{Playing Through Autumn Day 5} Cinnamon-Apple Chex Mix

I'm really not a cook by any stretch of the imagination (thankfully, my wonderful hubby is a fantastic cook, lest we all starve) but I do like to flex my baking muscles in the fall and winter. One of the first things I make every year in the fall is super yummy Cinnamon-Apple Chex Mix (for the recipe, click here). This stuff is great because not only is it delicious, it's super easy to make and you can do the whole thing in the microwave. I find this fantastic because you can get that first taste of fall without having to fire up the oven, just in case your local weather is still flirting with the 80 and 90 degree temps. This year I was extra excited to make a batch, knowing that I would have a little assistant helping me get the job done.

I have learned in my years of cooking with kids to follow a few cardinal rules: (1) Get everything ready before you even let them know you're going to be cooking, (2) make sure the rules are clear from the beginning and then keep reiterating them throughout the process (ex: Pouring the boiling butter mixture into the bowl is Mommy's job.), and (3) have someone else do the snapping of photos! Your hands will be busy enough as it is. And of course, HAVE FUN!

Pouring is definitely something in L's skill set, and we've been practicing for just such an activity in the past several weeks to make sure she would get as much out of it as possible. I shouldn't have been worried - she's a total pro!

She also rocks at stirring - although it was great having Daddy on hand to help when things got sticky. Literally.

Another really fantastic thing about making Chex Mix is that it really takes very little time, so it kept L's attention without a lot of lag time. Even while I was zapping stuff in the microwave, she was able to keep stirring, which kept her happy and engaged.

Watch out, now! That butter mixture gets pretty hot! Luckily, L was ready to blow on it a bit to help cool it off.

The finished product was as beautiful as it was tasty, and our whole house smelled like cinnamon and brown sugar. Absolutely heavenly! Such a great way to spend an afternoon!

Do your kids enjoy cooking? What kinds of things do you like to create together?

{Playing Through Autumn Day 4} Autumn Sensory Bottles

For anyone who has spent any time on this blog, it's no secret that I am a huge fan of sensory play. I love it in bins, bathtubs, wherever I can find a space for it. I'm also especially fond of portable sensory experiences, so I frequently find myself creating sensory bottles both for L and for the students in my class. I can't let September pass me by without making some fall themed sensory bottles, and this year I felt they turned out beautifully!

Bottle 1 (left): For the first bottle, I used white rice. I filled it with buttons, small figures, and embellishments in fall colors and shapes. When you give the bottle a turn, you find all sort of pumpkins, scarecrows, and squirrels peeking out at you. I found all of the small pieces in the button section at Hobby Lobby.

Bottle 2 (center): For the second bottle, I simply filled it with clear water and autumn leaf party confetti (also found at Hobby Lobby). The confetti swirls beautifully in the water and the reflection of all those different pieces creates the effect of gorgeous, golden water.

Bottle 3 (right): For the final bottle, I used small silk leaves along with miniature pumpkins, gourds, and pine cones. This one is a treat for both the eyes and the ears!

I chose these three bottles in particular because I wanted to present L with a variety of different fall objects and textures. Other great ideas for autumn sensory bottle fillers include acorns, sunflower seeds, small sticks, unpopped popcorn, bird seed, and straw. What would you add to the list?

{Playing Through Autumn Day 3} Painting with a Leaf

The "fall" part of autumn is upon us a little early this year in our area, as we have had nearly no rain all summer long. I'm a bit bummed by this, as I fear we won't see many leaves changing color this year. While that has me saddened, we do have an abundance of gorgeous crunchy leaves already littering the ground nearly everywhere we go. L has had a lot of enthusiasm for collecting these leaves, and I've been very encouraging in her venture. She really surprised me recently though, we she suggested we paint with one of the leaves she found. (Gasp! Perhaps my habit of presenting her with non-conventional art tools is rubbing off on her!) Anyway, I was ecstatic about her suggestion, so we got right to work using a leaf as a paintbrush.

We used brown and red paint on yellow paper (of course!) to work on this masterpiece. L thought the whole thing was really cool and I loved how self-initiated it was on her part.

The leaf was pretty dry, so a lot of it ended up crackling off and sticking to the paper courtesy of the paint. However, once the painting dried, it ended up having a really cool and unexpected textured look. L was so proud she couldn't wait to get it hung up in her play room!

Perhaps I'm biased as the mother of the artist, but I thought it turned out looking really awesome! Doesn't it just put you in the mind of leaves blowing on the wind?

