Artsy Fun, Toddler style

There are so many times where I feel like I should be doing more with Ellie.  It is the teacher in me...always seeking out new activities that I think will enhance her learning.  Oh my!  When I talk with other moms, I hear the same thing though.  We all want to do whats best for our babies!
So, Ellie and I tried out two different activities in the past week.  We played with colored spaghetti noodles and we finger painted.
For the spaghetti noodles, I cooked the pasta first.  Then, I put the pasta in a Ziploc bag with a tiny bit of oil and some food coloring.  I shook it up to coat all the pasta and I then I let it dry on wax paper for a few hours.  I think I used a bit too much oil, because our noodles seemed a bit slimy, but Ellie didn't mind!  I wasn't really sure where to play with the noodles because I didn't know exactly what Ellie would want to do with them or what would happen to the dye on the noodles.  I decided outside would be the safest option.  I pretty much let her lead the play and do what she wanted with the noodles.  She played with them for about 15 minutes on the patio.  She would put them in a bowl, then take them back out.  Then, she started carrying them around the yard, a handful at a time.  She was so silly!!  I enjoyed giving her a different experience.  We may try dying rice next time!

It may sound extreme, but Ellie has only painted one time, on Valentine's Day.  At that point, she was more interested in eating the paint than actually painting with it!  I thought she might be more into actual painting than eating since she is a bit older now.  I put an old t-shirt on her and stuck her in her highchair with a piece of paper taped to her tray.  I let her choose two colors and filled up each of the cup spots on her tray with the paint.  She stuck her fingers in and drug them across the paper, but honestly didn't seem that interested.  After about 10 minutes, she was done.  She wanted out!  I was kind of disappointed because I thought she would be more excited!  We'll give it another try in a week or so and see if she will be more interested this time!

We have also started playing with chalk.  The first two or three times she wanted to carry the pieces of chalk around the yard, rather than sit down and actually "color".  The fourth time she made a few scribbles on the patio before she took off with the chalk.  I have high hopes that the fifth time she may scribble more than once :)

Another activity that we've done a few times lately is play with pots and pans.  I have shown her how to bang on the pots with the spoon to make noise.  She has enjoyed banging on them a bit, but mostly just wants to carry them around the house with her.  That seems to be her favorite activity...carrying things around!

I know in my heart that I am doing my best to educate Ellie, but there is always this nagging thought that I could be doing more.  This probably goes hand in hand with parenting.  You strive to do the best you can, yet you feel that you constantly fall short.
If you have a fun activity that your child enjoys doing, I would love to hear about it!  I am constantly on the look out for something different to do :)