All Request Lunch

Usually when I suggest something the girls are quick to agree with a "sure, sounds good Mom" but tonight they both wanted different things.  Luckily, their requests were an easy fix or Mama might have tried to sway their choices.

Bean's lunch is leftover pasta with a little bit of butter and Parmesan.  We will heat it up in the morning before school.
Her veggies are cucumber slices, pepper rings and shredded carrots.  Her fruits are strawberries, fresh figs, kiwi and pomegranate arils. These are in a Lunchbots Duo.
Finally, her dairy/dessert is Chobani Champions Vanilla Chocolate Chunk Greek yogurt. (we love their new design!)

Molly's main entree is a super cinnamon raisin sandwich.  Trader Joe's makes this amazing cinnamon roll bread and we spread Peanut Butter and Company Cinnamon Raisin Swirl peanut butter.
Her veggies and fruit are the same as Bean's.We also put Chobani Champions Vanilla Chocolate Chunk in Molly's lunch.

Hat Day Lunch

Molly's school is having another Funky Friday$ day tomorrow.  They are collecting money for a new playground.  Each student that participates pays $1 to do what ever that funky thing is.  Tomorrow is hat day and every student is allowed to wear a hat, which is normally not allowed.  Molly is very excited to wear her Hello Kitty fedora.  She laid out her special matching Hello Kitty outfit and can't wait till morning for hat day.

Our main entree is a hat sandwich.  We cut out or whole grain white bread into the shape of a hat and used our food safe markers to decorate it.  Then, we filled it with salami and colby jack cheese, per Molly's request.

Our vegetable side is orange mini peppers.  We cut these peppers into rings and put a cute little purple hat on top of them.  We found these hats (this and the one on the fruit) at a local bake shop.  It's so much fun to find great little treasures, even if we don't quite know what we are going to do with them.

Our fruit side is a kiwi.  We cut the kiwi in half and then into slices so that it's easier to eat.  We also added a fun little pink hat on the top to keep with our theme.

Our dairy side is a cheddar and mozzarella cheese stick.  Since there is no yogurt, we're confident that Molly will be needing a little bit extra to eat.

Finally, our Fun Friday treat is dessert hats.  We used fudge stripe cookies for the base, added a mini Reese's peanut butter cup and attached them with some melted red chocolate.  Then we added a little decoration to them because hats are more fun with embellishments.

New Breakfast

We like to have breakfast for dinner about once a week.  It's one of the easier meals to make yet usually creates the most dishes since several pans are involved.  We also like to have breakfast for one of Molly's lunches because it's easy for us and she loves it.

Our main entree is a whole grain waffle sandwich.  We used freshly ground peanut butter on one side and Biscoff Spread (this is the new thing) on the other.  Holy delicious, Batman!  We added a few crayon picks in Molly's favorite colors for fun.

Our fruit side is fresh kiwi slices.  We think that the tangy taste will be a nice contrast to the peanut butter.

Our fun side is a little homemade trail mix.  We combined lightly salted mixed nuts with Plum Amazins.  

Finally, our dairy/dessert is vanilla yogurt with Trader Joe's Elegant Cocoa Pears.

Repeat!

Molly was so happy with her lunch today that she requested the sandwich in her lunch tomorrow.  Luckily, we had enough left over that we were able to fulfill her wishes.

Our main entree is an Irish Soda Bread sandwich with whipped cream cheese.  This bread is a generations old recipe and we've added our own little touches to it to make it our own.  As I've said before, this generation is making it whole wheat.  Grammy's generation added golden raisins and Nana's generation added regular raisins instead of just currents.  No matter what generation, it's delicious!

Our vegetable side is a romaine lettuce salad with a small amount of light Italian dressing on the side.  We also added a Babybel Cheese as per Molly's request.  We cut a small heart out to show her how much we love her.

Our fruit side is a sliced kiwi.  Molly said that the Kiwi Leprechaun tasted so yummy that she was craving a kiwi again.

