buddies, trifle recipe & marshmallow pops stand DIY

To say the little pumpkin loves school is such an understatement. She LOVES her school, her teachers, and her friends. So thankful for that!This summer we've had a chance to see and visit with several friends from school. Our whole family had a blast at Lovi's Pool Party back in June, Hudson especially...you'll see why in a minute. And speaking of...my poor little fella has been under the weather with a stomach bug :( Can't wait 'till he's back to his old 90-to-nothing-every-minute-of-every-day self. I miss my little bundle of energy sidekick!

Back to the pool party...here's the view from the club on the lake - gorgeous! Fun times! Swimming makes you H-U-N-G-R-Y!Hudson enjoying every last bit of the ocean blue cupcakes :) One last dip in the kiddie pool and then it was time to go home.Thank you Kevin, Shelly & Lovi for hosting such a fun party (+ for the great naps that followed too!)

This past weekend we met some of Grace's little buddies at Lowe's for a tow truck building workshop, followed by lunch & ice cream cones at Chick-fil-A. Hard at work... So proud of her creation! Not too bad for having me as the co-builder! Grace, Lovi, Solomon & McKinley with their tow trucks.
Berry Trifle
Some of you have asked about the trifle dessert I made for Hudson's birthday. It's super easy! I make lots of variations, but essentially here's the recipe...

Category: Dessert, No-bake
Prep Time: About 20 minutes
Ingredients:
• 1 round angel food cake or 2 angel food cake loaves
• 1 family size packet flavored jello (I used berry blue flavor for this one)
• 2 regular size tubs of cool whip or one large tub
• fresh strawberries & blueberries (or any other fruit you like!)

Directions:
• Cut the angel food cake into small cubes, about 1” square and set aside (Note: for presentation purposes, I like my cubes to be all white, so I trim off the golden edge of the cake...OCD, I know)
• Wash fruit and set aside. Cut strawberries into small pieces.
• Prepare jello using half the amount of water listed ( ½ of the hot water and then ½ of the cold water); let cool a bit, but do not refrigerate as this will start the gelatin process.
• In a large bowl, empty the cool whip tubs and slowly add desired amount of jello liquid, mixing all along. This will make a pretty colored cool whip cloud! How’s that for a visual :)
• I usually end up with about ¾ to 1 cup of leftover jello liquid, which I then prepare as usual for the littles to enjoy later.
• After you are satisfied with the color/taste of your cool whip, you are ready to begin assembling layers in the trifle bowl.
• Start with a layer of angel food cake, then a layer of berries, then a layer of cool whip and so on until you fill the bowl (usually takes me about three layers)
• Garnish with berries at the top & Enjoy!
Both my littles LOVE this dessert and it's pretty healthy too!


Marshmallow Pops Stand
Thanks for all the sweet comments about our little summer playdate! Yes, my littles LOVE marshmallow pops and they're soooo easy to make (and send to school as treats too!).Here's how I made the display stand...

Materials
• Rectangular Florist foam/Florist oasis (Dollar Tree: 2 for $1)
• Scrapbook paper or craft paper
• Ribbon and other decorative trims
• Glue gun and tape (I prefer clear mailing tape)

Directions:
• Wrap your foam in the scrapbook paper just as if you were wrapping a gift and secure with tape at the bottom / you can also hot glue.
• Trim with ribbon and other embellishments to suit your party decor and glue in place. And that's it! Sooo easy!

Oh and one more tip...prior to inserting your marshmallow pop sticks into the stand, create a pilot hole with a sharp pencil or thumbtack so that the paper won't crack as you push the blunt marshmallow pop stick in.

If you make a trifle or make your own dessert stand, I'd love to see it so leave me a link in the comments!
Have fun!