Life in the Bento: Week Six | 5-8 Oct 2015

Hello cupcakes!

I am so sorry for the emptiness that has been this blog lately. I have had some personal issues arise that have prevented me from doing much of anything, but I'm back!

In case you have missed the first five weeks, you can click here for a recap (:

This week was a short one due to an in service day at the local school. Since this was the first full official week on Halloween - I mean, October! - I kept the minions lunches centered around all things spooky.

Monday, 5 October 2015

So this was a quick put together in a pumpkin theme for the kiddos. I took a slice of orange, mild cheddar & a slice of white american & used a pumpkin cookie cutter to cut the shape (using a knife to cut the details on the cheddar cheese). I placed them both on a slice of whole wheat bread with a half leaf of romaine lettuce as the 'ground'. Then took some mixed veggies & threw them in a yellowish-orange cup, drew a cute smiley face on the cup of peaches, & then took this adorable Lunchables halloween themed snack packs & tossed that in. 

See, simple?

Tuesday, 6 October 2015

This meal was suuuuuper fun to create! I took 2 pieces of whole wheat bread, sliced off the crust & squished it down flat. I then spread a thin layer of peanut butter & rolled 'em up! I gently carved one side of the bread into a point to make it look like a finger. I took half of a cashew (you could use almonds but we didn't have any) & squished it onto the pointy part. I lightly then made "knuckle" indentations using a knife (be careful not to press too hard or you'll push right through!). 

Since we were all out of strawberry jam/jelly, I took apricot jam with a few drops of red food coloring, mixed it up & then poured it into a little cup a "witches blood dip". The boys thought it was a hoot! Sliced a banana in half & drew a cute little ghostie face on it. I wanted to add more ghosties to their box, so I took mozzarella string cheese, sliced it in hald & then cut slits at the bottom to make little ghostie wave-lings. Is that totally a word? To make it's cute little faces, I used black gel icing. 

Toss some BareNaked Vanilla Almond Granola into the other container & bam! Done.

Wednesday, 7 October 2015

 This was probably one of my favorites to make! Frankenstein! 

I took a garden veggie wrap, placed ham & cheese in the middle & folded the tortilla into a square! For his "brains", I took a thin slice of ham & cut just enough to give him a brain. (: His eyes were candy eyes! His mouth & stitches were drawn on with food safe marker.

I wanted to make bolts out of string cheese but I couldn't get it positioned right. So, instead, I halved & quartered the cheese to look like bolts..... but in a side dish. Added some green grapes & another Lunchables snack pack.

Thursday, 8 October 2015

Final lunch of the week before the long 4 day weekend! Kept it fairly simple with this one! Made H peanut butter sandwiches (at his request!) & cut them into a ghost & pumpkin shape with some halloween cookie cutters. I threw in some Veggie Garden Straws & an orange that I drew a face on (popped a small toothpick in the top to look like a stem). May not have been the most extravagant meal this week but still cute.

& that concludes this weeks super short, Life in the Bento. Okay, not super short because I'm fairly certain the very first week of only 2 days was super short. Hahah. 

Want to have your kiddos lunches featured on a blog post? Tag me on instagram @LoveofFilo & use the hashtag #NavyLifeinBento & you could be featured here!

Life in the Bento: Week Five || 28 Sept - 2 October 2015

Hellooooo cupcakes!

Welcome to the fifth installment of the Life in the Bento series! Want to play catch up? You can catch all your favorite Bento posts here. Now, onto this weeks boxes!

Monday, 28 September 2015

H decided to step a little outside realm of "bento" today with a side "dish" of spaghettios & IN the bento he chose: cut up hotdogs (he said he wanted to mix them into the spaghettios himself at school), sliced apples soaked in gingerale, & animal crackers. 

J decided he was extra hungry & wanted 2 tuna sandwiches with sliced apples soaked in gingerale & animal cookies.

