Pandas and Potstickers for lunch...

Ughhhhh!!!! This has definitely been one of "those" weeks. Let me see. Crazy...frustrating...insane...circus...Yeah, that about sums it up. Oh, OK. So you moms out there know exactly what type of week I'm talking about..the "Calgon take me away" every night kind of week. I haven't posted a lunch all week. Whoa there....calm down everyone! I promise I've still been sending lunch for the little guy, just not anything worth blogging about. But, hopefully I'm past all the craziness (fingers crossed). Actually, I think I've enjoyed the mini break this week. (Although, I have not enjoyed the antics of a sock-eating poodle this week. Um, yeah. Long story!) 

So, I'm going pretty easy today for Z's lunch...last night's leftovers of veggie potstickers, EZ mac (yes, I know...loaded with artificial stuff. It's been one of "those" weeks, remember?), and green beans. 

This lunch is packed in Easy Lunch Boxes.
*vegetable potstickers with a panda baran on top
*EZ Mac - macaroni and cheese
*strawberries with a panda pick and a Halo mandarin orange
*all-natural applesauce
*green beans with ranch dressing in the panda pot
*linked to: Becoming a Bentoholic/ Leftovers on Friday
                  Bento for Kidlet/ Meatless Monday

Some of the things, or similar things, that I used to make this lunch:

Uncrustables snowman...

Well, it looks like I'm on a winter themed lunch kick here, so I guess I'll keep it going with a snowman lunch. My kids love the Uncrustable sealed peanut butter and jelly sandwiches that are in the frozen section of the grocery store. I made my own healthier version using the Pampered Chef Cut-n-Seal tool. I love this thing. There really are so many uses for it. Aside from making the Uncrustable sandwich, it can be used to cut circles from bread, cookie dough, pizza dough.....anything really. It's great for making stuffed pizza pockets, fruit pies, and those super cute sealed half sandwiches. Ummm....wait. I think I'll stop here. I definitely see a Cut-n-Seal blog post in the making.

Anyway, this little guy turned out very cute. It's hard to tell in the picture, but the carrots are cut into tiny snowmen. Cute, huh??

This lunch is packed in Easy Lunch Boxes.
*snowman Uncrustable peanut butter and all-fruit spread sandwich decorated with candy sprinkles for eyes and mouth and a piece of a circus peanut cut into a triangle shape for the nose
*honey wheat pretzel sticks
*carrots cut into mini snowmen
*grapes and blueberries with snowman pick
*Yoplait dye-free yogurt with 2 candy snowmen on top
*linked to: BentoLunch.net/What's for lunch Wednesday
                  Lunchbox Dad/ Throwback Thursday
*linked to: Eats Amazing/Fun Food Friday

Some of the things, or similar things, that I used to make this lunch:

Funbites fun....

Having a little fun with one of my favorite cutters today, the Funbites Shaped Food Cutter. 

Today's lunch is made using the Funbites Cube It cutter. The little guy loves foods served on a stick, and these little squares are the perfect size for the smaller food picks. The Funbites cutters are great for fruits and veggies, too. I used it to cut the carrots into cute square shapes. The second lunch above was made using the Funbites Cube It, also. You can see this lunch HERE.

The Funbites cutter is very easy to use. I think through trial and error I have finally perfected the knack of using it to cut PB&J's without making a big 'ole scary mess. Here's how:

1) Spread the peanut butter and jelly (or whatever you are using) on the bottom slice of bread, but do not top it with the other slice.

2) Place the top slice on a flat surface and press the Funbites cutter onto it. Do not pop the bread pieces out yet.

3) Take the cutter with the bread pieces still in the grid and place it on top of the slice with the peanut butter and jelly.

4) Press the Funbites cutter into the bottom slice and rock the cutter back and forth to make the cuts.

5) Now use the popper piece to push the cubes out of the cutter.  No muss no fuss no coconuts!!

