Edible Paint

I am SO excited to be sharing my very first post with you all that you may actually be interested in, instead of just being rambly (< that really should be a word) and completely inconsistent! I am also squealing on the inside because these adorable babes that are featured are my wonderful nanny babies (now toddlers, tear) and I just cannot wait for summer to roll back around. They make the absolute cutest baby-friendly-art-activities guinea pigs!

So let’s get started!

Drum roll please….

Baby Friendly Finger (er body, rather) Paint!

This recipe is the perfect summertime fun for your littlest one!

First off, you should know that I love the messy stuff! Do not be afraid to let your babe get down and dirty! Messes are totally a-ok in my book, and even makes for more fun most of the time!

The best part? It’s super easy to make.

Here are the ingredients:

• A baby or two (or three or four – can also substitute with a toddler)
• Fat free plain yogurt
• Sugar free Kool-Aid mix (a variety of colors)

That’s it! Nifty, right?

Really any edible, white substance mixed with any edible, colorful powder should work! You could totally get creative and add things to your paint to give them different textures for more of a sensory learning experience too, just make sure everything is still edible!

I used small plastic condiment containers for the paint and just a big sheet of white paper laid out on the grass.

The only hard ingredient to find if you don’t already have it at home is a baby. I do not recommend running out of the store with one that you didn’t go in with. ;)

I would say it is pretty self-explanatory, but you just mix the ingredients together! Well, minus the baby… you will use that later. The more Kool-Aid you add, the brighter the colors (uh-duh). 

You totally know it’s easy when there aren’t even measurements, so c’mon you can totally do this! Your kids will thank you.

If you are anything like me, this activity is even fun for you. I had a blast taking photos while they just had at it.

Here is a look at how our activity went. PS it kept them entertained for even longer than I thought it would, probably the better half of an hour!

I am hitting myself for not taking a before picture, so I am going to put this one right here and pretend like it was taken the same day.

It wasn’t long (I’m talking like, 30 seconds) before 75% of the paint went directly into their mouths. Smart babies just grabbed the little cups full of paint and basically drank the yogurt like they hadn’t been fed all day. I promise I was not starving them!

For a while, both babies were totally confused about the slimy texture all over them. They reacted so similarly and I thought it was too funny and so unexpected! Something about their feet resting on the slimy paper must’ve bothered them, but not to worry, that did not last long at all!

Balancing act!

The end result, two very messy, colorful, adorable, happy babies!

*Correction: Two very messy, colorful, adorable, happy (until bath time) babies…

It doesn’t look so bad in this photo, but TRUST ME, we had a few minutes of straight screaming! I don’t blame them though; I hate bathing too. 

Such a big hit!

Here is why I love this:

• Develops the senses
• Encourages creativity
• Messy – fun!
• Beyond easy
• Super cheap
• Baby friendly – edible (& even pretty healthy)
• Takes advantage of the outdoors – fresh air and sunshine, can’t beat it!

If you try this super fun activity with your kiddos, I would LOVE to hear about how it went, learn about any variations you made, and/or see photos of your adorably messy youngins, so please comment below. Don’t be shy!

Change is good. Kids are great.

This blog is taking a huge left turn. SHOOT, does this mean I have to come up with a new name for my blog?! Erhggg I was pleasantly surprised with my cute little alliteration. Okay wowza I am already getting off track. Back to the point… I have finally realized that it is nearly impossible (unless you are superhuman, which I regretfully admit that I am not) to have a blog without a theme. I cannot tell you the number of posts that I started to type up and then realized, “wow, this strays so far from my last post, nobody is going to stick with me”. That is why I have been a bit MIA lately, to say the least. Sounds a little depressing if you ask me, but it is totally a BOOYAH moment because I have finally come to my senses after being extremely stubborn and insisting that I could not decide on just one topic and convincing myself that I could just do them all.

The big change you ask? Well, it may sound a bit strange coming from a college student who lacks children of her own (definitely a good thing < it is REALLY hard for me to convince myself of that truth), but I am going to focus my blog around kids. Ideas for fun activities and adventures, science experiments, artwork, DIY’s, learning and teaching techniques, disciplining, my experience, my future, you name it. If it’s about children, you will find it here. Okay that is probably a lie, I am definitely no kid genius (Heck, I only – and very sadly – spend about three hours with children a week while I am at school!) so not EVERYTHING will be here, but I do have a few things up my sleeve.

Most of you probably could not care less about this, and it is just confirmation that you can stop reading my blog now – which is totally cool, I’m serious; I’m not heartbroken... really. BUT, if you find yourself struggling to get through this long and slightly sporadic post because of a tantrum going down, an insistent tattletaling munchkin, or a teething (screaming) baby, then this blog is just for you!

This blog is, starting now, going to be geared towards mommas with youngins, my future self for a portfolio reference (woohoo!), teachers and preschool/daycare teachers alike, nannies, babysitters, and anybody in between!