We're starting to run out of food options because they keep wanting the same thing over & over again. I'm trying to let them pick their own lunches but I'm starting to feel like one of those boring moms who only pack sammiches. **nothing against moms who only pack sandwiches. I just have a HUGE pinterest board of cool bento box ideas & my kids won't partake in any of them now. *super sad face*

Tuesday, 29 September 2015

Woo! Okay, so J picked something a little different than a sandwich (finally!). He chose fresh slice turkey & cheese roll ups with carrots & fudge brownie little bites. Couldn't get this kid to choose a fruit today to save his life. But hey! At least he has his veggies.

H seems to have chosen a somewhat balanced meal. He wanted fresh turkey & ham roll ups with gingerale soaked apples, cubes of cheddar cheese (why he didn't just do cheese in the roll up is beyond me), carrots, & fudge brownie little bites.

Wednesday, 30 September 2015

H went a little "complicated" here. He wanted fish sticks mac&cheese, & animal crackers with ketchup for dipping. Again, couldn't make him choose a fruit or veggie to save his life. This meal kinda kills me because its nothing but carbs & yellow foods (sans the ketchup).

Thursday, 1 October 2015

Today was a little better. H chose penguins (think Goldfish crackers but not name brand), spaghettis, gingerale soaked apples, & mixed veggies. Not sure how this kid can eat cold pasta, but he does & he enjoys it.

Friday, 2 October 2015

Today both the kids got the same thing for lunch. They each got some of those vienna hotdog/sausages, 2 graham crackers, "whales" (dollar tree's version of gold fish}, mixed veggies, & a box of raisins. Overall a well rounded meal, yeah?

For drink each day they are sent with a bottle of water & come home & eat a healthy snack (usually an apple with some peanut butter or celery with peanut butter); then it's time for 20 minutes of rest (not a nap, just time to unwind from a hectic day at school - they are only 4 & 5 afterall) - at which point it is then homework time.

Curious about their Bentos?
Their "bento boxes" aren't real fancy. The blue one is a Paw Patrol themed plastic one from the Target Dollar Spot & the white/clear ones are just reused Chinese take out containers & little serving cup things I found in my moms tupperware cupboard. You can make your own Bento style boxes by utilizing what you have around your house if you can't afford the more expensive Planet Box or YumBox.

Want your kids lunch featured?

Want you wonderful, healthy, kid-friendly lunch creations featured? Use the hashtag #NavyLifeinBento on instagram & you & your kiddos lunch could be featured on next weeks blog!

Life in the Bento: Week Four || 21-25 Sept 2015

Hellooooo cupcakes! 

Hope you all had an amazing amazing week! Our week consisted on a nasty sickness going around the entire house (my parents, my sister, both minion, & myself). Everyone was over it within 2-3 days; a week later & I'm still battling it. supersadface.

Anyhow! We are in week four of Life in the Bento. You can revisit all our past weeks here:
Week 1: 3-4 Sept
Week 2: 8-11 Sept
Week 3: 14-18 Sept

Now lets hop into this weeks Bento meals!

Monday & Tuesday 21/22 Sept. 2015

So this was J's lunch for 2 days only because he stayed home from school Monday (& ultimately Tuesday). He requested a grape & mint jelly sandwich on a thick, amoroso roll; some gingerale soaked apples, carrots, & fudge brownie little bites. Not the healthiest thing in the world, but I started feeling quite horrible Sunday night when I was prepping their lunches.

H's lunch (which he ended up taking to school on Tuesday since he was sick on Monday) we a peanut butter & jelly on an amoroso roll, some gingerale soaked apples, green beans, & chocolate chip muffin little bites. Again, not entirely healthy, but when momma can barely stay standing, you do what you gotta do.

Wednesday, 23 Sept 2015

Starting this week, J is only in Pre-K Mondays, Tuesdays, & Fridays so the rest is just H's meals for the week. If you'd like to see what I make J for lunch on those "off days", let me know!

For H's meal today he chose his make your own pizza (sans the pizza sauce) with turkey pepperoni & shredded, mild cheddar cheese, apples, a drinkable Danimal's yogurt, & some pringles.

