Fern, you are lucky to have those special times baking with your kids. I have special memories baking with my mom.

I'm working on the aesthetic part of my baking. I'm weaker at that than getting the creations to taste good. Several months back, I made the most difficult cake of my life. It was meant to be a replica of the top of my wedding cake. I about had a nervous breakdown making it, especially getting the marzipan sheet on top perfectly. I had to totally redo the marzipan rolling. The more you work it, the lower the quality. I managed on the third try. I cried afterwards. I later took an adult school class in "Working with Fondant". That was fun! Kids would love working with fondant to decorate cupcakes or cookies. You just need the right fondant decorating tools/cutters (47-piece sets for $15), store-bought fondant, and some food coloring. Marzipan works similarly to fondant and actually tastes even better. I think kids would find it even more fun and satisfying to play with than Play-Doh.