Though my daughter's temperature has gone down significantly today, unfortunately so has the temperature outside. Since we already went through the produce yesterday, I thought the pantry might be a good place to explore today. I have been thinking about making some playdough for my daughter, so I jumped on the opportunity to combine sensory play with spices (nature-made!) into a playdough recipe.
I happen to have an abundance of turmeric, a spice made from the leaves of a plant in the ginger family. It has a beautiful orange-yellow color, and it's aroma is pleasing, but different enough that it might discourage consumption of the playdough.
Things start off really well. My daughter is sound asleep for her afternoon nap. I go into to the kitchen, Google "turmeric playdough" and find a great recipe. Then I see that this recipe calls for cream of tartar, which I do not have. My memory flashes to a conversation I had with my mother earlier this week about making playdough and the importance of this specific ingredient. "Oh well," I think, in true daughter fashion, "I'm sure I can still make it work." Instead of finding a new recipe, I decide to just go for it, and Google "substitutes for cream of tartar in home made playdough". I find that I can use lemon juice, which I have, so I get out my ingredients and get started.
At this point, I should mention that I have been looking at home made playdough recipes for several weeks, so after I have the ingredients, I decide to just wing it, pulling from memory the various steps (how hard could it be, right? It's just dough!)
Well... I should also probably mention that I am NOT a baker. It's never been my strong point. So this is what I ended up with:
I continue to persevere as my daughter sleeps, and am able to finagle my NatureDough (pending TM!) into something that resembles what I sought to make when I began the process almost two hours earlier. I shove the dough into a container that seems an appropriate size and go in to get my sleeping beauty (who has been singing songs to herself in her bed for about 15 minutes as she listens to her mother wreak havoc on the kitchen).
I enter her room and jovially announce that I have been making something EXTRA special for her while she was sleeping! Her eyes widen and her mind races (I can only assume) with the possibilities. I bring her into her playroom and proudly present the finished product. "It's PLAYDOUGH!!!!" I proclaim. Because she is a toddler and does not have a fully functioning prefrontal cortex, she does not mask her look of disappointment. I am sure she just doesn't realize how much fun she is missing, so I dig in myself, making balls and snakes and patting and smashing, all with great delight. She humors me for about a minute, pulling small chunks out of the jar with her fingers and dropping them on the floor.
She then tires to put the NatureDough in her mouth (apparently turmeric is an appetizing scent after all). "NOOOOOO!" I exclaim. "YUCKY! Do you know how much salt is in that? Ick!". Definitely not the best response. For my daughter, this is the last straw. She starts taking globs, placing them on the windowsill, and then knocking them on the floor. I try to narrate this like it is some kind of fun game we have created together. She lets me know, in true daughter fashion, that she is not pleased by stomping the fallen globs under her feet and then going off to play with a different toy, which is not at all nature or home-made.
I leave the smashed globs on the floor. I cannot even bear to attempt their retrieval. I join her in her game of "bocks" and leave the nature play for another time, conceding that sometimes when mommy tries too hard, she can get a little crazy. Thank goodness I now have a daughter to bring me back down to Earth.
P.S. For those that are interested, here is the original turmeric playdough recipe:
http://www.mommypotamus.com/homemade-play-dough-recipe-with-natural-dyes-and-a-gluten-free-option/
My mom also has a really good one... I will probably be trying hers eventually, once my ego heals.