Happy Birthday Monkey!

Okay, well Monkey's birthday is not until this Saturday but it seemed only fair to give her a special lunch for her Friday lunch to celebrate anyway. This year my little Monkey is turning 7 and I can't believe how much time has passed already! So tomorrow when she wakes up she'll be surprised with a new My Little Pony hooded sweatshirt and this lunch to take with her to school. I hope she'll love it.

IN THIS LUNCH: 

• Popcorn Chicken
• BBQ Sauce (In our purple Sistema to go) 
• Cucumber slices
• Cottage Cheese w/ Pepper
• And a mini lemonade cupcake with sprinkles. 

Do your kids have to go to school on their birthdays? If they do how do you make it special for them? :) 

Happy Packing!

2014 -- 029

Feeling Green

Literally, last night I woke up feeling really ill. I really hope that little miss hasn't decided to bring morning sickness back in the last few weeks of her gestation! Subsequently, I overslept a little...which also means, lunch got a bit thrown together. Today I was really gravitating towards green items and fruit. I had several times I would pick up something to include and went, ''no not another fruit!" and would put it back. She almost had about 5 different fruits in her lunch today (not counting her drink). Also, I apologize for the terrible glare and picture quality. It was a one snap on the kitchen table sort of day!

IN THIS LUNCH: 

• Hello Kitty Thermos is filled with a Mango Fruit Smoothie, 
• Cottage Cheese w/ Pepper, 
• Pretzels, 
• Almonds, 
• Cucumbers, 
• String Cheese and;
• Kiwi

So this is one of those ''look, grab, pack'' lunches! It is featuring my new triangle silicon cups which I got for Valentine's Day. Oh yes, my hubby knows me. BENTO SUPPLIES! Loving them. Monkey has also been asking for a smoothie for quite some time and I never get around to it. Partially because I don't like taking the time to make smoothies and also because the thermos takes up so much of the box! She will be pleasantly surprised though! 

Happy Packing!

2014 -- 025

Just Another Snow Day

Well, we've now been stuck at home for 5 days with the snow and ice. I personally don't mind it much but Monkey seems to be getting bored with it! Hopefully things will thaw out enough for school tomorrow! But, just because there wasn't any school doesn't mean we aren't having lunch. Here's what I put together (and would have sent) for lunch. 

IN THIS LUNCH:

• Turkey/Swiss Meat Rollups (2 pieces of lunch meat, 1 piece of cheese halved)
• Cucumber Slices (about 1/4 cucumber)
• Cranberry Sauce (about 3 tbsp)
• Handful of Pretzels
• 1 kiwi
• 1 Tbsp Dijon Mustard

We also had a great dinner tonight of Cheese Tortellini Soup. It was warm, rich, creamy, and very filling. The recipe is available HERE (or in our recipe section) and you can also PIN IT for later. 

Happy Packing!! 

2014 -- 016

A Laptop Munchable

So, I got my Laptop Lunchbox a while ago and I haven't used it nearly enough! I love the versatility but knew that my daughter struggled to open the outer containers as well as the inner containers. When I realized that this Monday was a teacher in-service day, initially I was a bit bummed. Not because I wanted to usher my child off to school, but because I wouldn't be needing to pack a lunch! Then it hit me that it would be the perfect opportunity to give my little monkey some practice with her laptop lunchbox with me nearby to help if she needed it (fingers crossed she's got it down herself now!). 

IN THIS LUNCH: 

• The main compartment has a pasta salad with rotini pasta, cut mozzarella balls, sliced grape tomatoes, and sliced olives with a little bit of pesto. 
• In the blue compartment we have star, flower, and heart shaped cucumber cutouts.
• In our orange section we have a little flower made of orange segments and a blackberry center. 
• Our drink is an organic chocolate milk. 

When Monkey saw this lunch she was thrilled with the little orange flower and pointed out how I had constructed it and was thrilled I made cucumber shapes again. She smiled and hugged me and expressed how much she liked the flower and my making her lunch. All the smiles, hugs, happiness, and better nutrition than school lunches make this hobby so worthwhile. If her expression alone doesn't make the two minutes it took to make that little flower worth while, I don't know what would! BOO to the Bento naysayers! :-P

Happy Packing!!

2014 -- 009

Bagel Sandwich

I don't know about you, but sometimes I am just NOT in the lunch packing mood. That's when my month of planned out lunches goes out the window and I stare blankly into the fridge debating what I can pack besides a sunflower butter & jelly sandwich. I don't know if this is MUCH of an improvement, but I'd like to think it's a small step up!

IN THIS LUNCH: 

• Mini Bagel Sandwich: Cream Cheese, Pepperoni, and Cucumber Slices
• Tillamook Strawberry Yogurt w/ sprinkles
• Frozen Blueberries
• 100% Juice Box (not pictured)

This lunch took maybe 10 minutes to throw together which was mostly the sandwich! I was informed later that cucumber/pepperoni is Monkey's favorite sandwich (I don't recall ever making her one before) she's so silly! 

Happy Packing!

2014 -- 003

The lunch that almost wasn't

So, I got the lunch all ready to go and found that Monkey had forgotten ANOTHER lunch box at school. Well the first we've still never seen again, so I was a bit distraught thinking that we'd lost a 2nd box and our last ice packs. Luckily, the box was recovered and we were able to send this lunch a day late.

IN THIS LUNCH: 

• Skewers -- 1 Babybel cheese cut up, 1 slice of turkey, 3 slices of salami, 3 grape tomatoes. 
• Cucumber Stars and Flowers (about 6 slices of cucumber)
• Grapes
• Home Popped Popcorn
• Organic Chocolate Milk

Monkey adored the cucumber shapes and it was an easy way to incorporate them in a fun way. Usually I just toss slices in and call it good. This didn't take much extra effort and she really enjoyed the product. Popcorn is one of Monkey's favorite snacks and is a great lunch feature for a whole grain. Our protein star in this was cheese and lunch meat. 

Don't forget this lunch is part of the ''What's for Lunch?" Wednesday Link-up. Check out all the other fantastic lunches!! 

Happy Packing!