A Halloween Laboratory ~ Fun with Kids! Or just for Fun!

Thanks to thefrugalmom  for this super fun article and idea!!!

I love Fall.  (Have I mentioned that before?)  I love the sights, the smells, the gatherings and the decorations! 

Halloween is right around the corner.  (25 days away.)  We love decorating for Halloween, and getting into the spirit for my children.  We decorate in a fun, yet, not spooky kind of way.

While cleaning out my refrigerator during one of the last weeks of September, I began to toss the almost empty jars into the trash.  When I got to jar #3 of "why-did-we-keep-that-in-the-first-place" items, I thought about something to make with the jars:  a laboratory.

I quickly pulled the two previous jars from the trash, and searched for a few more in the refrigerator.  I emptied the remains of the jars into the trash, and soaked the jars in warm soapy water for about ten minutes.  After a quick wash, the product labels came off easily, and I was left with the beginning of the Halloween lab.  (Insert evil laugh.)

I rummaged through the gazillion toys in this house, and found a spider, a net, a snake, a bat and a brain eraser.  Perfect.

I added an item to each jar, to see which item would look good where.  (Keep in mind the item does not have to float or fit perfectly.  The snake looks great coiled up.  The perception of the spider would be totally different in a larger jar.)

I then took out each item, added water and a drop of food coloring to the jar, and put the item back in.  The jars are not sealed, because I'll make a new one next year.  (And there is no telling what you will find inside the jars, should you keep it another 365+ days.  I guess there is a way to stop the fungus from growing?  Bleach?  Vinegar?)  I did take black paint to put on top of the jar lids.  So you didn't see wording.  Some lids I wrapped with navy blue raffia, then swipped black paint on top of that.  Just for a little difference among them all.

I didn't put labels on the jars, because I wanted my children to name the contents.   

Pictured from right to left, they came up with brains, blood, guts, a snake, intestines, a spider and a bat.

In all, the "Laboratory" cost nothing but excitement.  My children love it. 

For snack that day, we drank "Bat's Blood" and ate "spider legs"....but that's another story. 

If you make a laboratory - send me pictures!  I'd love to see!