Easy Peasy Macaroni Magic

As a stay at home mom of two young ones, it's hard to keep myself entertained without pure exhaustion. I know us moms always have something needing to be done around the house, or for the kids or hubby and that's why I'm always in search of fast and easy crafts and activities for my toddler. My IlyPie is 3 going on 13, she runs a mile a minute and is as sharp as most adults I know. So it's a challenge finding anything that will hold her attention for very long. And my dear son BabyC is 10 months and following quickly in sisters footsteps. That is why I am going to take you all along with me as we find an array of activities from Pinterest, Google, and anywhere else I can get my hands on ideas. I like to keep things as low cost as possible, and super easy to clean. I will make sure the cost, time, and clean up will be documented as well as how long my little one was entertained. Wish me luck, and for those momma's following along and trying these out, I send some luck to you as well! 

Easy Peasy Macaroni Magic

Supplies:
Macaroni noodles- I bought mine at Dollar tree (I found macaroni works best 
                                      for solid coloring) 
Food coloring- The gel kind takes longer to dry
Ziploc baggies- Remember to save them, you can reuse them for future crafts
Flat area to lay the macaroni out to dry

Instructions:

1. In each baggie add 5 drops of food coloring of your choice, feel free to mix colors to create unique color combos. 

2. Let your little one measure out however much macaroni you would like to color, we did 1/2c at a time.

3. Now with your help little one can close up the baggies and then comes the fun part...

4. Shake, shake, shake and then shake some more, until all the macaroni pieces are covered. If they aren't being coated well feel free to add a drop or two more. 

5. Once all colors are coated, have your little one dump them out on a cookie sheet or other flat surface to help them finish drying completely. Luckily this process doesn't take long at all. 

6. Give your little one cups, spoons, and other fun things to scoop the different colors together to play with.

7. Save macaroni for more sensory projects or to make jewelry or even artwork another day. 

• Total cost: $1- Macaroni (I had the food coloring and baggies on hand)

• Clean up: 5 minutes- Save baggies for later use, throw away macaroni package, and put away flat surface/cookie sheet (I always line mine with foil to reuse for easier cleanup).  

• Entertainment factor: 20 minutes- My daughter kept busy organizing them by color, then mixing them all up, then putting them into baggies for storage for other projects. I'd say not a bad amount of time for such a simple project for mom.