Simple Play

“You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation”. – Plato


The essence of Throwback Road is for my family to slowly work towards making life simpler. To survive like our ancestors once did while still living in suburban America. Cook the food we grow, figure out a way to make what we do not have, and lead a life that is much more sustainable.

This post is not rocket science, and I am sure that most of you have made homemade play dough. In fact, I grew up doing this same project with my mother and sister.  But coming off of the holiday season when the majority of America is still on their big box high, I wanted to take a moment and a show a simple way to play with kids.  No flashing lights or electronic gamers here just a few balls of dough and some quality time with Big C. 

Homemade Play Dough

2 cup flour
2 cup water
1/2 cup salt
4 tsp. cream of tartar
2 tbls. vegetable oil
food coloring (I used 8 drops)

Just dump all the ingredients into your pot and give them a good stir.  Cook on medium heat and slowly stir until dough starts to stiffen and form a ball.  Take ball of dough out of pot and place on wax paper.  Careful it will be hot!  Let it cool slightly and the knead the dough approximately 10 times until the dough is smooth.  Gather all of the kids and have fun! This recipe yields 1 large size ball of dough.  You can cut the recipe in half if you want smaller portions….hmmmm I don't use that phrase much..smaller portions.


Big C’s blue dough cooking on the stove….almost done!


I thought this was helpful if anyone was daring enough to make some wild play dough colors!  Aztec blue…who knew.


Big C posing for the camera.  He cracks me up!  As soon as I whip the Canon out he immediately asks me if I want to take his picture.  A little showboat in the making. Oh, and yes, that is chocolate on his mouth.  Since my new pantry organization, he has taken full advantage of the dark chocolate chips being at his level.  We may need to rethink that placement.

As you can see our homemade playdough instantly became the stages in which some serious Star Wars battles took place.  It was such a joy to see his little 5 year old brain create these fairly in depth action sequences.  The playdough also became a ship for Chewbacca and a battle station for Luke Skywalker.  Big C played for 1 1/2 hours without once asking for one of his big, bright electronic toys.  I truly believe if you give a child a chance to use their hands and imagination they will choose this type of simple play each time.



I hope that everyone is having a great day and remember to make the most of the simple moments you have with your kids.  The world is already so busy that slowing down with your children and creating something might be the best prescription for stress relief.  Make memories that last!

Thanks again for stopping by Throwback Road!

What simple things do you do or create that help to recharge you?