It’s no secret. Babies are messy! It was no surprise to discover a recent study published in Developmental Science found “smashing, throwing and playing with food actually helps babies learn.” We’ve been encouraging the baby to play, even though it means multiple, and I mean stacks and stacks, of outfit changes a day. One great way to encourage food play is edible finger paint. Unfortunately for us, the baby has food allergies. We experimented and found a gluten free, dairy free and soy free edible finger paint recipe. She can literally have her paint and eat it too.
“This post and giveaway were made possible by iConnect and Dreft. I was compensated for my participation in this campaign, but all opinions are 100% mine.”
How to Make Edible Finger Paint
This is the easiest recipe ever! It calls for two or three ingredients and can be made in minutes. Extra unused “paint” can be stored in the fridge for up to 48 hours. You’ll need:
Ingredients:
1/4 cup Coconut Based Yogurt (find it in the refrigerated section with the regular yogurt)
Unsweetened Powdered Drink Mix in different flavors (We used cherry, grape, lemonade and orange)
Food Coloring in different colors, optional (we didn’t use it)
Other optional ingredients: 1/4 cup cornstarch if you want to make it thicker, small amount of sweetener of your choice if the flavor is too tart
Small bowls and an old sheet
Directions To Make the Edible Finger Paint:
Divide the Coconut based Yogurt equally into four small bowls. Use approximately 1 ounce per bowl. Add 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon unsweetened powdered drink mix to each bowl. Stir until mixed. Add food coloring, corn starch or sweetener if desired. Blend until mixed.
Place the bowls on an old sheet, add the baby and let them “draw.”
Want more fun sensory play ideas for babies? Dr. Dyan Hes, Medical Director of Gramercy Pediatrics, and named a 2013 top doctor by NEW YORK magazine, agrees messy babies are happy babies. She shared these tips to use for sensory play:
1) Use “Finger Food.”
“When snacking, start counting with your little one and encourage them to use their fingers. Also, this is a great time to use food to help them learn how to properly grasp things.”
2) Use Bath Time as Playtime.
“Bring fun toys and activities into the bath and let your child splash around and have fun. Make sure to use warm water (vs. hot) and use a mild cleanser to keep skin soft and itch-free. Gently pat skin dry and end with an after-bath moisturizer to seal in moisture and protect baby’s soft skin.”
When you and baby are through playing, don’t sweat the mess. You can use Dreft Active Baby detergent to help remove 99 percent of baby food stains and other outdoor messes. No mess detergent that’s gentle and hypoallergenic on baby’s sensitive skin? That’s a win in my book.
Do you think you have the “Messiest Baby?”
Dreft and Parents Magazine kicked off an online contest on October 25th in NYC with Molly Sims. You can enter by posting a photo of your child (aged 6 months to 2 years) to Twitter or Instagram with #messiestbabycontest or by entering at Parent’s Magazine. The grand prize winner will be featured on the May 2017 cover of Parents Magazine and win a supply of Dreft products. Want to get social with Dreft? Connect with them on Twitter and Facebook.
TLove to (Twitter) Party?
The Dreft #MessiestBabyContest Twitter Party will take place on Monday, November 14th from 9PM-10Pm EST. You can sign up at this link. There are some really great prizes including an iRobot Roomba!
When:
Monday, November 14th at 8pm CST/9pm EST
Prizes Include:
Prize 1: Dreft product + Swiffer Steam Boost ($50)
Prize 2: Dreft product + $100 AMEX
Prize 3: Dreft product + Step 2 Sandbox with Cover ($50)
GRAND PRIZE: Dreft product + iRobot Roomba 650 ($325)
RSVP: Dreft Product
RSVP: http://bit.ly/2f1Djbj
Win It!
One reader will receive a “Messiest Baby” prize package, which includes:
A $50 AMEX Card and Dreft product
What is your favorite baby sensory play activity?
Thank you so much 🙂
Right now we love playing with trains and cars. He also loves to color!
We read lots of books
playing with chalk
we love doing crafts like painting
We love doing paints as well! Thanks for the chance to win this 🙂
I love to play with paints/
We love blocks and toy cars! We have so much fun
I loved doing the bathroom time crayons! That was my favorite.
Our favorite activity is making art and craft together .
Oh one of our favorites is pudding painting! Oh so much fun…and yummy too!
We love playing at the zoo and doing art projects.
We like to go to the park.
We love to play with bubbles!
I love it when they’re learning to walk and you get them to go between 2 people sitting on the floor. They’re so adorable when they succeed at this big accomplishment!
blowing bubbles was always fun
When she was a baby/toddler we have a sea aquarium mobile that she loved
This is genius! Sharing this with my friend who has a baby!
I used to love playing peek a boo with my daughter. She just loved it.
I so enjoyed playing with our baby with puppets.
form name Barbara Montag
thank you
I liked playing peek-a-boo
I love to read with my Granddaughter and sing songs
I LOVE TO DANCE W/MY BABY GIRL 🙂
We like making homemade edible play dough.
I enjoy singing, play doh and tea parties with my grandkids. It depends on their age but I just like to get on their level and have fun.
After raising 5 boys, I’m enjoying playing with dolls and dollhouses with my granddaughter.
Having either a sand table (outside) or a shaving cream table to explore with your hands.
I love singing with my baby!
I love playing with blocks.
Love this idea! Thanks for a whole new way of finger painting for me! My favorite activity was playing in the rice box!
Oh how fun! My girls are all too old for finger-painting now, but they would have LOVED this when they were little.
I loved playing with the Fisher Price Little People sets with my babies! I also love playing with bubbles with them.
This is a wonderful sensory project for babies. Most parents probably have these items ready and waiting to try.
