in the spirit of actually doing pinterest projects...

i've chosen the two easiest recipes i've ever found. i mean ever. i'm going to share them with you.

the first is "low-cal" cupcake/muffins. you just take a small can of pumpkin and mix it with literally any flavor of cake mix. you don't need eggs or oil or anything. you don't even need the applesauce that i sometimes substitute. i bet it'd be good with spice cake or carrot cake mix. i use devil's food or german chocolate. you can fancy it up with a mashed banana, some cinnamon or nutmeg, or pretty much whatever you can think of. we usually use the all of the above! BONUS: you can eat the batter without fears of awful food-borne illness issues, cuz there's no eggs!

second cake mix-related pinterest-found easy recipe: cake batter rice krispie treats. 1/3 to 1/2 cup yellow, white or funfetti cake mix, 1 bag mini-marshmallows, 1/4 cup butter or margarine, and about 6 cups of rice kripsies or a rice-krispie alternative (my favorites of these types of treats were always made with puffed wheat), i whole container of rainbow sprinkles. melt the marshmallows and butter/margarine in the pan until nothing but sticky goodness exists. mix in cake mix and cereal and the sprinkles. like, mix them really well. then just put in the pan that you're using and pat down. if you want to get creative or do some fun learning activities, let them cool then let you kids cut them out with cookie cutters instead of boring lame squares (this is how stenni learned shapes.) then eat them. all.
*one tip that always helps me: cover everything with cooking spray first. i mean everything. the pan you melt the marshmallows in, the spoon you stir them with, the pan you put them into, the cookie cutters if you use them, even your hands for when you pat them down. trust me, it helps like woah.*

one bonus pinterest project that's super easy and will keep your toddler busy for a long time: put some shaving cream in a zip top bag, zip it up and then tape it to something. let them play with it. ta-da. also works with paint. kid will be amused for hours while you get to drink coffee or let your nails dry or let's be realistic, probably finish the dishes.