FRIDAY – my true grit day!

Today is happy Friday', but it’s also a white sky Friday.  These mystical Hillcrest days make everything in my world seem peaceful, serene, quiet. Sitting here, looking out across our beautiful valley, so still, I can’t help but feel just a tad disappointed that this morning’s crazy dance class is going to ruin that for me.  Truth is I could sit here all day long on days like this…zoned out to life, zoned it to crazy cricket talk and bird babble…..whilst enjoying the absence of lawnmowers!

Fridays really are one of my ‘true grit’ days…..the day where i have to show true grit - i have to dig really deep to show up at dance class.  I have to commit to a solid hour of craziness and hurt, for the sake of health – so how DOES that work again….if it hurts it’s healthy right??  It is just so worth it though, but DANG on days like this - fluffy, white, magical days, where the sky reminds me a soft white blanket that’s just come out of a delicates cycle…..it’s just meaner than spit to not be able to crawl back under one just like it, and quietly contemplate the weekend.

There is a silver lining, isn’t there always??…Pf YES!!?  ....  in reality my Monday evening and Friday morning classes have come to mean a lot to me, and it’s only the Fridays that I sometimes find a squeeze.  They have come to symbolise some of the changes I have made in my life over the last year, and are a reminder to my heart, that I HAVE the resolve to commit to things, even though there are times when, in a crazy busy life, it would make things a whole lot easier and more comfortable, if they went ‘unnoticed’.

Change is growth, commitment is discipline, and anything in life that requires TRUE GRIT is shaping us into stronger, better people.  It’s on the TRUE GRIT days that you need to really lean into that stitch in your side, and if you can, it’s such a liberating feeling, because those are the days where you really find the strength in you.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that the sacrifices and true grit days in life that are really hard, make you feel like you could do this, everytime you ACE THEM! 

The VISION to DREAM DARE DANCE….

Dreamers, darers, dancers, with sadly a few absent, at our final session!

Ok so this is OOOLD news, but I'm posting it anyway, because it's sooooo relevant to everyone, everyday, everywhere, anytime.....

Last year a friend of a friend, asked me if I would facilitate a course called 'Dream Dare Dance'.  The course, is based on a book by the same name, and is aimed at helping to inspire women, at the 35 - 40 mark, but I guess any age will do really, to reach out and start believing in the dreams they once had. before marriage. before children. before life took hold of them - the dreams that is:-).  Started in America, Dream Dare Dance has travelled across the globe in a "pay it forward" sort of fashion.  Once the course is completed, someone else runs it with a group of their friends, and so on, and so on. 

my vision board in pieces

Sessions involve dreamers working through individual workbooks, with the DREAM DARE DANCE book at hand, in which other DREAMERS, and DANCERS who have gone before, have shared their stories.  Stories of how half way through their lives, they remembered the importance of having personal dreams and goals, and going after them.  There is homework, but this is the kind of homework that hits the sweet spot....it's the kind of homies that, whilst you sip a glass of wine, it has you thinking all about you....about your life....about your dreams...about your needs.....about your passion, about your accomplishments...do we still even know how to do that????  The theory is, if you're happy and whole, you have a WHOLE lot more to give!  Weekly feedback sessions are the best kind of sharing you could ever possibly hope for.....

Over tea, sweets and savouries we would meet and enjoy

SO back to the ...'once upon time' part of the story...

To say that I was IN at the word DREAM, excited by the word DARE, and down right bowled over by the word DANCE, was an understatement!  Heck yes!  ofcourse I would do it!

Enter the girlfriends....sigh....I love, love, love how the woman who form part of my close circle of friends, embrace and indulge my crazy schemes, and agree to go the distance with me.  They rock my world every week, and I am so grateful for each and every one of them being in my life.  As for our experience with DREAM DARE DANCE, we laughed, we cried (not often), we SHARED, we DREAMED, we DANCED, and last but not least, we DARED to put ourselves out there and make some of the dreams we rekindled, come true.....  the rest as they say, is history!

Vision board session.

I know for a fact that some of my really big dreams, the candy striped dreams that are the sweetest and the PURTIEST, have come true thanks to the simple process of ask, believe, receive, and VISION BOARDING!!

I really have seen such incredible results through vision boarding, I can't copy and paste it enough to prove it...infact these days, I believe that if my vision board is empty, so are my dreams....

