Theoretically, we’re halfway through the summer after July 4th. But since the school year here didn’t end until June 20th, we’re not at the halfway mark yet. Nope, no siree! It’s in the 90s, my schedule is more flexible, and I’m getting in lots of quality family time!

There’s something really satisfying about hanging out with everyone when the weather is hot. We can log in lazy pool days, enjoy evenings in the cul de sac after dinner blowing bubbles with all the extra sunlight, and stop looking at the clock so much. We can also pause for afternoon ice cream snacks, and let’s face it. Those are the best. Right now my freezer is fully stocked with EDY’S® Butterfinger Peanut Butter Cup Ice Cream and EDY’S® Baby Ruth Ice Cream, and they’re getting a lot of attention. How could they not, when they’re inspired by two of my favorite candy bars?

Since you all know I’m the biggest bargirl ever when it comes to baking, I made a batch of Butterfinger® cookie bars to go along with my ice cream. There’s pretty much no greater combination in life than a good dessert bar and a bowl of ice cream.

The other day, my middle kid had her birthday weekend. She was born right before July 4th, which means that the doctors didn’t bother us at all in the hospital after she was born. They literally ran off to picnics and barbecues, leaving us behind. In fact, the doctor who delivered her met his wife that night at a party. It was a strangely tranquil weekend, and I remember just relaxing with my newborn and eating an entire package of cookies. Hey, I’d earned it.

What struck me at the time was how important family is to everyone, even busy-seeming hospital staff. I mean, the place was nearly deserted. There aren’t many times of year when people just clear a place and head home en masse, but summertime is when we all want to be together. The summer nights might be long, but the months pass quickly. Actually, so do the years. That newborn is now six years old, and she’s not a baby anymore.

Thankfully, she’s someone whom I also like as well as love, and we have a lot in common. One is our endless fondness for ice cream. When she saw the containers of EDY’S® Ice Cream in the freezer, she knew that the best kind of Walmart trip had just taken place.  We took out spoons and had a snack moment together, just my birthday girl and her proud mommy. Plus, I feel a lot better about sharing ice cream with my kids when it’s made with fresh milk & cream with no rBST (milk production hormone). This ice cream is so good, and it has the good stuff in it too!

To go along with our ice cream, I made these Butterfinger cookie bars. The base is a chewy peanut butter cookie, and then I filled the dough with chopped up fun-sized candy bars. I even crumbled some more Butterfinger on top for the perfect finish!

When paired with EDY’S® Butterfinger Peanut Butter Cup Ice Cream, these cookie bars make the perfect summer snack. It’s even better during these long summer days that we all spend together. Take some time out with the people you love! This is the time, y’all.

Yes, I said “skort.” Before you assume that I’m dressing like a 2 year-old, they do make cool skorts nowadays that look like miniskirts but that have shorts under. It’s more ladylike not to flash people.

When it’s hot outside, I like to sit on my front step drenched in sunscreen and mosquito repellent. I’ll bring out a book, a cup of ice water, and a frozen treat. This week, these peanut butter fudge pops are getting a lot of play. They require only two ingredients, so get cracking!

Lately, I’ve been trying to up my crossword puzzle action. Studies show pretty much everything you want them to show, but one of those things is that crossword puzzles keep brain function higher as we age. I don’t know if it’s true, but by golly, I’m gonna do them anyway. After all, crossword puzzles are fun, and if they’re maybe healthy for my noggin, why not?

My grandmother was a big crossword puzzle enthusiast. After she retired, she would wake up in the morning and start a puzzle before going for her daily swim. When she got back, she’d dry off and make lunch, and then after lunch, she’d make a cup of tea and finish the puzzle. What I remember most is that she always used an erasable pen, a habit that I plan to mimic when I hit retirement. After all, writing in pencil is no fun, but mistakes in pen don’t work with crosswords. She was a very sensible woman.

When I was a kid, I’d spend every third Sunday with my grandparents. My grandmother would honk her horn and I’d come outside quickly, dreading a second honk. Then we’d head to the pool together, where she’d forego her usual laps to watch me splash around and play with me. When we go home, my grandmother would make me a pizza with extra cheese while she prepared sandwiches for my grandfather and herself, and she’d always let me snack on cheese while the pizza was cooking. And dessert was always ice cream in a fancy ice cream parlor-style glass with Magic Shell on top.

