100 (Attempted) Ways to Entertain a Young Toddler, Day 44: Yogurt Fingerpainting

 My cousin (cousin-in-law?) blogs about creative activities she does with her two kids. I've been wanting to try some type of finger-painting with Oliver, so when I read her entry on yogurt fingerpainting, I decided to give it a try. As an FYI, I've read that some mothers will make vanilla instant pudding and use that instead of yogurt. I've also heard that some mothers just use shaving foam, but that probably only works for toddlers who wouldn't be interested in trying to eat the "paints." My son was one of those toddlers, so I might try using shaving foam in the future to see if it's any different/better/worse.

I put approximately 1/3 cup plain yogurt into three bowls. Later, I learned that I made way too much. Oliver probably would have been fine with a few tablespoons of each. Anyway, to each 1/3 cup of yogurt, I added 8 drops of dye. I decided to go with primary colors so Oliver could (maybe) enjoy mixing them to create new colors. Here's Oliver's palate:


As I mixed the yogurt with the dye, Oliver peeled off the paper I had taped and ready to go. I'd used the back of some holiday wrapping paper. My cousin put her little guy (who is nearly a year) into his high chair and let him paint on his tray. Do what works for you! Anyway, I had to re-tape the "canvas" before I could let Oliver play. So, that explains why there are tears all over the paper. Ha!

I put a glob of each color of yogurt onto the paper. Oliver touched it a bit and then asked me to wipe his hands. So, I had to keep a towel on hand. I showed him how to drag his finger through the paint, and he started to mimic my movements.

We had to constantly pause to clean his hands because, apparently, my son doesn't like stuff on his hands. I swear I'm not an overly cleanly mother, so it must be Oliver's own cleanliness issue.

Oliver enjoyed the paints for a few minutes, but, in the end, it just wasn't his thing. He swirled some paint around, splashed some on the floor, and then left to go play with his dry pasta again.

All done with finger painting!

Honestly, setting up wasn't very difficult at all, and clean-up could have been a lot worse. I figured the entire kitchen would get covered in streaks of colorful goop, but it really didn't happen. Even though it wasn't very difficult, I definitely spent more time just setting up than Oliver spent painting. I was actually a little disappointed that Oliver didn't enjoy this activity more. As a kid, I would have loved it.


I give yogurt fingerpainting a B-. It is creative, fun, and not very difficult or expensive. On the other hand, it just wasn't interesting to my little guy, so it seemed a bit pointless. I see potential fun in yogurt fingerpainting in our future. I intend to try again in a few months or whenever Oliver is more interested in doing artistic activities.