Fun ideas to entertain the little ones left at home

Now that the school-aged kids are hard at work at school, you need something fun for your preschooler kids still at home. Many children cry when they see their older brothers and sisters heading off to school, but with these fun ideas, they'll be glad to push the others out the door and on their way so they can get creative — with their food!

Do you have a little foodie left behind when her big brother or sister goes to school for the day? These cleverly-designed food activities may actually help her look forward to school days instead of being upset when the siblings leave the house.

Nutty Putty

Have you ever seen a dessert you can play with and then eat? Well, this Nutty Putty dessert is designed specifically for those who love to play with their food.

Ingredients

• 3-1/2 cups peanut butter
• 4 cups powdered sugar
• 3-1/2 cups honey
• 4 cups dried milk powder

Directions

1. Mix ingredients together. Divide into 10 to 15 portions.
2. Store extra portions in plastic bags in refrigerator or freezer. This treat can serve as fun dough. With clean hands, children can mold and shape it into animals, flowers and other objects while they eat it.

Note: If you have peanut allergies in your home, substitute Sunbutter for the peanut butter — it will work and taste like the real thing, but with no danger to your allergic family member.

Painted Toast

Make familiar shapes out of children's foods. It's fun, especially when you create interesting foods to look at. Painted toast and sandwich faces will provide entertainment for the eater and will help those children who would rather be playing than having lunch enjoy their meal. Use food coloring in milk to paint faces or cartoons on bread.

Directions

1. Put 1/4 cup milk in a glass and set in front of your child at the table. Add a few drops of food coloring and stir.
2. With a clean brush , let children create designs.
3. When they are through creating, toast the bread and serve as part of the sandwich.

Sandwich Faces

Create a silly sandwich face — it will kill time and encourage kids to eat their tasty creation. Try one of these ideas on an open-face sandwich: 

• Peanut-butter sandwich with olive eyes, nut nose, tangerine ears and cheese-puff mouth.
• Hamburger patty with pickle ears, catsup nose, cheese tie, pepper eyebrows and olive eyes.
• Sloppy Joe with grated-cheese hair, olive eyes, green pepper mouth, and mushroom nose and ears.

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