The Best PB&J Moments Come from the Heart

This is a sponsored post written by me for Smucker’s and Mom It Forward.  All opinions expressed and children photographed are my own.  I am a proud member of the Mom It Forward Blogger Network.

Everything has changed from when I was a child from the way math problems are done to the songs my kids learn at school.  It’s crazy; my daughter is in kindergarten and already knows how to add.  I remember coloring in kindergarten, and we only went three days a week.  Not now, mine goes all day five days a week just like her siblings.  Crazy, how things change.  I’m so thankful for the little things that stay the same, like the good old traditional Peanut Butter & Jelly Sandwich.

The PB&J with Jif Peanut Butter and your favorite Smuckers jelly is one of the few things that you make the same today as you did when I was a child.  Of course, we made the double-decker PB&J when mom wasn’t looking when I was a kid too.  My kids always wonder how I know everything, lol.  See that is one of the many perks to some things not changing.  It’s highly likely I did the same thing when I was a child, so I’m just waiting for you to do it, lol.  Shh, we won’t tell m kids they still think mom has psycho powers lol.

Not only has the traditional PB&J gone unchanged, but it’s also had a few fun updates – adding fruit, honey, or even better the fried Peanut Butter n Jelly is amazing.  If I ever ask my kids what they want for dinner, nine times out of 10 they all agree on grilled PB&J sandwiches.  They’re super easy to make, and everyone loves them!

It’s crazy I was thinking back to all my PB&J moments as a child and every one of them my brother is in being crazy with PB&J in one hand and a spoonful of Jif Peanut Butter in the other.  Gosh, he still does that to this day.  I guess some are better left unchanged.  Now I get to share PB&J moments with my kids!

You can think of a PB&J moment as just making a sandwich, but it’s so much more than that.  I not only get to spend time with my children after shool, talking about their day and making them a PB&J but it’s something I remember doing with my mom as a child.  Plus, the girls can help me make their PB&J sandwich, there’s not a whole lot to it, but we do have our favorite way to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, check it out:

When we make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich we first put a thin layer of Jif Peanut Butter on one side of BOTH slices of bread.

Next, it’s all about your favorite Smuckers Jelly, which only goes on one slice of the bread, but we don’t just put a thin layer of jelly.  We want to taste it; we all like differents amount of jam, so I’ll leave how much up to you.

BAM, you’re done enjoy your PB&J!

The Best PB&J Moments Come from the Heart

Last weekend was COLD, and my poor kids were stuck inside for a larger part of the day.  They don’t do well inside, they start fighting, complain and it’s just not fun.  I remember being a kid and being stuck inside, it’s not fun.  So I decided to make them a special lunch from the heart just to see them smile.  Since my youngest always want a PB&J sandwich for lunch when she is home I decide to make a from the heart PB&J.

Since it’s been getting cold outside and the kids are on their Thanksgiving vacation, we’ve spent a lot of time together in the kitchen.  I feel bad because the girls can’t go outside as much as they would like due to cold weather, so I’ve tried to keep them busy and having fun with me.  Mattie told me her after school snacks were typically Jif Peanut Butter and Smuckers jam.

My two youngest girls loved the PB&J from the heart. It’s easy, meaningful, and so worth seeing their little faces light up when you tell them it’s a PB&J made with special love right from the heart.  Plus, it will stop any fighting, it might only be brief, but when you’ve heard it all weekend you’ll take anything lol.

I only put Jif Peanut Butter on one slice of bread when I make a PB&J from the heart.  Then I use a cookie cutter to make the Smuckers Jelly heart!

Excellent right?  I love doing this on days when the kids are stuck inside due to rain or cold weather because it helps reset their mood.  My girls love to be outside if they aren’t able to they tend to get a little fussy, but food from the heart will always put a smile on someone’s face!

Those two girls look like they have been playing hard and worked up an appetite, don’t they?  Well, I guess you could call bickering back and forth all morning working up an appetite, it was the first time all day they enjoyed each other’s company, lol.  I love our PB&J moments, in the kitchen is when my girls seem to open up to me the most.  Normally it’s because they’re coming home from school hungry, been playing outside, or doing something that we talk about while making and enjoying PB&JThey do say they kitchen is the heart of most homes.

It’s good to know the traditional peanut butter and jelly are just as awesome as it was when I was a child.  Okay, so it’s a little better because I get to spend my PB&J moments with my kids, and nothing beats bonding time with my kids.

For more great PB&J moments as well as recipes idea head on over to the Smucker’s website here.