Colourful Lunches for my Colourful Kidlets

Today's lunch doesn't have a theme, but it was kind of inspired by the Lunchbox Love note I chose to include with it. When I got my Lunchbox Love note sets, I went through them and picked out certain ones I wanted to give certain kidlets. I chose this one for my Sprout,  who really is a terrific kid. She's so much fun! A handful, but in a good way, she's just bursting with joie de vivre :) I love her colourful personality. So, I made a lunch as colourful as she is :)

My colourful Sydney Bean Sprout:

 

Before & after we coloured her hair (at her request!)

Now, back to lunch! Sprout had 2 little heart-shaped sandwiches, carrots, oranges, grapes, strawberries cut like hearts, and yogurt with sprinkles:

We recently got some new yubo faceplate covers (including a sweet Valentine one... ooh, I totally just decided to copy Bento-ology's heart lunch for Bella to go with that one!) Sprout chose this one, she says it's her & her sisters :)

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Birdie is home from preschool today with a fever & tummy ache. When I asked her if her tummy was upset, she thought about it for a sec, then said "Yes, my tummy is crying," Awww...♥ I didn't expect her to eat much of the Nibble Tray I packed her (and she didn't) but here it is:

Strawberry hearts, grapes, carrots, peanut butter sandwich hearts, and yogurt with a little strawberry syrup stirred in, and some sprinkles. When I went to take the pic above I tripped over a mini Lalaloopsy, and thought I might get a giggle from my girl if I served her lunch with a friend:

I was right ♥

"Mummy you're silly, I can't eat Gumdrop!"

Gumdrop is the Lalaloopsy :)
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Some stuff used to make these lunches:

Loose Tooth? Take Little Bites :)

Bella's still got that wiggly tooth, it's not ready to come out yet. She can bite into things, but she doesn't like how it feels, so I've used our FunBites Cube it! again, and filled her Go Green lunch box with little bites :)

Hidden under the Lunchbox Love note she has a Trix yogurt - did you know they're coloured using fruits & vegetables rather than artificial food dye? Also in that section is a small Light My Fire spork and a couple of "ice pillows" (cut from a larger sheet). In the other sections she has a cubed PB sandwich,  cheddar & mozzarella, carrots, & almonds.

I'll be making another tooth fairy lunch any day now!

Some stuff used to make this lunch:

Loose Tooth Lunch!

My Bella has a loose tooth and is having a hard time biting into things. FunBites to the rescue! I used my Cube it! to cut her lunch into little bite-sized morsels she could pop in her mouth, bypassing the wiggly tooth.

Bella's loose tooth-friendly EasyLunchbox is packed with cubed apples, grapes,  grape tomatoes, & cubed peanut butter sandwich bite kebabs on "tooth" picks :) Sort of looks like it's smiling, too:

Rounding out this square meal is a snack of habanero spiced almonds (Bella likes spicy!) in an EasyLunchboxes Mini Dipper. I've also tucked a Lunchbox Love note under the lid, and included an owl print Red Poppy cloth napkin.

Bella loves owls, just like her Auntie LaLa, my little sister ♥ 

Some stuff used to make this lunch:

Crunch A Color Review!

My family got to try a new game over the Winter Break, Crunch a Color: The Healthy Eating Game for Kids!

We love playing with our food :) And while playing the game hasn't got the sproutlets liking any new veggies yet,  it has gotten them to try things, which is a really big thing in itself for my family of fearfully picky eaters. The more they try something, the more chance they'll start to like it - so we'll keep playing, and maybe eventually somebody will find they do like cauliflower after all :)

This is what you get with Crunch a Color: The Healthy Eating Game:

• Reward Chart (the game comes with one double sided chart, & you can print out more from their website)
• 90 colourful cards - they are wipeable, like a deck of playing cards
• Rules of Play & Tips for Parents cards  
• Points by Color cards for easy reference