Back then, I didn’t know what the word “pamper” meant, but that was definitely it. Nobody pampers like grandparents. My relationship with my grandparents was complicated, but I loved those Sundays of being indulged. I mean, I ate a whole pizza every time. It was amazing. And I was allowed to spend the afternoon doing whatever I wanted. Now I see my kids with their grandparents, and I know they don’t yet appreciate how lucky they are. But they will someday!

I always think of childhood when I make popsicles. Isn’t that the age when we’re most delighted with food on a stick? Oh, who am I kidding. Everyone loves that!

These pops are made of two things: peanut butter and chocolate milk. That’s it! Mix and freeze. You’re done. It’s like a frozen fudge bar, but with a peanut butter twist. Calcium and protein in one shot, friends! How is that for healthy?

And if you’ll excuse me, I have a crossword on the front porch to attack along with one of these. Hope you have a moment to yourself today!

I kid you not. I grew up in a family that considered a trip to the ice cream parlor an excellent substitute for lunch, and thank heaven they did. Because my favorite drink in the world is still a Baskin-Robbins Jamoca Almond Fudge milkshake with chocolate syrup. It’s just where life is at.

Today, my friend Megan is celebrating her 100th blog post with a giveaway, and a bunch of her best bloggy friends are taking part! I’ll talk more about Megan in a minute, but for now, enter to win. And while you’re at it, enjoy this no-churn mocha almond fudge ice cream, my own personal loving tribute to Baskin-Robbins!

When I first began blogging a short two and a half years ago, I joined a pretty overwhelmingly large and yet supportive group of food bloggers. There are a bazillion of us out there, and it can be hard to find your way to an audience.

Fairly early in the game, I stumbled upon Megan’s blog, The Emotional Baker. She had some pretty rockin’ donuts up that day, and she was writing about her struggles with a running injury. I’d recently recovered from a stress fracture caused by my own running, so I immediately felt a kinship with her.

Fast-forward to now, and I’m still a big fan. Megan has posted some of my favorite desserts, from these peanut butter pretzel bars to carrot cake pop tarts. And every time I visit her blog, I see yet another idea that pushes the bounds of creativity.

As food bloggers, we’re faced with the constant challenge of coming up with ideas. How many things can you do with a brownie? If you’re a blogger with regular postings, finding ways to switch it up is a constant practice. It can be stressful, joyful, empowering, or all of the above.

That’s why we’re so tightly knit, and so supportive. Only someone who is caught up in the crazy world of blogging can understand, and most of us have full-time jobs as well. We do this for the love of the work, and enjoy our friendships with one another along the crazy, wild ride this is!

One passion many of my fellow bloggers and I share is a love of no-churn ice cream. There’s an ice cream maker somewhere at my parents’ house nearby, but I’ve never had to borrow it. Why? Because of a little miracle known as sweetened condensed milk.

When SCM (as those of us in the know call it) gets combined with whipped cream and frozen, it turns into ice cream. You can customize flavors at will, too. Some people like to use Cool Whip as a shortcut, but I personally use my KitchenAid to whip up the real thing. It tastes better and creamier.

This ice cream is made with a chocolate-coffee mixture, and then I mixed in roasted almonds, chocolate chunks and hot fudge. Honestly, putting this ice cream away is a real challenge. I keep digging around for more chocolate chunks or almonds.

Here’s wishing Megan many more happy blog posts. Now it’s time to celebrate with some ice cream and a giveaway!

I’ve teamed up with 15 other bloggers to help celebrate The Emotional Baker’s 100th Recipe! We’re giving away two prizes.

• Grand Prize: $100 Amazon Gift Card.
• 2nd Place: TEB’s Favorite Baking Tools Prize Pack.

The prize pack includes:

• One Camry High Accuracy Digital Kitchen Food Scale // $18.99 value
• One iSi Basics Flex-It Measuring Cups // $24.99 value
• One RSVP Endurance Spice Measuring Spoon Set // $13.95 value
• One Wilton ColorSwirl 3-Color Coupler 9-Piece Decorating Kit // $7.90 value
• One Chef’n Switchit Narrow Silicone Spatula // $9.99 value

Giveaway Made Possible By:

• The Emotional Baker
• Spoonful of Flavor
• Eva Bakes
• FIVEheartHOME
• Cook Nourish Bliss
• Beer Girl Cooks
• The Seasoned Mom
• No Spoon Necessary
• Beaming Baker
• Flavor the Moments
• Like Mother, Like Daughter
• Fresh April Flours
• Vanessa Baked
• Brooklyn Farm Girl
• The Semisweet Sisters
• Just About Baked

