How To Beat The Heat Indoors With Kids

Our Favorite Indoor Activities

Many a day here at KAUST, I’ve opened our front door to blasting heat and had to come up with yet another indoor activity for our little ones. Some days it feels like there’s little I can find to keep them entertained for more than a few minutes, but the activities below are some of our favorites that seem to always fill a late morning or afternoon.

Homemade Play-dough 

Play-dough can be hard to find and expensive, it is however, surprisingly easy to make. The only ingredient that can be hard to find here is “Cream of Tartar.” We’ve sometimes seen it in the organic, baking, or spice section of Tamimi. 

Play-dough Recipe

Ingredients: 

• 2 cups flour (500ml)

• 1/2 cup salt (120ml)

• 1 tablespoon cream of tartar

• 2 tablespoons vegetable or coconut oil (30 ml)

• 1.5 - 2 cups boiling water (add more if needed) (350 - 475 ml)

• Food colouring

1. Mix the dry ingredients in a bowl

2. Then add the water and oil

3. Mix until combined

4. Separate into different bowls if you’d like to make multiple colors and add your food coloring until you reach a color of your liking

   
   

Tips: 

• If your dough is sticky, add more flour

• Some people prefer to mix all the ingredients in a pot on the stove (using cool water) and then cook gently until combined

• *Make sure to store your play-dough in a plastic ziplock bag or a container with a tight fitting lid or it will dry out

  
  

Ways to use play-dough: 

1. Practice making letters and numbers with your child, you can even draw out a letter “A” for example on a piece of paper and then encourage them to form the play-dough on top of the paper in that shape

2. Create different animals together learning the names and sounds of each

3. Find unique small objects around your house such as buttons, shells, toy cars, bottle caps and have your child press them into rolled out play-dough to reveal a variety of fun patterns 

4. Using child safe plastic knives and scissors cut the play-dough into various sizes and shapes

Cookie Cutter Fun 

We love baking and dads and friends are always excited to find a sweet treat waiting for them when they come home. The kids enjoy taking time to roll out cookie dough and cut into fun shapes before baking. You can use cookie cutters in various shapes, container or jar lids or even just a plastic knife. Tamimi often carries cookie cutters in their kitchen section. Our Kid Cookie recipe is a great one for cutting out shapes. We also love this recipe:

Easy Snickerdoodle Recipe (Cinnamon Cookies)

• 3 cups all purpose flour

• 2 teaspoons cream of tartar

• 1 teaspoon baking soda

• 1 teaspoon salt

• 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon

• 1 cup unsalted butter

• 1 cup sugar

• 2 large eggs

• 2 teaspoons vanilla

1. Cream your butter and sugar together

2. Add the eggs until combined

3. Mix dry ingredients in a bowl then add to the butter/egg mixture

4. Roll out onto a well floured surface until about ¼ inch thick, a little more than ½ a cm.

5. Have fun cutting out shapes with your child

6. Bake for 10-12 minutes at 375 F, 190 C until the bottom of the cookie is lightly golden brown (they will still be a little soft on top), bake longer if you like a crispier cookie.

Window Markers/Stickers

All of the homes here at KAUST have wonderful big sliding glass windows. Did you know these can double as an art canvas? :D There are markers designed specifically for drawing on windows and stickers that can be easily removed and reused again and again. Our toddler loves creating airplane and car scenes all across our windows and even enjoys the clean-up process of wiping the window at the end.

This is the sticker set we use: Melissa and Doug Reusable Sticker Pad

And the Window Markers (can sometimes be found at Tamimi): Amazon, Mumz World

Homemade Bubbles 

Bubble wands and bubble machines are an easy way to keep kids of all ages entertained. Our 10 month old loves trying to touch the bubbles floating by. But eventually the bubble solution runs out and it can be expensive to keep replacing it. Here’s a recipe for cheap homemade bubble solution that’s worked for us: 

Cheap Homemade Bubble Solution 

• 1 cup water

• 1 tablespoon sugar

• 2 tablespoon dishwashing liquid 

Mix and enjoy!

Air Dry Clay Creations

Kids love creating, whether it’s play-dough, cookies or bubbles. Clay creations are fun because unlike everything else on this list, they last! You can use them as magnets or to decorate your home.

You can purchase air dry clay here in 36 colors! The possibilities are endless, we love making food items like little ice cream cones or pizzas with our kids. 

You can also try making air dry clay at home! 

Air Dry Clay Recipe

• ​​1 cup white glue (like Elmer’s or PVA glue)

• 1 cup cornstarch

• 1 tablespoon white vinegar or lemon juice – acts as a preservative)

• 1 tablespoon baby oil, coconut oil or vegetable oil – for smoothness)

• Optional: 1-2 drops acrylic paint (color of your choice)

Instructions:

1. Mix all ingredients in a nonstick saucepan.

2. Stir continuously over low heat.

3. The mixture will begin to thicken and pull away from the sides—this takes about 3–5 minutes.

4. Once it forms a soft dough (similar to mashed potatoes or Play-Doh), remove it from the heat.

5. Let it cool slightly, then knead it on a clean, smooth surface coated lightly with oil or lotion.

6. Knead for 5–10 minutes until it’s smooth and stretchy

7. If you’d like to color the clay add 1-2 drops of washable acrylic paint or you can also use food coloring, knead until fully incorporated, add extra oil as needed.

What are some of your favorite indoor activities you’ve done with your children?

Share in the comments below. Or let us know if you try any of the recipes above.