Just Smashing

I pinned this forever ago on Pinterest, but finally got the ambition to try it out. How could we not try something called "Bashing Baked Cotton Balls"? I'm not gonna lie, it was kind of messy entertainment, especially with a toddler and a preschooler. But what's a little clean-up when my lovelies are busy and happy for more than fifteen minutes? Plus all you need for this activity is cotton balls, flour, water, and food coloring. Here is the original blog I borrowed the idea from.


 *Preheat the oven to 300. Line one or two cookie sheets with parchment paper.

 *Mix flour and water in equal parts. I did about 1 cup of each, which was plenty. I am notorious for making way too much of everything.

 

 *Next, I divided the mixture into 3 different bowls. We put red food coloring in one, blue in one, and green in the other.

 * Here's where it gets sloppy. Dip the cotton balls in the bowl of your choice and roll it until it is fully coated. At this point, I was questioning my sanity a tiny bit, but the kids dug it. I highly recommend having a couple damp dish towels on hand to wipe off little fingers between colors.

 * Once you've decontaminated your helpers, stick your cotton balls in the oven and bake for about 45 minutes. We went outside to play in the snow while they baked. :)

Finished product.  

*Now for the fun part. After they cooled off a bit, we broke out our trusty tools (plastic hammer, plastic pliers, and a wooden spoon) and got busy smashing those little babies.

Note: They played with these for a good thirty minutes while I made dinner and still didn't use them all. I put the leftovers in a ziplock bag, but when I took them out a few days later they were already moldy. Maybe kept in a refrigerator this wouldn't have happened?

Of course Little Miss had to give them a taste test.

And weigh them....