Have a Bear-y Good Day!

This post was sponsored by Nabisco as part of an Integrated Activation for Influence Central and all opinions expressed in my post are my own.

It's hard to believe we are already two months into our school year. Even harder to believe we are already on our first break of the year! It's amazing how quickly time flies during the school year. The constant "go, go, GO" keeps you on your toes and days, weeks, months become a blur of busy activity. We've managed to keep the chaos to a healthy normal, and even though our schedules seem jam packed, we've enjoyed our transition into the new school year.

Before the break we snuck in a few fun activities. It was a short week because of the hurricane, but that wasn't going to stop me from having my turn as mystery reader in Little Cute's classroom. This is one of my favorite parent participation activities we get to do throughout the year. I love seeing how excited my kids are when I walk through that door! It is a memory I hope I never forget!

L.C.'s current classroom theme is bears. They've been studying about the letter "B", and even have a prayer bear that they each take turns bringing home throughout the year. 

Not one to miss a good theme, I jumped on the chance to incorporate bears into my mystery reading duties. I chose a few bear themed books that I knew would be a huge hit, and then I thought of the perfect snack to include with my reading.

The kids have been loving these TEDDY SOFT BAKED Filled Snacks lately, and I decided they would be perfect to use as my bear themed snack!

I mean how much cuter could they be?!

The Cutes love them because they are something new and fun shaped (not to mention - chocolate filled!), and I love them because they don't contain any artificial flavors, colors, or corn syrup. They are actually made with real high quality ingredients such as milk, eggs, and chocolate. Knowing how important lately it has become for me to understand what we are snacking on, I appreciate that Teddy Soft Baked Filled snacks are something we both agree on.

Cute has been begging me to be mystery reader for his class too, and when he heard these bear-y yummy snacks were involved he was so jealous. I've already logged this idea for his classroom when it's my turn in there too.

Cute snuck off to Walmart to help me snag enough boxes for both classrooms. I typically find the TEDDY SOFT BAKED Filled Snacks on Walmart's snack aisle, organized with the other individual wrapped snack packs.



They come in two different flavors - chocolate and vanilla - but Cute informed me chocolate was the best.

After bringing home our purchases, I set to work to create a fun printable to coordinate with our bear theme. I think it turned out so fun, and loved how the adorable bear themed snack help tie everything together.

My bear theme was complete, and the kids were so excited to get a little something extra fun with the reading.  They could eat right away their treat right away or save for when they had snack time at home. It was easy, mess free, and the perfect addition to our bear themed fun! I love great on the go snacks that make little projects like this so easy for me!

HOW TO CREATE A "BEARY GOOD" THEMED SNACK

What You'll Need

• TEDDY SOFT BAKED Filled Snacks (They come in packs of 12. So purchase enough for the whole class...and the teachers!)
• Download the "Beary Good Day" favor tags. 
• Clear treat bags
• Coordinating ribbon
• A hole punch
• Scissors

Directions

1: Print and cut out favor tags. Set aside. 

2: Place TEDDY SOFT BAKED Filled Snacks into individual treat bags. (I kept some in their original packaging and some I removed, depending on the school's policy regarding snacks.) 

3: Secure with coordinating ribbon, and attach favor tag. 

4: Share and enjoy giving everyone a "Beary Good" snack!

A "BEARY GOOD" GIVEAWAY!

We are so excited about TEDDY SOFT BAKED Filled Snacks that we are helping to giveaway the chance for 12 lucky readers to win a $50 gift card to Walmart to join in our snack time fun! In addition, two lucky grand prize winners will be given the chance to win a $200 Walmart gift card! The giveaway will run through September 29, 2017.  I-C will randomly select 14 winners from all program entries and will facilitate fulfillment of the winning prizes. Enter below and good luck!

Nabisco Snacktime Sweepstakes

What "Beary Good" snacks do your kids love to share at school? 

Jen

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Kitchen Confessions: Cupid Crunch

Now that it's February, let's just go ahead and put this out there - I love Valentine's Day! I might be in the minority, but I think it is just such a fun day - especially seeing how excited my children get about the day. There are just so many reasons to love Valentine's Day...

1: It's just fun to celebrate love. We need more days like that in our lives. 

More love, less...everything else!

2: Conversation hearts. 

3: The chance to wear pink head to toe (as if I need an excuse).

4: All the adorable theme wear for the kids. 

5: Roses. Give me all the roses. 

(And yes, you can buy these any day of the year, but you probably don't. So receive them, buy them, send them to a friend...get on board with a day about flowers!)

6: Any excuse to dig into one of those yummy boxes of chocolates.

(Dibs on the coconut crunch!)

Speaking of all the yummy Valentine's Day treats, feast your eyes on this yummy concoction...

Let me introduce you to the Cupid Crunch Snack Mix. 

We put our own twist on this yummy salty sweet combo, and it is so so tasty. 

I might have eaten it for lunch one day this week. 

It's super easy to make, with less than 20 minutes of work from start to finish. It's also a huge hit with the kids if you have a treat you need to bring into class for a party. 

