Colored Rice

I have vague memories from my childhood of playing with a giant bucket of colored rice. I believe it was at the Hollman's house. We would dig and pour and play to our heart's content. I loved that rice bucket. So when I saw a pinterest recipe for coloring rice I thought I would give it a try. Who knew it was so easy?
All you need is some white rice, rubbing alcohol, a gallon-sized ziploc, waxed paper, and food coloring. I like to store it in a big bucket with a sheet. You will also need toys for playing and digging. We have found that funnels, slotted spoons, ladles, and bowls are all fun.

Step 1: Pour 1 tsp. alcohol and several drops of food coloring in a large ziploc bag. Mix by squishing the bag until combined.
Step 2: Add 1 cup of rice (I did as much as 3 cups of rice at a time, but you could probably do more. Just adjust the alcohol and food coloring accordingly.)
Step 3: Seal the bag and shake until all the rice is coated. (Clara loved helping with this part.)
Step 4: Spread the rice out on the waxed paper until totally dry. (It will take at least a couple of hours.)
Step 5: Repeat with other colors. You can even use the same ziploc bag.
Step 6: Once the rice is completely dry you can either store in an airtight container to use for art projects or pour onto a large old sheet for play time. Once play time is over you simply pull up the corners of the sheet into a bundle with the rice inside and stick in the bucket. You will probably need to vacuum, but the vast majority should be in the sheet for next time. You can also make individual dig stations in tupperware with "treasures" buried for the kids to uncover.

 I let our rice dry for 3-4 hours.

 This kept Clara occupied for 45 minutes to an hour 2 days in a row so far!

Grace even got in on the action and played for a good 20 minutes before she got busted munching on them. I am yet to find something that girl will not put in her mouth!