…but I’m not sure what to call it, either! I found another idea for a cool experiment, for lack of a better word, and decided on a super-hot afternoon to try it out. Unfortunately, this one did not catch Danny’s attention near as much as I thought it would – but Eric thought it was awesome. (And Andrew slept in his crib for 40 minutes to allow it to happen!!)

It takes a few of your basic volcano ingredients: baking soda and vinegar. Jazz it up with a little food coloring and you’re good to go! (Well – you’ll also need a loaf pan, a small bowl or four, and a medicine dropper.)

Prep is fairly easy. Dump a box of baking soda into a loaf pan and smooth it out a bit – all I really did was shake the pan so it was kind of even. At first, the thrifty part of me balked at the idea of using a whole box of baking soda, but then I realized that those cost all of 50 cents. I can handle that for some inside fun that isn’t a video game or movie! Pour a little bit of vinegar into a bowl (or you could use a muffin tin!), and mix in a few drops of food coloring. (more…)

I don’t know about your house, but mine is filled with those small rubber bouncy balls. The Older collects them, and it seems like anytime we go to a restaurant with vending machine games, he gets a pocketful of them. I can’t stand him spending money on these things, so I’ve told him no more. He loves them though, so I decided he could have them if we made them ourselves. Setup was pretty easy, and I had all of the supplies here at home.

• 2 plastic cups (I labeled mine “Borax” and “Ball” so I wouldn’t get confused)
• Warm water
• Borax
• Food coloring (optional)
• White/school glue
• Cornstarch
• Tablespoon
• Teaspoon
• Zipper baggie

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