Taste Safe Rainbow Finger Paints

I finally found an amazing “recipe” for taste safe fingerprints. Sofie still points everything in her mouth, as I’m sure many one year olds do. So it’s no surprise that I’m constantly on the lookout for taste safe activities that can keep this busy toddler occupied for more than five minutes. She loves sensory activities so even though I knew this one would be messy, I figured I’d give it a go!

  • Yogurt

  • Food coloring

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This one is so simple to make because all you need is a big tub of yogurt and some food coloring and voila you have a fun little activity! I will say I was skeptical about how yogurt would really paint on but her paper. And to be honest, I probably would have done it differently had I known.

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Here’s the yogurt being colored! Super simple and just one drop of coloring really turned it bright pink!

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I wanted Sofie to be able to paint a little rainbow so I made these edible paints in rainbow colors. I made each one in the same tub to avoid doing dishes and just washed it as I went. Then I poured them into these plastic jars that I got at Michael’s for under a dollar!

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It was so much fun to make these rainbow colored paints that I almost didn’t want to let Sofie make a mess of them. But I went ahead and put some butcher paper down on the kitchen floor and taped it down with painters tape. In hindsight, I wish I had done it two layers thick because the yogurt was quite liquidy and it did deep through the paper. It was still pretty easy to clean up though.

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I put the paints up on her high chair for safe keeping while I got everything ready. But that didn’t last long — she was reaching for them as soon as she saw them. I stripped her down to her diaper so as not to get her clothes messy. Then I opened up one jar at a time and let her have at! Here’s the result:

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Looking for more great activities for learning colors?

Check out Goodnightfoxstudio.etsy.com Color Flashcards and use code FRIENDS15 to save!

Quarantine Valentines Activity for kids

For Valentines this year, kids aren’t at school or day care and can’t bring sweets to share. And without seeing family, it’s so hard for Sofie to connect with family and friends. So this year we decided to do some coloring postcards to send out to family and close friends. It was so much fun to color these. It was Sofie’s first experience coloring and she’s clearly still learning. But she loves holding the crayons and trying to eat them hahaha!

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So if you’re looking for a great Valentines activity I highly recommend checking these out! They even come with stamps so you don’t have to go out and get any supplies. Friends and family will love the hand drawn effect. And if your kids are a bit older, their friends will love connecting through snail mail.

Looking for a great Valentine’s Day quarantine activity?

Check out these adorable Valentine’s Coloring Postcards to send to friends and family and use code FRIENDS15 to save!

Valentine's Ice Cream Taste Safe Cloud Dough

The cloud dough was amazing and way better than the marshmallow dough we made last week. And it’s so easy to make!

  • 1 Cup Frosting

  • Corn starch (add until you get the right texture)

  • 2 Cups Confectioners sugar

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I let Sofie sit on the counter for this taste-safe activity — which I think I regret in the end! It was super messy before the ingredients were mixed and we ended up with sticky frosting all over the counter.

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Here we go with the frosting! After measuring out the sugar and dumping it in the bow, we started to scoop out the frosting. I had no idea how the sugar was going to make the frosting less sticky, but I figured I’d give it a shot. I have to say, I shriek at the mess these toddler sensory activities make. But I read so many good things about this recipe.

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Once everything was mixed together and kneaded completely, it started to get really fun! This cloud dough was amazing, so soft and moldable. And the more cornstarch you add, the more cloudy and soft it feels.

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Of course she had to try it! Luckily this dough is completely taste safe, so I wasn’t too worried. But there is always a fear of the sugar high, so I did encourage her to spit it out. Especially since she was taking such HUGE bites!

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This dough was so easy to roll out and mold and cut with a cookie cutter. It would be so great for molding into different shapes. We used it to make little ice cream cones. It was so much fun!

Looking for more great Valentine’s activities?

Check out Goodnightfoxstudio.etsy.com for some awesome Printable Valentines and Valentine’s Coloring Postcard kits!

Montessori Playroom - 5 Step Toy Storage & Organization

Despite every mom’s best effort to keep the toys and clutter to a minimum, we all know it’s near impossible. From Christmas gifts to birthday gifts to everyday messages from family and friends, toys simply get out of control. And of course, none of us have the heart to throw away our children’s favorites or even those toys that bring back the nostalgia for when they were teeny tiny babes.

So I purposefully designed my daughter, Sofie’s, playroom so that it can accommodate lots of toys, while also still being intentional and fostering creative play. I’ll be honest, curating the right toys took way more than just designing the room, so read on for all of the tips and tricks I use to keep Sofie’s space clean and organized.

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Step 1: Choose the right storage

Everyone always asks me where I got these awesome shelves! And the answer is Crate & Barrel. Even though they were so expensive, these Aspect Modular shelving units have been an absolute god-send. I love that you can customize the look you want. Do you have a lot of pretty toys that you want on display? Go with the open shelves. Hate to admit that you have some ugly or less used toys that you just can’t part with? Go with the drawer units to tuck them away. Playroom storage is the number one thing that will make your space look clean and curated. If you’re on a budget, this shelving unit from IKEA, along with some colorful or neutral storage bins can achieve the same effect. The key here is to really think about what you want on display and accessible vs. what you want tucked away.

I knew that I was going to need more storage than just a few shelves and drawers for Sofie’s collection. So I also snagged this awesome kids craft table from Crate & Barrel. I love that this one is super functional for when she’s old enough to sit and color or play a game. But for now, it’s an amazing way to store extra books and toys that won’t fit in her shelves. These shelves are also super accessible — she can pull toys and books out no problem and it’s easy for me to tuck them back away again.

