This is the first in 4 blogs of a Summer Series…..because we all love things to do with our kids in Summer.

Being outside in Summer is such a fun thing. There is nothing like Vitamin D therapy. I love being outside with my girls. We ride bikes, play on our swings or fort, on the trampoline or swim (whether in our neighborhood pool or in our kiddie pool). One thing my girls like to do is make a mess. I let them. It’s not difficult for them to make a creative mess. Just give them something that they can spread everywhere, be it sand, water, paint, etc.

One thing they enjoy is painting. We often paint in the bathtub because it is easy to wash away. You can’t leave them alone with paint though because it calls to them like the wild, and before you know it, paint is EVERYWHERE! And I mean everywhere! On the floor, on walls, all over them…….they take great delight in painting each other. So, anything that can be done outside is a bonus!

WASHABLE PAINT FOR KIDS

If we are going to be using paint it HAS to be washable paint for kids. We do not need another situation like the Sharpie Debacle of 2018 (it took forever to get it all off her legs!)

We tried a few recipes for fluffy sidewalk chalk and sidewalk paint. Fun was had trying, tweaking, trying again, playing. Finally we settled on the recipe we loved the most for fluffy sidewalk chalk paint. We call it a chalk paint because it does end up with a chalky feeling as it dries.

PUFFY PAINT RECIPE

What you will need:

• 1 cup flour
• ¾ cup water
• 1 cup shaving cream
• Food coloring
• Bowl
• Spoon
• Squeeze bottles or zip lock bags

What to do:

1. In a bowl, mix the flour and water together (as a slurry) so there are no clumps
2. Add the food coloring to the color you like (we always just add until we are happy) and mix
3. Fold in the shaving cream. Don’t forget to shake the can vigorously first!
4. Fill up the squeeze bottle by putting the mixture into a ziplock bag or grocery bag. Snip off a corner and pour into the bottle. (If you do not have a squeeze bottle, you can just leave it a ziplock bag. Make sure the bag is sealed tight and snip off the end.)
   
   **We use a grocery bag just because we have so many of them hanging around
   ** We bought a 2 pack of squeeze bottles at Dollar Tree 

I hope you have some fun with this. Don’t be afraid of the mess. It is nothing that a water hose or a bucket of water won’t fix (it also prolongs the fun!)

If you just want a normal sort of sidewalk paint (not the fluffy kind), check out this post.

Here are some of my other craft ideas…..perfect for any time, not just summer…….
DIY Cardboard Box Houses
French/Toilet Roll Knitting