I wanted to get some pics of my family playing, even postponed my review until Sailor Boy was home to do so, but my camera broke! It's just the flash part, but unfortunately that meant no pics in low light, which is the only light available at supper time. Oh well, I'm sure you can picture us, right? Just imagine a family of 7 with a mess of food & cards on the table, cheering on the pickiest kid as he finishes his broccoli for the win :)

We also got to try Crunch a Color: Conversation Starters, which can be played on it's own or with The Healthy Eating Game.  Conversation Starters cards ask questions & present dilemmas that inspire creative thinking & healthy debates. Some are simple questions like "How did you help someone today?" while others are more thought-provoking, such as "What new product would you like to design?" And best of all, there are no incorrect answers :)

This is what you get with Crunch a Color: Conversation Starters:

• 100 Question cards like those in the Healthy Eating Game
• 4 Create Your Own Question cards
• Suggestions for Play card

I can think of uses for Conversation Starters beyond the dinner table! 

• Road trips & plane rides
• Doctors & dentists waiting rooms
• Restaurants, waiting for a table or the meal
• Homeschooling creative writing topics 
• Inspiration for writing to pen pals

We decided to use them for letter writing while Sailor Boy is deployed ♥

We'll draw a card each week, and each sproutlet will write their answer in a letter to Daddy. Then he'll write back with his own response to the same question :)

Mia Bella got started right away:

I think it will amuse him to read their different answers to the same question, as well as encourage communication and help him keep in touch with who they are, and of course it will be a good writing exercise for them!

Want to know more about Crunch a Color?

If you're like most parents, battles over broccoli can lead to a less than happy family dinner table. Jennifer Tyler Lee, mom of two formerly picky eaters, struggled to get her kids to eat healthy, balanced meals so she decided to turn healthy eating into a game! Crunch a Color is the award-winning series of nutrition games that make healthy eating fun. Kids earn points eating colorful veggies and trying new foods in The Healthy Eating Game. Racking up bonus points for starting a conversation is easy with Conversation Starters created by kids for kids. 

Winner of the Dr. Toy and Parent Tested, Parent Approved awards, Crunch a Color® has been featured by Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution, Laurie David’s Family Dinner, Kiwi Magazine, Dr. Greene, and Yum Food & Fun For Kids, among many others, as a simple, fun and playful way to get kids to eat healthy and try new foods. Jennifer’s passion is making mealtime fun, easy and healthy for busy families. Her easy recipes, quick tips, and new food adventures are regularly featured at Pottery Barn Kids, Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution, The Huffington Post, and on her weekly recipe blog at www.crunchacolor.com.

And like the box says, Crunch a Color gives back! A portion of your purchase of either game supports non-profit children's nutrition programs, so more than just your family will benefit!  I like that!

Want to Play?

Crunch a Color is generously offering to give a game to 5 lucky readers! 
All you have to do is leave a comment on this post, telling me which game you'd like you and/or what you'd use it for! And if you want bonus entries,  you can follow @crunchacolor on Twitter & Like them on Facebook.

Enter via Rafflecopter below :)

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Lunch for the Man: Farewell My Love

This is it, the last lunch I'll get to pack for my Sailor Boy for a long time. It's boat food for him for the next 9 months! Well, except when they are in port, then he'll get to eat amazing international dishes, right? Hope so! Farewell, my love. I wish you fair winds & following seas. Enjoy your lunch ♥

Lunch might not look like much, but it's full of love. Sailor Boy missed having Thanksgiving dinner with us this year, but we froze & saved him a slice of the pumpkin pie Pickle & I baked! And oh, the cleverness of me, I thought ahead and cut it to fit in his EasyLunchbox :) 

To go with his Thanksgiving dessert, he has turkey in gravy, topped with cheese, on a bed of rice. I put the turkey in a star-shaped silicone container meant for baking little cakes, so he could take it out to warm it up in the microwave then stir it into the rice. On the side he has pineapple & watermelon on blue heart picks. Blue because I'll be blue without him ♥ 

Okay, enough shmoopy. I'll miss making my Sailor Boy lunch, but it's not like I don't still have my 5 sproutlets to pack for :) And I can start planning a special homecoming bento... There's nothing like a military homecoming!