monkey? lion? does it really matter? ;)

 
I LOVE cookie cutters and all the fun things you can do with them! These were lil snack sandwiches I made yesterday. It put a smile on their faces on a dreary, cold day. It was fun to talk about what animals they would get to see at the zoo today too! :) super easy and healthy snack, and a little dark chocolate to boot :)

cherry chomper!

This cherry chomper works! I love that there's an easy way to pit the cherries for my 2 year old!  I found it at Festival for $13 and it's worth it. It would also be a great tool to have on hand for chocolate covered cherries! YUMMY!

Marshmallow bow and mallow!

I kinda want to keep this for myself, but this is what I found at Gander Mountain (yes, I do actually love that store!) for my nephew's birthday! (His daddy is a huge hunter) It's a bow that shoots mini marshmallows as the arrows! I made a little ammo container for him, because who doesn't love something personalized?....Just a rubbermaid container from target with stickers. I just thought this was way too fun of a gift not to share with ya'll! I'm always stumped when it comes to finding fun boy gifts! ($30 at Gander Mtn) And if anyone needs any Christmas ideas for me...totally serious :)

King for a Day

My son's class has a theme for each day as they countdown the last days of kindergarten. Today was pajama day. I forgot....or rather, didn't even remember to look at the calendar to see was in store for the day :( I was far more sad than He. So, honestly, maybe that's why I wanted to surprise him with a fun twist on his lunch for "King and Queen day" tomorrow. Kids remember SO much, and my son in particular just blows me away. Who has time to do this every day? not me. But, I do want my kids to remember the little things I did as a mom to make them feel special and cared about. It's healthy, fun and is even more fun now that he is reading so much! Knowing boys, I just  hope these go in his belly and not across the cafeteria table :)

 

 

 

 

The only problem with having fun with food at 10 o'clock at night is resisiting the ever-so- tasty canon balls. (darn you, Costco)

 

 

photography site

My website is up and running again! I'm so excited! If you are ever in need of photos for your family, I'm your girl :) This is something that I LOVE to do. As a stay at home mom this has also been a great outlet for me to get creative in another way. I will change and add photos often, so you might recognize some faces if I was capturing your smile :)
Thanks for taking a peak. Be blessed, my friend!

http://www.laurabehnkenphotography.com

Avocados and such

 

This is totally random, but my avocado/guac loving girls picked out best friend necklaces and I had to share! I think they are so cute! (They are from Claire's) Best friend necklaces sure have come along way from when I was a kid!


So, I thought I might as well share a fab guacamole recipe while I'm at it! :)

Guacamole Recipe : Alton Brown : Recipes : Food Network

Did you know:
*on average, Americans eat 53.5 lbs of guacomole on Super Bowl Sunday? That's enough to cover a football field 20 feet thick!
* There are over 7000 avocado groves in California?! (average of 10 acres)


These heart healthy fruits are cholesterol and sodium free! So, eat up! :)

a Harley. a newborn. a dream!! :)

 

 

 

This lil photo session did not help my desire for a bike, but it was oh so sweet! :)This lil punkin was a little trooper, and so was her big sister! I love this family!

 

SIMPLE teacher appreciation gift!

Simple, fun way to say THANK YOU to teachers who work so hard!! They have one of THE toughest jobs! Here's what we did this year for the ever giving people in our kids' lives. Make a simple tag with "Thank you for quenching my thirst for knowledge," cut 2 slits for the straw and fill with a variety of drink packets.

CHEERS TO TEACHERS!!!

 

 

 

 

 

Fun with washi tape!

There are about a million and one fun things to do with stuff! The kids love it almost as much as me! I bought mine at Michaels, but there are many other stores that carry it.

 

 

 

 

Clara had triplets over and we covered these $2 notebooks and added their initial! Who doesn't love something monogrammed?! They LOVED making these! Would be a great, simple project for a birthday party too??

 

 

 

 

 

I made a simple garland with different colors of tape and some twine!