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Dine and Dish

Food blog with family recipes

August 2, 2011

The One Where I Ignore the Mess {Recipe and Video: Oobleck}

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We had fun today…

Oh, yes we did… lots and lots of fun…

and to be honest with you, it was all kind of by accident…

All because I made a promise to my 5 year old that we’d do something really special this afternoon while Kelly (7) was at a sleepover. The promises of exciting things to come left my lips, her eyes lit up, and the voice in my head was saying “Well crap… now I have to think of something special and fun to do!”

I flipped open my laptop to check my email/Twitter/Facebook/Instagram/Pinterest do important research on fun special things to do with 5 year old girls and lo and behold, if it weren’t the answer to the voices in my head in the form of a Google+ update from my friend Bridget.

Ummmm…. heck, yeah! I had cornstarch. I had water. I had a kid who needed to be entertained for hours. This sounded like a winner!

2 hours later, we were still playing with the Oobleck. I even turned a blind eye to the massive mess being made. Instead, we were having so much fun being amazed at how cornstarch and water can be a slimy liquid and then a hard solid at the same time.

Truthfully, I did ignore the mess until this happened…(which was a photo taken after I had already started wiping up the entire bowl of Oobleck which had been spilled on the floor and chair by my over excited daughter. Ahhh and look… I just noticed there’s a cracker down there too. Nice. Well, just keeping it real for you all!).

We still had fun, mess and all. So much that Ella decided to make a little video for you showing you how much fun playing with Oobleck can be. If you are looking for something to do to entertain your kids and don’t mind the mess, get some corn starch and water together and watch the fun unfold! You’ll love it, I promise.

 

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Filed Under: Parenting, Previous Tagged With: craft, fun, liquids, oobleck, parenting, play, playing, science, solid, video

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Mary at Deep South Dish says

    August 3, 2011 at 12:54 am

    I have seen that but never made it. Sounds like a fun time for sure. Hmmm… I wonder how much my daughter in law would love me if I went to her house and pulled this one out with the grandbabies? 🙂

  2. Maris (In Good Taste) says

    August 3, 2011 at 4:05 am

    Absolutely adorable! What a little doll she is!

  3. Doris says

    August 3, 2011 at 6:22 am

    Oh goodness, this is the cutest thing I’ve seen lately. Yay for Bridget coming to the rescue.

  4. TidyMom says

    August 3, 2011 at 6:40 am

    So fun!!! I know what we are doing next time I baby sit!!

  5. bridget {bake at 350} says

    August 3, 2011 at 6:41 am

    OK…that totally made me teary to be called “Bwidget.” She is ADORABLE!!! Oh, she can come to my house and play with cornstarch and water ANYTIME!!!

    And this….”do important research on fun special things to do with 5 year old girls “….I love this! totally how I do my “research” as well.

  6. shelly (cookies and cups) says

    August 3, 2011 at 7:17 am

    Making this today!! love love love your little sweetie 🙂
    Bridget is a pretty smart lady 🙂

  7. Amy | She Wears Many Hats says

    August 3, 2011 at 8:18 am

    I love Bwidget too! It makes me want all of us to get together to play with cornstarch! Fun!

  8. Marla {family fresh cooking} says

    August 3, 2011 at 8:23 am

    I must do this with my kids with a tarp below them!! How fun. That Bwidget has some great ideas 🙂 xo

  9. ciaochowlinda says

    August 3, 2011 at 8:36 am

    This is what memories are made of. Great way to spend time with your child.

  10. Amanda says

    August 3, 2011 at 8:37 am

    She is so cute! I swear…. you make the most gorgeous kidlets! 🙂

  11. Brian @ A Thought For Food says

    August 3, 2011 at 8:59 am

    Sometimes it’s fun to make a mess… looks like she had a blast doing it!

  12. Bonnie at Sweet Life says

    August 3, 2011 at 9:06 am

    How fun!! A perfect activity for hubby when he takes his vacation (then he can clean up!!), lol

  13. Bev Weidner says

    August 3, 2011 at 9:35 am

    I may or may not want to eat her up!

    and I may or may not still LOVE to play with ooblek.

  14. theurbanbaker says

    August 3, 2011 at 9:44 am

    yikes – that looks like such fun for the kids – i hope they helped you clean!!

  15. Kami says

    August 3, 2011 at 9:56 am

    Totally worth the mess! She is darling!

