Snacking Our Way Towards an Exciting School Year

This post is sponsored by Snack Pack®.

We’re finishing up our first official week of school and I have to say, it’s been one for the books! Our summer seemed to just zip by with our big move and I think both the kids and I feel like we literally blinked our eyes and it was time for a new school year. While I know that they love our new location and new home, I also know they were both a little disappointed that summer came to a close so quickly. And I’ll admit I totally understand that feeling. But being the glass half full type of person who loves to celebrate, well, anything I decided that the perfect way to beat the back-to-school blues and inject a little excitement into our newly busy life was through a fun picnic.

As I thought through my plan, I knew I wanted to keep my ideas back-to-school themed. After all, my little guy has just started his first year of school (yes, like EVER) and my older kiddo is in his first year of middle school. I knew because of this range in their ages I needed an idea that was fun and fabulous for both a pre-schooler and a pre-teen. And as I thought about the common theme that ties their experiences together as well as the items that they love most, I decided the only way to make back to school truly sweet was with a treat that showed them both that they were going to be stars in the new school year!

To start my celebration, I did a little planning. I picked up some essentials and then I completed a little prep work. I knew that I wanted to have a celebration planned that made the afternoon following their first full day of school memorable. And while I had quite a few kid sized surprises in mind, I knew that the star of my back-to-school celebration just had to be Snack Pack® Pudding Cups.

After picking up this tasty treat in Vanilla, Chocolate and Butterscotch I set to work coming up with a way to take it from simply being a favorite snack and turn it into a back-to-school worthy celebration! I toyed with different ideas. I played with different mix-ins. And I finally decided on a fun picnic idea that would show my kids that going into the new school year they are truly going to be able to shine.

With my idea in mind and all my ingredients prepared, it was time to surprise my school-aged kids with a picnic they won’t soon forget. I started by whipping up some fun smiley face peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. To create them I simply used a round cookie cutter to make circular pieces of bread. Then I cut out a mouth using a kitchen knife and assembled my sandwiches so that the jelly was on top, creating a bright and happy smile! My finishing touch was raisins for eyes and my sandwich snack was complete.

After pairing these perfectly sized snacks with some refreshing water, it was time to put together my Back to School Star Pudding Cups. Knowing that both of my kids love to add a little crunch to their Snack Pack® Pudding Cups and prefer fruit to pretty much anything else, I came up with a school themed idea that was super fun. I started by taking the tops off of our our Snack Pack® Pudding Cups and setting them out. Since we had new friends milling around, I made sure to have extras (because, you know, I’m THAT mom).

Then I grabbed our cereal that was shaped into the letters of the alphabet. With school being all about letters and reading and writing, it was the perfect addition to keep my Snack Pack® creation back-to-school theme.

With my letters added for an amazing crunch in each of my Snack Pack® Pudding Cups, it was time for the finishing touch. Since my idea had been all about showing my kids what stars they were going to be at school, it only made sense to slice up Starfruit and add a star to each cup, sticking it into the pudding and allowing the letters to show perfectly around it.

The minute the kids looked at their snack time treat, their eyes lit up. They took in the bright smiling faces of the sandwiches and the fun theme of the Snack Pack® Pudding Cups and all of a sudden their reservations about back to school went right out the window.

Instead of worrying about the fact that summer was ending, they got excited about special moments where we can celebrate how brightly their stars will shine in the new school year.

As they dug into our special treats and enjoyed an afternoon that was all about celebrating what a special time it is when school starts back, I began to see the sadness over the end of summer fade and excitement take it’s place.

And as they both filled their bellies with fun snacks and our creative Back to School Star Snack Pack® Pudding Cups, the joy and excitement of a new school year started to grow.

Because they quickly realized that just like the summer months, the school year was also going to be full of sweet moments, special surprises and above all Snack Pack® Pudding Cup picnics where they could sit back, enjoy the moment and remember that going back to school is one of the best times of the year.

Whether your kids are getting ready to head back to school or have already started, be sure to celebrate this special time of the year with a Spoonful of Fun! Start with delicious Snack Pack® Pudding Cups and then see what you can mix in to make snack time truly memorable! Simply head to your closest super market and pick up your own Snack Pack® Pudding Cups in order to create your own fun memories any day of the week! Then mix it up, eat it up and remember that a Spoonful of Fun makes every day special!

Tell me, what would you mix in to your Snack Pack® Pudding Cups for a back-to-school treat?

This back to school season take a moment to slow down and enjoy a tasty and fun treat with the kids. Snack Pack comes in a variety of flavors and offers endless mix-in opportunities the kids can help prepare. Each serving of Snack Pack is fortified with as much calcium as an 8-oz glass of milk,* so you can feel good about serving your kids Snack Pack. For mix-in inspiration, visit Snack Pack on Pinterest and Facebook.

* All Snack Pack products contain 30% DV calcium, with the exception of Bakery Shop Lemon Meringue Pie, Lemon Pudding, and Snack Pack Gels.