Science Experiment #2 – Color Changing Liquids

Our second experiment in our science kit used red cabbage powder (which looks purple), citric acid, and baking soda.

We put water in two cups, then added the cabbage powder to each and watched as the water slowly turned a very pretty purple.

M added citric acid to one of the cups, then baking soda to the other. The first one turned a pinkish red and the second one turned blue! The citric acid and baking soda are both white, so M did not expect the color change at all!

Then M had a little fun adding more citric acid or baking soda and watching the colors get darker or lighter. Soon he mixed them together and this started some pretty pink fizzing. :)

Of course, soon everything was dumped out into the tray together and M examined it closely:

Eventually I gave him a small cup of vinegar and a little bowl of baking soda. He kept scooping the baking soda into the tray, then he used a pipette to squeeze a little vinegar onto the baking soda piles. To quote M, this was “super-fun”! :)

Baking soda is a base, citric acid is an acid, and the cabbage powder is a neutral. The cabbage juice is a natural dye, and adding a base or acid to it will cause it to turn either red or blue.

For more science fun, check out Adventures in Mommydom!

Have a beautiful day! :)

Crocheted Cords

So, somewhere I saw these great crocheted cords as part of a group of Waldorf-style toys. I am totally addicted to crocheting, and whipped a couple of these up for M. He LOVES them, and has had so much fun with them. A lot more fun than I imagined he would have!

We’ve played falling-over-laughing tug of war with these about a million times. He loves for me to make one into a ball or “butterfly” (see pic above) and he will throw it at targets. Sometimes we tie them onto things and he does this: That’s him in midair. :) Jumping over the rope is a lot of fun! He also tries to lasso me sometimes. Basically he just throws the whole rope at me and cracks himself up. :)

They’ve been a great addition to his play; I plan to make more! They are super-simple to make, if you crochet. Just take several strands of yarn – I used 4 strands of worsted weight – and, holding them together, crochet a chain to your desired length with a large hook (I used an M I think). Leave the strands on either end, no need to weave loose ends in!

Have a beautiful day! :)