 Bonus: You can make it allergy free with just a few switch of products. I used these pretzels, these chocolate chips are a great alternative that are still super yummy, and Chex cereal is free of most allergens.

We are dishing on the yummy details of this Cupid Crunch Snack Mix with our friends over at Savvy Sassy Moms. Make the hop HERE to check it out!

Make it, gift it, pack it up and bring it to work as a snack. 

You will forever be in love with Valentine's Day and so will your tastebuds. 

And for more Valentine's Day fun, check out some of our past posts:  

DIY Tassel Bracelets

Little Love Notes

Ten Little Kisses Book + Activity

Cupid Floats

Oreo Treat Pops

Flashlight Valentine + Free Printable

10 Favorite Kids Valentine's Day Books

Rice Krispies Pops

Love Quotes Free Printables

Candy Free Valentine's Ideas

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5 Allergy Free Lunch Ideas

Another week, another round of "What to pack in the lunch box?".  Anyone else have a tough time with this? 

One of the tougher parts of my lunch box packing is that I have children with food allergies or food sensitivities. Taking that into account each day - as well thinking of the sweet children in my kids classrooms that have severe allergies - can make the art of lunch box packing tedious. Trust me, it's an art. 

KEEPING IT REAL
I try to keep lunch as simple as possible since each child has different allergies or classroom restrictions. While I would love to create amazing themed lunches, it's not always the easiest with limitations. Label checking has become a habit I don't even think of any more, and I've been super lucky that over the last few years more brands are becoming allergy conscious. I've stumbled upon, or been introduced to a few yummy kid-free options that help make allergy free lunches an easier part of my school prep. 

You can read about some of my easy allergy free lunch ideas on Savvy Sassy Moms HERE.

PIN-WORTHY
Aside from my own easy ideas, we've found some other fabulous suggestions.  We did the research and created a fun allergy free lunch idea board on Pinterest. It's definitely a great resource if you are looking for allergy free lunch or snack suggestions.

ADD IT TO THE SHOPPING LIST

Since all three of my children have presented allergies out of the womb, while nursing I have to eliminate allergens from my diet as well. Over the years both the kids and I have done some major taste testing in regards to allergy free brands. Some are winners in the taste department, and some my taste buds would rather forget coming in contact with. Some of my favorite allergy free brands are: 

• Enjoy Life - Our favorite brand allergy-free brand to date. Everything we have tried is yummy (seriously, I eat some of these even when I don't have to eliminate allergens from my diet), and they have some amazing lunch box portioned options now. The crunchy cookies, snack bars, and chips are just some of our favorites. 
• Annie's Homegrown - Probably the most kid friendly of the bunch. We love their fruit snacks, granola bars, and their grahams. 
• Udi's - Has a ton of great options - especially gluten-free breads that actually taste good!
• Go Raw - The cookies remind me slightly of a slightly thicker rice cake, but they are yummy! The Ginger Snap flavor is our favorite. 
• Go Organically - Again, yummy fruit snacks!
• Lucy's - Makes mostly cookies, but they are tasty. Almost too tasty. ;) 

Do you have a child you have to pack allergy-free for? What are some of your favorite lunch box ideas to pack? 

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Kitchen Confessions: Coconut Peanut Butter Bars

Coconut. Peanut butter. Chocolate. 

Need I say more? 

I'm not one to turn down a sweet treat, and most definitely not a sweet no-bake treat. These little squares of yummy are about to blow your mind.  

I found this yummy recipe a few weeks ago, when I was looking for an easy dairy-free dessert, and we cannot stop eating them. Literally the second I make a batch they are gone!

 The moment I saw coconut I was in love - its a serious addition people. But once I read these no-bake bars were also gluten-free, and refined sugar free I was all in. 

We've given them quite the test run - rumor is I might have eaten it as breakfast one day (hey, it's healthier than a donut). I even made a few batches at the beach. Listen, if I am going to bake (or no-bake) on vacation, you know it has got to be tasty. 

These Coconut Peanut Butter Bars are super easy to make and I promise you will be thanking me every sweet bite you take. 

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of old fashioned oats (gluten-free)
• 1 cup of unsweetened, shredded coconut
• 1/4 cup of almond meal
• 3/4 cup of natural creamy peanut butter
• 1/2 cup of honey
• 1/4 tsp of salt
• 1 tsp of vanilla 

For the topping: 

• 1/4 cup of chocolate chips
• 1 tablespoon of peanut butter

** For the refined sugar free topping use:

•  1/4 cup of unsweetened chocolate chips, chopped
• 1 tablespoon of peanut butter
• 1-2 tablespoons of honey

Instructions:

For the bars: 

1. In a small bowl mix coconut, almond meal, and oats. Set aside.
2. In a large, microwave safe bowl gently melt peanut butter and honey together until smooth. Microwave in 30 second intervals, stirring in between. 
3. Add vanilla and salt. 
4. Add the dry ingredients and mix together. 
5. Spread into an 8x8 pan. 

