1st Day of School!

Tomorrow is the first day of school for Molly and Bean.  They are in a new school, new district and they are going to different buildings for the first time.  It's quite an adjustment but we are thrilled with our move and can't wait to see what the future has in store. Our first lunch is in Laptop Lunch Boxes, a great way to have a waste free lunch.  (link below)

Bean chose cucumber boats (pickling cucumbers hollowed out and stuffed with whipped cream cheese with a little bit of dry ranch mix in it.) for her first main entree.  We added a few pepper rings for some color.

She also has a few crackers and a couple of pieces of turkey pepperoni.

Molly chose pasta salad for her main entree.  She's always been a big fan.

Her vegetables are cucumber slices and pepper rings.  

Both girls have mixed berries for their fruit side.

Finally, their special first day dessert is a Rice Krispie Treat with a few sprinkles added for fun.

Happy first day of school, girls!!!!

We also had to make sure that the teachers were not forgotten.  We made a survival kit for each of them so that they can have a great first day too. 

We picked up a few essentials at the Target travel section.  Tissues, hand sanitizer, band aids, Altoids, Tooth "brushes", Tums, Chap Stick, Advil, Hand lotion, a yummy Annie's snack, a few Hershey's Kisses and of course, the coveted red pen.

All packed up in a re-usable bin with and a little note of appreciation.  

Peanut Butter and Jelly

I guess we're going through a peanut butter and jelly phase at our house.  Both girls requested that they have pb&j again tomorrow.  I can understand.  I remember going through pb&j phases as a kid too.  Actually, there was one point in time, a/k/a college, where I lived off of peanut butter and jelly.  TeeHee!

Our main entree is peanut butter and jelly sushi.  We flattened the bread, spread the good stuff on it and then rolled it up, cut and placed on our long picks.  We used grape, apricot and lingonberry jams.

Our vegetable side cucumber slices.

Our fruit side is mixed berries.  We have blueberries, strawberries and raspberries.

Finally, our Fun Friday treat is M&Ms.

Easy Lunchboxes Mini Dippers!!!

I had a plan for sandwiches tomorrow but when I was asking the girls what they wanted for their vegetable, they both were all about salads.  Molly then suggested that they have big salads for lunch.  Luckily, we just got our shipment of the new Mini Dippers by Easy Lunchboxes.  They are perfect for a lunch like this.  The only difference between the two lunches is the dressing choices.  They agree about most things but are completely different when it comes to condiments.

Our main entree/vegetable is a salad with black olives, mozzarella and salami.  One of their Mini Dippers has their dressing of choice (Ranch and Italian) and the other has some cottage cheese.  We were trying to increase their protein by adding the cottage cheese.

Our fruit side is a mix of berries.  The berries aren't quite as sweet as they were at the beginning of the summer but they are still really tasty.  We have strawberries, blueberries and black berries.

Finally, our dairy/dessert is Chobani Champions Vanilla Orange Greek yogurt.  We put a few little heart sprinkles on top to dress it up.

Tomorrow is the color black day in Bean's Kindergarten class, so we decided to make her snack blackberries.  We put a few little black and white animal picks in for fun.

Leftover Monday

We are doing our best to eat healthy, incorporate more fruits and vegetables into our meals and not waste things that we buy.  We're trying to figure out how to list all of the things that are in the fridge or freezer so that they don't spoil before we get a chance to eat them.  We are also trying to do more menu planning, or better menu planning.  It goes well for a few weeks, then life's little chaotic episodes take over and the plan drops.  I guess it's a constant battle but it's one that we're willing to fight so that we can keep our food fresh and healthy and produce less waste.

Our main/vegetable entree is a large spinach salad.  We added some meat from leftover chicken legs that we had for our dinner tonight.  Also included are yellow peppers and some French dressing on the side.  Molly is a fan of French dressing lately and while it is not the healthiest, she doesn't use it often so once in a while, it's fine.

Our fruit side is mixed fresh berries.  Raspberries, strawberries and blueberries to be exact.  We had this mix in our dessert this evening.  We made some sugar free lemon pudding and topped it with the berries.  Everyone was very pleased.

Our dairy side is a Frigo Cheese Head cheese stick.  Sometimes a salad can be filling and sometimes it can leave you hungry, so we added this as an option in case Molly is still hungry.

Finally, our dessert is a Chobani Champions Orange Vanilla Greek Yogurt.  Molly said that it tastes like a creamsicle so it's a perfect dessert for her.  It's also a great size for kids and adults alike because it is not too much, just a perfect sweet note for the end of a meal.

Fun Friday Lunch

I'm keeping it short tonight because it is late.  Molly's Daddy and I have been busy making things for a bake sale on Saturday morning that benefits a little boy in Molly's school district who has cancer.  We don't know him or his family but we believe that it's important to help those in our community and we try to instill that in our kids.

Our main entree is a croissant sandwich.  We layered Castle Wood Buffalo Style Chicken Breast and some hot pepper cheese on a mini croissant.  Molly requested this sandwich because she likes extra spicy things.

Our vegetable side is sliced peppers.  We have yellow, orange and red peppers that are sliced in small pieces so that they are easy to pop in her mouth.

Our fruit side is mixed berries.  Strawberries, blueberries and raspberries are some of our favorites and Molly really enjoys them in her lunch.

Finally, our Fun Friday treat is vanilla and raspberry yogurt covered pretzels.  Molly's little brother picked these out at a recent shopping trip and Molly's eyes lit up when she saw them.  YUM!

*Huge thanks to Molly's Daddy for actually making Molly's lunch while I was cutting out sugar cookies.  It's wonderful being part of such a great team! ♥

Daddy's Lunch

Molly's Mommy (MM) is not feeling very well this weekend. She's suffering from some sort of evil Flu. Luckily, she has the best husband in the world to make Molly's lunch and write this super-awesome entry for her. ;) Actually, I am only half as awesome as MM's parents took all three kids today so that I could focus on taking care of the best thing to ever happen to me.

Our entree is Homemade Pasta with a meatball and red sauce. Molly, her sister, and Grandma made pasta today and sent it and the sauce home. 

Our veggie side is a salad with Italian dressing, 

Our fruit side is blueberries, blackberries, and strawberries. 

Finally, for dessert, we have vanilla yogurt and gingerbread graham crackers. 

As much I enjoyed making Molly's lunch and writing this blog, I hope that We all home that MM feels better very soon.

Molly's Daddy

New Sandwich

After a long weekend, we are ready to try a little something new in Molly's lunch.  We are big fans of Castle Wood lunch meats and cheese because they are real meat, not something processed.  While at a Sam's Club we found a new Castle Wood lunch meat called Buffalo Style Chicken Breast Slices.  Our whole family likes spicy food, especially Buffalo style so this was definitely a no-brainer.  Molly's Daddy and I tried it yesterday for our lunch and it is delicious.

Our main entree is a Buffalo Style Chicken sandwich.  We added the new Castle Wood Buffalo Style Chicken Breast Slices, provolone and honey mustard to whole grain white bread then cut it into triangles.

Our vegetable side is carrot sticks.  Molly asked for them to be cut this way because, "they taste really good like that."

Our fruit side is a mix of fresh berries.  Blackberries, Blueberries and Raspberries are looking so yummy at the store these days so we couldn't resist.

Finally, our dairy/dessert is our regular vanilla yogurt but we added the Trader Joe's Elegant Cocoa Pearls for a little crunch and flavor variety.

Un-Birthday Lunch

Tomorrow, is Molly's Un-Birthday at school.  Her real birthday is in the summer.  She is so excited to be the special birthday girl tomorrow.  She gets to have a special sticker, a crown and other fun special things.  She is bringing in a snack and drink too.  Our school district has implemented a healthy snack policy so she is bringing in frozen grapes and little Hug drinks.  It is going to be in the 90's tomorrow and her school doesn't have air conditioning so we think that it will be a nice refreshing snack.  PS - little Hug drinks are only 10 calories and don't have nearly as much sugar as Kool-Aid or Capri Sun.

 

A friend of mine recommended the new Thomas' Pretz-A-Bagels so that is our main entrée.  We cut the Pretz-A-Bagel in half and put Trader Joe's pimento cheese spread on it.  Cheese and pretzels are such a great combinations.

Our vegetable side is sugar snap peas.  They will be cool and crispy on a hot day.

Our fruit side is mixed berries again.  We have strawberries, raspberries and blackberries as per her request.

Our dairy side is low fat cottage cheese.  Molly really likes cottage cheese and it will be a great source of protein and a cool and filling treat.

Finally, we added a fun size bag of Skittles because every kid deserves a special treat on their Un-Birthday! 

Summery Lunch

Now that the weather has gotten much warmer, we're feeling the summer bug biting.  This means cool refreshing salads and simple sides.  We had a fantastic meal with wonderful friends tonight and one of our favorite things was eating outside.  Something about a great meal with great friends in the fresh air makes any stress of the day just melt away.

This made Molly decide that she wants to go summery for her lunch.  We were happy to oblige!

Our main entrée is a "big plain salad" per Molly's request.  She's so funny when she wants something.  Her eyes get wide and she can't come up with the words fast enough.  Our salad (romaine lettuce) is being served with light Catalina salad dressing.  We also added a few yellow tomatoes because Molly really likes them and she said it would be okay.

Our fruit side (since our main entrée is also our vegetable) is mixed berries.  We brought these to our friends' house as a topping to some vanilla pudding.  There were just enough left over to toss into Molly's lunch.

Our grain/dairy side is cheese toast.  We added some shredded cheddar cheese to a flat bread and melted it in the toaster oven.  When it cooled, we cut it into manageable pieces. We also added a string cheese on the side for some extra protein.

Finally, our fun Friday treat is two rolls of Smarties.  There wasn't enough room for anything else. ☺