Here’s what this past week looked like:
FIRST DAY OF KINDERGARTEN!!!



On the latest episode of the Joy the Baker podcast, we talk about the weird people at the gym (and how we have names for them!), bragging about yourself & our thoughts on people who type with two fingers. Check out Episode #128: Hunt & Peckers.

I think I may have said this once or twice before but fresh cut apples with lime juice squeezed on top is my favorite snack ever. If you haven’t tried it before, DO IT. Chili powder is a great addition to this wonderful combo….but I like it just with just these two things.

We just survived Cooper’s first day of Kindergarten!!! It’s funny how a date can sit on your calendar for MONTHS and then JUST LIKE THAT it comes and goes! New beginnings. New friends. New routines. New clothes. New teachers. New routes to school. New lunchbox. New haircut. New backpack. EVERYTHING IS NEW.

As someone who loves change (when I have some semblance of control!) it’s been nice to be able to say that we made it through! There were no tears (including me!) and Cooper DID NOT want to go home from Kindergarten. In fact, he was like, “Waaaaaaaait. Why are you picking me up so early? I was just getting to know my new best friend.” I did have a mild panic attack when I thought I left my dang checkbook at home and didn’t have a sweatshirt for him like I was supposed to. We made it through and that’s all that matters!

One of the main things that’s new for us this year is school lunches. At Cooper’s preschool they served the children hot meals each day so I didn’t have to pack lunches for him. It was NICE not having that stress every evening. This means I have to beef up my school & after school snack game! I think I might add this Avocado Banana Chocolate Pudding recipe to our rotation because I got Cooper to eat AVOCADOS without a fuss. To fancy it up, I added coconut whipped cream and a sprinkle of chopped roasted peanuts. It’s creamy, chocolatey and DECADENT! It’s the perfect recipe to make when you have a few too many avocados and bananas lying around…and we always have too many cuz I love both with a passion.

So, here’s the thing. My son, Cooper doesn’t like Mac & Cheese. ISN’T THAT CRAZY??! There’s something about pasta he doesn’t like (are we even related?!!) and he’s kinda finicky about melted cheese (only on pizza and sometimes quesadillas). I’m hoping/praying it’s just a phase. We shall see. BUT!! Casey, on the other hand loves pasta in ANY form. Whenever he’s is working late and Cooper has already eaten dinner and gone to bed, I usually whip up a box of Annie’s Mac & Cheese for us adults. It’s very rare that I make a box on its own because I love the challenge of coming up with new additions. I think Casey definitely appreciates the effort!
Every Monday Annie’s shares a new creative Mix-In idea on their twitter, Instagram & Facebook pages. Today I teamed up with Annie’s to show you some of MY favorite Mix-Ins (I created 10 recipes total!) on this fine MONDAY. Let’s get into it!
Here’s what this past week looked like.
A cupcake to celebrate last day of Summer school!
