a kids' birthday party!


Dr. Seuss Birthday activity for kids Sue Snue Shaving Cream Sensory Cake
Shaving Cream Sensory Play Ideas.

You will need:
1 can of Shaving Cream
Gel Food Coloring
Plastic Spoons
Cake Decorating Sprinkles
Birthday Candles
Recycle Plastic Containers
Paint Brush


Read "Who Are You, Sue Snue?" From Jim Henson's Wubbulous World of Dr. Seuss. Sue has a birthday and everyone in town wonders what she will do to celebrate. 


Who are you Sue Snue from the Wubbulous World of Dr. Seuss book
Who Are You, Sue Snue?
From Wubbulous World of Dr. Seuss.

Fun Kid's Activity #1
Mix up some shaving cream with a few drops of your favorite color of gel food coloring. Grab a clean, empty, cream cheese container, turn it upside down, and ice it like a cake. Add a candle on top. This is a great idea for Sensory Play!



Fake Shaving Cream Cake for Dr. Seuss Birthday and April Fool's Joke Ideas
Fake Shaving Cream Birthday Cake for playing 
an April Fool's Joke on your kids.

Cool Craft for Kids #1 Variation

The cake looks good enough to eat. Why not play a fun April Fool's Joke on a friend?



April Fool's Trick Ideas Pretend Play Birthday Cake for Preschoolers Activity Shaving Cream
Trick your children with this fake joke cake for April Fool's.


You might also like our Daisy Head Maizy (Maisy) Activities



Sensory Shaving Cream Cake for Preschoolers
Kiddie Version of  Shaving Cream Cake. 
Let your kids make a cake to play a trick on Dad.




Activity #2 
Grab a paint brush and paint the sidewalk with your leftover shaving cream mixture.


Shaving Cream and food coloring makes great sidewalk chalk paint recipe for kids
Summer Camp Shaving Cream Fun

Activity #3
After the kids have made a sufficient mess, use your left-over shaving cream "icing" in the bathtub.  It works great and cleans up easily. (They are going to need a bath!)



Colored Shaving Cream Sensory Play and Dr. Seuss Sue Snue



Recommended Reading:


Who Are You, Sue Snue? Birthday Book*

Daisy Head Mayzie Activities


*Special Thanks to Momto2PoshLilDivas for the cake idea.















ADS DISCLOSURE: We've partnered with some wonderful advertisers who may sponsor blog posts or send us samples to test. Some companies pay us to review their products.

*We also use affiliate links, if you make a purchase we get a tiny commission. Kids Creative Chaos participates in the Amazon LLC Associates Program*, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a mean for blogs to earn advertising fees by linking to Amazon properties, including, but not limited to, amazon.com, endless.com, myhabit.com, smallparts.com, or amazonwireless.com. We also offer Tapinfluence, Google Adsense, SoFab, and Izea ads here. Thanks so much for helping us keep the lights on! :)





How to make your own DIY Edible Face paint Ideas & Recipes & Build Self-Esteem: The Thing About Monsters is

How to make edible face paint and recipes for Toddlers and Kids of all Ages

Remember, You Can do it with Creative Play and a Can-do Attitude. Recently, we did a post about Monster Trouble (Our first KCC Kids Video) check out the fun here. SCROLL DOWN to see DIY Face Paint Recipes for face paint/makeup, lip gloss, sensory play and Witchy Me.


Monster Trouble?
Face Paint for Kids
Face Paint Kit by Alex Toys.

In the video in the post, a sneaky monster is made with items from our costume trunk/creative play stash and Alex Toys Face Paint Studio. Not once, have we posted pictures or recipes of our homemade and edible face paints. During our creative play and messy classes playing with face paint has been a staple. So, read on to discover many ways to create self-esteem, a fun day of creative play, how to make less of a mess, and enjoy the little time you have with your littles and not so little ones.


How to make edible face paint and recipes.
Sneaky Monster peeks out of the brush.


DIY Face Paint Recipe and Monster Face
I see you and your Monster Face paint.
It's hard to see, but he was modeled after the Connect a giant Monster kits above from Alex Toys. The Monster has a purple and green nose and red and orange eyes. This is a great kit for your older kids. Give them a mirror and a book of silly face ideas and let them go wild! Creative Play is a great self-esteem builder. Let them try out different faces, remove the paint with a little water or vaseline on a cotton ball, and be sure to tell them how great it looks. No buts or maybe ifs allowed.



Homemade face paint.
What's that you say? You don't want to have to clean up the mess? Put them in an empty tub the mess will clean itself, but make sure your little Max Factor helps. They might complain, but cleaning up after themselves teaches responsibility and independence. I can do it! Yes, you might have to tidy up- just don't complain about it.  You don't want your child thinking they can't do anything. If they can't even clean up after themselves they'll stop trying! So, count to 10, take a deep breath, and then say, I love how you are learning to clean up after yourself; it makes me so proud!

Do you want to be remembered as the Mom with the spotless house or the Mom who was so fun and positive? Your choice, you decide.



how to make your own face paint recipe
Crazy Blue Face Paint Fairy.

How to Make your own Face Paint (Recipe):

Cold cream, Food coloring, Cornstarch, Egg Carton.

Start with 1 C. of cold cream (Noxzema type)
Slowly mix in 1/2 to 1 C. cornstarch until it is a smooth, creamy consistency.

Divide into an egg carton or muffin tin.
Add 1-2 drops of food coloring. Experiment with more or less and color combinations.

Use cotton balls or paint brushes to paint a masterpiece on your face.

Most colors will wear off quickly or wipe off easily with water due to the cold cream. Sometimes, yellow requires a little petroleum jelly to remove all the residue. 

With experimentation you can get professional results with these ingredients. It does dry and get crackly. Some kids don't like this sensation others think it's cool.

Homemade Face paint and makeup recipes for Toddlers and Preschool.
Homemade Face paint and makeup recipes.

Make your own Edible Face Paint for Preschoolers and Toddlers:

Caregivers, do you need 20 minutes of me time? This is AMAZING. If you don't want to leave the little alone in the bathroom spread an old, white sheet or vinyl tablecloth on the floor. Cornstarch, food coloring or colored drink mix, water, white flour, big spoons, and mixing bowls.

Start with 1/4 C. of flour
Mix in 1/2 C. of cornstarch or powdered sugar (think icing)
1/2 to 1 C. Cool Whip (Readiwhip doesn't work.)
Sift with fingers to mix and enjoy the sensory aspects.
Slowly add 1/4 to 1/2 C. water stir with spatula
Water and cornstarch make an interesting science experiment so make sure to add the flour and Cool Whip first. Mix to a creamy icing consistency ~ Spreadable.
Divide into egg carton and add food coloring or Drink Mix powder (Kool-Aid) works best.

The little will have a blast studying their face and admiring their handiwork  Let them remove their shirt and paint tattoos on their belly or  bugs on their hands. This is a fun way to teach babies eyes, nose, mouth, etc.

The ingredient measurements are guidelines. Warm water vs. cold, warm house vs. cool all of these can affect the makeup- experimentation is key.

Mixing paint is great for fine motor skills and sensory learning.
Mixing paint is great for fine motor skills and sensory learning.


Kid’s Yummy Lipstick Recipe:

Petroleum jelly, honey, maple syrup, or non-imitation vanilla, unsweetened drink powder for color and flavor.

Put Petroleum jelly into microwave safe dish

Microwave the petroleum jelly for 30 seconds to one minute until 

warm, remove and stir.

Add Kool Aid and Honey

Mix well
Spoon into gift containers, refrigerate.

Changing Hair Color:

Experiment with Conditioner or Petroleum Jelly and unsweetened drink powder, & Baby Powder. Spray Aqua Net to set the color. May take several washings to wash out. We found a YouTube Video here.



