It's September. My last blog post was in July. You may be asking, "What happened to August?". Well, although my last post should have ushered in a new age of consistent, uninterrupted blog posts (the likes of which this blog hasn't seen since my days as a stay-at-home mommy), sadly that has not been the case. Why? Simply put: I've had a case of the "I don't wanna's" since graduating. I obtained a BSN, followed by an RN, and then I even secured a job, so if I want to sit around my house and color adult coloring pages until I start working, I'm entitled to do that, right? .....Right?
*sigh* I was supposed to run 8 miles today, but instead I crawled back into bed once I saw my daughter off to school from the bus stop. I did not wake up again until 0900. It was glorious. However, in order to not feel like today was a total waste, I've decided to revisit this poor, neglected blog. How about some fun lunches for your little one?
Charlotte's Web Bento
After reading this classic tale to Monkey as a bedtime story, I surprised her with this Charlotte's Web-inspired lunch. There's Wilbur made with
these easy-to-use sandwich cutters. Charlotte was cut from the wax of a Babybel. Wilbur's "trough" is filled with yummy pretzels. And you can see the goose with her seven eggs that will later hatch into goslings, while one egg was doomed to rot in Templeton's collection. I threw in some snow peas and grapes for sides, and sent Monkey off to school, excited to eat her fun lunch.
Spaghetti and Meatballs
For this lunch I prepared wheat rotini and turkey meatballs the night before. I added some spaghetti sauce, black grapes, celery sticks, and a pepper jack cheese stick to complete this meal.
Under the Sea Bento
This one was fun to make, because it was the first time I got to use the
egg molds an awesome friend bought for me. I made the fish-shaped egg using the mold, and then I made a starfish sandwich. Then I cut a fish out of the wax of a Babybel. Next I made this cute sea-snail from a Halo orange by cutting away most of the peel. I added the Goldfish and grape tomatoes as sides and called it good.
DIY Pizza Bagels
I've made DIY Pizza lunches before, but I usually used
my homemade English muffins as the pizza crust. To save time, I decided to use store-bought bagels for this lunch. I like bagels because they are super easy to write on, and Monkey loves them. I put some pizza sauce in the little Cinderella box pictured, and I added some sliced ham and Mozzarella cheese for toppings. For sides, I added grapes, an orange, and a bit of broccoli.
Cars That Go Vroom Bento
(If you have that song in your head now, you're welcome.)
For this one, I used the other egg mold in the pack my friend bought for me, which makes the little car-shaped egg you see there. I used cookie cutters to cut out the car-shaped sandwiches, and I decorated them using my food markers. Next I designed a stop light on a Babybel using food markers. Then I added a Go-Gurt and an orange for sides.
School Days Bento
This bento was Monkey's first-day-of-school lunch. It features a pencil-shaped sandwich, complete with cheese to form the standard #2 pencil look, as well as a bit of lunch meat to form the pink eraser. I then cut an A+ in a Babybel and added some carrot sticks. I also packed a handful of Alphabet Cheezits and a few strawberries.
Snow White Bento
For this lunch I used a simple circle cookie cutter to form a circle sandwich to form Snow's face, which I then decorated with food markers. I surrounded the sandwich with snow peas. Then I cut a "bite" from an apple using a small cookie cutter. Next using another small cookie cutter, I cut an apple in the wax of a Babybel. This I put on a bed of pretzels.
Dino Bento
For this bento I cut two different dino sandwiches from two different dino cookie cutters. I then used my handy food markers once again to draw cracks on the shell of a boiled egg. This I laid on a "nest" of pretzels. I added a pair of Halo oranges and a pepper jack cheese stick for sides.
Breakfast Bento
On Sundays, J and Monkey can usually convince me to make pancakes for breakfast, and every now and then I have enough foresight to make a few mini ones for Monday's lunch. These pancakes are a slightly healthier version, made with Greek yogurt (for the recipe
click here). I packed a bit of syrup in the Cinderella box for dipping, and then I filled the remaining containers with strawberries, a cheese stick, and a boiled egg.
Breakfast for Lunch (Again)
For a different take on breakfast for lunch, I simply packed a bagel with cream cheese (in the Cinderella box), an egg, a bit of broccoli, and some grapes.
Puppy Bento
This was another easy lunch to prepare. I used a circle cookie cutter to cut the bread and meat for the sandwich, which I then decorated with food markers and candy eyes. For the floppy ears, I simply used a bit of the crust and secured them in place with a dab of mustard. Then I cut a bone shape from the wax of a Babybel. I added grapes, and snow peas as sides, and called it a day.
Hopefully these fun lunches will inspire you to jazz up your kiddos plain ol' PB&J with some fun new twists!