Finally, our dairy/dessert is vanilla yogurt with a sprinkle of Trader Joe's Elegant Cocoa Pearls for a special touch.

Cold Pizza!

If you follow our blog, you know that Molly's school always serves pizza on the first day of the week.  What kid would want anything but pizza on pizza day?  We've found the easy way around that.  Cold pizza.  As we continue through the Lenten season and keep our Lenten promise (no fast food), we had homemade pizzas for dinner on Saturday night.  Molly and her siblings enjoyed a mini turkey pepperoni pizza with light cheese while Mommy and Daddy had fresh peppers, turkey pepperoni and light cheese on a whole wheat crust.  The whole family was very pleased.  We were also very lucky to have leftovers that Molly can have in her lunch.

Our main entree is leftover homemade pizza.  We bought the crust at the store, added Trader Joe's pizza sauce, some light cheese and mini turkey pepperoni.

Our vegetable side is a spinach salad.  We tossed in a few matchstick carrots and added a small container of light Italian dressing.

Our fruit side is a kiwi.  We skinned it, cut it in half and sliced it so that Molly can manage those slippery but yummy little bites.

Finally, our dairy/dessert is Chobani Champions orange vanilla Greek yogurt.  We are running low on our Chobani so we'll have to pick up more soon.  We might even create our own mixes with the plain Chobani that Mommy eats.  hmmmm....

*Molly's actual lunch box is a Laptop Lunch Box.

Great Shopping = Great Lunch

Molly's little brother and I dropped the girls off at school this morning and headed to Sam's Club.  We picked up a bunch of fruits and vegetables as well as a few staples.  Everything is so fresh and delicious! The weather here was so wonderful that it felt like we were leaving the farmer's market in the spring instead of the store in the winter.

Our main entree is a salami and cheese sandwich.  We haven't had this for a while and the kids have been asking for it so in our cart it went.  We have Castle Wood salami and provolone cheese on our whole grain white bread cut into a heart.  (I can't believe tomorrow is February 1st already!)

Our vegetable side is sugar snap peas.  We saw a big bag of these and they are so tender and delicious.  They are a great alternative to potato chips because they are very crunchy and filling.

Our fruit side is a kiwi.  We just sliced this one up and fanned it out so that Molly can enjoy the beauty of God's creation.

Finally, our dairy/dessert is a new favorite, Chobani Champions vanilla chocolate chunk Greek yogurt.  The kids are saying that it's just like chocolate chip ice cream.  We say, BRAVO to Chobani for making a delicious and nutritious alternative to ice cream.

Something Different

Today was kind of strange when I was making Molly's lunch.  I usually have a main entree in mind when I am preparing Molly's lunch.  Today, I only had the sides planned and decided to just go with it and fill in from there.

Our main/vegetable entree is cucumber boats.  We mixed dill with some light cream cheese, scooped the seeds out of some small cucumbers and filled them with the cheese mixture.  YUM!

Our fruit side is sliced kiwi.  We weren't really going for a green and white theme but it just kind of happened.

Our dairy side is strawberry yogurt.  Molly likes strawberry yogurt once in a while for something a little different.

Our extra side is Scrabble Cheezit Crackers and Annie's Homegrown Bunny Graham Friends.  We thought that the Cheezits would be nice to scoop out any extra cream cheese.  The bunny crackers are a little something extra special.

Santa Was Here

Santa came through our neighborhood tonight!  Our volunteer fire company drives around with the fire engine and a truck with Santa's sleigh hitched to the back.  They play Christmas music and hand out candy canes.  All of the neighborhood kids gaze at the jolly old elf in the big red suit as he waves and yells out a hearty "Merry Christmas"!  Their little faces are all rosy from the cold and their eyes are glazed with wonder and excitement.  It's hard to not catch the spirit.  It truly is the most wonderful time of the year.

Our main entree is leftover pasta bake.  We cooked up radiator pasta, added sauce and some leftover taco meat and beans, threw it in a 13x9 pan and sprinkled shredded mozzarella on top.  Then, we baked it off and then served.  YUM! (and the taco meat and beans was SO delicious, believe it or not)

Our vegetable side is red pepper slices.  We're kind of playing on the Christmas color theme.

Our fruit side is a sliced kiwi.  There's our green.

Our dairy side is vanilla yogurt with red and green sprinkles.

Finally, our little extra treat is snowman marshmallows.  They are french vanilla flavored and delicious but are extra yummy in hot chocolate.

Running Lunch

I started a Couch to 5K training group this past Sunday and tonight was our first run.  It was so much fun!  I roped three of my friends in so that they can see how awesome running really is.  You might ask why I am doing this training since I've already run in several 5Ks and on a relay team at the Pittsburgh Marathon last year.  Answer: I want to learn more about this sport that I have learned to love.  I want to make sure that I'm doing it right and I want to get tips to help me become a better athlete.  I also want to be a positive face in this crowd.  I am an overweight asthmatic 30-something mother of three.  If I can do it, anyone can.

I always hated running because "I couldn't do it" because I was too heavy or because my breathing was bad, etc.  But, you know what?  I CAN do it and now I run on a very regular basis.  I don't consider myself a runner, I consider myself a glorified jogger but I strive to be a runner someday.  I've been working on losing weight, well most of my life (gotta get that thyroid to start working with me and keep working) and I train no matter what the weather or the hills around my house.

I do this to get out of my house, BY MYSELF!  I am lost in my own thoughts and my only worry is getting from point A to point B.  I have no kids yelling "MOM!" at me.  And I feel fantastic after I get back.

I have to say that my husband is an incredible support in all of this.  He's a runner too and we are always working in our training runs so that each of us has equal time.  I also get great support from my friends and family who are cheering me on.  Finally, the support of all of the "Peeps" at Mojo Running & Multisport is so wonderful.  It is a team that I am proud to be on.

Okay, stepping off of my soapbox and onto the kitchen floor to whip up Molly's Lunch!

Our main entree is a ham and cheese sandwich.  We used a multi-grain roll from ALDI, then added ham, pepper cheese and mustard.  Molly's Grammy was nice enough to share the delicious multi-grain rolls with us so we had to add them to Molly's lunch right away.

Our vegetable side is carrot sticks.  Nice and simple and a favorite of Molly's recently.

Our fruit side is a kiwi.  Not as cool as Frankenkiwi, but still just as yummy!

Our dairy side is a Castle Wood Colby Jack Cheese Stick.  Molly requested that this be added just in case she is really hungry tomorrow.  She's definitely feeling better. ☺

Finally, our dessert is Low Fat Strawberry Yogurt.  This too was a request of Molly's and we were happy to give it to her.  She and her siblings are pretty much over the Halloween candy (thank goodness) and are now asking for fruit, yogurt and graham crackers at dessert time.  I think our influence is rubbing off on them.

Different Lunch

We're switching things up a little bit.  Molly's dessert is a bit non-traditional and in the container that usually houses our main entree.  Our vegetable might be considered our main entree and one of our sides is usually a main entree.  Gotta keep her on her toes!

Our main entree/side is cheese tortellini pasta salad.  We had about a dozen of these left over from our dinner and decided to use them for a side.  We put some light Italian dressing on it and added a little plastic spider for fun.

Our vegetable side is cut veggies and hummus.  We sliced up some red peppers, some carrots and added sugar snap peas.  We put about 2 tablespoons of red pepper hummus in a small container for Molly to dip her veggies in.

Our fruit side is a kiwi.  We slices this after peeling it and placed one slice on top because it reminds us of monster eyes.

Our dairy side is a cheese stick.  Since we don't have any yogurt and only hummus as our protein, we figured that this would be a nice addition.

Our dessert...well, the closest thing to a dessert is a peanut butter and nutella roll.  We used a hamburger roll and spread peanut butter on one side and nutella on the other.  We then cut it into pieces and added a little Halloween pumpkin pick.

We Have Pizza!!!

Most of you know that we usually have pizza on Mondays because that is the day that the school has pizza for lunch.  Well, we changed it up a little bit today and gave Molly chicken nuggets instead of pizza.  She really enjoyed it but asked immediately if she could have pizza for lunch tomorrow.  ☺  Lesson learned, ask and you shall receive.

Our main entrée is homemade pizza.  We used our favorite Trader Joe's Middle Eastern Flat Bread at our crust. We added some sauce, mozzarella and turkey pepperoni, then baked it in the toaster oven until it was looking really yummy.  We cooled it, cut it and voilà...pizza for lunch!

Our vegetable side is mini dill pickles again.  Not sure how much we'd like this combination but Molly insisted.  They both have garlic???  Maybe that's the connection?

Our fruit side is kiwi.  These are very tart kiwi but we think that Molly will like them, hopefully.

Finally, we're mixing it up a little bit and giving Molly a real dessert on a Tuesday.  She has been working so hard and doing very well with her school work.  She has been helping around the house and trying to be the best big sister ever.  (note: her little sister can be a little hard to deal with at times so no matter how hard Molly tries, there is always going to be some sort of issue.)  Molly's Daddy made a special chocolate pound cake for Mother's Day.  The recipe calls for 1 1/2 sticks of butter but we noticed a healthier version that used yogurt instead.  It is SUPER delicious the healthy way.  Thanks Tastefully Simple!

Overwhelmed 1st Grader

Molly is falling into the normal overwhelming feeling that most kids her age get into.  Today I asked her why she didn't remember something that I remind her about almost daily, and she said, "Mom, there is just too much to remember."  As a parent, I forget that she is expected to remember so much more than I ever did at her age.  My biggest worries in the 1st grade were what color to use on my next picture or how to spell my name.  Molly is reading, writing in a journal, doing more math than I did in the 2nd grade and has to remember things for science, social studies and the arts.  She even has a PIN for her lunch.  She has to remember her address, telephone number, Mom's cell phone number, Dad's cell phone number, etc.  No wonder she can't remember to keep her elbows off of the table.  Poor kid.  I understand being overwhelmed so I'm hoping that with a little extra love and encouragement, we can help Molly get through this information overload.

Our main entrée is one of Molly's favorites, pasta salad.  We had some left over whole wheat rotini from dinner so we added a few pieces of mozzarella, mini pepperoni and Italian dressing.

Our vegetable side is cucumber slices.  They go very nicely with the pasta salad and she could even add them to the salad if she wants.

Our fruit side is kiwi and blueberries.  This batch of kiwi is on the tart side but Molly and her brother and sister pretty much prefer tart things, like lemons and limes.

Our dairy/dessert is another of Molly's favorites, vanilla yogurt.

Hang in there Molly!

We'll See

Poor Molly can't win.  She is just over that awful stomach flu and now she has a cough and cold.  She looks terrible and all I can do is just give her lots of love.  I think that when your child is sick, it eats away at you as a parent.  So, we'll see what the morning brings for our favorite 1st grader and whether she'll eat lunch at home or at school.  Say a little prayer for her that she gets well and stays well.

Our main entrée is a "tea sandwich".  Molly's Grammy picked up some Irish soda bread for our family and since Molly really likes it, we figured that it would be a nice comfort food for her.  We spread cinnamon honey butter on the two slices to keep them moist.

Our fruit side is a kiwi and a clementine.  These both have a sweet and tart flavor that will both taste great and feel great on Molly's sore throat.

Our vegetable side is a yellow bell pepper.  A nice crunch with a mild flavor.

Our dessert/dairy side is Dannon Light and Fit vanilla yogurt.  Molly requested this because she said it will help her tummy feel better.

Finally, we added a cheddar and mozzarella cheese stick to add some protein to Molly's lunch.  We're not sure if she'll even eat it but just in case, we decided to add it.

Wrapped Up

After a long day and little sleep I was trying to get my creative juices flowing about Molly's lunch and it hit me, a wrap.  Molly is one of those kids who would rather eat a grilled chicken wrap than a cheeseburger at McDonald's.  Her sister likes the wraps too but would rather have the burger in it.  HAHA!  Baby steps I guess.

Our main entrée is a turkey wrap.  We put turkey slices on a tortilla and added pepper jack cheese, a little mustard and some romaine lettuce.

Our vegetable side is sliced cucumbers.  A nice crunchy and refreshing side.

Our fruit side is strawberries and kiwi again.  Molly really enjoyed this so we figured, why not give her more of what she likes?

Our dairy/dessert is Dannon Light and Fit vanilla yogurt.  A sweet and creamy end to her meal.

Twos Day

Have you ever eaten something and craved it for every meal afterward?  Molly has eaten homemade pizza for 3 of her last 4 meals.  After dinner, she asked to have it again for lunch tomorrow...if there was any left.  Lucky for her, there were three pieces of a mini pizza left.

I really don't blame her for wanting the same thing over and over.  I remember being a peanut butter and jelly junkie when I was young and would eat it for every meal without deviation.  It just makes me wonder what the favorite foods will be for her brother and sister.

Our main entrée is homemade pizza...again.  This is the last little bit left over from our Super Bowl party on Sunday.  The mini pepperoni makes it extra fun.

Our vegetable side is cucumber slices.  This cucumber is extra crunchy.  It will be a great addition to this lunch.

Our fruit side is strawberries and kiwi.  This combination is great whether as whole fruits or juice.  Trader Joe's makes a delicious strawberry kiwi juice that our family really enjoys.

Finally, our dessert is some Annie's Homegrown Bunny Grahams in honey flavor.  A nice little change from the normal yogurt and an added sweetness and crunch.

Food Trend Lunch

Molly is definitely a creature of habit.  She jumps on these eating trends and will ask to eat the same thing for days on end.  She enjoyed her sandwich so much that she not only requested it for her lunch tomorrow but she also requested it for her dinner tonight.  She is also still on her yogurt kick.  We've had request lunches before but this is a trend request lunch.  Seems a bit redundant to me but it's easy to prepare the same things and Molly likes it, win win!

Our main entrée is a turkey and pepper jack cheese sandwich on whole grain bread.  We added a little bit of mustard and then we used some of our favorite cookie cutters to "lose the crust", as Molly likes to put it.

Our vegetable side is sliced cucumbers.  These will bring the crunch factor into this lunch.

Our fruit side is blueberries and kiwi...again.  We can't blame her though.  Blueberries and kiwi are a great combination.

Finally our dairy/dessert side (again) is Dannon Light and Fit vanilla yogurt.  Molly would rather have this than most any other dessert.

Regular Lunch

Not really much to say tonight.  So, on to lunch!

Our main entrée is a turkey and pepper jack cheese sandwich on whole wheat.  We added a little mustard and then we cut the sandwiches with Molly's favorite butterfly cookie cutter and micro heart cookie cutter.

Our vegetable side is canned mixed vegetables.  We had these with our dinner tonight and Molly raved about how they tasted like stuffed peppers and requested that they go into her lunch.  Well, we're not sure about them tasting like stuffed peppers but if she likes them, then we're more than happy to give them to her.

Our fruit side is the same as the last lunch.  Kiwi and blueberries.  Molly requested these also...with a huge smile on her face.

Finally, our dairy/dessert is our standard Dannon Light & Fit vanilla yogurt.  YUM!

No Pizza Monday

We had a rare thing happen this weekend.  No pizza!  Well, the kids had pizza on Saturday night but there were no left overs for Molly's Monday lunch.  This was a big dilemma since I usually count on that Monday staple.  So, I asked Molly what she wanted for lunch tomorrow and her request was a good old peanut butter and jelly.  Also, we had part of our extended family over today and made some chocolate chip cookies and those were definitely on the request list.  So, although she may not indulge in her regular Monday pizza, she does get a nice little treat instead.

Our main entrée is a peanut butter and jelly sandwich on whole wheat.  We chose classic Jif creamy peanut butter and Trader Joe's strawberry jam.  A great combination.

Our fruit side is a mix of blueberries and kiwi.  We found these blueberries at Sam's Club at a pretty decent price and they are nice and sweet.  Molly will be really excited to have two of her favorite fruits in her lunch.

Our dairy side is Dannon Light & Fit vanilla yogurt.  This was another request of Molly's.  We are more than happy to give it to her too.  It is so good for her, yet she thinks of it as just another delicious treat.

Finally, we have our homemade chocolate chip cookies.  Molly, her sister and our special friend helped to make these awesome treats.  There is just something about homemade chocolate chip cookies, they taste better than just about anything else in this world. ☺

Full Friday

This Friday is going to be a little hectic, actually this whole weekend is.  We have plans for just about every day. Tomorrow after school, Molly has ballet.  Then we will be headed to the High School for a basketball game that Molly and her BFF's (along with several other girls) will be able to cheer at as part of his past summer's Rah Rah Camp.  After that, we (the BFF's and their families) are going to go out for an ice cream or some sort of other snack.  Molly can't wait.  She actually went to bed early tonight so that she will be energized for tomorrow.  Saturday, we are going to see Mary Poppins on stage!  I'm REALLY excited about this one because Mary Poppins has always been a personal favorite.  After that, we will come home and cheer on our favorite Pittsburgh Steelers as they play in a playoff game.  HERE WE GO STEELERS, HERE WE GO!!

Our main entrée is a good old pb&j.  Molly requested this classic lunch staple.  We spread peanut butter and strawberry jam on whole wheat bread and then used a large flower cookie cutter and a small star cookie cutter to cut it.

Our vegetable side is a baby spinach salad.  We added a few shredded carrots for sweetness and crunch.  This is accompanied by Trader Joe's Balsamic Vinaigrette.

Our fruit side is a kiwi and some pomegranate seeds.  Both pretty and delicious.

Our dairy side is a string cheese stick.  This provides a little extra protein to round out our lunch.

Finally, our Fun Friday treat is two Aldi Milk Chocolate Covered Gingerbread Hearts.  Molly will be so excited to have this special yummy treat, and she truly deserves it. ☺

Hoping for a Snow Day!

Here in Western Pennsylvania, we get our fair share of snow and some of the icky weather that goes along with it.  Today, we (like most of the eastern part of the country) were the recipients of a decent amount of the fluffy white stuff.  How can something that is so beautiful and serene be the cause of so many issues?  I am fine with driving in the snow but when the ice comes, it goes from "I'm fine" to "keep me away from the road!"  Well, we got a pretty decent amount of snow. It stopped a little while ago but the wind is picking up and I am afraid of the ice that will more than likely develop.  So, here's hoping for a snow day tomorrow and that Molly will be sharing her lunch with her sister instead of sitting in the school cafeteria.

Our main entrée is a chicken salad.  Since everyone has been sick in our house, we picked up a special treat of Chick-fil-A for lunch.  Molly's little brother really likes it and he has been very sick and not eating much so we were hoping that he'd like it...and he did!  The left over chicken strips were cut into bite size pieces and added to a bed of baby spinach and lettuce.  We then added some shredded carrots for crunch.  This is all served with a side of light ranch dressing.

Our fruit side is strawberries.  Molly's Grammy bought these amazing strawberries for our family.  We have never had strawberries this sweet and bright in January.  They are truly a special treat.

Finally, our dairy/dessert is Dannon Light & Fit vanilla yogurt.  We added a few mini chocolate chips for extra flavor and texture.  What girl doesn't love a little chocolate now and then?