Week in Bentos - Oct 21st - 25th

This week was a real scrounging around type of week for lunches, because we are in desperate need of a shopping trip to resupply all the lunch goodies. So I like to call this week, "Fly by the seat of your pants week". 

Monday - Left over cheese pizza, cheddar cheese and turkey pepperoni kabobs, carrots, raspberry tart, pear applesauce, and ranch to dip both the pizza and carrots in.

Tuesday - My daughter had a pumpkin patch field trip and was allowed to bring little brother along. In these bentos we have pumpkin shaped cheese sandwiches, mixed berry yougurt with Halloween sprinkles, pretzels, carrots w/ ranch, applesauce pouches, and green olives for brother, raspberry tart for sister. 

Wednesday - Spooky ghost cheese quesadilla, corn, pumpkin shaped apple slices, and a watermelon fruit roll that my daughter begged me for. ;) 

Thursday - Cheddar cheese and turkey pepperoni kabobs, apples with soy nut butter and choclate chips for dipping, carrots w/ ranch, and a grape pumpkin shaped jello jiggler. 

Friday - Hawaiian roll with cheese, grape spider jello, apples, carrots w/ ranch. 

Super exited for next week where every lunch will be Halloween themed. See you next Thursday, (because there is no school Friday! ) 

CRAFT - Luminous Halloween Jars

I love to decorate for any holiday with light. I made these light jars to brighten up my windows on All Hallows Eve. They look amazing from outside, and for now I have them on a shelf in my house. 

To begin: Supplies - 

- Various clean glass jars. (Pickle, Spaghetti, Ect.)

- Various colors acrylic paint. 

- Brushes, and sponge brushes

- Cut outs on black card stock, or construction paper for best lighting effect. 

- Mod Podge 

Step One - Clean jar. After washing with soap and water, I soaked mine for about 10 minutes in very hot water in my sink, and the label and glue came right off. 

Step Two - Paint the inside of your jar. Let dry about 10 minutes and add a second coat. Be careful because the paint can come off on the slippery glass surface. I got lucky as some of my jars only needed one coat of paint. 

Step Three - Lightly coat your black cut out with Mod Podge on the side that will be pasted face down onto the outside of the jar. Then adhere it to the jar, like so...  

              

Step Four - Coat your entire cut out in Mod Podge. Let dry for a good 15 to 20 minutes. The Mod Podge will leave a white film, but once it dries completely it will be clear, and will never come off.  

Now Enjoy!

I got many of my cut outs from the Dollar Tree in the Halloween section, and they come in a pack of birds, owls, rats, or spiders, so if those look familiar that's why. The pumpkin and the Frankenstein, however, I cut out of black card stock, and pieced together myself, so the possibilities are endless. You can use white lights, candles, or electric tea lights in these. They are as cute during the day without light as they are lit up! I'm thinking of doing a Christmas version of these this year as well. Happy Crafting! 

This week's Bentos - Oct 14th-18th, 2013

Here are this week's bentos, and I apologize for the picture quality. I take these photos on my iPad to save time. 

Monday - A light lunch because Lil Woman wasn't feeling well and ended up staying home sick anyway. In this lunch, crackers and cheese cut out in leaf and pumpkin shapes, watermelon jello, homemade energy bites, and carrots with ranch. 

Tuesday - First real Halloween themed lunch without too much effort*. Apples with toasted soy butter (this replaces peanut butter for my nut allergy girl), and mini chocolate chips. Totally stole this idea from my friend, Amanda, over at Despicable Bentos (http://despicablebentos.blogspot.com). Chicken and cheese roll ups on whole wheat tortillas, veggie straws, and homemade energy bites. 

*To add the Halloween touch, this is simply a cupcake package I got at Walmart for 97 cents, that came with cupcake toppers and wrappers. The toppers are holding the roll ups together and the apples and energy bites are in the cupcake wrappers themselves. 

Wednesday - Left over fried rice with tofu, cheese stick, mandarin oranges, pretzels, and one energy bite. 

Thursday - Soy butter and jelly mini sandwiches, cut out with tiny flower cookie cutter, mini turkey pepperoni and cheese stick, carrots with ranch, apple berry sauce in pouch, and an Oreo cookie with Halloween sprinkles on top. 

Friday - TGIF! Mini Nachos, (small tortilla chips with melted cheese), with sour cream for dipping, apple slices, carrots, and two energy bites. 

Hope everyone had a great week. See you next Friday for more bentos! :) 

P.S. - Here is my bento drawer finally organized! 

Entering the world of Bento lunches.

I'm very new to this Bento world. My five year old daughter just started kindergarten at the end of August. As I mentioned before she is allergic to nuts, which means I pretty much examine and approve  everything she eats before she gets to eat it. As is the life of a mom with a kid with food allergies. These bentos are a way to not only ensure that no harm comes to her, but that she actually consumes food while at school. When I tell her what's on her schools lunch menu, the response is always, "well, I am not eating that!" 

So here is what she will eat: 

Hello Kitty rice molds, bananas, carrots, and jello. 

Breakfast for lunch: Strawberry Strudel Eggo Wafflers, teddy bear hard boiled egg (created with Wilton edible markers), cheese stick, homemade energy bites, and applesauce pouch. 

Chicken and cheese heart shaped sandwiches, apples, carrots, kitty hard boiled egg, pretzels, and fruit snacks. 

These are just a few of my faves so far. I plan to share lunches weekly, especially as I gear up for Halloween Bentos!!  

A little intro, and testing, testing, 1,2,3...

   I love crafting. I love creating. I love to mostly craft and create magic for my children, and a little for my home as well. I learn a lot from actual step by step instruction, so when I find a blog, website or youtube video that will show me, step by step how to create an amazing craft, I will watch, pay attention, take notes even, and then someone will ask me of the finished product, "how did you ever come up with that?". Well, I learned from someone willing to take the time to show me. Some stranger. Some very cool and creative stranger. So if I get my craft on, and can share some knowledge with someone else then so be it! Plus I seriously need an outlet for this stuff.
 
 Another love, one word.... Parties! I love throwing my children parties. Birthdays, holidays, if there is a reason to have even a little celebration, I will do it! And I do all these things on a budget. A very tight one. I won't be spending $100 on specialty iced cookies for my daughter's birthday party, no way. If I can't do it myself, it doesn't usually happen. (Have I mentioned yet, I make my own pinatas?)

  My daughter just started kindergarten this year, and she happens to have a nut allergy. Her school is not nut free, and she is extremely picky when it comes to what she eats so I have been making her Bento lunches. Also, something I will show here, to share ideas and perhaps get new ones. So there you have it!

  "Tap, tap, tap..... Is this thing on?"