Egg People Tutorial

Or, as my 3 yr old niece likes to call them- "people grass."

Last week we planned on having my niece over for a couple of days to spend the night at our new home. I had all sorts of activities planned for when she came over including making little egg people with grass hair and whipping up some homemade marshmallows. (Which were a disaster. I learned that letting a 3 yr old do all the stirring makes flat marshmallows and gelatin without flavoring is very stinky!) In case you want to make some of these cute little guys, I've made a mini tutorial for y'all.

Since wheatgrass grows so fast it is pretty instant gratification and fun for kids to plant. I made it a little more kid friendly by using eggshells with faces on them. The grass looks like crazy green hair and children love to play barber and trim it.

Materials Needed:
Eggs
Egg carton
Sharpie
Markers or paints
Soil (I use Miracle Grow water control)
Wheatgrass seeds (available here)





Directions:

1. Crack your eggs very carefully to remove just a small portion of the top. Sometimes this takes several tries so plan on making a quiche or something with lots of eggs. They do sell a fancy tool that cuts off the top, but if you don't own one use the lip of a bowl or glass and tap lightly all around. Empty the contents of the eggshell and rinse with water. Set aside to dry.

2. If you are using an egg carton to hold your egg person, cut out an individual cup for each egg and allow the children to decorate them with markers or paints. Remember if using markers not to get these wet or they will bleed! Other alternatives are to cut out feet from a piece of cardboard and hot glue them to the bottom of your egg, or cut a 1" strip of cardstock and make a "tube" for the little guy to sit in.

3. Using the help of an adult (especially for young children) lightly draw a face on your egg using a sharpie or other non-washable marker.

4. Fill your egg 2/3 full with soil using a teaspoon. Tap down lightly. At this point I also like to water the soil a bit so it is moist and I don't wash away the seeds by trying to water the top.


5. Sprinkle with an even coating of wheatgrass seeds, trying not to overfill or cause the seeds to overlap.

6. Cover the seeds with a thin layer of soil and moisten. Not too much- your soil underneath the seeds should already be moist as well. (A spray bottle works perfect for this!) Do not over fill or flood your egg.

7. Place the newest member of your family in a warm place and allow to sit for about 3 days, watering lightly only when the soil feels dry. Once the first little sprouts peek through the soil move locations to a windowsill or other sunny spot in your home. In a few days your egg will have wild hair! You can cut the hair or allow your pets to nibble on them. (I woke up to the cat sitting in my sink eating my wheatgrass!)


Enjoy your projects!