Playdough

I have to say that I never played with playdough as a child. It just was not all that popular in Russia, we had modeling clay and that's what we used. Flour and salt were food, not play items. But it is so popular here in America that I had to give it a try. I used a recipe for classic playdough (2 cups flour, 1 cup salt, 4 tsp cream of tartar, 2 tbsp oil and 2 cups water mixed and cooked over medium heat for about 3 minutes until dough forms a ball, then kneaded until smooth and soft). I did not want any coloring or spices for the first time, although you could use tons of different things like KoolAid, food coloring, cocoa, cinnamon, glitter, etc. It was VERY easy to make and very nice to play with. Much softer than modeling clay, so much easier and enjoyable for my 21-months-old. She kneaded, tried to roll (although without much success as she was poking dough with the end of the roller :) ), cut out cookies, pinched little pieces off and pressed them onto bigger pieces, squeezed the balls I made and had all sorts of wonderful experiences.

 This is one of her creations: