Look....Lunch! #1

Hi Friends! Well, it's September 1st. Have all of your kidlets started back-to-school? I know a few of you are late starters after Labor Day, so you have one more week to go. Hang in there, Mamas! It's not long now! As usual, the school year has already started out super busy for me....not much time for blogging. In looking back on the photo album in my camera, I've discovered that there are many lunches that I have not had time to blog about. So, I've decided to start a new ongoing series for The Lucky Lunchbox where I simply post the lunch and its contents for those days when I don't have more to say than just, "Look....Lunch!" So, (surprise) I'm calling this series "Look.....Lunch!"

With that being said, "Look....Lunch!"
Here's today's lunch for the little guy:

This lunch is packed in EasyLunchboxes.

• Pizza pasta- mini bow tie pasta mixed with black olives, Applegate pepperoni chunks, tomatoes, Sargento shredded mozzarella cheese, Italian spices, and Italian dressing
• Ritz crackers
• baby carrots
• strawberries and pear chunks
• mini Lucky Charms Rice Krispy treat

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

Peanut butter & jelly RITZwiches....

Well, my kidlets have been in school now for 3 weeks. I am still in disbelief that it's already back-to-school time again. We're finally getting back into the swing of things, though. The weather today here in the M-town is gorgeous!! It's the end of August in Memphis, and the high today is 82*. That is unbelievable. The norm is mid 90's. And, the temps are going to be like this for the next week or so. This morning, I could distinctly feel a bit of fall in the air.....it was a cool, brisk 58*. Yep...fall is just around the corner. It's my favorite time of the year....snuggly sweatshirts, yummy chili, football, and, of course, all things pumpkin. I'm so ready for......

Anyway, most kids love peanut butter, right? Z is no exception. Z loves it!!! He does not attend a school that bans it, so I serve PB up pretty often. I like to make PB&J rollups, wraps, sushi, and homemade Uncrustables. A favorite snack around here is peanut butter and Ritz crackers, and I make these for Z's snack quite often. Well, the other day, I got a hankering (I love that word) to change up the 'ol PB-Ritz cracker combo. Yes, the PB&J Ritzwich was born. Score one for mom!! (I'm sure this is not my original creation, but my kidlet doesn't know that. LOL) The salty buttery flavor of the Ritz, the creamy peanut butter combined with yummy sweet cherry bubblegum jelly......HOLY MOLEY!!!! That's some yummy goodness there, y'all.

Why, yes, I did say cherry bubblegum jelly. What!!!! You've never heard of cherry bubblegum jelly?? Well, neither had I until my friend recently bought me a jar and turned me on to it. Pioneer Valley makes this unusual jelly combo. It's made with premium ingredients, is sweetened with fresh fruit, and has no fillers, corn syrup, or preservatives. It's particularly popular with the under 10 crowd in my house. Me....I'm a strawberry fruit girl, so this has a somewhat interesting flavor to me. So, if you want to step outside the jelly box, and try something a little different, this cherry bubblegum jelly is just for you.

I included the peanut butter and cherry bubblegum RITZwiches in Z's lunch for today.

These little delights can be a bit messy, but you can cut down on the mess factor by making these with the mini Ritz crackers......delish AND cute!!! Just pop the whole thing in your mouth at once. You can also up the yumminess factor by adding a thin slice of banana. Peanut butter, jelly and banana RITZwiches.....Oh Yeah!!!!

This lunch is packed in EasyLunchboxes.

• RITZwiches- Ritz crackers, peanut butter, and Pioneer Valley cherry bubblegum jelly
• Sargento cheddar cheese cubes
• Natural Selects Bologna rolls
• baby carrots and Sungold cherry tomatoes
• Oikos Greek yogurt with strawberry heart
• golden raisins in the blue tube- This is an empty mint container....I can repurpose just about anything into a lunch accessory. LOL

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

DIY Pizza Lunchable...

First week of school....DONE!! Well, we survived the first week of school without any major mishaps. We've got our morning routine down, both kids are happy with their classes and teachers, and Z is over the moon that his bestie from last year is in his class this year, too. Yay for besties!! Mama's just about gotten adjusted to a quiet house again. And best of all, Grumpy Bear syndrome has just about passed (see previous post). First week success, I'd say.  I know many of your kidlets are headed back to school very soon.....hang in there, Mamas!!!! It's not long now!! The graphic below says it all, huh!