Happy Halloween and Haunting  or Go break a leg!



Recommended Reading:

More fun things to do with Marshmallows Activities

Fun Games to Play with Marshmallows for Quiet Time

Here are three children's activities using Marshmallows that are oh so fun for children. Marshmallows are a quick way to steal a few second of quiet time. Kids love them with all their puffy squishy goodness they are fantastic for sensory play. Want to add an element of Messy Play? Just add water or edible paint and make marshmallow prints. 


photo of marshmallows fun for children activities
Marshmallows are the perfect companion for kids quiet time.

Recommended Reading:

Marshmallow Fun for Advent

Gingerbread Marshmallow Man

Marshmallow Game

Vlog Tutorial Easy Preschool Torn Paper OWL Craft

Easy Fall Craft Activity for Kids Torn Paper Owl

We made a Vlog Tutorial with our Messy Play Class. This Torn Paper Owl Craft is an easy activity for preschoolers. The kids had a blast tearing their construction paper.  Enjoy!


Easy Preschool Torn Paper OWL Craft


Tearing the paper gives the activity a sensory play element. The glue is sticky and messy too. Make note if your child is especially upset with the sticky glue on their hands, they may have sensory issues.

Recommended: Little Owl's Night Early Childhood Development*



School Lunch Bag Ideas

Fun Ideas for a Cool School Lunch Bag

Pack a lunch for school everyday? What to pack in the school lunch bag is tricky. Will they eat it? Do they need something for bartering? Is a fancy lunch box necessary? Sometimes, like field trip days or summer camp days, you need to pack a sack lunch rather than a lunch box. We're sharing fun ideas for the coolest sack lunch ever. Enjoy!

This post contains affiliate links for your convenience.*


Fun School Lunch Bag Ideas
Fun School Lunch Bag Ideas with Pepperidge Farm® Goldfish Crackers.
We headed to Walmart for a great value on pack-able lunch items. All good school lunches deserve Pepperidge Farm® Goldfish Crackers! These are always are go to snack for after school snacks. Their back-to-school bins are full of things you'll need from school supplies to fun snacks to hand sanitizers. So, we grabbed some Wet Ones® Individual packs too. They make it easy for kids to clean their hands after messy food, and they kill 99.9% of germs.

Shopping at Walmart for our lunch items.
Shopping at Walmart for our lunch items.
As a fun surprise, we like to draw games on the lunch bags. This week, we played Fish Tac Toe and Jumping Jellyfish with our Pepperidge Farm® Goldfish Crackers (Cheddar and Pretzel). You can also play with the multi-color crackers, you only need two different colors and a friend. To play Jumping Jellyfish download the free printable instructions, and pop them in your child's lunch bag with their favorite lunch item and Wet Ones® Individuals.

Lunch Bag Ideas: Draw Fish Tac Toe or Jumping Jellyfish on your child's lunch bag.
Lunch Bag Ideas: Draw Fish Tac Toe or Jumping Jellyfish on your child's lunch bag.

Print out these instructions for how to play Jumping Jellyfish, and place them in the lunch bag with a fun note.


Free printable instructions for the game
Go here for the free printable instructions for the game.


We found this fun idea to print images or notes on your lunch bag at Cottage Hill. They even share a fun way to make an egg basket.


Print images or notes on school lunch bags.
Print images or notes on school lunch bags.

You might also like these Peanut-free school lunch ideas or Creative Lunch Ideas for kids.

Quick Breakfast on the way to School:
If you are in need of Fast Food before school, but don't have the time or money to make a run to a restaurant- make your own! If you are running late or heading on a road trip, pack a fast breakfast.

We grabbed a lunch bag and filled it with individual Wet Ones, a banana, fruit snacks, juice pack, and a pancake on a stick (you can also use corn dogs). The corn dog or walking pancake microwaves in less than a minute. Wrap it it a paper towel, and toss it in the lunch bag. The kids can enjoy "breakfast" on the way to school.


