Today was a real scorcher, but the girls still wanted some outside play time (and of course some sort of art is aways a necessary part of our day). I had some very inexpensive “paint with water
If you’re afraid of messy paint, this is the project for you!
Since the ice cube melts relatively slowly, Clara was able to paint her picture nicely without dumping so much water on it that the pages tear.
Next, we brought out the Aqua Doodle
mats, but again painted with ice cubes on them. These mats are a wonderful mess-free way to enjoy painting and drawing!
mats, but again painted with ice cubes on them. These mats are a wonderful mess-free way to enjoy painting and drawing!
Once the mat is covered in doodles, wait for it to dry, and then start drawing all over again!
Clara thought this was a great way to cool off!
They had so much fun, that I had to bribe them with homemade chewy granola bars to get them to go back in the house.
Stay cool, and have fun!!
June 23rd, 2010 on 4:39 pm
this is great! i've been thinking lately about making some ice cubes filled with food coloring and then using that to paint on watercolor paper.
June 23rd, 2010 on 5:21 pm
Those are excellent ideas.
June 23rd, 2010 on 5:26 pm
How fun! Did their little hands get cold?
June 23rd, 2010 on 5:44 pm
@ Rebecca — On a day like today, no, but it was sooooo hot outside!
June 23rd, 2010 on 5:44 pm
@ Childhood Magic — I've never tried that. Let me know how it turns out!
June 23rd, 2010 on 6:26 pm
I've seen blog posts about using ice cubes with food coloring, but I really like your idea! We love our paint with water books AND our aquadoodle mats, and I bet my kids would LOVE this twist on both activities!
June 23rd, 2010 on 6:30 pm
I love this fun and "cool" idea!
June 23rd, 2010 on 6:53 pm
What fun! We just picked up a reuseable paint with water book – I'll keep the ice cubes for when the hot weather hits.
June 23rd, 2010 on 7:28 pm
oooooh I've never thought about using ice cubes on the aquadoodle great idea!
Where did you find your inexpensive paint with water books? I haven't been able to find any here.
June 23rd, 2010 on 8:42 pm
@ The Activity Mom — You can order them from Amazon, and I included a link in the beginning of the post, but you could just do a search for "paint with water" and they carry lots of them. Some are only $0.82! Have fun!!! My girls love paint with water books.
June 23rd, 2010 on 8:50 pm
These might be your best ideas yet!! (Or close.)
June 23rd, 2010 on 8:59 pm
Valerie…. How fun! And a great way to keep cool. I'll have to look for some of these water color books….. I don't think I've seen them in a long time…
June 23rd, 2010 on 9:06 pm
Completely unrelated to your post, but I love Emily's shirt! That fabric is too too cute.
June 23rd, 2010 on 10:14 pm
Hmmmm, and you add in some food dye and it'd be just like painting.
June 24th, 2010 on 3:18 am
You always have such great ideas! You brain must be working non-stop! You have beautiful little girls ~ what a joy!
June 24th, 2010 on 5:41 am
This is going on my summer bucket list! Fantastic!
June 24th, 2010 on 7:14 am
fun! we sometimes put the pages outside when it's drizzling and let the rain paint for us!
June 24th, 2010 on 7:20 am
@ Anna — Thank you! She gets so many compliments on that shirt, and I'm pretty sure it came from Target. I wish they made them in my size!
@ Christy — That makes me really happy!!!
@ danita — I love that idea!
June 24th, 2010 on 8:10 am
Thanks for the great ideas! Will do that this week with little one.
June 24th, 2010 on 1:30 pm
AWESOME! It's so hard for ER to use watercolor paints and she wants to so bad. What a great idea.
June 24th, 2010 on 6:17 pm
Oh, The girls are so adorable! This is a great project for a hot summer day!
Check your credit
June 24th, 2010 on 9:25 pm
Awww what a great cooling off project My kids would just lick them. lol
June 25th, 2010 on 2:21 pm
That's a superb idea. I need to try this with my children because I always hate doing the messy water projects. And this will keep them cool while they do it outside. Great idea, thanks!
June 26th, 2010 on 2:46 am
Wow ! how sweet those child . I remember my childhood just see them.
June 26th, 2010 on 5:00 pm
This is great. Anna's preschool camp had them paint with ice cubes made with coolaid which increased the fun factor even more. I love all the pictures and have a wonderful time in Vermont!
June 26th, 2010 on 7:38 pm
I would think this idea to make your own "paint with water" would work with the ice… and I know I have a link to some sort of colored ice painting somewhere but I'll be darned if I can find it. Maybe it was Kool-Aid? Not a bad idea! I linked on my weekly roundup, thanks as always and hope you're having a super trip!
June 27th, 2010 on 1:43 pm
What a great idea! Thanks so much.
http://www.mibargainmom.blogspot.com/
September 7th, 2010 on 9:05 pm
I have also seen people add food coloring and paint on regular paper– fun treat!
Janel