I certainly have to give credit in advance to many people (and Pinterest) for giving me superb ideas and techniques that I have found to be absolutely amazing! The first person that comes to mind is the lead teacher at the Preschool that I work in for my lab. She is so amazing. The skills that I have already taken away from her modeling are more than I ever thought possible! Don’t tell, but it makes me a little jealous to see her work better with the kids than I do. If you know me, you must know how hard that is for me to witness, nonetheless admit!

Hopefully I will be updating my blog here very shortly with activities and such that I have done in the past. These upcoming posts will mostly include art activities that I have done with the kiddos that I nanny and lab activities (math and science/art/large movement) that I have organized and executed!

PS I am super excited now, so I may even post an activity this weekend! Check back soon and often & comment to tell me what kinds of things you would like to see!

PSS: I am doing an art activity relating to the theme of construction at lab here pretty soon. I am super excited about it so if it goes as planned I will definitely be writing about it and including tons of photos!

PSSS?? If you can think of any clever new blog names for me (*sad face*) that actually relate to this topic, let me know! Nanny Hanney? SO cheesy, like loads and loads of cheese (uhm, yum!), but it is true, I have been referred to as Nanny Hanney before.

And of course, I can't talk about children without posting a photo of them. 

Me in my natural habitat (& all three kiddos looking at the camera?! Neat!)

Thankful for Friendship

Feeling tired but I am unable to sleep. Naturally, I go looking for something to entertain me and I end up looking at old photos. I love going back a little ways on my Facebook or Instagram and reminiscing on the past. It is fun going back really far and looking at yourself as a small child, but it is also really fun to look at photos from just a few weeks to several months ago. Those are the ones that make you feel especially grateful. I look back to just over a year ago when so many friendships were forming. Within 24 hours of moving into my dorm at Ball State, my roommate and I had already begun to form a friendship that would turn into something amazing. The second day here, before classes had even started, I met the guy who would ask me to date him a month and a half later, and who is now my boyfriend of over a year. That same weekend, one of the strongest groups of friends I have ever had formed, and we continue to refer to ourselves as “La familia”. These seven people have stuck with me through every single day of my college life, and I do not expect that to ever change. We are all extremely different from one another, but we came together like two very strong magnets (sorry for the cheesy pun) that nobody would ever be able to pull apart. Each of these people offers something so unique to the group and I cannot thank them enough for having such a huge impact on my life already.

I could easily write a ten-page paper talking about all the things I love when it comes to the seven of them, but I’ll keep it short and sweet:

Becca is the best roommate I could have ever asked for (no wonder I’m living with her for all four years) and always has open ears for me to vent to. I know I can blow my steam when I’m with her and she won’t judge me no matter what. I don’t know if we have actually matured or if we finally got the hint when our neighbors banged on the wall at 3am, but that late night craziness last year made me realize that there is somebody out there that can be [almost] as obnoxious as my somehow-introvert self.

Ian is an absolutely wonderful boyfriend and I am so blessed that I have somebody that constantly and consistently has a shoulder for me to lean on. He is so encouraging and makes me a better person when I’m in his presence. It feels like I have known him for years because he knows me better than most anybody else. He is so trustworthy, fun, and sincere.

Hayli has proven to be such a good friend as I’ve gotten closer to her in college. She is always around to keep me good company. It’s been so awesome having a constant from high school to college to ease the transition. I love that we have high school friendships in common so we have each other during the summer as well as the school year.

Mitch is the absolute best at keeping me sane. He knows what’s up and isn’t afraid to tell me when I’m being ridiculous, but he’s also the best at comforting me when I unexpectedly burst into tears. I know Mitch will be a friend that sticks around for a lifetime… He told me so.

Connor is most definitely one of the funniest people I have ever met. He is always busy and lives way too far from us, but when I do spend time with him he never fails to surprise me with his witty comments and ridiculous (sometimes questionable) actions. There is never a dull moment with Connor Onion in the room. We share the fun in having unique last names (his definitely wins), and we like to refer to ourselves as “Hannah Cream and Connor Chips”… Get it?

Beth is so fun-loving and wild, but definitely has a super sweet side that I love. Beth lights a room up with her presence. I always enjoy the time that I spend with Beth, especially when her and Connor are in the same room!

Abbie is sweet and quiet, and definitely balances out the rest of us. She made a super boring class a little more bearable. When Abbie does speak up, it’s usually an extremely random text in the group message that sparks a hilarious conversation.

These ^^ are the people that everybody is talking about when they say, “college is where you meet lifelong friends”.    

First Christmas together as La Familia!

Pool party and cookout

Lambda Chi Alpha formal - Mitch, Ian, and Connor all joined the same fraternity!
(Just missing Hayli!)

La Familia's 2nd annual Christmas party