Giveaway Rules:

1. Enter the giveaway through the Rafflecopter widget below. Earn entries by following the host bloggers on social media. (If you’ve followed in the past, that counts! Just enter the information as prompted.) All entries will be verified. No purchase is necessary to win.
2. The giveaway is open until Wednesday, June 29, 2016 at 11:59 p.m. EST. One Grand Prize winner and one Second Place winner will be chosen at random and e-mailed within 48 hours. Winners must claim prize within 48 hours of initial contact. The retail value of the prize is $75. Prizes listed above are the only ones available.
3. Grand Prize: Open to USA, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, Spain, United Kingdom.
   Second Place: Open to U.S. residents with a valid shipping address only.

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This is the last week of classes! Hurray! Hurrah!

Yes, in answer to your question. Teachers are much more excited about the end of school than the students. For two months, we can keep normal hours and not spend our days talking kids into learning. Sounds like a win to me! And let’s not forget the ice cream.

My summers are spent with ice cream. Whether I’m eating it straight up or incorporating it into another dessert, life is grand. This frozen peanut butter ice cream pie is made with Blue Bunny® Homemade Vanilla ice cream, and you will not want to miss one bite!

The first time I ever tried Blue Bunny® ice cream was at summer camp. School was out and I was feeling free and easy, but that all changed when I went to a sleep-away camp full of kids I didn’t know. It was really intimidating, and it threw my 12 year-old world into chaos.

I’d like to say that it was the best summer ever, because that would be a good ending, right? The truth is always more complicated than that, but I did learn a lot. And I can totally credit some of my more introspective summer moments that year to Blue Bunny® ice cream.

See, we got to have a scoop of it after dinner, and it was probably my favorite part of the day. I’d take my bowl of ice cream down to the lake (which was, of course, freezing to swim in) and sit on the edge. I’d savor the ice cream slowly, staring at the water and having all the idealistic summer dreams that a girl can have. You know, about what life will be someday, when we’re all grown up and have the perfect life. All that kid dream stuff.

Summers are for dreaming, after all. The school year makes it hard to do anything but work nonstop, but in the summer, anything is possible. The evenings are full of pinkish gold sunsets, and the mornings dawn bright and full of promise. How can anyone not love that?

For that matter, how can anyone not love ice cream? There are some pretty incredible flavors that I couldn’t resist buying when I was at Walmart this past week, like Blue Bunny® Salted Caramel Craze and Blue Bunny® Peanut Butter Party. The packaging is clear so that you can actually see the swirls in the ice cream flavors, so start swooning now. I’m totally hosting an ice cream party with my kids to celebrate the end of school this week. We’ll have to turn the sprinkler on, too.

This pie incorporates the timeless simplicity of Blue Bunny® Homemade Vanilla ice cream with my two loves, chocolate and peanut butter. Set in a chocolate cookie crust, the ice cream is mixed with peanut butter, filled with chocolate chips, and topped with irresistibly fun Smucker’s Magic Shell Chocolate Fudge Flavored Topping. I don’t know about you, but the creamy ice cream combined with the crunch of the chocolate is my version of heaven.

School is finally out, and we’re celebrating with ice cream. Is there any better way to do it? Bring on the fun with Blue Bunny® ice cream and awesome summer memories!

When I was a kid, I loved going to the beach and waiting for the ice cream sandwich cart to come around. I haven’t seen one of those in years, but I’ll always associate the beach with Chipwich ice cream sandwiches.

This year, I decided to put this ice cream I made last week to good use. It was a very intense peanut butter ice cream, so what better than to pair it with thick chocolate cookies? And of course, I had to add some patriotic Memorial Day bling.

Some stages of life are easier than others, and lately, a lot of people close to me have lost their loved ones unexpectedly. As I watch them go through their grief in different ways, I’m reminded about how grateful we should be for every day with those we love.

I’ve written before about being grateful, because it’s hard. We get so caught up in everything, all the little details that comprise daily life. Little details aren’t that little, really. They add up to something that becomes an overall life viewpoint. If a lot of tiny things about my day went wrong, from a mushy apple to oversleeping by a few minutes, I might just decide to give up on the whole day and put it into the “this day sucked” category.

What I won’t necessarily notice are little arms hugging me, or having plenty of food and water, or the furrowed brows of my students as they work on an essay with all of their effort.

