Soft, all-natural, and “SCENTsationally fun to play with. Scentsational Playdough is a wonderful way for children to get creative, develop their fine motor skills by working with their hands, as well as solve the boredom dilemma. Children love to customize their scent and color for a fun afternoon of creative play. Bonus, it makes the house smell wonderul too.
The Perfect Answer to “I’m Bored”
As a mother, I think the hardest comment I get from my children is, “I’m bored.” Surrounded by toys, a big yard to explore, and siblings to play with, how can anyone be bored? We all said it at one time or another, so I have decided to think proactively and help them come up with a list of things to do should boredom strike.
- nature walk
- bike ride
- scavenger hunt
- build a fort
- build a train track
- coloring
- pop popcorn and listen to a book on tape or read aloud
- board games or puzzles
- trampoline
- crafts
- create a movie or music video
- dress ups
- Legos, Lincoln logs, Magna-tiles
- bake cookies
- and of course there is always chores or extra school work to do…hey, just being real…it’s why I am never bored.
Truthfully, as many times as they think over the list, they almost always seem to come back to playdough. They love to make it themselves because they can fully customize it with their favorite color and essential oils. I enJOY it because Scentsational Playdough makes the house smell so wonderful.
Scentsational Playdough
We have tried many recipes for playdough. Some you cook. Others you just mix. I have even made some using a packet of Kool-aide for a fun pop of color and fruity scent. Clearly, there are many ways to prepare homemade playdough, but this is our favorite because we always have the ingredients on hand, and adding the boiling water to the flour mixture instead of cooking the playdough eliminates a step as well as extra dishes. We still get to enJOY the feel of warm, moldable playdough. Bonus: the kids can do it by themselves, which saves mom time as well as boosts their confidence.
Sensational Playdough
Soft, all-natural, and sensationally fun to play with. Sensational Playdough is a wonderful way for children to get creative, develop their fine motor skills by working with their hands, as well as eliminate the boredom dilemma. Children love to customize their scent and color for a fun afternoon of creative play. Bonus, it makes the house smell wonderul too.
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup salt
- 2 T cream of tartar
- 1 1/2 cups boiling water
- 2 T oil of choice (I use avocado oil)
- Food coloring (to your color preference)
- 5-10 drops essential oil (peppermint, lavender, and orange are our favorites, but you can be creative)
Instructions
- Add all the dry ingredients into a bowl.
- In a glass measuring cup, add boiling water, oil, food coloring, and essential oil.
- Create a well in the flour mixture and add liquid ingredients.
- Stir to combine and scoop out onto a well-floured surface. Knead until cooled and not sticky.
- Playdough keeps for a few weeks in a freezer bag or air-tight container to prevent drying out.
Essential Oils
There are some big debates on which essential oils are safe for children and which are not. Plant Therapy child-safe essential oils can be purchased on Amazon. This set of three of their top sellers would make great playdough scents, and they are great for many other uses in the home as well. I use Plant Therapy essential oils for my cleaning and home care because they are an inexpensive therapy-grade line.
My favorite company is Rocky Mountain Oils. I use RMO if I am adding essential oils to anything that we ingest because it is a company I trust and have used for years. Here is a link to an article you can read on the best essential oils for kids. Again, you will find one company completely loves one EO for kids, and another has it on its banned list.
In our home, we use lavender and peppermint with no problem. In this playdough recipe, the oils are extremely diluted, so they are harmless. Use your own discretion. Here is a list of some safe playdough-approved essential oils to use with children:
- lavender
- chamomile
- sandalwood
- orange
- spearmint (we use peppermint with no problem)
- citronella
- lemon
- bergamot
In everything you do -eat, play, and, love- may it always be Seasoned with Joy!
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