Whoever came up with the idea of putting playdough in a balloon was a genius! It creates the smoothest stress ball ever. In fact, the adults around here have been enjoying these balloon buddies more than Trip. I made Daddy and Uncle Erik each one to use while they coach their middle school football team and our friend Carrie one to enjoy during her long hours in the car as she and her husband travel the United States.
I used some homemade playdough but I'm sure that the store-bought kind would be just fine as well. The Jell-O playdough that I used is very smooth and squishy, so it's extra nice. Getting the playdough in the balloon is a bit tricky. Having a helper to hold open the balloon or to stuff the dough inside is definitely a plus, but not required. I found that if I had small balls of playdough ready on the table, I could hold the balloon open with my first two fingers and stuff the little balls in one after the other with my pinkies. We also discovered that you have to use fresh balloons (I used a couple of old ones and they broke) and that it's best to fill one balloon with playdough and tie it, then stuff that inside another balloon. That way, if the first one breaks, the other is there to contain the mess.
These can be left plain or decorated with permanent markers. I also super-glued some googly eyes to one. Just be careful with little ones if you use googly eyes since they could come off. When Trip gets older, he will be able to make a face of his choosing to decorate his balloon buddy.
I had never heard of doing that, but what a great idea! I've always liked those little stress balls, but never really knew how I might make one.
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