Friday, October 19, 2012

31 Days, 31 Smiles {Day 19}: Simple Canvases


My kids gets a certain thrill at being given a piece of cardboard to color.  I'm not sure what it is.  Maybe it's the deviance from a plain white sheet of paper.  Maybe it's the fact that markers don't soak through to the other side.  Even colored pencils take on a different hue against the darker background. Whatever the reason, cardboard is an easy canvas to find for them. 



Gather your cardboard from various places: a package of girls' tights, the back of a cereal box, the flap of a mailing box, the piece that keeps your ordered photo prints from bending... then let your kids have at it.  It's some of the easiest and cheapest fun you can provide.

If want to add a little difficulty (for you), mix up a batch of sidewalk paint (equal parts cornstarch and water with a couple drops of food coloring) and go outside to paint your sidewalk, stepping stones, or wooden deck. 






A word from the experienced: make sure you alert your husband ahead of time that it will all wash away in the next rain before he has a little panic about the colored surfaces!   





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