Making Stuff

Thank you for all of your kind responses to my previous post. Carolyn, your post about friends being like clothes really resonated with me.

Today's topic is much lighter. It involves me making stuff. I made the finger paints the kids are using to create their art. A friend shared her easy recipe with me and the kids had fun one snowy afternoon making paintings with it.

What else am I making? Two days ago I gave ricotta cheese a try. It turns out all you need is a slow cooker, milk and an acid of some sort. I love ricotta. I hate how much it costs. I am so glad my experiment worked out!

Yesterday Richard made us churros. There is no photographic evidence of this. They were too tasty to stay on the plate long enough to snap a picture! Can anyone tell me the difference between a churro and a cruller? They seem very similar in taste and texture.

Have you made anything lately?? (Beds don't count!)

PS Here is my finger paint recipe:

From: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf684159.tip.html

This is a washable finger paint. I have had luck cleaning it out of just about everything. That doesn't mean it won't stain some objects or clothing, though. If your kids are small enough you can make an "art shirt" for them out of a plastic grocery bag (or even a thick department store bag). Just cut holes for their head and arms, then have them wear it like a shirt. It doesn't cover their arms but it will keep them from wiping paint on the front of their shirt.

• 2 Tablespoons Sugar
• 1/3 Cup of cornstarch
• 2 Cups water
• 1/4 Cup dish washing soap
• food coloring

Put the sugar and cornstarch in a saucepan and then slowly mix in cold water. Then cook the mixture over low heat for 5 minutes, stirring constantly until you have a smooth gel. Let cool and then add dish washing soap. Divide into as many containers as you would like colors and then mix in food coloring drops until you have you desired color. If you have colored dish washing soap that can influence all the colors you try to create, which isn't always a bad thing.

Tip: Use baby food jars to divide and store the paint! They are a perfect size for kids to dip their fingers or brushes into and they can be sealed easily if you have leftover paint.

Jen's tips: I used Wilton gel food colouring to get the bright colours you see in the pictures.

Be sure to cook the cornstarch mixture down to a thick pudding consistency. Adding the soap later thins out the paint a surprising amount. Make sure you like the smell of the soap you are using. Your art will smell like it even after the paint has dried.