Recommended:

Lunch Bag Crafts

Pinkalicious: School Lunch*

Paper Bag President Puppets

The Best Homemade Kids' Lunches on the Planet*



This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Wet Ones® + Pepperidge Farm® . The opinions and text are all mine.















ADS DISCLOSURE: We've partnered with some wonderful advertisers who may sponsor blog posts or send us samples to test. Some companies pay us to review their products.

*We also use affiliate links, if you make a purchase we get a tiny commission. Kids Creative Chaos participates in the Amazon LLC Associates Program*, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a mean for blogs to earn advertising fees by linking to Amazon properties, including, but not limited to, amazon.com, endless.com, myhabit.com, smallparts.com, or amazonwireless.com. We also offer Tapinfluence, Google Adsense, SoFab, and Izea ads here. Thanks so much for helping us keep the lights on! :)


Easy Edible Glue or Paste Recipe for Toddlers and Preschoolers

Kid-friendly Recipe for Edible Glue for Toddlers and Preschoolers 


We make this kid-friendly recipe for edible glue for toddlers and preschoolers in our messy play class. It is easy to make, the kids can even help make the edible paste. Enjoy!


Easy Edible Glue Recipe for Paste Preschoolers Toddlers Babies
Easy Edible Glue Recipe for Paste Preschoolers Toddlers Babies.

Teaching Kids to Deal with Stress can be as Easy as Coloring

Michelle from lifeismylemonade.blogspot.com is guest posting again today. The stress of school and work is getting to me! This is only our second year of homeschooling a gifted fourth grader and a dyslexic, hyper, frustrated second grader. (I resemble all of those remarks) I just started a new online venture. So, it makes me laugh when Michelle asks, 


Are you overworked and stressed out? 

De-stress with a little coloring session with the kids.


That's a big fat Y-E-S! Thankfully she has some reminders for me about how truly simple it can be to chill out. Unless you are like Jake... 

Since school has started, all we seem to do now is run, but it only takes a few minutes to treat yourself to a stress break. When my daughter needs a stress reliever, I often suggest drawing as a way for her to relieve her tension. How simple is that? The eco-friendly, Green Rainbow Revolution has several great products to help you along the path of de-stressing. Surf through the eco-friendly items and treat yourself to a much deserved break. My favorite-hmm that’s hard to decide between the colored pencils and the pastels.

What is your favorite medium?

destress your day with coloring
This is one of the happier chores we have to squeeze into our busy schedule
My daughter and her friends choose colored pencils as their medium of choice. It’s a great way for them to relax from the drama of school and be creative. If you sit down to color with your younger kids they are more likely to share things about their day. Ask them to draw a picture of their favorite and least favorite parts of the day. When you join in the fun with them it is a great way to open the lines of communication and bond over a good creative session.  


Let your inner child loose. There's nothing more important than play.


Colored Pencil Drawings Flamingo
How about a pink flamingo pencil drawing like this one from Lexi Murphy.

Have fun chatting with your children while you draw, color, and let the conversation flow. You never know what you might find out while creating your works of art. During one of the creativity gatherings the girls opened up, and I found out about their favorite teachers and least favorite. I also found out that they like to create characters. So, no matter what age you are, art supplies will come in handy on a stressful day.  

No kids-not a problem! Host an arty party for your friends. Even if you have a moment where the creativity is not flowing; there are fun kits to help you de-stress. You can play art class instead of painting nails or selling catalog products! Bring some whimsy back into your life and laugh, just like you did when you were a kid. Anyway, I’m off to see what doodles the girls created today. Will it be a caricature of the crush of the week doodled on their school sketchbook? Or maybe it will be their latest fashion designs done with those pastels to create the correct shading. And, who doesn't have fun getting messy while blending? Okay, well, maybe not everyone, but this girl at heart loves to get messy while doing a little pastel blending.

