Goodness gracious, Goop is so weird and so much fun!

Still raining today... ho hum. So we're still making our way through your awesome rainy-day recommendations on the previous posts. Today's afternoon activity was Goop (recommended by AJ's Mama). Holy cow that stuff is WEIRD, in a really good way! Ro and Ree were completely enamored. We put some cornstarch in a bowl, mixed in a little bit of water at a time until it was about the consistency of pudding, and added food coloring. Voila, we had Goop. The girls wore their smocks, and we played with the Goop at our plastic-covered art table, so clean-up was as simple as a bath (for them) and a wet rag wipedown (for the table). (We bought a huge sheet of heavy clear plastic at JoAnn Fabrics a few years ago and staple-gunned it to our island, and that thing has served us so well over the years. It is impervious to anything the girls can dish out, and clean-up is always a breeze.) Whoa, mama, check this stuff out! (Note to self: if I'm going to take close-up shots of the girls' hands, then I need to trim and clean their nails, for pete's sake): Ewwww, can I really put my finger in it? (you'll note that this hesitancy completely disappeared later): Ree dumped in a TON of green food coloring when I was momentarily distracted by something Ro was doing. I'd recommend keeping a closer eye on the food coloring than I did: Here's the consistency that worked for us. The danged stuff was so weird (I know I keep saying that, but it WAS!). It was kind of hard while you were playing with it, but when you stopped moving it around it got all creepy and liquidy and would slowly drip through your fingers. So cool: Oh yeah!: Xena was a little annoyed by the Goop for some reason. Maybe she took issue with the color?: Notice that the momentary reticence about getting the hands dirty has fallen by the wayside: She had the nerve to laugh at her sister for having gloopy hands? Oh, and I just noticed the green blotch on the chair, which is probably still there because I don't think I saw it during cleanup: Crud, how did *I* get slimed?: Notice the phone on the table? I had just called TubaDad to inquire (oh so hopefully) if he was almost home and ready to administer baths. No dice, so Maggie and I gingerly wrapped the girls' hands in their smocks, ushered them over the light-colored carpet, and escorted them upstairs into a nice, sudsy, slime-dissolving bath: The girls LOVED this activity. The bath got them all shiny clean and we wiped down the art table easily and in about five minutes, so this rainy day activity gets an enthusiastic two thumbs up. Oh My Word, Catherine just sent over this must-see Goop video. Seriously, you have to watch it. And then, if anyone attempts something similar, you MUST let me know. Oh man, the wheels are turning in my head already -- how should the girls take their Goop play to the next level... PS: A few folks requested a sidebar link to all the rainy day activities that were suggested in the comments, so I'll type them all into one neat post and then add it and let you guys know when it's up. And if you have any other recommendations, please let me know and I'll add them to the list.