Dream Dare Dance notebooks I made up for the dreamers....

It really is so special to see everyone's dreams, goals and vision for the future, up in lights as it were...

finally my dreams are staring back at me....

Some of us dream big dreams, some of us dream conservatively, some of us dream in shades of creams and whites, touched with shabbyness, while others dream of bold brights.....but we all dream, and we need to always stay in touch with them.  Our vision board session was an amazing evening, and it felt so good to be sharing this experience.  The bond of a group of women always amazes me; something small like someone identifying YOUR dream in a magazine, is a heartfelt reminder of how wonderful it is to have women in your life to share your hopes, fears and dreams with.  They see the little things, they know it's in the details, they understand the girl crazy that can grab hold of us sometimes...

It is now a year later...(i said it was old news), and it is amazing to look back and see how many of us have taken steps towards making our dreams become a reality.  How many hearts desires have been met, and how many wishes have come true.....I really do encourage other dreamers out there to dare to dance! 

Dreamers Ants and Trac

Seeing red…

Lord almighty I can’t believe it!  Windows Live Writer, where have you been all my blog thirsty days?  You are the wind beneath my blogger wings I think, because SERIOUSLY, blogger was killing me!  Maybe just maybe, my blog dreams will come true and this will be the year where I fit posts into my hectic life, because YOU have made it so easy,possible, achievable!

So about the spread…..i’m back tracking to December, back to the month where tinsel ROCKS, red is the rage and reindeer ears are THE fashion accessory to die for!
This was my table from this year’s “IT’S A WRAP”…gift wrapping will never be the same again, for me at least.  I love sipping sherry with my home girls to the sound of sticky tape, paper tearing, and ribbons being wrapped.  This was our third year, and December’s just won’t be the same without it. ever.again.  It’s a KEEPER!
Fast forward to February, and looking at this table reminds me that Valentines is around the corner.  No, I’m not ‘gung ho’ for it, but I have always loved the idea of embracing every special occasion that comes our way.  You keep them simple and low key, but you recognize the love, no?...just to break the monotony of …well…everyday life….yes?
So whilst Christmas is just a distant memory, I’m still seeing RED.  Maybe a cheese platter, red roses and a bottle of bling rose might be FUN!!

Us Crazy Chickens at Christmas!

This photo..

ok seriously....sometimes you need a sign....i've been searching....i've looked so hard I feel emotionally dazed and confused...I'm spent....searching, deliberating, wondering if and when I should return to blogging...i never really left....it just ...happened...and I have struggled to find my way back....get into my groove.
I tried really hard last year to be really good at prioritising, and 'single tasking'...it WORKED wonders!!  But the truth is I fell behind in other things that were not, at the onset of my year, high on my list of priorities.....it was a big year for our family, so they came first, along with exercise, health, blah blah...and blogging slipped lower and lower down the list...

And then whilst stopping in for visits with some of my favourite blog friends, I noticed a trend...so many of us seemed to be taking "sabbaticals"....it made it ok.......but I missed it nonetheless...

At the start of 2012 I promised myself I would try really hard to make blogging one of my priorities, because I do so so love being in this space....but in the back of my mind, I have toyed with the how, what's and why's...today I was busy editing THIS PHOTO for my daughter, when I stumbled across an option to 'blog post', with the click of ONE EASY BUTTON...no ways...can't be, and yet, when I checked it, she was here...my sweet little girl's face...almost as if to say...."Mom seriously, you should hang here more often!".... 

And maybe I will!:-)

WiSh upon little silver stars

I had to get directions to find this place again:-D

It's been TWO months since my last blog - two long, busy, challenging, happy months. I've come back to this spot so many times during the crazy 2 month ride, just to sit in the quiet little cyber room, to gather my thoughts, because how do you put into words, how crazy life can get sometimes??
I WISH i knew....
Right now I wish for a lot of things, and they're pretty much a cookie dough mix of the staples and the extra's - kinda like flour, eggs and oil, that don't mean diddly without the icing and the fairy sprinkles.....

