But first, the school lunches. We woke up to snow on the ground! Not really picnic weather... but I had already planned a teddy bear picnic...
... for Bella's EasyLunchbox :) Cheddar bears try to climb cracker stick tree trunks in the broccoli woods (to get the honey those bees might be hovering around?) A group of chocolate teddy graham bears sit in a clearing watching some cheddar bears fishing in the lake (blue box containing spiced almonds). On the side a patch of mushrooms (box containing a taffy treat) sit in the middle of a field (of lemon-lime gelatin), near a patch of tomato and carrot blossoms :) Bella giggled at the story, and carried her lunch bag in her hand instead of her backpack so she wouldn't disturb her bears :)
There's a tot-sized Nibble Tray version I forgot to include here ✿
Beanstalk is in love with his PlanetBox, and wants it every day. Of course I just bought 3 more Lock & Lock 4 Square bento boxes for him too ... Murphy's Law right? He has yogurt raisins, ham swords (he mentioned yesterday that he really like the swords - hey, spam my comments with any sci-fi-ish food pick links you know of!) Honeycrisp apple wedges, pretzel & cheese goldfish crackers + a couple of Wheat Stix to try, and 2 chocolates for treat.
It's Tuesday, breakfast for lunch day at school, and Pickle wanted the pancakes, but he also wanted a peanut butter sandwich from home - he doesn't like the sausage and fruit that come with the school lunch. He does like the individual containers of Yami yogurt and juice though, I don't think he needs a sandwich - but I packed him one anyways :)
Three for the Road
Sprout & Birdie got a picnic lunch of cracker sticks, cheddar bears, carrot bears, peanut butter sandwich bears, grapes, and a bear egg for Birdie. The bear's ears didn't really come out - I guess the egg was on the small side :)
Lunch for The Man was not nearly as cute, but, nutritionally balanced, I think :)
Ham & swiss + chicken & cheddar bagelwiches with a smidgen of mayo, carrots, golden tomatoes, grapes on the vine, and hard-cooked eggs.
FYI : Thermos 9 Cube Ice Mats are a perfect fit in the EasyLunchbox cooler:
I got lots of painting done with my little busybodies out of the house! I'm not quite finished yet, but Sailor Boy will help me after the sproutlets are asleep. This kitchen facelift has turned out to be a bigger job than I thought it would be ... especially since I keep making more work for myself - like today, when I impulsively decided to paint the kitchen island Granny Smith apple green :)
Don't miss my Super Healthy Kids Healthy Habits plate giveaway!
Several of my fellow lunch bloggers are hosting giveaways too:
Bobbi's Bentos - FunBites Giveaway
Family Fresh Meals - MOMables Giveaway
Bento School Lunches - Coach Purse Giveaway
Crazy?...Maybe! - MOMables Giveaway - Ending Saturday!
Lots of chances to win great stuff!
Some of the stuff I used to pack these Lunches:
great post! love all the bears and lunches (and the stories that go along with them)! :)
ReplyDeleteI love your blog and just started trying out the idea myself. Here is a link to my first 2 boxes...
ReplyDeletehttp://morganbubble.blogspot.com/2012/03/going-bento.html
I was also wondering if you do anything to the apples or other fruits to keep them from discoloring by the time they eat their super cute lunches : )
Nice first lunches! I am intrigued by your marble mazes, going to have to visit your site again later...
DeleteI usually use Ball Fruit Fresh, found with canning goods, I've found it works the best, but I have been out for a couple of weeks and keep forgetting to pick up more, so have been dunking the apples in a dish of cold water or lemonade as soon as I cut them and with Granny Smith that works pretty well. Anything to block the oxidizations. I did a post about preventing browning here: The Great Apple Browning Experiment
Great photos Cristi!! And of course, beautiful lunches :)
ReplyDeleteLove Bella's Teddy Bear Picnic Lunch! Pinned it to my pintrest for future reference! Made my first bento on Monday so this is very new but I love it! Where did you happen to find your lock-n-lock four square? I haven't been able to find it anywhere! I would also love to know if you do anything to keep your fruit from discoloring!? My email is jwheelerk@yahoo.com Thanks!
ReplyDeleteHi! Just came across your blog while looking for what seems to be a much too specific set of items and wondered if you'd give a fellow mom some advice. At least twice a week I feed between 3 and 5 children between ages 2 and 7 on the go (picnic-style or in the car) and on my own. I have been piling a random collection of tupperware and insulated lunch boxes into a rolling cart that fits in my trunk for the 2 plus years I've been doing it and I'm way too OCD to have done it this long. I was looking at the Easy lunchboxes containers and coolers on Amazon and it's the closest thing I can find to what I need but I wish I knew if 4 containers could squeeze into one cooler, and would love to hear from a real mom about the quality of the material... that is the transparency of the containers in pictures makes me think of those disposable (gag) ZIPLOC containers. Does it stand up to toddler beatings and the occasional backseat floor trample? Sorry for the verbosity. Thanks if you can answer!
ReplyDeleteJen
https://sites.google.com/site/ebschoolhouse/
The EasyLunchbox cooler holds 3 pretty snugly, with just room for an ice pack, but definitely NOT a 4th EasyLunchbox, sorry. As for the quality - they are MUCH sturdier than the Ziploc kind. You can't bend them - at least I can't! They aren't hard brittle plastic, they can stand up to being dropped, and they aren't as thick as tupperware, so you could not drive your car over them (as a Tupperware hostess once told me you could do with their sandwich box) but they are pretty solid. In fact, you inspired me to take a photo to prove it, I've just posted it to my FB wall : EasyLunchboxes Can Stand Up To...
DeleteIf you want to do 4, I would suggest getting 2 coolers and 1 set of ELBs. Then you can pack your drinks in there too as I've done in the post :)
If you'd prefer to shop around for a bag that will hold 4, I've measured them for you. A stack of 4 EasyLunchboxes with lids on is just a smidgen under 8" tall, so you need a bag with interior dimensions of no less than 6.5" x 9.5" x 8".
Love all the lunches, especially the story with the teddy bear picnic
ReplyDeleteGorgeous lunches, I love all the teddy bears, and the picnic lunch is extra cute!
ReplyDeleteThank you for linking up at #FunFoodFriday!