For the topping & putting it all together: 

1. Melt the peanut butter and chocolate in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave in 30 second intervals, stirring in between. Cook until chocolate is melted and smooth.
2. Drizzle and spread the topping mixture over the bar mixture. 
3. Set aside to cool until hard. (Place in refrigerator to cool faster.

Then it's time to serve and enjoy!

Make sure to store any leftovers in the refrigerator so that they don't "melt". 

I have yet to make it to this stage. 

#goals #willpower

Let me know how you like this yummy no bake treat!

Or do you have a favorite no bake recipe that I need to try - sharing is caring! 

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Friday Favorites: Celebrating Summer

Hurray for Friday! With this week being a little bit shorter, I feel like our time flew by! 

It was a week packed with summer activities, outside playtime, beach prep, and just general summer fun. 

I wouldn't have it any other way. We survived (and I do mean survived) the school year, and now I finally feel like we slowing down and getting into the summer groove. 

So lovely people, the emails about Fall activities, school, volunteering, committees, etc. I'm ignoring you. On purpose. At least until July. This mommy wants to enjoy summer - especially as short as ours is. Am I the only one who feels this way?  

With the unofficial start of summer underway, we've had a ton of fun moments this week. As usual, linking up with some of our favorite bloggers for Friday Favorites... 

Spending time with this guy is always my favorite. 

(Been chopping his head off in photos since 2002.)

Earlier in the week we were able to get a babysitter and sneak out to a yummy kid-free dinner. 

We didn't arrive until almost our normal bedtime because Baby Cute is currently refusing a bottle again, but we were determined. It was heaven being able to catch up and talk. We don't do it nearly as much as we should! 

This sweet little nugget turned four months. Four! How is that possible??

Baby Cute is the sweetest baby ever. She is currently all smiles, has found the magic of toys, and snuggles non-stop. It makes me want another!

We had her well visit this week, and while she still is battling her bouts of eczema, she is otherwise a happy and healthy little ball of cuteness.

Getting happy healthy news will always be my favorite!

With summer free time, comes summer reading. In addition to our book club book, I read two other books. 

The Knockoff was such a cute story! This book popped up in my Amazon suggested and I decided to roll with it. You instantly fall in love with the main character Imogen Tate (and her adorable family). Imogen is just returning back to her job as a magazine editor after experiencing a health scare and quickly realizes a lot has changed since her last time at work. 

It reminds me a little of Devil Wears Prada with a twist. Definitely a good, light story if you are looking for a beach read. 

The third book I read this month was The Luckiest Girl Alive. 

I'm torn on this one. It isn't my typical genre, but I had heard great things about it. It reminds me of Gillian Flynn's style - kind of dark and twisted, with broken characters. 

It's scary to think of something like this happening, but I will say I enjoyed how it ended. 

Verdict is still out, but...I also couldn't put it down. 

Getting my mind wrapped around a trip we have coming up soon. Channeling my inner OCD I was laying things out so I can plan packing (yes, I do this - just roll with the crazy), and I realized I have quite the flamingo obsession this year. 

How cute is this little flamingo cover up and coordinating flamingo swimsuit? It's terry cloth as well, so it will be super cozy after spending all day at the pool and beach. 

I also just ordered these super cute flamingo pjs for Little Cute, as well as the matching footed ones for Baby Cute. Aren't they adorable? 

I'm even thinking about making L.C.'s birthday party a flamingo themed party. You know the birthday that is still five months away (again, can't stop the crazy). 

I've been pinning some of my favorite flamingo finds. If you want to join in the Flamingo Fun here is the board...

Not one to turn down anything coconut, I saw these yummy looking little treats as I was walking through Target this week. They just had to make their way to my cart.

Oh my - this might be my favorite new guilty pleasure. 

Talk about yum!

I had to hide them in the back of my pantry behind the canned veggies just so my lovely family members don't discover this yumminess. 

(I'm just flaunting the crazy today, aren't I?)

We have been swimming up a storm this week. Swimming at our pool and then swim lessons at local pool close by. I love it and it looks like all three of my babies are officially water babies. Summers spent poolside and lounging on the beach are my absolute fav! 

I can not get this song out of my head! 

I love me some J.T. and this song is just so fun. It's been on repeat non-stop in our house.

The kids and I have had a blast singing and dancing to it, and I have a feeling it will be our go to song for the summer. 

Memorial Day we broke out our red, white, and blue decor and I could not be more excited. I put it back up for a bit, but once we get a little closer to Forth of July I am going to break it out again. I think I might keep it up from then until Labor Day. 

Forth of July is my absolute favorite holiday. Favorite!!! 

I mean even more than Christmas! 

I am not sure what it is about it, but I've loved it since I was a child. 

Today I get to meet up with this fabulous girl and do a little 4th of July prep, and I can't think of a better way to end my week!

Stay tuned because we have a ton of fun things up our sleeve for the 4th over the next few weeks. 

But first...

Don't forget to enter our #SummerScoop4Moms giveaway worth over $2300!

Details on all the fabulous prizes and entry are 

HERE.

Happy Weekend Y'all!!

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