Have fun with your kids in the kitchen: The projects that will help keep them occupied

MILWAUKEE -- Some of them are edible -- others just for fun! Maggie Joos of The Real Good Life joins Real Milwaukee with some projects kids can do in the kitchen.

1. Pudding Pops
It takes barely any work to make your own. Simply make some instant pudding and pour into a popsicle mold. Don't have one? Don't fret. Use small cups and wooden popsicle sticks to make your own. Dip the outside of the frozen container in warm water to loosen the popsicle at eating time.
For added fun, make two different kinds of pudding (chocolate and butterscotch is my favorite combo) and layer in the cup.

2. Fruit Wands
One of the best ways to get kids to eat fruit or veggies is to get them to participate in the "cooking". So for this fun project, we simply gather some fruit and kebob sticks. If you have it, you can use a star cookie cutter to turn slices of melon into stars. Kids can pick their own combination of fruit for their wand with the promise that they can pick whatever they want, but they have to eat it.

3. M&M Experiment
Arrange the M&M`s in a circle near the edge or rim of a glass or plastic plate. Pour warm water over the plate and watch the colors move toward the middle4.

Frozen Breakfast Bark
Simply line a pan with parchment and then pour on a layer of vanilla yogurt. Next comes bite-sized fruit pieces, granola or cereal. Simply top with small handfuls of whatever your family would eat and pop in the freezer to get really cold. When it's time for a snack (or breakfast!), take it out and break into pieces. This does thaw quickly, so eat over a plate.
Favorite combinations in our house are blueberries and Cheerios, and tiny pieces of banana and strawberries.

5. Homemade Playdough
Pro-tip - only go for the primary - red, yellow, green or blue - colors of the food coloring. When we tried making pink or purple by combining colors, it all turned to grey.