One of Z's favorite lunches has to be the DIY pizza Lunchable. I can't believe I've never posted a DIY pizza lunch. These are so much healthier than the pre-boxed ones at the grocery....you know the ones. The boxed pizza Lunchables have ingredients in them that I can't even pronounce. But, kids love these things, don't they? And, mine are no exception. So, in order to maintain my coolness factor with the little guy, I created our own version of the pizza Lunchable with healthier and tastier ingredients. These are fun for kids to eat, and, best of all, homemade pizza Lunchables are super easy to make. My mini pizza crusts came from an online bakery, but you could make your own, use pita bread or English muffins. Give these a try in your kiddos lunch, and you will be the coolest mom on the block!

This lunch is packed in the Goodbyn Bynto.

• thin 3 inch pizza crusts- I don't remember the brand I used, but Mazor makes a 3 inch and a 2 inch mini pizza crust.
• Vermont Smoke and Cure nitrate-free pepperoni
• Sargento shredded mozzarella cheese
• carrot rounds and black olives
• red seedless grapes
• Kroger yogurt tube- This is their version of the Trix yogurt tubes.
• Glen Muir organic pizza sauce in the round Sistema cup- This comes in a bottle, and I doctored it up to suit my family's taste.
• Hershey's cookies and cream miniature

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

Grumpy Bear Syndrome has set in......

Well, it's day 3 of the school year, and grumpy bear syndrome has set in with my kids. All summer long, I allowed the boys to stay up a little later at night and sleep a lot later in the morning (this might have included me, as well), and now we are paying for it. Blerg!!!! Getting back in that early morning school routine is a toughy, huh? This morning was a three cup 'o coffee morning. It usually takes my kiddos about two weeks to adjust to the earlier hours and the brain drain of the new school year. Me??? I very quickly get over the "missing my babies" syndrome. I know that many of your kiddos are getting ready to go back to school. So, here's hoping you all have a grumpy bear free start to your school year. This little fun cartoon kind of sums up that first day for us, doesn't it, Moms?

Here's school day #3 lunch for the little guy. He loves these mini DIY sealed sandwiches....kind of like a mini Uncrustables sandwich that you find in the freezer section of the grocery. They are so easy to make, and you can stuff them with any of your kid's favorite fillings. Make them in any size or shape that you like. The best thing about them, though, is that you can make them in batches and freeze them. Toss 'em into the lunchbox, and they will be thawed by lunchtime. To see my original post on how to make these little cuties, click HERE. 

This lunch is packed in Easylunchboxes.

• DIY mini PB&J Uncrustable- I used strawberry all-fruit spread and peanut butter
• Rold Gold Pretzel Snaps
• red seedless grapes
• Green olives
• sweet green peas with Balsamic dressing in the froggy bottle
• natural applesauce
• Hershey's mini milk chocolate bar

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

 

Hello 3rd grade...

Hey Mamas!!!! It's time for the kidlets to go.......

Well, today is the first day of school here in the M-town (insert frowny face), and the little guy is starting 3rd grade. We had a blast this summer (insert happy face)...lots of pool time and a super fun vacation. Z was so excited this morning, bouncing around like Tigger. He couldn't hardly wait to get out the door. It was POURING down rain...I'm talking buckets and buckets, and that didn't squelch (I love that word) his enthusiasm one bit. However, back-to-school time always leaves me a bit melancholy. I know that Z has missed his friends, and I know that I should be overjoyed that he looks forward to school with such gusto. But, I love having my kidlets home with me. I just miss them when school starts. However, I'm pretty sure that the first kid-free grocery shopping trip and lunch with my bestie (insert enormously happy face) will cure me of the back-to-school blues, and I'll be back on track.

Here's our first lunch of the school year: 

This lunch is packed in Easylunchboxes.

