If you browse through Pinterest at all, you will see dozens of homemade play dough recipes. I have never attempted any of these because they all take time to cook, boil water, follow numerous steps, and then let cool for 4+ hours. When you've got 9 kids around, or any kids for that matter, the last thing you want is a project that they can't help you with and that takes forever to be done. Tuesday morning we found ourselves inside on a rainy day. Four kids were keeping busy with the indoor sandbox (http://ashlen-kidspert.blogspot.com/2013/07/indoor-sand-box.html), my hubby was home to help control things, and the flour was out on the counter from making the sand. So I thought, lets see what I can come up with! This is what I got:
I didn't use exact measurements for anything (sorry!) but the play dough recipe is something like this: flour (around 3-4 cups), water, vegetable oil (keeps it from getting sticky), 1 Kool Aid packet for color and smells (I made green and it turned out great!). Once everything was mixed together and I got the dough to a non-sticky (I had to add more flour and oil at one point) consistency, I put it in the refrigerator for a half hour while the kids were busy playing a game. When I took it out, I had to knead it for a bit to get it nice and soft.
This dough was not exactly like Play Doh, but more of a cross between Play Doh and a cookie dough. The dough was not sticky or messy at all so I didn't have to worry about the kids getting it everywhere and getting clothes messy. While it wasn't quite the dough I was going for, it got the job done and provided over an hour of fun for the kids. I especially like that I didn't have to cook this at all, the kids can help with the preparation next time, it's not messy, can be eaten if a child decides to try it, and another form of cheap entertainment for the kids. I got out some of the Play Doh accessories for the kids to use (scissors, plastic "knives," and shape cutters) and those worked well with this dough as well as cookie cutters.
Another rainy day activity success!