So here I am, reminding myself yet again to be grateful and to treasure all the good things.

Part of the reason why I love dessert so much is that it forces me to stop and look around. I have a rule not to eat dessert while playing on my phone or watching TV, so it’s a forced mindful exercise. I can eat my ice cream sandwich, savoring each bite, while I just sit and think about the gratitude of being in that moment. If you don’t eat this way, try it! It’s pretty rewarding.

To make these as worthy a moment as possible, I baked thick chocolate chip cookies and sandwiched my favorite homemade ice cream in the middle. The sprinkles add a pretty good crunch, too!

Whether your day is going well or badly, try and savor the good stuff. Nothing lasts forever, and we should appreciate the happiness of being grateful as much as we can!

You know that I can’t go more than a week or so without doing something PB-related. It’s the ABCs of me, baby, and I’ve embraced it. Just like I’ve embraced the role of sugar in my life. More on that in a bit.

If you get frustrated because your peanut butter ice cream isn’t peanut buttery enough, or because it doesn’t include enough mix-ins, look no further. This no-churn option will satisfy all of your frozen peanut butter dreams!

I’m tired of the war on sugar. Yes, I realize I’m a baking blogger and so my credibility is lessened here, but I’m going to be very real with you.

First of all, a qualifier: the following thoughts do not apply to anyone who cannot have sugar for medical reasons or anyone who has disordered eating habits. I’m not a doctor or a nutritionist (clearly), so the following thoughts are just opinion.

A few years ago, after reading endless articles about the evils of sugar, I tried it cutting out. To call it a disaster would be fair. It’s not that I had withdrawal (I didn’t, shockingly) or any other noticeable symptoms. People told me I’d feel better, and that didn’t happen. I felt no different. Life was a little more boring, and I had to say no a lot, but that was about it.

What prompted the disaster was a lot of sudden weight loss. I’ve always been petite, and I have always worn sizes in the low range of the spectrum. But with the cancellation of sugar, I quickly lost 20 pounds and became very obsessed with maintaining what I now see was an unsustainable diet. I spent a lot of time chopping veggies, eating lean protein, and feeling virtuous.

Along with that came insecurity, doubt, a constant nagging hunger and the desire to eat everything in sight. I didn’t realize it at the time because it all seemed so healthy, but I was depriving my body of essential nutrients. What looked like fitness and health was really dysfunction.

Thankfully, I pulled myself back from the brink. As a result of this experience, I refuse to cut out food groups anymore. Did I put the weight back on? Yes. And I’m grateful for it, for my muscles (thanks, barre workouts!) and for whatever curves I like to think that I have.

When I see people turning sugar into the enemy, I get angry. It’s not sugar that’s the problem. It’s the extreme approach to food and the lack of emphasis our society puts on balance. I haven’t mastered balance, and I might not ever. But I’m sure gonna keep trying.

There’s your PSA. Now let’s get our sugar on!

This ice cream is full of it, not gonna lie. It’s got peanut butter, sweetened condensed milk, and whipped cream. You can be lazy and use Cool Whip (no judgement), but I like the less chemical taste of the whipped cream. And then I loaded the whole thing down with peanut butter cups, peanut butter chips and milk chocolate chips.

Suffice it to say, I’ll be eating a lot of this ice cream later. Probably a little more than I should. But you know, that’s life. And I’m happy that I don’t have to say no to anything anymore!

So I was browsing through one of my oldie but goodie cookbooks a while back, The Cake Doctor. For those of you who are unfamiliar, the author takes cake mixes and turns them into other treats. It’s a great book and I suggest you buy it immediately, if not sooner.

While browsing, I came across this magical recipe. It’s so easy: a box of white cake mix, three eggs, and a pint of ice cream (flavor of your choice) to give the cake its taste. That’s it, folks. I picked coffee ice cream and away we went! Results are right here.

In fact, I almost made a video, but I’m taking a short cinematography break. With Passover looming in less than three weeks, all my energies are going into getting the house ready for the annual onslaught of reminding us that our people were enslaved and now we’re free. But nothing feels free about getting ready for the holiday. That’s probably the point.

If you’re unfamiliar with Passover or the prep involved, just consider it the most demanding holiday you can imagine on steroids. To make Passover happen, the house needs to be spring cleaned from top to bottom. Coat and jacket pockets have to be checked for food wrappers or crumbs, kids’ rooms need to be excavated, and at some point, I wind up behind the fridge chipping away at tiny muck-filled crevices with a toothpick.

It’s not just the cleaning, though. Passover requires special food. Almost no food that we eat all year long except for vegetables (and not all of them, either) is acceptable on Passover. We can’t use typical carb bases (like flour), corn products, most grains, and legumes. The list goes on and on. We also have to expunge all of these unacceptable foods from the house, which means that I spend the weeks leading up to the holiday shopping conservatively so that we don’t wind up wasting food. That includes condiments and the spice rack, people.

And have I mentioned dishes? That’s right. This holiday requires its own dishes, down to pots and pans. We can’t use whatever we typically use because it’s made contact with forbidden foods (I know, it sounds insane). And since people in Judaism typically have different sets of dishes anyway (we separate meat from dairy), you can see where this is going.

Tip of the iceberg, people. I haven’t even gotten into the fact that we host the festive holiday meal (known as the Seder) two nights in a row for both sides of the family, cousins included.

Can someone come scrape my remains off the kitchen floor on or around April 22nd? You’ll find me easily because my three young’uns will be standing in a circle around me, demanding that I get up to fetch them candy.

As I am at my peak of stress right now, I need easy recipes. Recipes with three ingredients that produce delicious cakes that I can take to work and feed people with. Because I work full time, too. In a high school. No stress there.

This cake made me happy, as did the simple brown sugar glaze I poured over it. If I can’t get away from holiday prep at home, I can relax at work among the students I teach. They’re far less demanding of my time, and I’m even allowed to have cake breaks in my mini-cubicle.

Even if you don’t feel the pressure right now, nobody ever objected to making a three-ingredient cake out of melted ice cream. Try it with a flavor you love! The book recommends Cherry Garcia, but you can bet I’m trying it with Peanut Butter Cup next time!

You see, summer comes with wonderful desserts. And ice cream. Have I mentioned ice cream?

This past week, I made a fantastic poke cake. It was so delicious. And the photos were a complete #epicfail. So instead of hanging my head in shame, I’m going to share my favorites with you from this past summer!

Okay, at the top of my list is this salted peanut butter caramel ganache pie. I swear, the angels sang when I took a bite, and I think they’re still humming slightly out there. If you make one pie in the next few weeks, make it this one.

And since you know I can resist nothing peanut, these Baby Ruth brookies were a total triumph, and a long time coming. After years of aching to bake with Baby Ruth and not getting it done, these were well worth the wait.

Snowballs are my favorite cookie, and this pink lemonade version screamed summer. I had to bake another batch just last week because I was in denial. But fear not: the snowball transitions perfectly to winter (duh), so you’ll be seeing more of those right here soon!

I made a lot of ice cream this summer, but this cheesecake brownie chunk was by far the winner. I could not stop eating it until it was all gone. I didn’t even try to give it away. And since it’s no-churn, it’s a snap to make!

Finally, I paid tribute to the best summer fruit ever, the white nectarine, in this upside-down cake. No reason pineapple has to have all the love! White nectarines are one of the best parts of summer, and they deserve to be made into dessert.

I’ll see you next week with fantastic recipes and (I’m hoping) pictures that don’t make me cringe. Now I’m off to eat a non-photogenic poke cake straight outta the pan. Wish me luck, friends!

Every year, I bake a collection of different pies for Thanksgiving. And while my mind wasn’t even on November when I did this, it doesn’t matter. This pie is going down in history as one of the big winners.

Even if you don’t use this for late autumn, it’s a perfect transitional pie. It’s got ice cream in it for warmer weather, but pumpkin for autumnal cravings. Oh, and chocolate chips for chocolate lovers with a chocolate graham cracker crust. Have I mentioned that this is the best tart ever?

I really need a win this week. On Wednesday, I’m not allowed to eat or drink (it’s a fast day), and as a girl who nibbles every two hours, that’s not an exciting prospect. To make it even more fun, I’m recovering from some bizarre hybrid virus that acted kind of like a cold, kind of like the flu, and kind of like a stomach flu, all mixed in one. My body needs to recover.

What better way to get strength back than by eating pie? I really can’t think of a better way. Unless there’s sushi around. Oh, suuuuushi.

In addition to battling a virus, I’m also battling my own self-confidence. And if you are anything like me (and I’m thinking that most of you are), it can be hard to keep your sense of self-esteem high sometimes.

I’ve never talked about this, but about ten years ago, I wrote a novel. It was about a topic that admittedly is not very sexy: the disease of testing and standardization in American public schools. The story was told through the lens of a feisty red-headed teacher who seemed bulletproof, but if I’m remembering my plot correctly, she quit at the end of the book. How’s that for a spoiler?

It doesn’t matter, because the book never got published. I think it’s on a flash drive somewhere. Out of the bazillions of literary agents I sent my manuscript to, only a couple wanted to work with me. One of them liked my writing but not my book, so she wanted me to write a book I wasn’t really interested in writing. The other liked the book, but told me honestly that she didn’t think that it could sell, so she asked me to call her again if I ever wrote another book. It was the nicest rejection I’ve ever gotten.

After a year or two trying to sell the book, I gave up. I stopped writing, which I love to do, and focused on building a family and becoming the best teacher possible. And then, the blog happened.

It’s been such a relief to write again. Creating recipes is a joy, and watching them work out is even more fulfilling. But writing about whatever while I share the recipes is my favorite part of blogging. So it’s no surprise that, once again, I have a book in the works.

This time, I’m trying to be smarter about it. But last night as I was cuddled up with my copy of the latest Writer’s Market, that old feeling of insecurity started popping up again. What if this doesn’t work out either?

The only thing I can do is keep going and hope that my work will resonate. I mean, be honest. Can you resist this frozen pumpkin chocolate chip tart? Because I cannot stop eating it.

It’s as easy as easy comes. The base is a chocolate graham cracker crust, which I make by melting chocolate chips along with the butter before adding the graham cracker crumbs. The filling is made of softened vanilla ice cream, canned pumpkin, brown sugar, and pumpkin pie spice. Oh, and chocolate chips. It’s simple, but those are the best recipes. My fork keeps heading toward the freezer.

We all hope that our work makes a contribution to the world, and sometimes it’s easy to let fear of being less-than take over. But when that happens, believe in the work you do. It makes for better writing, better pie, and better days!

If you recall, a few days ago I turned my nerd on and explained why time passes faster as we age. Because of that unfortunate phenomenon, I’ve come to an important resolution.

This past week has been my family’s annual beach week. We go to the Eastern Shore with all of the family and enjoy time in the sun, sand, and amusement parks. While I was riding on the merry-go-round at Funland earlier, I realized that there’s only one thing I can do to stop time from moving so fast. Ready?

Stop. Rushing. Everything.

I don’t know about you, but I’m always thinking forward to the next thing. Next week, next month, next year. I’m a big planner and list-maker, which means that things stay nice and organized. The downside? It’s hard to remember to live in the present when all you can think about is the future.

Listening to my friends and wiser elders, I’ve grown to realize that time standing still is actually a good thing. For instance, my kids are still young and cute and cuddly. From what I’ve observed as a high school teacher, children grow away from parents. It’s natural and appropriate. So why on earth can’t I just stop and enjoy the time I have with my little chubby-cheeked crew? It’s high time things slowed down a bit. Especially since as of today, I’m a lot closer to 40 than 30. Ick. My dad tells me that it’s no big deal, but it’s all about perspective.

Last night, Kenny and I were walking on the beach and talking about our upcoming 10-year wedding anniversary. As of this August, I will have known Kenny for half of my life, which is mind-boggling in itself. But in the past ten years, we’ve done an awful lot. Had our children, solidified our careers, grown together. It’s been quite a ride. The next ten years are really startling, though. That will produce teenagers and complexities that I don’t even want to think about.

So, are we all agreed? Time will now stand still. Who’s with me?

Summer is almost over, so I’m fighting the gradual ebb by making a totally summery treat. To be honest, I wanted to make these pudding pops of the peanut butter and chocolate variety. But then I thought about my poor son, the one who hates all things chocolate. He really loves vanilla, though. And sprinkles. So these funfetti pudding pops seemed like the right thing to do.

After all, I always want to be the mom who makes the food that everyone loves. It doesn’t always work out that way, but the glory is in the effort. My own mom tried to make me Reese’s peanut butter bars from a mix for my birthday. They tasted good, but looked a little…special. She kept blaming the mix. I think it’s human error. But either way, I loved that she baked for me, and that she picked out my favorite kind of dessert.

Life is about cherishing the moments as they happen, not waiting for something better to come along. I’m not sure how to achieve that delicate balance between anticipating the future with hope and not rushing the present, but I’m going to give it a shot this year. Wish me luck!