water – Whole Heartily

DIY – Bee Watering Station

Whether you keep a garden or not, bees are so essential to the plant life around us! They need water too, and sometimes sources of water are too deep for them to safely reach. To aid the bees while they are pollinating our plants, let’s create a decorative water dish for them to safely get a drink and keep moving!

SUPPLIES

1 plant saucer
1 plant pot (smaller than the plant saucer)
Small, foam paint brush
Paint palette (or a tray for your paint)
Non-toxic acrylic paint
Mod Podge
Glass gem marbles

INSTRUCTIONS

Wipe the plant pot and saucer clean with a damp rag and allow to them to dry.
To prime and seal the plant pot and saucer, spread an even layer of Mod Podge on them with a small foam paint brush. Allow them to dry before switching sides and/or applying new layers.
Once the Mod Podge is dry, begin painting the plant pot and saucer with whichever color of non-toxic acrylic paint you prefer! Allow them to dry before switching sides and/or applying new layers.
Apply the paint in layers until you’re happy with the color and texture.
Once the paint is dry, seal the plant pot and saucer again with even layers Mod Podge. Allow them to dry before switching sides and/or applying new layers.
Once the Mod Podge is dry, flip the plant saucer over and find its center. Place the bottom of the plant pot centered on the bottom of the plant saucer and use a pencil to trace around the edge.
Remove the plant pot and carefully apply an even trail of glue just inside the traced circle on the bottom of the plant saucer.
Immediately place the bottom of the plant pot on the bottom of the plant saucer over the circle of glue and press down gently. Leave the assembled water dish as it is, upside down, for at least 24 hours to dry before moving it.
Now, Mod Podge should be left to fully cure for at least 3 weeks before filling the dish with water. Allow the Mod Podge to fully cure before moving on to the next step!
Once the Mod Podge has fully cured (you will know it is when it is no longer tacky to the touch), fill the water dish with glass gem marbles and then with water.
Place the Bee water station outdoors to hydrate those bees!
Enjoy!

Homemade Play Dough Recipe

Part of the fun in raising Zoey is making things that delight her; I want to create fun, educational crafts for her that are made with love and will be loved! I see much play dough in our future, and while buying it is always a viable option, how fun and cost effective is it to make some on your own?

So let’s make some homemade play dough!

SUPPLIES

Large saucepan
Wooden spoon
Wax paper
Gloves
Sandwich bags

INGREDIENTS

2 cups of all-purpose flour
3/4 cup of salt
4 teaspoons of cream of tartar
2 cups of warm water
2 tablespoons of vegetable oil
Food coloring

INSTRUCTIONS

Place the cream of tartar, flour, and salt in a large saucepan and stir to combine.
Slowly add the oil and water, stirring until well incorporated.
Cook over medium heat, stirring consistently, until the mixture thickens into a dough.
Remove the pan from the heat and allow the dough to cool slightly until it can be handled comfortably.
Divide the dough into equal portions based on how many colors you would like, and roll into balls.
Put on gloves and press an indentation into each ball of dough, then add 15 drops of food coloring to the indentation of each ball to start, you can always add more later.
Knead each ball of dough until the color is well incorporated. If the color is not as bright as you want, you can add more food coloring and knead again.
Enjoy!

*This can be stored in sandwich bags, one for each color. Just be sure to remove all the excess air for longevity of the dough!

Water Table Accessory and Activity Ideas

Part of the fun in raising Zoey is making things that delight her; I want to create fun, educational activities for her that are made with love and will be loved!

With how much young ones love water, water tables are perfection during the hot summer months! Set them up in a comfortable location with some shade, and watch them play to their hearts content! They can play with the table as is, or you can add accessories to make the play even more engaging and fun!

Here to inspire you, I’ve created a list of water table accessory/activity ideas to keep the kiddos entertained for hours!

**If you live in California or any other location where wasting water may be an issue, no worries! Bypass adding any food coloring to the play water and once you’re done, you can use it to water your plants!

DIY Autumn Leaves Sensory Bottle

DIY Autumn Leaves Sensory Bottle I love Autumn, it has to be my favorite season of the year!

After creating a Summer-themed ocean wave bottle, I felt inspired to create a sensory bottle for each season and I immediately thought of swirling multi-hued Autumn leaves! Part of the fun in raising Zoey is making things that teach and fascinate her. And, if I’m being completely honest, I find sensory bottles fascinating too, so let’s make one!

DIY Autumn Leaves Sensory Bottle

SUPPLIES

16 ounce clear, plastic bottle
6 ounces of hot water
Clear glue
Slender whisk
Glycerin
Leaf-shaped glitter
Regular glitter (optional)
More hot water
Glue for the lid

DIY Autumn Leaves Sensory Bottle

INSTRUCTIONS

Pour the 6 ounces of hot (as hot as your tap will run) water into your bottle.
Add 2.5 to 3 ounces (or more) of glue to the hot water in your bottle. The more glue you add, the slower your leaves will swirl and fall.
Whisk the glue in the hot water until well incorporated. You can also replace the lid of the bottle and shake, however this created a lot of foam bubbles for me. They will go away, but it will slow down your progress.
Measure 1 to 2 tablespoons of Glycerin and whisk or replace the lid and shake again.
Add your glitter. I used several different hues of leaf shaped glitter and a few pinches of regular gold glitter.
Pour more hot water into the bottle. Stop before reaching the top, replace the lid and turn the bottle over several times to check how everything moves. At this point you can add more glitter, more glue to make it fall slower, and/or more glycerin to smooth everything out.
After you’re satisfied with the flow of the bottle’s contents, remove the lid again and fill the bottle all the way to the top with the hot water.
If your child is older and you worry about him/her undoing the lid, you can coat the inside of the lid with glue, then screw it back onto the bottle. This will secure the lid and make it harder for little ones to unscrew the lid and create a leak or spill the bottle’s contents.

DIY Autumn Leaves Sensory Bottle

DIY Ocean Wave Sensory Bottle

DIY Ocean Wave Sensory Bottle With Summer solstice right around the corner, I was thinking about the beach and got inspired to make an ocean wave sensory bottle (not to mention I had all the ingredients already on hand)! Part of the fun in raising Zoey is making things that teach and fascinate her. And, if I’m being completely honest, I find sensory bottles fascinating too, so let’s make one!

DIY Ocean Wave Sensory Bottle

SUPPLIES

16 ounce clear, plastic bottle
Funnel
8 ounces of water
Blue and green food coloring.
8 ounces of baby oil
Glue

DIY Ocean Wave Sensory Bottle

INSTRUCTIONS

Place the funnel in the mouth of your bottle and use it to fill the bottle with 8 ounces of water.
Remove the funnel and add several drops of blue and green food coloring until you reach your desired shade of ocean aqua. I used 8 drops of blue and 2 drops of green, as you can see that led to a very deep shade of blue green.
Screw the lid back onto the bottle and shake the water until the food coloring is well incorporated, then remove the lid and replace the funnel.
Add up to 8 ounces of baby oil.
If your child is older and you worry about him/her undoing the lid, you can coat the inside of the lid with glue, then screw it back onto the bottle. This will secure the lid and make it harder for little ones to unscrew the lid and create a leak or spill the bottle’s contents. If you’re still concerned they may be able to get the lid off, please use cooking oil instead of baby oil.