Faux sandbox

I let Jordan play in the rice one day while I was making dinner. It worked out perfectly for us, he played quietly so I could get things done, and he loved making "waterfalls" with the rice. It all started with him digging in the rice with a tablespoon and a measuring cup, he wasn't putting his hands in it, so I figured it would be just fine and edible in the end. Then he wanted to play in the rice the next day, and the next, and soon he was playing in his inside sandbox everyday. He loves it!! We would dump all the rice in a big bowl and then when he was all done I would dump it all back in the storage bin it belongs in. But soon just digging with a measuring cup wasn't enough. Soon he was playing in it with his hands, sippy cups, toys, cheetos (yes, cheetos), and then I drew the line with a toilet paper tube. The rice is now his, and only his. But I think the $2 bag of rice has been worth it. And even though he has been so careful in keeping the rice in the bowl, some of it escapes, but the nightly floor sweeping has been worth it as well.