Mess Free Art for Babies

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For Mother’s Day this year, I wanted to do a few art projects with Squeaker. Naturally, I started with Pinterest and after oohing and aahing at the footprint and handprint crafts, I looked further. I wanted to do something with her that wouldn’t be too much of a mess, but also provide her with a fun sensory experience. I finally found something that was close to what I was looking for- mess free art for babies.

You will need:

A highchair (or flat surface, if baby is able to sit up. Or you could incorporate this into tummy time.)

A willing participant (Squeaker was 5 months)

Ziploc bags (we used gallon size)

Paint (we used tempera)

Paper (we used construction paper, though card stock could work very well too.)

Wipes (just in case)

First, here’s how I set things up (please excuse the clutter- we’re parents, not perfect.):

After putting Squeaker in her high chair, I got the first project ready.

Nothing fancy, just a few squirts of paint and then I put the construction paper into the bag. Her first project is pictured in the first picture of the post, this is her second. But her reaction to the two were the same. Exploration of the bag, then after some prompting and demonstrating, she smashed the paint a bit.

Since I didn’t know how patient she would be in the highchair, I didn’t want to press my luck with her art projects. Yes, we were both having fun and she posed for the camera, plus I got my Mother’s Day Art. But still. I knew not to push it too much with her. I didn’t want her to resent doing art projects, because then that just puts a serious dent in my plans for Tot School and Homeschool Preschool (and all of the other adorable hand/foot print art projects on Pinterest). Still, even after doing the two projects, she was still in a willing mood to participate in a footprint impression.

And below you can see the end result of the three projects. These will all go in her ‘art binder’, a large three ring binder filled with page protectors to hold her art work. That way, I have it all in one place and I can easily look back and find one that I’m looking for. Plus, I think it will be really nice to see how she progresses over the months and years.

We also ended up doing salt dough foot impressions (mine and hers together, and just one with hers) that turned out super cute (and of course, I can’t find the pictures for them). I like doing those types of crafts and art projects, because it’s hands on and it’s sensory. Though it was a little bit messier than I would have liked, it was still fun. I look forward to doing salt dough impressions and foot impressions with her as the years go by so I can document her growth.

What about you? Have you done art projects with babies or young children?

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Kori

Digital Product Creator at Kori at Home

Kori is a late diagnosed autistic/ADHD mom. She is currently located in Albany, NY where she is raising a neurodiverse family. Her older daughter is non-speaking autistic (and also has ADHD and Anxiety) and her youngest daughter is HSP/Gifted. A blogger, podcaster, writer, product creator, and coach; Kori shares autism family life- the highs, lows, messy, and real. Kori brings her own life experiences as an autistic woman combined with her adventures in momming to bring you the day-to-day of her life at home. Kori is on a mission to empower moms of autistic children to make informed parenting decisions with confidence and conviction.

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