{Playing Through Autumn Day 2} Books We Love: Fabulous Fall Board Books

The first thing I do when introducing L to a new experience is grab a boat load of books on the topic and board books are a no fail in our house - they are the perfect size and sturdiness for traveling with us everywhere we go. I began sprinkling autumn books into L's baskets and onto her shelves over Labor Day weekend, and of course, the first books I grabbed were from our autumn board book collection. I'll continue adding a few more every couple of days for the next several weeks. Nothing warms up a chilly autumn night like a cozy story with the family!

Fall: A Bright Baby Touch and Feel Book

I Love Fall!

Written by Alison Inches & Illustrated by Hiroe Nakata

Leaves

Written & Illustrated by David Ezra Stein

The Busy Little Squirrel

Written & Illustrated by Nancy Tafuri

Welcome Fall

Written by Jill Ackerman & Illustrated by Nancy Davis

Duck & Goose Find a Pumpkin

Written & Illustrated by Tad Hills

In My Tree

Written by Sara Gillingham & Illustrated by Lorena Siminovich

Did I miss anything magnificent? Leave your favorite off the list? Please let me know because I hate the thought of missing out on wonderful books! Be sure to stay tuned in during the coming weeks for more awesome autumn book recommendations. Happy reading!

New Series: Playing Through Autumn + Autumn Rainbow Rice

Autumn is my absolute FAVORITE season. It is such a feast for the senses - all the beautiful colors, the rich scents and flavors, the crisp air and the crunch of leaves. I am absolutely ecstatic to share all the wonders of the season with L this year (hard to believe she was barely walking at this time last year!). So I bring to you (with an abundance of pride and enthusiasm) our new series, Playing Through Autumn. Packed full of activities and experiences for really sharing the joys of autumn with all the wee ones in your life, it promises to be a pumpkin-flavored, orange-tinted, crisp breeze-filled adventure! Join us, won't you?

Playing Through Autumn {Day 1}: Rainbow Rice with an Autumn Flair!

For anyone who has been reading our adventures here, you know that I am a huge fan of sensory activities. One of L's favorite sensory materials is rainbow rice, which is super easy to make and so much fun! You simply put uncooked rice into a small Ziploc bag, add a glug or two of rubbing alcohol (it makes the colors really vibrant and helps the rice to dry quickly) and enough food coloring to get the color and brightness you desire and voila - instant sensory material! Just shake the bag to coat the rice evenly in the color and lay on waxed paper to dry.

For our autumn tub, I decided to go with orange, yellow, and red rice. Although most of the trees in our area are still green, I have begun hinting to L at the changes that will soon be upon us. 

For this particular sensory tub, I decided to add bowls, cups, and measuring cups - perfect for scooping and pouring. Now I can easily engage L in some conversation about all of the beautiful colors we'll soon be seeing, while she is happily engaged in one of her favorite activities.

There's more to come! Stick with us for many more engaging and creative autumn activities in the coming days and weeks!

Cardboard Tube Painting

I love presenting L with art activities that employ materials not traditionally used for creative purposes. I do this because I hope to instill in her a love of creativity and seeing things beyond what they are. As a preschool teacher, I generally never throw away an empty cardboard tube - be it from toilet paper, paper towels, cling wrap, what have you - so I decided to use one with L for a painting activity. So easy! We simply dipped the end of the tube in the paint and let the creative sparks fly!

This activity was great in the sense that we got to play with messy paint, but L also really enjoyed thwacking the cardboard tube onto the paper. Very satisfying from both standpoints!

We now have some pretty fantastic art hanging in our playroom, all because of a simple cardboard tube. What unconventional art tools have you tried with your kiddos?

Flower Power: Garden Sensory Tub

This post is from my personal archives, back when the air was under 110 degrees in the morning and the grass in our yard was still green. 

L and I are very lucky to attend/work for a preschool where gardening is part of the curriculum. The children and teachers are responsible for maintaining a garden where we grow food that we then eat as part of our meals and snacks. It's really quite amazing. As you can guess, this makes L very interested in things that grow, and even more so in DIRT. So I put together this sensory tub for exploring dirt and flowers, and it was a huge hit.

For this tub, I threw in a bag of soil and added silk flowers, a bucket, garden tools, and gardening gloves. L loved scooping and pouring the dirt, and she really surprised me by spending a good amount of time sniffing the earthy scent. Perhaps I have a future gardener on my hands?!