five things I like

#1:

Bento. I may or may not have spent an inordinate amount of time making this octopus out of muenster, nori, and fake bologna (baloney bologna? Har har.) for Isobel's school snack. I blame it on Brooke, who came home from Boston last week with this book for me. So I guess I'm joining the ranks of type-A moms who can't even make a freaking snack for a preschooler without it being perfect. But you know what? Bento is so cuuuuuute! And, miracle of miracles, Isobel actually ate the octopus. So that in itself makes it worth the effort.
#2:

Haupia with fresh fruit. This is a wonderful light, cool Hawaiian dessert that I had forgotten about for the last 10 years or so. And it's super easy. (recipe from the aformentioned book)
Coconut Pudding (haupia)
4 to 6 tbsp sugar
4 to 6 tbsp cornstarch
1 (12-oz) can coconut milk
a few raspberries or other fruit
-Combine sugar and cornstarch and stir in 1 and a half cups water. Pour coconut milk into a saucepan over medium heat. Add the sugar mixture, cooking and stirring constantly until thickened.
-Spoon into container or pour into a square pan and chill until firm (like Jell-O). Top with fruit.
#3:

Our back yard. I can now let Isobel disrobe before bringing out the non-washable sidewalk chalk. We can have a soundtrack to our hopscotch sessions (there's a working outlet in our back yard). And we still have highs in the 90's here, so we're making the most of it.

#4:

Seriously, So Blessed! One of the funniest, cleverest, perfectest spoofs I've ever seen in my long 27 years of life. Go there and be entertained.
#5:

Puck. A jar of this deliciousness was given to me just a few weeks before I came back to the U.S. from Kazakhstan. I loved it, and then forgot all about it. So imagine my surprise when I saw that happy little flower at Madina Market yesterday. It's like a more spreadable cream cheese. In Almaty I was told it was Russian, but the label says it's a product of Denmark. Anyway, tasty, tasty stuff.