Thursday, 24 Sept 2015

Finally got H to step out of the sandwich box & try something new. Hooray! So for lunch today he had ham & cheese roll ups, some apples with peanut butter, animal crackers, & a drinkable Danimal's yogurt. (**side note: he actually enjoyed the roll ups! So you may be seeing more of those)

Friday, 25 Sept 2015

Hooray! It's friyay! The minions ended up having similar lunches today due to the simple fact that I still wasn't any better & was having a hard time creating anything cute for them to eat. Eat minion had 2 sandwiches (H had pb&j & J had cheese), some peas, animal crackers, & Danimal's drinkable yogurt. Quick, simple, & a total carb over load which I feel horrible about but, again, when momma is sick not much gets done. 

Every day the kids drink water with their lunches & have a healthy snack upon arriving home from school. That is something that never changes. (:

In terms of their "Bentos": The blue Bento is a Paw Patrol 3 compartment, plastic lunch "kit" from the Target Dollar spot - & I totally should've picked up more than the 2 I did when I found them because the dog got ahold of 1 & now I can't find them.  The white rectangle-ish one is actually a Chinese take-out box reused & repurposed. It's definitely not as cute but it works! I am eventually upgrading to a PlanetBox or a YumBox. Maybe I can convince Santa to gift them to the kids for Christmas. Hahah. 

What do you guys pack for your kids during the week? Do you do anything cutesy? I am so excited to start doing fall/halloween themed boxes starting Oct 1! If you would like your kiddos Bentos to be featured in a blog post, tag me on Instagram @LoveofFilo &/or use the hashtag #NavyLifeinBento & you may see your works of art added to the blog!

Life in the Bento: Week Three | 14-18 Sept 2015

Welcome back, cupcakes!

It's another Life in the Bento series post! Who's ready for some kid-friendly lunch ideas brought to you by my kiddos H & J. Lets do this!

Want to catch up on the past few installments? Check them out here:
Week One : 3-4 Sept
Week Two: 8-11 Sept

Monday 14 September 2015

Lo & behold: the boys' lunch! In their cute bento boxes they dedicded on a left over taco from taco bell, some carrots, Motts All-Natural fruit gummies, apples soaked in ginger ale (need to know why? Read the first installment of the Bento series here), & 2 homemade chocolate chip cookies.

J loves helping to pack his lunch 

 Tuesday, 15 September 2015

 On Tuesday the boys decided to have different lunch options. Today H enjoyed 2 turkey hot dogs cut into about the size of a viena sausage with ketchup, Mott's All Natural fruit gummies, a small salad (& by salad I meant 1 romaine lettuc leaf & 2.5 cherry tomatoes), & some pretzel twists.

Meanwhile, J decided on carrots (can you tell this kid loooooves carrots?!), Mott's All natural fruit snacks, some pretzel twists, & a whole wheat pita pocket stuffed with 1 slice of cheese, some turkey, & pepperoni (hey! don't ask me..... I don't eat it, I just make it. **NOTE: on this day, J was sick so he ate his lunch at home. Hey, it's gotten get eaten one way or the other, right?

Wednesday, 16 September 2015

J's lunch, yet again, consisted of carrots (surprise, surprise), Mott's gummies, some Ritz crackers, & another whole wheat pita pocket stuffed with pepperoni & turkey - hey! the kid knows what he likes. & again, he was sick today so he got to enjoy his lunch at home.

H ended up getting a "special" lunch, as he puts it. His lunch consisted of left over raviolis with a little bit of sauce, a celery stick cut into 3 pieces with some peanut butter, ginger ale soaked apples, & a bag of the fudge brownie little bites. Pretty sure thats why he said it was special. Hahah.

Thursday, 17 September 2015

Both of the boys lunchs today consisted of mac & cheese, Mott's gummies, green beans, & the fudge brownies little bites. Not the most healthiest meal that could be packed, but I tend to give my kids "free reign" in terms of what they want for lunch so long as they have at least a fruit &/or veggie. I was just surprised that J picked something other than carrots.