I'm doing a lot of wistful wishing i know, like...that the sky would once again open up and be warm, that i will soon find the inspiration and time to feel the joy of approaching Christmas, (because krikey, it's already past mid November), that stacking bracelets never go out of fashion, that one day they make a nailpolish that doesn't shabby on day 2,

But then there's the big things....I'm wishing on a wishing star for someone's health, for a GF's marriage, for more time with my DH, for my girlchild's heart to always be protected, for my boy to know where and how to use his gifts, for my girl to find hers, for more time to be creative, to love and encourage more, to be the best that I can be, and last but not least, to be here more than I am....oh how i WISH!....         

ELEVEN years of boy joy

This boy turned 11 on Sunday, 9/11, of 2011.

 A 'simple birthday with just his closest friends', ended up being a birthday surrounded by children who all mean a lot to him, in his little world.  I can only hope that throughout the rest of his life, he will be blessed in this way, and surrounded by the love and unadulterated joy that one finds in friendships like these. 

He told me it was his best birthday ever....i smiled and said..."you said that last year boy, remember??...and the year before that"...he smiled and said...".you're right Mom."...but when we looked at each other, one of those 'I see you, and I know your thoughts' moments passed between us, and we both just understood that ..this year was different...this year we were blessed with amazing weather like we have never had before on his day, and it allowed him the freedom to run wild and free, shriek with laughter, play silly with his friends, get dirty, be imaginitive, and enjoy all the good stuff about just being....A BOY.  Strangely enough, all of those things define a little part of who he is as a person....he was so in his skin:-D

I hope that this boy never looses sight of the important things in life, and I hope that he grows up to be, exactly who he was MEANT to be - that must be one of the greatest gifts of all.

This boy can make me smoke with his strong will sometimes, but then he makes me laugh like a crazy woman too.  He gets things, as if they were clear as day to him from the start.  I hope he never loses that. He says the darndest things - he's a straight talker, shooting from the hip.  I can't wait to see what the essence of him will lead to...in the meantime all I can do is try my best to help him get there, and hope that one day he looks back and knows that no matter what, our hearts will always be tied to one another.

I owe a lot to this boy soul of ours....i am relieved when he is often the flipside of a bad day, i am loved because he still throws his arms around me KAMAKAZI style with reckless abandon when he sees me first thing in the morning, i am amazed when he unwittingly reveals his wisdom and depth about life, i am a friend when we share our hearts - no holds barred, i am blessed because he is mine.

HIP HOP...

Berry and Pine - my dance partner in crime - photographer by day....dance diva by night

 Sometimes, you meet the nicest people in the strangest places...and they are people you would never have met, if you hadn't ventured out into new territory!

Monday night's are my dance nights - this is the only form of exercise I could even possibly contemplate doing ...frankly i would rather stand and hold a horse in the rain than do squats in a gym:-/...and if you know me, you would know that standing in the rain is really REALLY hard to do, seeing as "wet and cold" and I, have never and will never, be friends....uh-uh

The best part about voluntarily choosing to make a fool of myself exercise in this way, was that i was truly blessed to meet some special people along the way, who rock my Monday nights, like Greys Anatomy never could:-D.  "Pine"(my affectionate name for her) - generally she goes by the name of Michelle, but she's just PINE to me...it's a long story, but ...I'm gonna tell it anyway:-D....if you look closely, her cutsey top is an ultra cool 'Pineapple' dancewear top, she recently brought back from the UK.  To tell you the truth,  she was DUNKED pineapple from head to toe:-D...needless to say the name stuck...but it's Pine for short.  I'm the berry, so together we figured we could make a mean cocktail!

We couldn't be more opposite if we tried.  She's the awesome kind of sweetness that knows no boundaries - the kind that you can see a mile away - i'm the sassy that you spell with a capital S; yet we laugh so hard together sometimes it hurts - plus we arrive dressed the same for class, unplanned, no memo - the photographer in her had to capture the moment!  I guess what amazes me is that if I hadn't decided to take the first step and just dance, I would have missed out on knowing these awesome people that make my Monday nights, and getting all the extra benefits that come with sometimes getting off the couch and out of your comfort zone.  They say you should try and do something that frightens you every day.  Well it's been months since I started my first class, feeling about as comfortable as a long tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs:-D, and yet I'm so glad i took this HOP towards HIP...this cat's come a looong way....

Mellow yellow.

Sometimes we think we know ourselves....but then I go and fall madly in love with yellow again:-D, and I am very quickly reminded of that famous old saying that goes....never say never. 

I vowed yellow and I would never be friends again, I reminded myself that you can forgive people for MOST things....but some things can follow you all the days of your life!!  I mean after all - it's also just so "80's", and whilst i loooooove 80's, it's the music that takes me back there.....I mean who doesn't have a memory or three attached to "Tainted Love"!!??  Well clearly, for whatever reason, yellow had a thing for me, and for some reason, like an undecided visitor, I kept stepping up to the door, and then turning away again.

Maybe it was the love of 80's music, coupled with the LUMO and yellow revival that finally broke through my stubborn streak and made more of an impression on me than i realised:-D...The thing is, pink and I had run our course, and grey was happy to let someone else in.  Yellow took me back to my youth, and reminded me of some really mellow yellowy days....and suddenly it didnt seem like such a crazy idea after all.  SO....I took the plunge on the back of "I solemnly swear to only wear certain shades of yellow, to wear it tastefully and to never wear it with black :-/ ..except if it's just a smidgen?  I will enjoy it's 'sunnyness' to the max, wear it with pride and always be mindful of the fact that it has been said to bring clarity, and bring relief from SAD, confusion and indecision". 

What I've learnt about yellow (besides the fact that you can write a WHOLE BLOGPOST about it:-D) is that it can be... kind of ..."in your face".  Some would say she's an attention seeker, but I think she's just really strong - able to stand on her own - she don't need a loota "stuff", so you just need to be a little subtle with her. 

My mellow back to yellow reminds me of how often in life we are wrong about things we feel so sure about; that you can go back - to things that served you well - heck revivals happen all the time!  That things do really go in cycles.and circles; that we can revive old friendships and put a whole new spin on it:-D....and that you really should never, say never.....    

on the VERGE...

These pictures make me smile for a number of reasons…..the beautiful wide verges we have here at home…..they are verges to die for.  I know, it’s just a verge right?...but heck, you could walk 5 people wide in most places, side by side, into the quiet of the evening, and have room for a dog on either side of you:-D.  That’s how Mama like’s itJ.   We’ve spent more time on these verges since our two little girls came along, than we ever have before.  It’s been such a lovely reminder of how pretty our hood is – from all sides, and how friendly the neighbours are – dogs excluded:-D.  I’ve loved watching my kids run like the wind, down wintery sidewalks, with just the sun set to keep me company…

It feels like I’ve been spending a lot of time on other verges though too lately…..just looking left, looking right, just watchin’ the neighbours as it were, never crossing the road though – I guess I like my side is allJ.  It’s been a hectic time, but it’s funny how sometimes it can be Hurricane Hilda on the outside and as calm as..well ….when your hair’s not blowing in the wind, on the inside.  That’s when you notice things the most.  I’ve been on the verge noticing, how the world is going crazy, and how home seems like the safest place to be; noticing how so many families are hurting or lost – where are you Moms and Dads?? noticing how people have lost their way, and yet the answers are as obvious as the wide open road on a clear day; noticing how our girl child copes so much better when she knows I’m around – maybe because she knows I’ll always have her back; noticing that our boy child shares his heart so freely with me, and yet, it’s his Dad he needs more right now. 

Hubby and I attended a funeral on Friday – strangely, we both had ties to this person, in completely different ways.  We were not closely involved in his day to day life, but somehow we were close enough to be drawn there to celebrate his wonderful life, and his untimely death in a tragic aircraft accident.  My man and I cried.  From the first song, to the last song.  And all the bits in between.  Mine was the uninhibited cry….it bordered on the ugly cry – you know the one.  We cried because we knew his loss could so easily be ours, and from where I’ve been sitting on the verge, I saw so many families who, unlike this one, would never survive this tradgedy, because you can’t get more broken than broken already is.  Things so often cross our paths to remind us of all that is important in life, and yet people still choose to look the other way.  I often remind my boy that, at any moment, on any given day, you are on the verge of greatness, in whatever shape, form or size may have meaning for you, but if you’re lost in the woods – greatness ain’t never gonna find you son!

Our beautiful, warm, yellow and happy sunny days are back.  I know this because…well apart from the sun of course :-D, I’ve fallen asleep to the sound of tree frogs for the last few nights.  It feels carefree and heavenly to be on the verge of spring and summer again…. 

A happy to my husband.

