This post is sponsored by Sun-Maid®, but all opinions are my own.

It’s time for back to school and whether the kids are going back full time, part-time, or doing virtual learning from the comfort and safety of your home, there’s one common denominator for all of these options and that’s keeping order!  Whether you are a strict stickler for a schedule or go with the flow type of mama, it’s important to be a step ahead of the kids with planning.  If the little ones know what to expect each day, in terms of activities and snacks, then it’s all good.  And for my three, I love to whip up sometimes simple and sometimes extravagant charKIDterie trays for them to graze on after school.  These charKIDterie trays keep them happy, and, who are we kidding when the littles are happy, the BIGS are happy!

Much like the cast in  “Beatrice Zinker, Upside Down Thinker,” NEW Sun-Maid® Bites are a little unique – and that’s what makes them sweet! A whole new way to snack and be 100% you. We like to read these books as a family to give our kids a storyline and imagination that fits our family values: keeping things fun, always looking for the upside, and staying true to yourself. You can snag the series at Walmart and most book stores around the country. This school year especially, it’s so helpful to have a series not only interests the kids but teaches them such valuable lessons.

This year, we have chosen to send the children back to school as our best option for learning and allowing Matt and me to take care of our businesses.  Likewise, whether the little ones are at home all day or at school, when 3 p.m. rolls around in every household, it’s snack time.  So please allow me to share a fun charKIDterie tray featuring Sun-Maid Bites that you can incorporate into your afternoon routine to provide a fun and healthy better-for-you snack for your whole family to enjoy.

Sometimes the most challenging part of serving up a healthy meal isn’t cooking or preparing the meal at all.  It’s having the ingredients on hand to make what you want!  That’s why I encourage all mamas to start with a good list of healthy items that you can easily incorporate into your grocery bag and your kid’s diets.  I believe that the perfect snack (for adults or kids) is always the right mix of sweet and savory.  You MUST have both!

I like to have fresh items as well as shelf-stable foods on hand at all times.  Different types of fruit are great as well as bread and ingredients for a quick sandwich.  Nuts are always amazing as well as bite-sized items for trail mix. My list for great snackables includes:

I recently stumbled onto an amazing bagged snack at Walmart that incorporates seamlessly into my kids (and adult) snack stash, the NEW Sun-Maid® Bites.  They are chewy bite-size granola snacks that come in 3 kid crave-able flavors, Birthday Cake, S’mores, and PB&J.  They can be found in-store on the granola bar aisle and online here. Also, check out this Ibotta offer for extra savings!

Down South, we have a term, lagniappe, which means “a little something extra.” As a true down-home, southern mama, I LOVE to sprinkle in a little extraness in life and celebrate going over the top.  This is why I decided to start creating charKIDterie trays for my kiddos, utilizing serving platters and boards to showcase healthy options in a fun and appetizing way to get my kids interested in eating healthy.

I definitely encourage all parents to add these gems to your back-to-school stock-up.  My kids loved them and I love them too, and they were the perfect lagniappe for our after school charKIDterie tray!

Baby Joie couldn’t wait to check out the charKIDterie tray! As are most moms, I’m always looking for healthier options for my children to consume.  In 2020, cookies, fruit snacks, and candy can kick rocks! And the creative in me likes to wow them (and myself) by creating fun and interesting foods and snacks.

Making the charKIDterie tray is very simple.  Just pull out a tray, anything will do.  I used two round cake platters and stacked one on top of the other.  For another tray, I used a wooden platter.  For kids, you don’t have to get fancy.  Then I decided to use ingredients to mimic the flavors of the Sun-Maid bites.  I puled mini cupcakes, graham crackers, chocolate chips, and made peanut butter and jelly sandwiches cut into triangles.  It’s always great to introduce kids to foods that they otherwise wouldn’t eat by making it fun!

For the interactive, kid-friendly portion of the afternoon, I allowed the kiddos to create ants on a log by slathering peanut butter on halved carrot sticks topped with Sun-Maid Raisins (as the ants.) They were delighted to take part in creating their own snack, and that part DEFINITELY added to their curiosity for consuming the snack that they had created.

Mommy couldn’t keep her hands off the snacks either!

To keep the kids in line and moms sane, keeping a routine is oh-so-important in any household.  Also, SNACK TIME IS ALWAYS IN SESSION!

At 3 o’clock everywhere it’s snack time somewhere, and kids across America are starved for our attention and small bites. I hope that we’ve shown you how we spend quality time while simultaneously feeding the kiddos.  We feel great about these good for you snack options for after school!  Please leave us a comment to let us know how you guys snack!