Make pipe cleaner bubble wands and big bubbles

Currently Chuck only knows a couple of words.  One of them happens to be "bubbles."  This kid of ours really loves bubbles.  He'll point outside and say "bubbles."  He'll point to round objects and say "bubbles."  He'll point to the bathtub and say "bubbles."  He'll even point to birds and say, "bubbles."

Given his obsession with soapy spheres, I thought it would be fun to make our own bubble wands and bubble solution.  These pipe cleaner and straw wands make larger bubbles than the wands you typically buy in the stores.

To make the straw and string wand:  String together two straws with some yarn.  Slide the knot into one of the straws. If you have problems getting the string through the straws, try sucking it through.  You'll get a mouthful of string, but it works!

We dunked these wands in our homemade bubble solution and had some messy fun. At first it was difficult to make the larger bubbles, but I soon got the hang out of it and created some lovely large spheres.

(Psst- Here's the recipe for the bubble solution that we used.  I combined 5 C warm water, 1/2 C Dawn dish detergent, and 1/4 C glycerin.  I gently mixed the liquids together and made sure not to create suds.   Then, I let the solution sit overnight.   Even though this recipe made fairly large bubbles, I really didn't like the way the Dawn smelled.  Yuck.  Plus, Chuck tried to rub his face with soapy hands, so I worried that the soap stung his eyes.  Next time I'll find a recipe using baby shampoo.  This way the solution won't smell so detergent-y and Chuck's eyes won't sting.  )

Here are some photos from our first big bubble making adventure:

I found that the bubbles didn't pop as quickly if I made them by moving the wand through the air instead of blowing it.

Another bubble created by the wind.   

All in all, not a bad start.  We managed to make large bubbles, but they popped really easily.  Hrmm... Next time we'll try a different solution and we'll make one of those giant bubble blowing wands.  Oooh! I can't wait!

Make a bubble snake

We don't drink much soda so when hubby finally brought a Pepsi home I snatched up his empty bottle quicker than a hungry child grabbing at freshly baked Christmas cookies.

Why?  Well, I had been dying to make a bubble snake blower. And honestly, could you blame me?  Look at the long foamy chain of bubbles I was able to blow.

Wowzers.  This photo makes my inner child squeal with delight

To blow awesome foamy snake-like bubble chains, I just needed a couple of materials:

Materials:
- empty plastic bottle
- wash cloth
- scissors
- rubber band
- dish detergent
- water
- plastic container

Directions:
1.  Cut off the bottom of the bottle.
2.  Cut a circle out of the wash cloth that's about 1-2 inches larger than the bottom of the bottle.
3.  Use a rubber band to attach your washcloth circle to the bottle.  That's it!
4.  Dip the bottle (wash cloth bottom) into dish detergent that's been mixed with a bit of water.
5.  Blow.  A foamy bubble snake will appear before your eyes.

(Warning:  Do not inhale, only exhale. Otherwise you'll end up drinking dish detergent like I did. Yuck.)

Here are some photos of Baby Chuck and I playing with our bubble snake blower.  (You may be wondering why we're in the bath tub.  Or why my bathtub is so dirty.... Hmm..  Well, we fully intended to blow bubbles outside, but it was just too cold.  The bath tub served as a nice place to try the activity out, since the bubbles created quite a sticky mess on the ground.  As for why my bathtub  is so dirty... I've neglected to clean it.... eek.)

Let me know if you try this out with your kids.  I can't wait till the weather gets warmer.  We'll definitely try blowing more bubble snakes outside.

Make your own rainbow flowers

Last weekend, I made these rainbow flowers.

Aren't they purty?

Wanna bring some rainbow cheer into your life? 

They're easy to make.  Plus, you get to see science at work.