Quick tips:

  • Use modular furniture so that as your kids age, you can rearrange and reuse as needed

Step 2: Organize open shelves

If you want your space to look clean and modern, you have to take great care to curate the open shelves. But it’s not all form over function. These are also the shelves that are most accessible to your kiddos. So look for a combination of toys that get a lot of use, and also look nice and match the overall color scheme you’re going for.

Obviously the rainbow playroom is a common color scheme — and one that I actually fought so hard against. But as I collected more and more toys, it pretty much became the default. Sofie has a toy subscription to Lovevery which we absolutely love because it puts the toy buying on auto-pilot. We don’t have to research toys specific to her age, we just enjoy what arrives in the mail each month. Pro tip: You can sign up to have friends gift or contribute to your box subscription! This is an AMAZING way to make sure that when you’re getting gifts, you’re getting things you actually need and things that you want and will look great in your space.

You’ll also want to balance the shelves looking full, but also giving them room to breathe. This works two fold — you want to make sure your child is playing with intention and not just grabbing absolutely everything on the floor. Per the Montessori method, intentional play starts with one toy or activity at a time and exploring it to its fullest. At the same time, if your shelves look empty or you can see a lot of open wall space, it won’t look like the optimal storage solution for what you have. To fill my shelves, but still keep them open and airy, I framed some GoodnightFox Playroom art which gives a nice colorful background and height to the shorter toys in the shelf.

Quick tips:

  • Have friends & family contribute to a toy subscription to keep everything looking cohesive and to optimize for the right toys for your child’s age

  • Use playroom art to add height to shelves with short toys

  • Match your toys to the overall color scheme of the room

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Step 3: Create a fun focal point

To have a great play space, it has to look like fun! So finding a focal point to the room that looks inviting and inspires play and imagination is key. I researched all of the well known options, from the Nugget Couch, the Pikkler Triangle, Ball Pits, and more. And ultimately, I landing on the ball pit and Pikkler triangle combo. I was lucky enough to have been gifted this amazing Crate & Barrel ball pit from Sofie’s aunt and uncle. The rainbow bridge and ball pit combination along with the mint-colored rug as an access point really bring the whole space together.

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Step 4: Organize drawers by theme

Okay, so call me crazy, but I love having a theme to each drawer. In part because it makes it way easier to put things back in their place after a play session. But also because it helps me focus our learning activities on one subject at a time.

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Food

I absolutely love having play food for Sofie! It’s such a great way for her to learn all of the different fruits and veggies without making a huge mess with real food. But I’ve collected so much of it now that the drawer is practically full. This is by far her favorite drawer and we pair it with these adorable Fruit Flashcards for matching practice.

Colors

It wouldn’t be a rainbow playroom without a drawer dedicated to learning our colors. I love these Pantone Color books because the cut outs help make them even more educational. Colored blocks and rings along with this teething toy make it both fun and functional. And of course, it wouldn’t be complete without Color Flash Cards to practice learning the rainbow.

Animals

It’s so much fun to teach Sofie about all of the different animal groups. I re-theme this drawer each season and we talk about the different types of animals. In winter, it’s the Arctic Animals, Spring the Farm Animals, Summer the Sea Creatures, and the Woodland Animals in the fall. This texture puzzle by Hape Toys in one of her all time favorites.

Mindfulness

Okay so I’ll admit that I probably like this drawer more than Sofie does. But I like to keep the real brain toys in this drawer. She loves playing with her stacking cups, her zen pebbles, and anything and everything with lids. Paired with the Mindfulness Flashcards, this drawer gives us an opportunity to talk & think together.

Shapes & Numbers

Of course, it wouldn’t be a great play space if we didn’t represent all classroom subjects. So this drawer is all about learning shapes and numbers. It’s so important for toddlers to be introduced to math concepts early. So pulling toys out of this drawer is especially brainy. Sofie loves her Lovevery coin purse and her Shapes Flash Cards.

Step 5: Make a reading rainbow!

So maybe you’re like me and you’ve tried everything you can think of to organize endless piles of books and between all of the different sizes and varieties, they end up just looking like a cluttered mess. Well, I never thought I would say this, but I am now a huge fan of the reading rainbow. Organizing all of Sofie’s books by colors has really brought a sense of unity to her overall play space.

Here are some tips to get you started:

  • Remove any books that are way too big or way too small, tuck these away in closed storage

  • Focus on the primary color in the binding

  • Fade colors together — if you have handful of different greens, put the teal or turquoise ones closer to the blue end to create a gradient fading effect.

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So there you have it! My 5 step guide to an adorable Montessori Inspired playroom that will keep your toddler entertained for hours. For Sofie, creating this play space made a huge difference in the way that we parent. Without it, we were constantly following her around the house, watching her every move, anticipating her every fall. Once we created a space dedicated to her, it was like magic. We could finally sit and watch her play and enjoy herself without focusing on the hazards all around her.

Most of the time, I help clean up after she makes a big mess. But I always feel great doing it because I know that every toy has its place. Through a combination of carefully curated toys (thanks to BabyList wishlist and Lovevery subscription), amazing playroom storage and organization furniture (thanks primarily to Crate & Barrel), Sofie’s playroom has been a huge success!

The Shopping List

If you’re looking for all of the great toys, furniture, etc. featured in this post check out the shopping list below.

Brighten up your playroom with these adorable toddler educational flash cards

Use code FREINDS15 for 15% off your order at https://www.etsy.com/shop/GoodnightFoxStudio?coupon=FRIENDS15