Messy Snack Picnic: Jello

Jello is a great sensory texture for exploring. I have seen really cute ideas for putting toys in to be excavated, but I am a little hesitant to do that because it mixes eating with toys. While that really isn't a big problem, I don't want to confuse Abby while I am trying to discourage her from eating the toys. So instead I made a fruit jello. I put mandarin oranges and cut up peaches into the Jello. The normal Jello recipe is too squishy to really hold on to, but the jigglers recipe is too sturdy. So I made my own recipe in the middle. I used 1 cup of boiling water to dissolve one packet (3 oz) of Jello and that was it. I poured it into an 8x8 pan which already had the fruit on the bottom. I gave it about 4 hours to set.

For both cleaning and sensory purposes we had snack time outside. They love being outside. The wind, the sounds, the textures. Outside is a good stimulating place. Plus it was a super pleasant day. We sat directly on the grass (the chair were anyway).

Quick thoughts:

• My girls are so different it makes me laugh. Abby was sitting there all relaxed, feet on the grass, digging into her Jello. Alyssa sat with her legs straight out the whole time so they didn't touch the grass. She carefully picked out the fruit chunks leaving the Jello behind.
• I was pleased with the consistency of the Jello. I think my improvised ratios worked out perfectly.
• I look forward to more picnics. Enjoying the good weather while it is still here and a whole lot less clean up