Friday, 18 September 2015

Today in H's bento we had another leftovers day with the remaining bits of mac & cheese, animal cooks, celery with PB, & half a banana. My mom was stressing we get rid of the left overs in the fridge & this was the most 'easiest' thing in the fridge (by that, I meant, it wasn't chicken drum sticks or pork chops. or anything like that).

J's box consisted of two PB&J sandwiches, green beans (again!? I was shocked!), half a banana, & animal cookies. 

Now you're probably noticing that J's bento isn't a green one & that the green bento has been MIA since Thursday. Welp, on Wednesday when J was sick, he left his bento on the table & the dog got to it. :|     so there's that. Luckily my mom had an oversize tupperware container that was the same size as the bento, just non-compartmentalized. 

So that's everything for the week! If you would like to see your kiddo's favorite recipes shown in upcoming blog posts, tag me on instagram using the hashtag #NavyLifeinBento. Hope everyone had a great week!

Life in the Bento: Week Two | 8-11 Sept 2015

Hello cuppiecakes!

Welcome back to another installment of Life in the Bento - week TWO. Can't believe the kids are in their second week of school..... but only on day six....? O.o  Funny how days off & starting on a Thursday can throw those things off. Anyhow! If you are new to the Bento series, you can play catch up with week one here. Lets get started on this week!

Tuesday, 8 September, 2015 -- today in the boys Bentos..... it's sandwich day! (& if you read that in Lilo's voice from the original Lilo & Stitch, you won the interwebs!) The boys repeatedly ask for "kitty" sandwiches; the innards usually change but they're always wanting their sandwiches cut into "kitties" - despite having various other cookie cutters & sandwich cutters. J's sandwich choice was cheese & mayo while H's was a PB&J.

J's side choices were a packet of Mott's natural fruit gummies, carrots, & vanilla yogurt.

H's side choices were a packet of Mott's natural fruit gummies, carrots, & cheetos.

Because sandwiches cut into the shape of kitties taste much better!

Wednesday, 9 September 2015

Happy Hump Day!

In J's Bento we have a packet of Mott's all natural fruit gummies, homemade chicken nuggets (you can read how I did them on the first post here), "penguins" (Save-a-lot's version of Goldfish), & carrots. Weird kid doesn't use any type of dipping sauce.

In H's Bento we have 2 sliced up all natural turkey hotdogs served with a side of ketchup, corn, animal crackers, & Mott's all natural fruit gummies.

Thursday, 10 September 2015

Welp, we've crossed hump day & are now onto Thursday!

Welcome to J's Bento! Today the kiddo wanted "make your own pizza" so his box consisted of whole wheat sandwich thin split in half to act as the crust, turkey pepperoni, shredded mild cheddar, & some left over meaty spaghetti sauce from last nights dinner. His snack choices were 2 honey graham crackers & some apples!

H's Bento was similar to J's but in a different form! He chose turkey pepperoni & cheddar cheese "sandwich crackers" (think like a lunchable but less processed), carrots, apples, & 2 honey graham crackers.

BENTO TIP!

Apples turn brown rather quickly after cut, refrigerated, & then left to sit in a lunchbox while kiddos are at school..... so here is how you solve that! After cutting your apples, soak them in some ginger ale for a few minutes & voila! No more browning apples!

Friday, 11 September 2015

It's the end to a short week!

J is ending his week with some more homemade chicken nuggets, "penguins", green beans, Motts all natural fruit gummies, & some Ritz crackers.

H decided he wanted rigatoni with homemade meat sauce, animal crackers, green beans, & Motts all natural fruit gummies.

To drink every day the kids get a bottle of water. 

I know a lot of the meal choices seem to be repeated, but I let my kids pick their lunch. I want them to feel proud of their lunch choices & I want them to make healthy choices. I don't coax them into what they want to eat for lunch which I think makes them even more excited when we put their bentos together. 

Have a picky eater? Have your kiddo get involved in the making & picking out of their lunch. Give them healthier versions of their favorites so they are still eating their favorite foods but still getting vitamin enriched, healthy, super foods they need to excel through school.