What a great idea! I used to love finger painting as a kid. Painting was something I carried with me through life.
I love doing art projects.
This is a great idea and what a beautiful baby and crazy mess! It would be a great introduction to bath time play. Just pop them in the tub and play before you run the water. Love that this is edible. Babies put everything in their mouths.
I like playing with blocks or stacking cups with my son.
This is a great recipe for edible finger paint! I really love this post!
I loved getting on the floor and playing with the toys with my son.
Finger painting is awesome. My favorite activity though to do with the baby is prodding the new ‘first times,’ like rolling over, walking, etc. So fun to see baby learn that first something new!
we love to play barbies my daughter loves it 🙂
My daughter is at the age where she likes to play hide and seek. she hasn’t quite got the concept yet because she will curl up in ball on the floor and she covers her head. She thinks if she can’t see me than I cant see her.
I like the idea of edible paint for babies because during that age they pretty much put everything in their mouth! It’s safer and it gives you peace of mind too.
We like playing with building blocks.
We liked to play with musical toys.
I love this! Fiona’s favorite activity is coloring whether its crayons or chalk!
Peek-a-boo.
We love games and painting.
I love to play board games with my niece! She is super competitive!
I love this. What a really great idea. I will have to do this for Hanna when she’s a wee bit older! Great idea.
We always liked the sand and water table on our back patio. I could hide things in the sand for him to find.
I dont have kids yet but i was like omg look how messy the baby got! I would definitely opt out of the food coloring, I dont even like using food coloring for baking anymore due to the dyes. This is an interesting idea but if I did this with my kids someone (my husband) is going to clean that up not me! LOL
I was always a fan of finger painting with babies.
Love that this is safe for baby! We play silly little games and tickle bug.
This is so cute! I want to try the edible finger paint with my baby soon. As for my favorite thing to play with him… that would be bicycle legs. I know it sounds silly, but we pretend to pedal with his legs and go faster/slower and he gives us the best baby smiles. We’ve even had a few coo’s from this game!
This is a great idea. I keep hearing that the earlier a baby is allowed to work with his or her environment, the better adapted the baby will be later on in childhood.
I love this idea, and what a great way for babies to get creative and have fun.
My favorite activity to do with my grandson was play peek a boo! He loved it!
We loved to play with stuffed animals and mega blocks
I like to stack blocks with her.
Entering on the form as Mami2jcn
My favorite activity is making craft together and doing fun experiments!
I liked to play peek-a-boo with faces, stuffed animals, anything bright and colorful.
This is a great way to let kids enjoy while exploring colors! Such a fun idea!
This edible finger paint looks like so much fun. Even my 5 year old would love to play with this. Looks like we have our weekend activity planned out 🙂 Thanks for the great idea!
The edible finger paint for babies sensory play is a great idea. I love the idea of using the coconut based yogurt for the paint and the food coloring. This I will have to share with my nieces and sister for their little ones. Dreft is the laundry soap I used when my boys were babies. Thanks for sharing the giveaway and the recipe for the edible paint.
Oh my goodness, how precious!? I must try this soon! We love to finger paint of course but I really have to try this idea.. the photos turned out so freaking adorable!
Great idea. My kids love to finger paint.
This is so much fun. My kids always loved getting dirty while painting. The fact that it is edible means you don’t have to worry when they put it in their mouth which saves a lot of stress.
My daughters would probably love to do this even now! while we try not to encourage them to play with their food and make messes, this just sounds like too much fun not to try it.
Edible paint is the only way to go with the little ones! This is a great idea to not have to worry about them consuming something harmful.
My goodness, that is the cutest face ever (even covered in paint). Glad it’s so fun and so easy to clean up.
I loved singing to my little ones. Always got their attention and a smile.
What a cute and fun idea. Great tips for keeping all the allergens away too.
Hehe omg those photos turned out so well! Your baby is so cute – love the idea
Love this idea!! Takes some stress out of my life:)
My kids absolutely love painting its their favorite but not my favorite to clean lol they have a blast though so its ok
Favorite activity with my baby is reading and teaching him new words. We enjoy painting also, kids love it so much it’s hard to get them to stop sometimes.
My kids love painting, and with this recipe, I don’t have to worry about them putting it in their mouths. I will definitely try this recipe!
What a mess but oh so much fun. Such happiness in that messy photo! What a neat idea to make edible paint for babies.
I don’t think this just has to be for babies! My son would love it and he is a lot older. Very cute your baby is adorable.
I always loved blowing bubbles with the “Littles”! I’m loving this recipe here for edible fingerpaints for my 10 mth. old Granddaughter.
This is such a great idea. I have a friend that has a 8 month old daughter and I bet she would enjoy this.
This is too fun! And I love that the recipe takes so many dietary sensitivities into consideration. 🙂 It’s been a while since we’ve had a baby in the house, but we really liked sensory play with homemade edible dough!
This is such a great idea. Babies are notorious for putting any and everything into their mouths.
Baby and paints? Yes, definitely need edible! lol. Love that this allows them to explore their creative side.
This is such an awesome idea. Now the kids can be free to explore as much and as messily as they want, and moms don’t have to worry about them eating something dangerous or permanently ruining their clothes.
I love this. Finger paints are a ton of fun for kids, but the little ones WILL put anything in their mouths.
Great idea. Finger paints are an excellent way for children to explore their creative sides. I love that you made it edible for peace of mind.
Wow! That was very thoughtful and beautiful of you. That is true. Babies put everything int heir mouths. Sorry yours has a food allergy but good thing you were able to find alternatives for your beautiful kid to be a kid and enjoy life. Love it!