Yesterday, the 27th July, was my DH's birthday.  I felt blessed to have spent another year with this kind and gentle man, - this person i share my life, my children, my hopes and dreams with.  I always, always pray on his health - to me that is the most precious gift anyone can have.  Second to that, I hang on tight to my hopes of him achieving his goals, he works so hard towards, daily. 

I give thanks for the inner strength of this man, his character and values, that are the reason why he is well loved by all who know him.  His perserverance and determination are a sure sign that he'll go the distance no matter what....his understanding and control are like my lighthouse in the eye of a storm, but he is also vulnerable, where I am strong....I guess that makes us a great match:-). 

As we've grown older, we've grown closer, we've surfed big, scary waves together, and learnt hard lessons from some of those waves, but all for the good of growth and meaning in our life, and journey together.

Our CC girls rocked the "Happy Birthday" song across to his breakfast table, where he was sitting with his "man friends".....here's to many more my special man! 

Colouring outside the lines....

sigh...I know.... this blog has got "monthly" written all over it, right now:-)...and while I've missed penning my thoughts, and am tempted to wander down the path of regret, I find myself stopping at 'it's just where I'm at right now'...:-)) and leaning towards 'everything in life happens in seasons'...

Speaking of which, my kiddies and I have just come back from 5 amazing days at the beach.  We "bunked" winter for 5 wonderful days...turned our back on her so to speak, without so much as a backward glance, and felt NO SHAME:-). 

We basked in the sun and the salt of the sea, and just for a while, we relished in the fact that we could swop one pot stews and soups, for simple summer salads and pastas....even if only for a while. 

We made the most of golden beach sand between our toes, heck - we even went as far as painting them a pale pink shade of summer....aahhh it felt good, it felt familiar...it just felt right.  My girlfriends and I sipped cocktails on the lawn to make sure we weren't dreaming, and watched our laughing children row boats, and surf the dunes, till the sun sank low....all the while counting our blessings for this time together, and the fact that we could colour outside the lines in this magical place.

Some hubbies joined us for the weekend, but for the most part, it was just us...and it felt goood....  

These two tween girls, who have been friends since way back when, when they only had eyes for Barney, got to hang together again and share their hopes and dreams.

These two, who have known each other their whole lives, were attached at the hip....

actually, ...most of these children have known each other their.whole.lives....

and it showed in the joy they shared, of being together again:-)

Our host and our precious friend, who is temporarily based in Canada with her family, will go back with a pocketful of memories, just like the rest of us.  We all feel so lucky and grateful that our tanks are full...it'll get us to the other side of "we miss spending time together!"....kind of like our girls who rowed each other across the lagoon i guess.....

our friendship is our life raft, our two man canoe for when the waters get rough...

But for now it's back to winter blankets, and the need to savour hot chocolate with squishy pink marshmallows in it. Back to school lunches and busy schedules that make up our full lives.

I stood in the kitchen making tea this afternoon, just counting my blessings, and asking God if he knew how much I appreciate my life, and the people he has placed in it? 

Every.single.one of them.

The magic of May

A little bit of eye candy can go a long way....

How is it possible that I have no sooner finished dishing the dirt about April, and June is already yapping at my heels like a welcoming puppy....seriously?  I'm thinking.....when did this become a monthly blog??

- when my girlie started preparing for and writing exams?

- when my boy started playing rugby? (and my words "you will never play that game if it's the last thing I see to" seem a million, futile miles away now, lost in the galaxy of  'i lost that battle fair and square')...:-(

- when being in the summer of your life means your days are as unpredictable as they are long...

The silver lining in all of this though is that:

- today girl chicken finishes her exams, and we have travelled another long, dusty, bumpy road together, as mother and daughter, holding each other up along the way, and we have grown closer for it.

- boy chicken is enjoying every minute of launching himself onto much much bigger boys, and holding onto their ankles for dear life, until they finally relent and drop like a stone:-) .....  

- although these summer days of our lives are long, unpredictable and often exhausting, there is always a whole lot of magic woven into it too.....even if you only find the time to reflect and ponder on it...ONCE A MONTH!!!!:-))

All shook up....

Autumn is making her presence felt......

I was all shook up this April - in a good way...April was so so good to us this year....it came and went in a flurry of activity...mostly playful, mostly fun, very indulgent!  I LOVED every minute of the chaos that came and went with the time I got to spend with friends and family...it was soul food to say the least!  Although business was quiet everywhere...it kind of felt like our whole country had "permission to play".  The stress, trials and tribulations of our modern way of life, are condusive to more work, less play; I just felt so GRATEFUL for this chance to just colour OUTSIDE THE LINES for a while.....be frivolous....reIMAGINE...