  16. Steve @ HPD says

    August 3, 2011 at 10:31 am

    Great starter video here if anyone wants to see how it works:
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=amfjWWMg9c0

  17. HeatherChristo says

    August 3, 2011 at 11:00 am

    I just let me 3 year old watch that video, and guess what we are doing today now?!

  18. Dave says

    August 3, 2011 at 12:06 pm

    So cool, Kristen! I hope I remember to do that with my lil’ girl (10 weeks) when she’s older! Such a cute video…LOVE IT!

  19. naomi says

    August 3, 2011 at 12:20 pm

    ok – so NEXT you need to do THIS ::

    http://www.housingaforest.com/dancing-oobleck/

    🙂
    We haven’t made oobleck at ALL, but maybe we’ll try it tomorrow!

  20. Cookbook Queen says

    August 3, 2011 at 12:58 pm

    Jon David is dying to try this now!! Off to buy a big tub of cornstarch. Your little one is a cutie pie!!

  21. Kulsum at JourneyKitchen says

    August 3, 2011 at 1:06 pm

    I don’t even have a kid but i find it so much fun! Can adults play too? Please? 🙂 Your daughter is adorable!

  22. Katie | GoodLife Eats says

    August 3, 2011 at 8:39 pm

    I have never been brave enough to do this with my kids…and the cleaning lady just came this week so we’ll hold off until right before our next cleaning. LOL. I bet my kids would love it though!

    A sink full of dish soap and water will entertain Madeline for hours though. Lots of bubbles, whisks, strainers, spoons, etc… And afterwards there’s a shiny, clean sink for me! I usually lay a towel on the floor under her chair and one on the side of the counter next to the sink.

  23. Loy says

    August 3, 2011 at 9:23 pm

    She’s adorable, and take it from this grandmother; this is the kind of thing that both she and you will remember and talk about when she is grown. What fun she must have had.

  24. Sasha @ The Procrastobaker says

    August 4, 2011 at 2:08 am

    I saw this on blue peter once i think and always wanted to try it but never did! I may not have a kid to entertain but may just do this for myself anyway.. 🙂

  25. Barefeet In The Kitchen says

    August 4, 2011 at 10:50 am

    I’ve had ooblek on my To Do list with the kids for ages. I think I’ll pick up that Dr Suess book at the library next week and do it at last. Thanks for the reminder!

  26. Georgia Pellegrini says

    August 4, 2011 at 5:09 pm

    Hilarious! I love these photos. It looks like she had such a blast, regardless of the mess. What a good mama!

  27. Kim Bee says

    August 5, 2011 at 11:47 pm

    This is so adorable! This is something she will remember for the rest of her life. She will tell stories about it for years to come. Just loved this!

  28. Tickled Red says

    August 9, 2011 at 7:34 am

    What fun! I just absolutely love your photos and the video. I may move my crew outside when we give it a try though 😉

  29. Josh Mason says

    December 12, 2013 at 9:34 pm

    That stuff is really fun, would be epic stress relief after a bad day at the office too, just mix up a giant bowl of oobleck and play with that for half an your to destress yourself.

    And the mess is all part of the fun. 😉

    • Josh Mason says

      December 12, 2013 at 9:35 pm

      *hour

Trackbacks

  1. Winter Break Boredom Busters says:
    December 27, 2011 at 6:23 am

    […] All you need is cornstarch, water, and lots of sponges and paper towels for cleaning up later.  Kristen at Dine and Dish shared the recipe, as well as a fun video of oobleck in […]

  2. Land O'Moms – For Moms, By Moms Community – Five Wintertime Indoor Boredom Busters says:
    January 13, 2014 at 11:01 am

    […] is oobleck. (How is it a solid one second and a liquid the next?) My blog, Dine & Dish, has a recipe for oobleck and a video demonstrating how much fun it […]

  3. Five Wintertime Indoor Boredom Busters – Test says:
    February 10, 2016 at 3:02 pm

    […] is oobleck. (How is it a solid one second and a liquid the next?) My blog, Dine & Dish, has a recipe for oobleck and a video demonstrating how much fun it […]

  4. 5 Indoor Boredom Busters for Winter Days - Dine and Dish says:
    September 25, 2018 at 9:07 pm

    […] Make Oobleck – Oh Oobleck… it’s one really fun creation but makes a pretty big mess! The laughs and giggles you hear from your kids though will be well worth it. Watch them try to figure out the magic that is Oobleck (how is it solid one second and a liquid the next?) You can find a video for making Oobleck, on this blog post. […]

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If you’re interested in the recipe you can find the link currently in my profile. Enjoy!!
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F is for...food photography.
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