Happy Creating and De-stressing!
Sign up for our free newsletter! Follow Me on Pinterest
--> 

How to Make Salt Dough Recipe: Self-Portrait Ornaments

How to make Salt Dough Self-portraits as Ornaments

Did you ever wonder how to make salt dough? We made self portraits for a homeschool art project. I included how to make homemade clay and a few salt dough recipes. These mini-mes are a great companion project for a preschool or kindergarten learning body parts lesson. You can also make Christmas Tree Ornaments from Salt Dough. We played around with a variety of themes during our homeschool art lesson. Enjoy!


This post contains affiliate links for your convenience.*



How to Make Salt Dough Recipe Christmas Ornaments Decorations
Salt Dough Holiday Ornament Recipe.





Make a Halloween Tree with Homemade Dough Ornaments.


How to make salt dough self portraits Christmas Decorations
Self portraits from homemade clay and salt dough.





How to make dough Christmas ornaments
Make Christmas and Holiday ornaments by inserting straw to form a hole.

This recipe is for  how to make clay without cream of tar tar.


Salt Dough Recipe:




1 C. flour

1 C. salt


1/2 C. water


Mix together and knead.


When ready to cook, put on a baking sheet in 


oven at 100 degrees C/ 200 F for 2-3 hours.


Cooking is not necessary, leave your creations 


in a safe place to dry. We left these in a table drawer


and forgot about them.


When cool, paint or decorate with beads or candy.



Salt dough cookie faces.

You might also like how to make Homemade Clay with cream of tar tar.





We made these self-portraits about four years ago and forgot about them. They've sat in the end drawer of our dining room table ever since. They were never cooked nor painted.

Jake was about four years old and he hadn't met his elementary art teacher yet, but he still had an aversion to art. It was a sensory issue. He didn't like getting his hands dirty. He also worried about getting things on his clothes. If either of these happened, he would get very upset. I suppose this is where my love  of messy crafts was born.


I liked to be tidy as a small child too. I didn't play like the other kids on the playground, because I didn't want to ruin my leotards (today we call them tights) or get grass stains on my clothes. These things troubled me a great deal. So, I'd walk around the perimeter of the playground until the teacher blew the whistle. Little did I know, it was OCD. I've recovered, but some people don't appreciate it. The only way for me to stay sane is to embrace messy things. 


Yep, I didn't want Jake to struggle with the same wacky demons, so I encouraged sensory play.


Even now, he wants to hurry and complete the project so he can wash his hands. If we are mixing dough, he can't let it dry. You know, that crumbly, crackly feeling  on your hands? Mayhem and I like it. It's fun to let the dough dry and then scrape it off similar to letting school glue dry on your hands. I like seeing the fingerprints in the glue peelings. 


Jake? No way. I think this has a lot to do with his hatred of art, and then the teacher came along and made art a boring chore. 


He strives for self-inflicted perfection. He doesn't like the learning curve. He knows a lot. He is a gifted child. When he has to learn something new he is disappointed he didn't already know it. You can see the shame and the disappointment in his face. 


Recently, he had to take a Scantron test online, the test was smart. The more correct answers, the harder the questions. We told him to guess, but he refused. He labored over each question and made a very educated guess. In the end, he scored above average, but the test was torture. He cried with each question  for the first time aware he didn't have all the answers. 



Jake beginning his journey in art.


If only he could realize art works the same way, but it's better because there are no real answers in art. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I am the beholder here. I like his salt dough self-portrait the wavy hair and round face remind me so much of my happy, bouncy, little four year old.

Next week's journey, Animal Printmaking, proved very difficult for a neat freak. Smudges are a perfectionist's nemesis. Start here for Jake's Journey in Art 



Recommended Reading:

Air Dry Clay Projects

Minecraft Creeper Wood Carving Project

Christmas Dough Crafts

Salt Dough: More than 100 Projects! (American Girl Library)