Sights like this just make me giddy

My soul is so restored that I feel ready to invite the seriousness back in, with no hard feelings.... sometimes my serious side holds me back - it's a funny thing, but my children are looking at me through new eyes lately....that's what happens when your eyes have time to take each other in, when your words are unhurried, kind and thoughtful, and when your soul shines.....

  

Below are some pics to remember the happy times.....

There's a 'ROYAL HIGHNESS' in ALL of us

Our 'Royal Wedding High Tea' table made me swoon......... 

Camping restores my soul – it’s where I’m happiest.  No hotel lobby could match the contentment I feel when our little van drives out of our driveway on route to 'camp happy'.  When I know our children are outdoors from early morning, until late into the night, without any pressure, expectations and the trappings of modern life and society, I can't help but just smile all over.   I know my little chickens will remember these holidays forever…

Just as their Dad and I will.......

Just be...and play

Sweet sweet memories are made of this......

Priorities and purpose

There has been so much on the go this first term, that I have felt so much like this picture...confused at times between whether I'm playing in pink wellies, or stepping out in stilletos.

The wellies are my family, friends, home, and causes that I give my time to, because I LOVE and I feel they define my purpose - my heels represent the part of my life that require structure, order and focus to run a successful business... 

There are times lately, when I have had one on each foot, whilst thinking I was wearing a PAIR.  You know those moments when you are so confused, you're not sure which hat you're wearing?? - mothers can so relate.  By last night, the stress and the strain of trying to do it all was telling.....hmmmm.....

SO this week I'm going to have to say no to some of the places and things my HEART DESIRE, to once again FOCUS MY HEAD, and find calm and peace again in this little life of mine.

It's so hard to say no, but saying no to one thing means saying YES to another doesn't it???....

LUNCH BOX LOVELIES

We have just said goodbye to a week of holiday memories.....lazy mornings, picnics in park like surroundings, wimpy treats with friends, movies, sleepovers and paydates.  For the first time ever, I stuck to my plan of putting together some semblance of a "holiday programme" and MAN OH MAN but it paid off....no cabin fever, no whining, no wanting for a thing....not even once...just two little chickens in a happy bubble.... SO going to do that EVERY HOLIDAY!?!?

But back to reality, this being our first day back at school.  Basically that means that every afternoon/evening, I'll be wasting precious time (actually make that past tense) musing over what to put into school lunches.  I know this may seem like a mundane post, but people BOOKS HAVE BEEN WRITTEN about this i see, so clearly I am not alone in this diemma, and there is a NEEEED:-))!!!  So....desperate times called for desperate measures, especially when your children 1. don't eat yoghurt (i loathe moms who smile sweetly and sAY ...oh i just pop a little mini yoghurt into Johnny's lunch box...grrr!!) 2. would rather be pricked by pins than eat a fruit!.....enter the FRUIT KEBAB....don't be scared off by the term kebab - seriously.....it's a whole lot of pomp and ceremony for a few pieces of fruit threaded onto a stick...but it works...it packs a mean punch in a lunch box....it looks all purty, and all of a sudden they can stomach naartjies - go figure??...all I can think is that maybe naartjies look a whole lot less intimidating next to a grape, a kiwi fruit, and a strawberry...i dunno....???

Aaaanyway....after spending way too much of my precious lifetime googling healthy lunches, which yielded nothing but images of people who do incredible things with carrots and your average cucumber - oh you would NOT believe!!....I eventually committed to finding my own simple, quick and easy solutions, that are just a little more interesting, for the days when you feel up to it, and need something to replace another jam sandwich lunch box story.....yawn   

Some of my weekly winners:-

fruit kebabs

popcorn, popcorn and more popcorn

salami and cheese cocktail sticks

fruit bars

muffins

pretzels

crumpets

mini pies and sausage rolls made from left overs or bought

wraps

couscous salad

chicken legs and wings

heart sandwiches...seriously...you need a heart cookie cutter...how hard can it be!
Frozen juice works well to aid in keeping lunch boxes cool

If anyone who's reading this has ideas or advice to offer, I am so ALL EARS!