Early this morning, before it got too hot outside to play, the girls and I put on some play clothes and set up a little “potion lab” in the backyard for some messy pretend play FUN!!
They seriously loved this!!!
We reused the same clear plastic bottles from our driveway painting and filled them with water and a little food coloring. A few funnels (from the dollar store), eye droppers (recycled from empty bottles of infant vitamins/medicine — I save those!), and measuring cups (dollar store) made it even more fun! The girls mixed, poured, and conducted “experiments” all morning long!
I love how Emily insisted on wearing eye protection — “It’s what REAL scientists wear, Mommy!”
Of course!
They soon became totally immersed in this colorful pretend potion lab world!! Behold — the mesmerizing power of WATER!
Easy, simple, and very frugal!
Have fun!!
I added this post to:
Link & Learn @ No Time for Flash Cards
Smart Summer Challenge @ Naturally Educational
July 11th, 2011 on 12:56 pm
This looks like lots of fun!
July 11th, 2011 on 12:56 pm
Dear Valerie,
I’ll have you know, Emily’s “Eat more meat!” shirt is definitely not play-clothes.
Love,
Mark
July 11th, 2011 on 1:00 pm
This looks fun. We did somethind similar last year, but made fairy potions & added organic materials from around the yard.
July 17th, 2011 on 5:06 pm
That’s a great idea!!
July 11th, 2011 on 1:18 pm
Love this! We did something like this a few weeks ago and also used baking soda, cabbage juice, and some vinegar. I love how excited kids are to learn about mixing things up
July 17th, 2011 on 5:07 pm
Great fun!! We’ll have to try that next time!
July 11th, 2011 on 1:58 pm
So cute! My kids have fun forever sitting in the baby pool with a couple inches of water and just dump and pour with their measuring cups and pitchers, etc. Adding some food coloring is such a simple idea but so much fun!
July 11th, 2011 on 2:18 pm
Looks like fun! I love Emily’s shirt!
July 11th, 2011 on 2:47 pm
I cannot get over how much fun this looks like! The colors are wonderful!
July 11th, 2011 on 2:49 pm
Add a little white vinegar and some baking soda next time and they will be quite surprised and thrilled.
July 17th, 2011 on 5:08 pm
Yes!! Totally going to give that a go next time around — I know they will LOVE it!!
July 11th, 2011 on 3:10 pm
I love all the colours. Glad they were wearing their protective gear
July 11th, 2011 on 3:55 pm
Pinning this one, Valerie.
Such a fun idea!
July 17th, 2011 on 5:08 pm
Thanks so much, Vanessa!
July 11th, 2011 on 3:56 pm
Hello. My son would love this. Thank you!
I see you use food coloring often in your crafts. I used to work with little ones and found that it stains pretty bad so we would use…
Colorations® Liquid Watercolor Paint by Discount School Supply. We used it for all our crafts and even for the water table. Let me know what you think.
http://www.discountschoolsupply.com/Product/ProductDetail.aspx?product=16821
July 17th, 2011 on 5:10 pm
Oooo… I’ll have to give those a try sometime. We usually use food coloring because we have it on-hand, but I’m sure we would use liquid water colors for lots of other fun art too! Thanks, Mena!
July 11th, 2011 on 4:45 pm
Looks great! The goggles really make it – though lab coats, and gloves would have been a nice touch, too
July 17th, 2011 on 5:10 pm
YESSS!!!!
July 11th, 2011 on 10:08 pm
I need that shirt.
This would be so much fun!
July 11th, 2011 on 10:36 pm
Boil, boil, toil and trouble… :0)
July 11th, 2011 on 10:43 pm
What a fun, simple idea! Can’t wait to try this out! (I’m a bit of a recycling hoarder… so many great bottles and canisters to just throw them out)
July 11th, 2011 on 10:50 pm
What a beautiful and colorful idea. Need to do it one of these days when we have time…
July 12th, 2011 on 12:11 am
I have plans for a lot of projects using repurposed bottles but really struggle removing the labels. How do you do it?
July 17th, 2011 on 5:12 pm
Just give them a good soak in very hot & soapy water — works every time!
July 12th, 2011 on 10:41 am
Soo much fun! Have you ever tried a couple of tablespoons of cornstarch with a little bit of water? It’s best to do it in a dish tub or a tray with a rim. Is it solid? Is it liquid. We have lots of fun with that.
July 17th, 2011 on 5:13 pm
Oh, we NEED to try that!!!
July 12th, 2011 on 3:22 pm
Imagine if you slipped in a little baking soda and vinegar without them knowing it. heehee… magic!
July 17th, 2011 on 5:13 pm
They would go nuts!!
July 12th, 2011 on 6:32 pm
I am doing this tomorrow!
July 12th, 2011 on 8:27 pm
totally our style! we love science..and we love color..and we love messes! perfect!
July 13th, 2011 on 9:08 am
This is great! Need to set up some cool bottles and colored water for my daughter! Great frugal fun!
July 13th, 2011 on 10:19 am
You’re brilliant…I’ll just keep saying it again and again!
July 14th, 2011 on 1:07 am
Just popping by to say my two girls (8 and 5 yrs) are doing this activity RIGHT NOW and they are completely absorbed by it. They sprinted outside when they saw it all set up…thanks for another fabulous frugal idea
July 14th, 2011 on 7:10 am
Follow up – they were at it for an hour and a half! 10/10 for this activity!
July 17th, 2011 on 5:13 pm
Yes, that is AWESOME!!!
July 15th, 2011 on 10:49 pm
All of us compulsive recyclables savers feel so much better when we visit your blog and realize “That’s why I save this stuff!!” This is such a great idea!
And every time I visit I remember, Oh yeah, this is that blog where the husband leaves funny and sweet comments for his wife and kids! So cute!
July 17th, 2011 on 5:11 pm
Hahahaha!!!
July 22nd, 2011 on 4:28 pm
So fun!! Thanks for linking up on the Smart Summer Challenge Val — our girls would have some SERIOUS fun together if we lived nearby!! : )
fondly,
pink and green mama
MaryLea
July 23rd, 2011 on 11:05 am
You’re welcome! Such great ideas listed there & I totally agree — if we lived nearby, it would be non-stop fun!!!
July 25th, 2011 on 5:06 am
I LOVE this and am off to set this up for my kids right now!!!! Thank you!
May 18th, 2012 on 9:35 am
A friend just posted this on Pinterest. I love when I come across your stuff there (I get to say I “know” her!). Anyway, this looks like so much fun. We’ll definitely have to try it as even big kids would enjoy this.