Have some kid friendly lunches you'd like to share? Email them to me or tag me on instagram with the hash tag #NavyLifeinBento & you (& your blog!) can be featured on a future installment. Have a great weekend everyone!

Life in the Bento: Week One | 3-4 Sept 2015

Hulloooooo cupcakes!
My kiddos first week of school (if you can call it a "week"..... they only had school 2 days this week!) is officially over & I wanted to start a series on my blog called Life in the Bento which will showcase all the yummy goodness of lunch that my littles consume for school. I figured this is a great way to help those mommies & daddies who are having trouble with ideas for school lunches - because lets be real no one wants to eat sandwiches every day. & so, I bring you.....

LIFE IN THE BENTO.

week one. 3-4 Sept. 2015

Thursday, 3 Sept 2015: Lunch for the kiddos was fairly similar to each other. They had homemade chicken nuggets, "penguins" (which are Save-a-lot's version of Goldfish), Motts All Natural Fruit Gummies, & J chose cherry tomatoes while H chose carrots. (*H also chose to have ketchup with his nuggets)

Prepping the nuggets was easy. I sliced up some boneless, skinless chicken breasts (you can also use tenders or thighs) & rolled them in italian breadcrumbs (you could also use panko which would make the "breading" thicker, but my parents didn't have any panko in the house & I didn't feel like making another grocery store run). Bake them at 350 degrees for about 15-20 minutes (depending on the size & thickness of your nuggets); let them cool & put them in a ziplock baggy with the date you made them so you can use them for meals later in the week.

I actually ended up snacking on them while prepping their lunch. They're really delicious!

Friday, 4 Sept. 2015: Their final day of their first week & each boy wanted something different in their bellies! The yummy deliciousness shown up above is J's lunch! He was having a "yellow" theme for some reason. In his little bento, he decided he wanted:
. half a banana
. 7 Ritz crackers
. Vanilla Yogurt
. "Kitty Sandwich"

To make the Kitty Sandwich, it was fairly simple. First: make any type of sandwich your monster is craving that day (J wanted black forest ham & cheese on whole wheat bread). Then take a cookie cutter or a sandwich cutter & smoosh it into the sandwich to create your shape. We ended up using a halloween cookie cutter for this but it was the perfect size. The "scraps" (aka the bits of bread on the OUTSIDE of the cutter) ended up in J's belly while I packed his brothers lunch. Get your little to help smoosh the cutter into the sandwich so they feel like they're having a big part in their lunch making.

Now onto H.....

For H's lunch he wanted homemade pizza! What kid doesn't love pizza?! But those lunchable pizza's that you can find at the grocery store are so full of sodium & processed junk..... + it's always more fun to figure out what you have on hand to make a delicious, kid friendly pizza. He also, sorta, stuck to the yellow theme too..... ish.

In H's bento:
. "Penguins" (read above if you are wondering about them)
. Corn
. Half a banana
. some hand shredded cheddar cheese

. 10 slices of turkey pepperoni

. 1 whole wheat "sandwich thin" (which I opened up to look like pizza crusts)

Now, you may be wondering where is the pizza sauce?! You are more than welcome to send your kiddos to school with pizza sauce in a little tupperware container, but I could just see H trying to open the container & it going everywhere..... or him trying to pour a little onto his crust & it end of in a soggy heap. Yeah, no thanks.

& that was pretty much their lunch for their "week" at school. I am honestly excited for next week when I can bring you a FULL weeks worth of meals for your littles! As for the bento boxes, I actually picked up these 3 compartment lunch containers in the Target Dollar Spot for, yep, $1! While they're not traditional Japanese Bento boxes, I think they work wonderfully with the boys & if they break them or lose them (& I'm sure they will), they were only $1. To separate the snacks & crackers a little more, I'm using cupcake liners to make extra "compartments" - I will be switching to silicone cupcake liners for reusability within the next week or so. 

If you guys do any of the aft formention bento ideas, tag me on Instagram using the hashtag #NavyLifeinBento. I can't wait to see all your wonderful creations. I may even feature you in a future blog post!