Makeover Monday: Snacking Edition

Makeover Monday has been moved to Tuesday this week, because that’s the way I roll.  I’m crazy like that.

It’s a mini-makeover too, so don’t get too excited.

And also it’s not even my idea.

I stole it from my friend Rachel, who should totally have her own blog, BTW.

But I’m giving her credit.  And in the Flawed etiquette of blogging book, it’s okay to steal ideas and blog about them as long as you don’t pretend that they are your own.

It’s all good.

So for the real issue – it’s snack foods.  More specifically, the lack of them in my house.

My kids are always asking for a snack, and I’m digging through the cabinets all ‘How about a can of tuna? Half of a Fiber One bar? Oatmeal?’ and then they look at me like I’m crazy and tell me how much better it is to be at Grama’s house.  In which case I’m all ‘heck-to-the-yeah it is, because Grama turns you loose with the sugar bowl and cuts of endless hunks of cheese to have with your crackers, and Pappap hasn’t ever seen you in your entire life without bringing you a chocolate bar, which equals a pretty darn fine existence in the life of a child and maybe I should move there too.’

Responsible parenting note: I don’t actually say heck-to-the-yeah in front of my children, but I do say crap, which apparently Catie also said in children’s church last week, which sent another boy in children’s church into a tizzy over the bad words she was bandying about.  Whoops! And also yes, when I am saying this in my head I am actually saying heck.  Much like OMG=OhMyGosh in my world.

So yeah, snacks. We need ‘em.

I’ve had a vague mental note in my head for weeks – ‘Buy snacks’ – but even when I get to the store I don’t know what to do with that information.  Why can’t they just eat an apple or some grapes?  Which they do, totally.  My good little eaters even eat raw spinach as a snack sometimes.  But I guess they’d like carbs now and again, too, and who am I to deny them that pleasure when I know full well it’s my nature causing this desire of theirs.  Or nurture – whatever.  Carbs are good.

A while back (okay, like a year ago – I’m a procrastinator) I noticed that my friend Rachel has a brilliant snack system in her house.  Naturally I felt the need to be just like her, because she’s pretty awesome.

Full disclosure: Because she is pretty awesome, she probably has this snack system for noble reasons.  To foster independence in her children, to have nutritious, perfectly portioned snacks on the ready at all times, to feed homeless passers-by on a moment’s notice.  Me?  I wanted the snack system because my kids annoy the crap out of me interrupting 400 times a day asking me to feed them, and I need to focus on my YouTube video watching writing without distraction.  It’s NaNo month, you know. And also you’re 3 now, Lilly, and I think we can all agree that you need to be able to handle these things on your own.  Now go pour mommy another cup of coffee and be quiet.

The hardest part of this idea for me was finding the properly sized containers.  I settled on these from Glad, for which I paid $2 for a set of 8.

For my first go-round, I purchased pretzels and Goldfish crackers.  Except I’m cheap and they are generic Goldfish. Whales.

Filled at random and tossed into a dollar store bucket, this is my end result:

Cue the cacophony of oohs and aahs.  Genius right?

In my idea-stealing observation, Rachel also uses popcorn in her tubs.  I’ll do a better job of spying the next time I’m in her kitchen and get back to you with other ideas.

I do have slightly less than a quarter ton of Halloween candy here, if you’d like to use some of that.

I was so proud of this blatant theft project, and yet ironically I forgot to tell the children that I even did it, so the snacks have sat untouched for a week.  Whoops.

I’m sure when I mention it to them tomorrow they will be thrilled and praise me Rachel for her brilliance and then eat all 16 containers in one sitting, completely defeating the purpose of the tub-o-Mommy’s-freedom.  I look forward to that.

Until then, feel free to copy the idea in your own home.

I’m sure Rachel won’t mind.