• Natural Selects hotdog and Vermont Smoke and Cure pepperoni slices- Both are all-natural and are nitrate and additive free.
• Rold Gold pretzels
• Babybel cheese
• Lakeview Farms spinach/artichoke dip with Baby carrots- Sorry, Z's carrots were a bit dry....time for Mama to go to the grocery.
• red seedless grapes and mandarin orange slices
• Hershey's cookies and cream miniature bar

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

 

Squeasy Gear is in the house......Part 1

Hi Friends!! Summer is in full swing here in the M-town, and I'm happy to report that my kids are not driving me bonkers....yet. Happy summer to all of you! I don't blog very often during the summer break due to how manic and unpredictable our summer days are...yeah, you understand. But, when the super nice folks over at Squeasy Gear asked if we wanted to check out their cool new reusable pouches and sport bottles, I jumped at the opportunity.

When I was first approached by Squeasy Gear, I had the same reaction that you probably just did...."Hmmmmmm- Squeasy Gear...what's Squeasy Gear?" So, I donned my detective hat and dusted off my spy glass, and did some diggin' to find out what this interestingly titled product was. My discovery????

Squeasy Gear is a line of mess-free, eco-friendly reusable silicone food pouches and bottles designed for purées, smoothies, applesauce, yogurt, pudding, and the like. And, a removable insert prevents spills when serving water, juice, or other liquids. Ok, so needless to say, I was intrigued by this product. In all honesty, my kids are older and are quite adept at using a spoon, and there hasn't been a sippy cup in my house in years.....yes, YEARS! So, my first thought was that Squeasy Gear was designed for kids that were a lot younger than mine...toddlers and preschoolers. However, my little guy is always asking for those store bought prefilled applesauce and fruit pouches...you know the ones. Kids will eat anything in a pouch, right? So, I enthusiastically decided to see what Squeasy Gear was all about, and consider it from the perspective of a 7 yr old.

And I am sooooo glad that I did!! Squeasy Gear is such a cool product. Both of my kids hovered over me as I unwrapped the box, obviously intrigued by the brightly colored items inside. I received the bright green 6oz. Squeasy Snacker (perfect size for Z) and the gray 16oz. Squeasy Sport (awesome for my 15 yr old smoothie lover). I put the Snacker to the test right away. After washing it up (which was a breeze since the pouches can be turned inside-out), I filled it with applesauce for Z. I passed it on to him and waited....... A few minutes later, he returned with the empty Snacker in hand and responded, "This is really cool, Mom. Yeah, I like it." Thumbs-up from the Z-man!! Always a good thing to have the approval of a 7 yr old. I inspected the empty Snacker (and Z's shirt) for evidence of applesauce leakage and found none at all. Ten minutes into receiving the Squeasy Snacker, we already have 2 big pluses.....easy to clean and mess-free! I'm happy to say that Z wagged his Squeasy Snacker around with him all day, filling it with water on several occasions.

  

I'm anxious to give the Squeasy Sport a try. My oldest loves smoothies, and the Squeasy Sport is perfect for smoothies. I'll share the 15 yr old perspective of the Squeasy Sport bottle with you all soon. Stay tuned for that. We'll continue to use the Snacker, too, to see if it maintains it's thumbs-up status. Stay tuned for that. And we're headed to the lake on vacay next week, and Squeasy Gear is going to the lake with us. Stay tuned for that. Ok....lots to stay tuned for!! 

Here are some of the features of Squeasy Gear that I like:

Made with 100% food grade non-toxic materials...BPA, PVC, and Phthalates free- YES!! SG is safe for our kids and won't harm our wonderful Earth.

Leak free and mess free- The no-spill insert means Z can drink red punch in the den again!

Easy to clean- SG can be turned inside-out and placed in the dishwasher (top rack only) or hand washed, and all those hard to clean nooks and crannies come squeaky clean. 

Budget friendly- Those store-bought fruit and veggie pouches can cost $1.00 or more. Squeasy Snackers are refillable, so I can maintain my Frugal Fannie status and buy bulk sizes of applesauce, yogurt, or whatever.

Kid friendly- Squeasy Gear is easy for kids to use, lightweight, and brightly colored. 

Squeasy Gear is fun to use, and even the name is fun to say.....Squeasy Snacker, Squeasy Snacker!

Here is a lunch that I made for Z with his Squeasy Snacker:

This lunch is packed in Easylunchboxes.

• Homemade egg salad
• Wheat Thins
• baby carrots with Ranch dressing in the green cup
• blueberries
• Babybel cheese
• Miss Meringue mint chocolate chip cookie 
• Natural applesauce in the Squeasy Snacker

Linked to: Eats Amazing/ What Kids Eat Wednesday

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