Homemade Moon Sand

I bought the kids some new sand toys the other week so they were pretty excited to head to the park and play in the sand.  They were awfully disappointed though when the dry sand wouldn't hold the shape for their new molds.  I decided to try making some homemade moon sand to see if that would bring more fun.  It was a huge success!

I bought a bag of nice clean sand from Home Depot for about $3 and a box of corn starch for $1 at Walmart.  We measured out 8 cups of sand and 4 cups of corn starch into a 32 quart plastic bin that I just had sitting in the basement.

 We mixed them together with 2 cups of water and we were ready to play.

My kids were so excited that it actually worked to build sand castles.

And even more excited that they could make some little "sand cookies" with the new sand toys we had bought.

And of course we had to fill up the big bucket for the ultimate sand castle.

This recipe is definitely a keeper.  My kids had so much fun playing with the moon sand, and I won't lie, I had fun playing with them too!

Moon Sand

8 cups sand

4 cups corn starch

2 cups water

Combine all ingredients in plastic container.  Store with lid off or it may become moldy.  If moon sand dries out before the next play session add more water to moisten.

Have you tried the commercial moon sand before?  How about homemade moon sand?

Christmas in July with Paper Coterie!

I just wanted to fill you in on this great deal going on at Paper Coterie.   For the next 72 hours you can buy gift cards on sale!  Perfect to use for personalized gifts once the holiday season rolls around or on your annual Christmas cards.  December will be here before you know it and you'll be so glad you did.  But of course you don't have to wait until December to use your gift cards.  Use them anytime you want.

Sale starts today and ends Tuesday July 31st so don't wait!

Visit Paper Coterie to buy yours before the end of the month.

Shabby Apple Giveaway

Amy and I love Shabby Apple! They have the most darling, classy, and feminine women's dresses.

I have wasted so much time browsing their website and mentally adding dresses to my wish list!

These have me wishing for a dress to wear every day of the week!

And today is your lucky day because Shabby Apple has offered to giveaway a $50 gift card to one of our lucky readers!  Just enter through Rafflecopter for your chance to win! 

To enter to win:
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Giveaway closes Wednesday, August 1 12:01 AM EST

Good luck!

**Must be a US resident to win.

Car mats... squinky style

My little Mr. A loves squinkies.  He is always carrying them around with him.  Recently he pulled out our mini car mats to play with. I don't know if I would have thought to have him use the car mats with the squinkies but they were the perfect pair!

Have you (or your kids) come up with any other uses for your mini car mats?

Healthy Fudgsicles!

Isn't one of the best parts of summer all those cold treats?

Lemonade, popsicles, frozen fruit, ice cream!

I can't tell you how thrilled I was when I found this healthy fudgsicle recipe over at Chocolate-Covered Katie.  I've been looking for a healthy fudgsicle recipe for so long.  I just have to mention that Katie is my hero.  I love her blog and I love all the tasty, yummy, mouth watering, healthy treats she creates.  She has it all figured out.  I completely agree with her that delicious sweet treats can be healthy too.  I can't help but stop by her blog regularly.

These fudgsicles hit the spot.  An easy treat (with no added sugar!) for a hot summer day.

But do they taste like real fudgsicles?

It's hard to compare since I don't remember the last time I've had one.  Goodness, it's probably been ten or more years. But they do taste chocolatey, creamy and sweet!  I'd take one of these any day over the traditional ones with high fructose corn syrup and all those processed ingredients that I have no idea what they are.  

But who really cares if I liked them.  The big question is did the kids give them a big thumbs up?

Well, my son loved them.  My daughter thought they were ok.  But she's one of those rare individuals who doesn't care much for chocolate.  I'd say if you like chocolate you're sure to like these.

Creamy Chocolate Fudgsicles

(recipe adapted from here)

*2 tablespoons cocoa powder

*1/2 cup canned full fat coconut milk

*2 small, very ripe bananas

*1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

*small pinch of salt

Combine all ingredients in a blender.  Pour into popsicle molds.  Freeze.  Makes 5-6 pops.

We had some extra coconut milk so we made a few more fruity pops with 1/2 cup coconut milk, 1/4 cup orange juice and one ripe banana.

Find more homemade popsicle ideas here.

What are your favorite cold summer treats?

Summer Fun List

Summer is in full swing here and  my boys have been out of school for about a month now!  We moved about a month ago as well and just so I wouldn't spend all of my time unpacking and organizing our new place we made a summer to-do list. 

We have added a few things to our list and have already crossed off a good number!

What is on your summer fun list?