This lunch is packed in the ever awesome Easy Lunch Boxes.
*peanut butter and strawberry all-fruit spread sandwich cut with Funbites Cube It.
*pretzel crisps
*carrot squares cut with the Funbites Cube It
*Granny Smith apple slices
*Yoplait dye-free yogurt with bear pick
*grapes in the suitcase food cup and blueberries
*linked to: Bento for Kidlet/ Meatless Monday
*linked to:BentoLunch.net/ What's for lunch Wednesday




Some of the things I used to make this lunch:
Suitcase style silicone food cup

Puzzle pieces lunch

Today's lunch is pretty simple and easy. I used the Lunch Punch Sandwich Cutters in the puzzle shapes set. Lunch Punch has several different shaped cutter sets that can be used to create cute sandwiches very quickly. I used it to cut the apple and strawberry. It think would be great to use with cheese, fruit leather, and veggies, too. 

This lunch is packed in Easy Lunch Boxes.

*puzzle shaped peanut butter and all-fruit spread sandwich

*Ritz Bitz cheese crackers

*carrot rounds

*baby dill pickle and green olives

*Yoplait vanilla yogurt with strawberry puzzle piece

*puzzle shaped Gala apple

*linked to:

Some things I used to make this lunch:

Lunch Punch Puzzle Shaped Sandwich Cutter

Light green silicone food cup

Wilton silicone pastel baking cup

Mac & cheese hearts....

I'm trying something new with Z today....macaroni and cheese in a thermos. He loves mac and cheese, but won't eat it in his lunch when it hasn't been heated. I pack a thermos with soup, spaghetti, and other foods in my oldest sons's lunch all the time, and he really enjoys having hot food at lunch time. I found this super cute heart macaroni and cheese at Whole Foods Market and thought it would be a great way to introduce Z to the thermos. Hopefully, he will love using the thermos, and I can then send soup and some of his other favorite foods for lunch. 

In this lunch:
*heart shaped macaroni and cheese
*carrot rounds with red pepper heart centers
*Yoplait Trix yogurt with heart sprinkles (the Trix yogurt has natural colorings and flavorings)
*strawberry heart kabob
*white cheddar cheese Nips
*baby dill pickles
*linked to:






Some of the things I used to make this lunch:
10oz. thermos food jar
Wilton silicone baking cup
Chip and dip snack container

Fun with Funbites

I'm always looking for cute and fun items to use in making Z's lunch. I found a great cutter. This lunch features quesadillas cut into cute and bite sized squares using the Funbites Shaped Food Cutter. I want to give a big shout out of thanks to Jenn Christ at Bento For Kidlet for passing the Funbites cutter on to me. Thanks, Jenn......you rock!!!! My little guy loves food served on a stick, and the little squares lend themselves perfectly for that. Jenn also sent me a Funbites cutter that makes heart bite size pieces, and I look forward to using it, too. Stop by and visit Jenn's blog at Bento for Kidlet for some more great lunch ideas. 

This lunch is packed in Easy Lunch Boxes.
*bite size cheese quesadilla squares
*white cheddar cheese Nips
*strawberries
*Yoplait dye-free yogurt
*Baby sweet peas with carrot rounds
*green olives
*linked to:

Some of the things I used to make this lunch:
Flower shaped silicone food cup
Spiral shaped food pick
Wilton square baking cup
Funbites square cutter




My other bento buddies have also made some great Funbites lunches. Check these out:
Bento for Kidlet/ Shamrock Fun
Tiny Princess Lunch Box/ Brrrr.....It's Cold in Here!
Creative Food/ Funbites Giraffe

Buzzy bees lunch

Well, I'm so glad to be back to lunch making for Z. Fall break is over, so it's back to school. My hubby, kids, and I had a wonderfully relaxing time last week at the lake, but now it's time to get started on the second quarter of school. Winter break will be here before we know it. Does anyone else think time is just passing too quickly??

Today's lunch has a bee theme.

This lunch is packed in Easy Lunch Boxes.
*Bee shaped peanut butter and all fruit spread sandwich with bee shaped cheddar cheese on top (decorated with black and red edible food marker).
*white cheddar cheese Nips
*red seedless grapes and Honeycrisp apple wedge
*tomato salad (red and orange cherry tomatoes mixed with mozzarella cheese, Craisins, croutons, and Italian vinegrette dressing). Z loves this salad!
* linked to: Bento for Kidlet/ Meatless Monday
                   Lunchbox Dad/ Throwback Thursday



Some of the things, or similar things, that I used to make this lunch: