Monday Lunchbox

Today my girls both made me a proud mama! As usual, I gave them the option to eat what is being served in the cafeteria or a packed lunch. After hearing that hot dogs are on the menu at school, they both chose a lunch packed by me stating that "the hot dogs at school are gross." Even after I told them I would be packing salads they still scoffed at the processed, preservative-filled hot dogs offered in the lunch room. My heart swells with pride from the fact that my kids will choose a salad over a hot dog. It may not happen everytime, but I'll take it today!

So for lunch the girls will have a salad with spinach leaves, carrots, broccoli, and grape tomatoes. I've included some real bacon bits and shredded cheddar cheese for topping the salad. They have ranch dressing in the lidded part of the reusable container. There are grapes in Isis's box,and Joplin has kiwi berries. These little green grape-sized fruit taste just like a tart kiwi. They even look like a kiwi on the inside. 

I packed some whole wheat crackers on the side, along with honey roasted peanuts in the white containers, and each kid's favorite granola bar.  

Friday Lunchbox

Whoo hoo! It's Friday! I can't believe I actually made it through the week without a single trip to the grocery store, but I did have to get creative with today's lunch since we are out of bread, rolls, and bagels.
The girls usually love cream cheese on bagels or spread on saltines. In order to pack in the nutrition (and flavor) I am packing triscuit-style woven wheat crackers (the Aldi brand) along with a small lidded bowl with cream cheese and a pink plastic knife (leftovers from a birthday party) for spreading. I included a sturdy birthday napkin because the cream cheese can be messy and sticky. A thin napkin will just rip apart if you wipe sticky hands with it.
They will also get two picks with black olives, a Cutie orange, and a granola bar. As a special Friday treat they get two cookies from the fall harvest cookie pack we bought this weekend.
Everything is packed in plastic bags today because we had a really busy Thursday. Between a fall picture session and the high school homecoming parade I didn't have time to wash up the reusable containers.

The girls got new lunch boxes too! We found these at Dollar General on clearance for $3 each. What what?! It's always nice to have a backup lunch box because sometimes they need to be soaked or aired out from having things spilled in them. Joplin's regular box is smelling a little funky, and I'm pretty sure the yogurt she spilled in it last week is festering in the lining so I'm about to give it a good soak in some vinegar and baking soda. I'll do the same to Isis's box just for good measure. 

Thursday Lunchbox

Today they are serving chicken nuggets in the school cafeteria. That is Joplin's favorite, but Isis refuses to eat them (I can't blame her!), so I only have one meal to pack today.
She will be eating hot dog cheese kabobs with a side salad, and cinnamon applesauce. I also included some animal crackers and a mini box of raisins.

Meal Plan - Dinners - week of Sept. 22-28

I'm a little behind getting my menu together this week thanks to having a 3 day weekend with my girls.
I did most of my shopping this week at Aldi and Sam's, but didn't get any meat because we had to stop at a few other stores before driving home. I took advantage of the local grocery store deal, and got 5 packages of fresh meat for $25.
Sunday we used our center cut pork chops and made marinated kabobs. I have to say this balsamic rosemary marinade was amazing! I also roasted some yellow squash and brussel sprouts, made a yummy sweet apple coleslaw, and some macaroni and cheese for hubs an the kids.
We had the leftovers from Sunday for lunch on Monday. For dinner we ate out at the home style buffet where kids eat free on Mondays. We only spent $15.xx for all 4 of us to eat salad, main course, and dessert.
Tuesday we had leftover beans I froze the last time I cooked pintos with tomatoes, and a yummy dairy free corn bread. My menu says we had meatless nachos because that was my plan for the beans, but once I opened the fridge I realized we were out of sour cream, my cilantro was wilted, and the avacados were riddled with black spots, so plans changed. 
Today I am cooking a beef roast with onions and celery. Sides for this meal will be green beans, homemade wheat rolls, and fried squash.
Thursday the leftover roast will be chunked and added to a beef stew with a combination of fresh and frozen veggies. 
Friday I'm taking it easy and cooking breakfast food. Saturday we will have basil chili pork chops with coleslaw, corn on the cob, and butter herb rice. 

Wednesday Lunchbox

Happy hump day everyone! The girls will have a nice variety in their lunch boxes today. I got a great deal on whole wheat round crackers at Aldi ($1.69 per box), and the girls can build them up with all natural, preservative free smoked turkey and marble jack cheese, which is on a pick with a couple of dill pickle slices. They have half a banana each, and I've hidden the veggies in these great Mott's fruit snacks made with fruit and vegetable juice. They also get another treat from our weekend trip. The snack sized zipper bag has cinnamon roasted pecans.
Joplin gets a chocolate pudding pack, and Isis gets a rainbow chip granola bar gboth Aldi brand).

Tuesday Lunchbox

Today is the start of our week since the girls were out of school yesterday. We spent our Monday at home. I cleaned while the girls played. They did wipe the dining room chairs down before using them as a train while I mopped. Over the weekend we went to the local Trade Days event and got some yummy treats that I've included in today's lunchbox.
I made mini sandwiches with creamy peanut butter and blackberry creamed (local) honey on whole wheat bread. The creamed honey was a little pricey, but there is a lot of it, a little goes a long way, and it tastes DIVINE! They both have a rainbow of veggies to dip in ranch dressing including grape tomatoes, baby carrots, and peeled celery. I've found that peeling the strings from the outside of the celery, not only ensures that the kids will eat it, but also makes it crisper and juicier.
They have a Cutie (orange), and a blueberry yogurt tube. I scored and peeled back the rind at the top of Isis's orange to make it easier to peel, because, at 4 years old, she can peel it, but it takes a while for her to get it started.
For dessert they get another treat from the weekend. Joplin has cinnamon pumpkin kettle corn, and Isis has the honey roasted variety. They will both choose milk and juice from the cafeteria.

On a different note, I have mentioned before that I live on the edge of town, and enjoy a taste of city and country life. Today is a testament to that, be it good or bad. On my way home from taking the girls to school I saw a big beautiful doe run across the road about 1/4 mile from my house. When I got home I opened all the windows to get some fresh air, sat my baby girl in her highchair, and while enjoying this gorgeous view of the backyard I heard the highschool band practicing very loudly, and NOT altogether in an organized manner. 

The highschool was built about 1/2 mile from my house shortly after we moved in, so I am now sandwiched between it and the state university. This is a definite drawback because we hear every football game in town. I also think we must be in some kind of sound vortex because I hear the happenings at both schools, highway noises at the end of the road, music from the bar up the highway, the train behind the bar, and even the bells from the Catholic church across town! Perhaps I'll search for a house in a bubble if we move, or at least thicker walls. 

Friday lunchbox - September 20, 2013

Here's a quick summary of the girls' lunch boxes today. I didn't get a picture for you, but they're honestly nothing special.
They will have turkey and colby jack on whole wheat bread with 2 extra chunks of cheese on the side. I also added a package of cheese crackers with peanut butter, celery sticks, and a large helping of unsweetened apple sauce.
We have a 3 day weekend coming  up, and have some serious shopping to do. A trip to the bulk store for diapers and wipes, a stop at Bed, Bath, & Beyond to find a sturdy reusable water bottle, and hunting for yet another pair of shoes for my 4 year old will take up our entire Saturday.
I'll try to write up a good post about the crafts I've been working on, and my little side business. The next lunchbox post will be Tuesday the 24th.

Thursday Lunchbox - September 19, 2013

I had a question from a reader yesterday about packing leftovers from a taco dinner. So this one is for you, Kim.
Instead of trying to fit a taco shell in the lunch box, I opted for tortilla chips. These are the kind shaped like bowls. This should make it easy for the girls to pile on their toppings. You could also use soft tortillas and fold it up to fit in the compartment.

They will build each nacho like a mini taco salad. The small lidded bowls have salsa. I usually buy the lime and garlic or black bean and corn varieties because they are not spicy. Each girl has shredded cheese, orange cherry tomatoes, a few sprigs of fresh cilantro, and spinach leaves. Joplin loves avocados, so I added some to her box. I'm not sure how well they will hold up in there, but maybe the bag will keep them from getting soft and brown. I added some raisins for Isis for an extra fruit. They will be packing their travel bottles with water to drink today.

Wednesday Lunchbox - September 18, 2013

My dinner menu has been tossed around this week, so I had some extra bacon on hand and decided to make breakfast for lunch!
I cooked up a batch of applesauce pancakes while the girls were at school Tuesday. I wrapped 4 of the smaller ones and put them in the fridge to stick in their lunches today, and froze the rest for quick breakfasts. I threw 2 pieces of bacon in a pan, then all I had left to do was wash and cut up fruit for fruit kabobs and spoon some yogurt into the cups, then top with sprinkles. I wrapped up two pancakes for each kid in plastic wrap so they didn't get soggy, and just laid the bacon on top. Isis's kabobs have green grapes, peaches, and pears, and Joplin's are the same minus grapes. I'm skipping the messy syrup, and hoping they eat the pancakes without fussing. They will both, get plastic spoons, and choose milk and juice from the cafeteria.

Mess-free Fun with Paint

As usual, my 4 year old came home from school ready to be fed and entertained. I also have a 7 year old, 6 month old and house to care for, so I try to keep extra messes to a minimum without constantly saying "no" to every request. After nixing the play dough and being scoffed at for suggesting a coloring book, we landed at the paint debate. She wanted paper, paints, water, and brushes to create the traditional masterpiece that would leave the inevitable mess and need substantial counter space to dry. I was filled with dread until I remembered a pin I saw about teaching handwriting using a colored liquid in a Ziploc bag. I grabbed my phone and quickly searched Pinterest for "paint in a bag." My impatient daughter was hounding me for paints by this point, so I quickly glanced at the picture and did my best to recreate what I saw.
I took a quart sized zipper bag and added about 2 tablespoons of washable paint then zipped it closed. She loved it! Soon my 7 year old was intrigued so I made one for her. They squished it, drew on it with their fingers, and made hand prints. This actually entertained them for over an hour, and was so much easier than getting out supplies and cleaning up after a normal painting session.

I highly recommend this activity next time your kiddos start chanting "I'm bored!" I did instate the rule that it had to stay at the table. Wiping a burst paint bag mess off the table wouldn't be half as bad as finding it in the floor (especially carpet) or on the furniture! It was still just as fun with a little limitation, and even my rough middle child didn't break it.

Isis (my 4 year old) is standing at the table, not sitting in the booster seat like the picture makes it seem, and she never wears clothes at home, so forgive me for the half-naked baby photo!

Tuesday Lunchbox -September 17, 2013

The main course of Tuesday's lunch is bite-sized cream cheese tortilla sandwiches in the shape of hearts. They will have pretzel balls on the side and a spinach salad on a stick that can be easily dipped into the container of ranch. I used our new plastic picks for the salad and layered a snap pea, spinach, tomatoes,and a carrot at the end to hold it in place.  I got the small containers at the dollar store and, honestly, they aren't great. Some of the lids don't fit tightly, so they fall off. I tried to match them up with good lids, but opted for a small rubber band around each one as an added security measure. The other container holds a cinnamon and sugar mixture for dipping the fresh apples cut into the shape of fries. I used a french fry cutter, which is going to take some practice to perfect, so one kid got mini fries, and one got full length. Thankfully,everything fit perfectly into our one-piece boxes, so they will have room for a large ice pack to keep it all cool and fresh.

Monday Lunchbox - September 16, 2013

Today the girls lunch boxes are packed with a fun new lunch that requires no ice pack! They will be assembling their own sweets pizza using a plain rice cake for the crust, peanut butter to spread as sauce, shredded coconut acts as the cheese and each kid has a few of their favorite toppings. White chocolate chips, mini marshmallows, and raisins for Isis and mini marshmallows and milk chocolate chips for Joplin.

They will also have unsweetened apple sauce and grape tomatoes on the side.  Joplin will get the last juice box and Isis is choosing milk and juice from the ccafeteria (I found out they can get BOTH if they want, yay!). I packed a plastic spoon and butter knife for the applesauce and peanut butter.

Meal Plan -Dinners September 15-21

This week my meal plan will end on Friday because we are planning a shopping trip for Saturday, and I'll be planning the meals after that around the ads that go into effect on Wednesday. 
This Sunday we are trying out something new and fun! I have hot dog buns, but no hot dogs so I'm trying out a grilled hamburger patty in the shape of a hot dog. Hopefully the kids will think this is cool, and decide to eat since they rarely finish a regular hamburger (weird, right?).

Last week we skipped our last pork chop meal, and ate out because I was exhausted from being up all night with the baby, so i still have those chops. I'll be cooking them sweet an sour style on Monday with carrots and green beans.

Tuesday we will have meatless nachos with homemade guacamole. I got avacados at 3 for $1 this weekend, so that makes for a healthy and cheap side. I will also use leftover beans from tonight with a little chili and cumin added for mexican flavor (so technically they will have some meat).

I have just enough natural bacon left to make breakfast for dinner on Wednesday - always a big hit with the kids. 

Thursday we will use the pork chops I bought this weekend on sale for 40% off. The sides will be roasted brussel sprouts, spinach pear salad, and corn on the cob. 

We get paid on Friday so we will treat ourselves to a meal out!

Plant Prints Craft

This morning the girls and I took a little nature walk behind our house. We live on the edge of town, down a culdesac, and have a large pasture directly behind our privacy fence. It's kind of the best of city and country living, which was a huge reason we decided to buy this house. I even brought my almost 6 month old along in the jogging stroller.
We gathered leave, flowers, and plants that looked interesting to us, and stuck them in the storage compartment on the stroller so they didn't get crushed or blow away.

We are saving the leaves to try out some leaf stamping later. For now we are working on making some beautiful plant prints. We got two sheets of white paper and layed our flowers and stems between them, then placed them on a foam mat and started pounding them with a small hammer. This is what we ended up with -

These are fun, pretty, and not messy at all! Its A great way to create ornate cards and invitations or add decoration to envelopes when sending letters. 

Thursday Lunchbox - Tools of the Trade

I didn't manage to get a picture of the girls' lunchboxes this morning,  so I decided to give you a peek at a few of the essential tools I use to make their meals fun and portable.

This container is great for packing salads or fruits and veggies for dipping. It has an airtight built in cup that has yet to leak. I bought these at the Dollar Tree last year, and thought I'd try them out. They have become one of the best containers we have! I had 4 of them originally, but threw one out after it was left in the lunchbox over the weekend with broccoli inside :P

I'm not so frugal that I won't throw out a stinky container, and that one was STINKY! Another one got left at my grandmother's house and I haven't dug through her cabinets to find it. So we are left with two, which motivates me to wash them as soon as we get home so I can repack them for the next day. 

These silicone baking cups are great for separating dry and moist foods. I put them inside large compartments to hold snack crackers, raisins, and my favorte - side salads. They have become very popular thanks to the growing popularity of bento lunch bloggers and pinners, so they are easy to find in a variety of sizes. I recently got a 2 pack of larger ones in the bargain dollar section at Target. 

I have a variety of other plastic box containers that only have one compartment, so I use small plastic lidded bowls to hold sauce or other small items like chopped tomatoes or peanuts. The silicone bowls are actually baby food storage containers, and the lids are more secure than the others, but stain easily. I made the mistake of putting pizza sauce in 2 of them, and they are now orange and still smell like pizza after 3 washes.

Now for the fun stuff! These are mini cookie cutters that I got on spring clearance at Hobby Lobby. They work great for cutting cheese and fruit into fun bite sized shapes. 

The butterfly cutter is sandwich sized, and makes an adorable crustless sandwich. I purchased it at Dollar Tree.The round cutters cut circles on one side and are scalloped on the other side. I found this pack of 6 in tapering sizes on the cake decorating isle in Walmart for around $3. They work well for cutting tortillas and sandwiches, and the small one is perfect for cutting lunch meat into those perfect lunchable-esque rounds. They would also be great molds for shaping granola bars, crispy rice treats, or even a serving of cooked rice.

Up until now, I have had to get really creative when making kabobs for my girls (using toothpicks, chop sticks, and even plastic spoon handles), but I stopped in the Dollar Tree yesterday for a few organizational items, and found these great plastic picks. They will be used for meat, cheese, pickles, olives, and fruit, and I may even get out the glue gun to add some fun decorations to the top for an added surprse. 

I keep a variety of plastc bags in the pantry, and use them mainly for wet items like cut fruit, or to keep sandwiches fresh and soft. It's also nice to have them as a backup in case I dont  get the reusable containers washed. 

The ice packs, drink bottles, lunchboxes, and our one piece containers are with the girls at school, so I'll have to show you those later. The girls have 3 mini turkey and cheese sandwiches, pretzel sticks with peanut butter, and side salads today. Joplin picked a pear for her fruit, and Isis wanted raisins.

It may seem like a lot of stuff, but we have accumulated all of this over time. Just always be on the lookout for useful items at good prices, and eventually you'll have a nice little stockpile of tools. 

Dental Check Up Day

Today the girls both had dental checks bright and early. I scheduled them early so they wouldn't miss too much school, and we managed to get them back in class by 9am. Scheduling any medical appointments right after the office opens insures you won't spend hours in the waiting room, which is really important when your trying to corral multiple children.
The chairs in our dentist's office are setup back-to-back in the middle of the room with two chairs facing out at each end of the row. This is an open invitation for my children to crawl underneath and in between them, which is NOT ok with me, even in an empty waiting room. We were only waiting a few minutes, like less than 5, and I had to threaten to take away their computer privileges a few times just to keep them in the chairs.
I am glad to report they both did well during their cleanings, and checked out cavity-free!

I won't be posting a lunchbox article today because the girls wanted to eat chicken nuggets in the cafeteria. Isis had a change of heart on the way to school, but it was too late. This will be the first time she's gone through the lunch line, so she's a little anxious, but hopefully they both eat something! It's hard for me to release control and hope they get good food, but sometimes being a good mom means letting them make choices and accepting that they will be fine even if they aren't getting the best. 

Tuesday Lunchbox

It's so much simpler to make the same lunch for both of my kids, but sometimes one lunchbox comes home merely picked at, not eaten.
My girls definitely have different tastes, and I can usually make minor changes to accommodate them. Joplin refuses to eat American cheese, while Isis is unwilling to eat melted cheese after it's cooled.  Pears are one of Joplin's favorites though Isis won't touch them. She prefers grapes and her sister sticks her nose up at them.
You get the picture. We are still figuring out who likes what, and how their favorites hold up in the lunchbox. Not every cute idea you see on the web will work for your kid (or any kid for that matter), especially the ones that require the lunchbox to stay in one orientation (like upright instead of swinging from a 4 year old's arm).
Always expect to open up a complete disaster when you pack a dipping sauce because, unfortunately, your child doesn't care if they close that airtight container when the rest of her class is running outside to play.
So I'm readying myself to scrub some ranch dressing from the inside of their boxes as soon as we get home from school today. They have fresh broccoli and snap peas for dipping, and peanut butter on whole wheat saltines. The granola bars are a treat I got at Aldi and have rainbow chips in them. They'll also get a fruit kabob (grapes for Isis, peaches and plums for Joplin), and a strawberry yogurt tube.

Momma's Lunch

As a stay at home mom, I spend a lot of time planning and preparing meals for my family. Once they are off to school and work, and the baby is fed, I have precious little time to worry about what I will eat. In the past I have just skipped lunch or grabbed a snack at a fast food drive thru as I leave to pick up the girls from school.
Now that I am breastfeeding again that just doesn't cut it. Even if I weren't nursing, maintaining a healthy diet needs to be a priority so I have the energy to be the best wife and mom I can be. I don't know about you, but when I'm hungry I get GRUMPY! I feel bad, get a headache, and forget things. It's just better (and helps to maintain a healthy weight) to eat 3 meals a day, and pack them with nutritious foods.

Today I am having a quick, very healthy and low fat lunch of white corn tortilla chips, fresh snap peas, and homemade hummus.

I made a big batch of hummus about a month ago, and froze pint size servings. I stuck this in the fridge to thaw on Sunday morning so it was ready to spoon into a small bowl and reheat. I don't like cold hummus. All I had left to do was wash the snap peas and lunch was ready!

This was way more filling than a sandwich with so much more nutrtion, and really tasty. 

Monday Lunchbox

Today the girls will be bringing some homemade mozzarella cheese rolls seasoned with garlic and basil, and marinara  sauce for dipping. I made these a little different than usual using quartered flour tortillas because I didn't have any wonton wrappers on hand.
They have organic bunny grahams and apple slices cored with a scalloped heart cookie cutter. Joplin gets 3 Oreos for dessert and Isis has mini marshmallows. Both will have a juice box to wash it all down.

Meal Plan - Dinners for the week of Sept. 8-14

Using the Food Planner app on my Android phone, I've created a dinner meal plan for the upcoming week.

Tonight we will be having meatless nachos in an effort to use the fresh salsa my husband HAD to buy at Sam's Club last week. Even with no cheese (which I can't eat anyway) the kids are very excited about getting nachos for dinner because they get to build them themselves.
Monday I will put an all-natural pork roast in the crock pot with a glaze similar to the recipe for chili rubbed pork tenderloin with apricot ginger glaze. I'll probably throw some carrots in with it, and serve with salad and a packaged Knorr Chicken Broccoli Rice Side.
Tuesdays meal of pork carnitas will be made with leftover roast. I'll shred and season some of the meat with mexican seasoning, and sautee in oil with onions and peppers, then serve that with some guacamole and salsa on flour tortillas.
The last of the leftover roast will be used on Wednesday night to make BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwiches. Served with green beans and corn on the cob.
Thursday I am making kabobs with some chuck tender steaks. Marinating and grilling cheap cuts of steak on kabobs is the best way to use them, in my opinion. onions, and squash will accompany the meat on the skewers, and will be served with baked sweet potatoes and salad.
Friday I will be cooking a pot of pinto beans with hamburger and tomatoes. This is a hearty dish that I LOVE to cook in the colder months, but since I've had a hankering for some beans I'll just hope it cools off a little by this Friday. I'll serve these with some corn bread and possibly a batch of fried potatoes/sweet potatoes.
Saturday I will be trying out a new recipe for sweet and sour pork chops. Hopefully it turns out good and I can add it to my arsenal of pork recipes, since we eat so much of it. I'll make rice and steamed garlic green beans to accompany them.

These meals are not set in stone, and I may change it up depending on our schedule and what we're in the mood for each day.

The app is pretty simple to use so far, but it's kind of a pain to have to have a recipe in order to add the item to my menu plan. Once I started adding the snack foods from my pantry to the "inventory" list, I realized we have WAY too many snack foods! Most of them end up in the girls' lunch boxes, but now I know I don't need to purchase any snacks for the next few shopping trips. So far the app is helping me keep my kitchen a little more organized. Now we'll see if I can stick with it.

September 7th Grocery Price Match

The girls are about to leave to go to a company picnic with their Nana and Poppa, so we are taking advantage and doing our grocery shopping minus two kids!
I am hoping we have time to drive down to Texas so we can hit up the Aldi for a few items, then make our way to Walmart to price match and purchase tax-free groceries. We'll see when my parents get here if that's an option :)

Here are the price matches I'll be using unless I find a better price on some of these items at Aldi.

Valencia Oranges 5/$1
Betty Crocker Cake Mixes $1 ea
Pillsbury Toaster Strudel $2 ea
Green Giant 1lb Baby Carrots $1.19 ea
Peaches, Nectarines, or Plums .99/lb
Hormel Natural Choice Bacon 1 lb  $4.19
Hormel Natural Choice Deli Meat  $2.99 ea
Triscuits (original) $1.49 ea
Nestle Pure Life Water 24 pk  $2.99
Nabisco Oreos 8.5 - 15.25 oz  $1.99

I'm hoping to find some good deals at Aldi on meat, vegetable oil, and fresh vegetables. We'll also get bread, syrup and prepackaged peanut butter crackers there.

Mobilizing My Meal Plan

There are many advantages to meal planning. They are a great way too save money and time, reduce stress and waste, and avoid expensive restaurant and take out meals. Purchasing all the ingredients you'll need for a week's worth of meals means less trips to the store, and more time with your family.

I don't always write down a formal meal plan, but usually have a good idea of what we will eat for the week. Lately, this has been a struggle for me, though. Perhaps it's adjusting to our new school schedule that has thrown me off. Whatever it is, I decided to try out an app to keep track of the groceries in my fridge and pantry, and create meal plans. I downloaded Food Planner to my Android phone today.

So far I have added a few of our favorite recipes and the groceries that I'm currently stocked up on, and made a plan for tonight's dinner.
I love that I can add recipes from the web, making it really easy to keep track of everything in one place instead of trying to jump from page to page for the recipes I need. Adding ingredients was simple, and allowed me to adjust quantities and add notes. I can't wait to use the bar code scanner to add additional groceries with no typing out descriptions.

 

Creating the meal plan was as simple as tapping the recipe I wanted to use!

I'm on a tight budget for the next two weeks, so hopefully this app will make it easier to stick to a meal plan. I'll definitely write an update and report how it goes.

Do you meal plan? What tools have been helpful to you? Please share any tips you have for making meal planning work.

Friday Lunchbox

Im posting quickly before heading to my 4 year old's field trip to the county fair.
Today the girls will have pizza "mom-ables."
Two flour tortilla circles will be the crust, and the lidded cups contain sauce and mozzarella cheese. In the main bowl they have black olives, and a fresh salad with lettuce, tomatoes, tri color peppers, snap peas, broccoli, and onions for Isis, already topped with ranch dressing. They also get grapes and black plums (not pictured), and will get milk from the cafeteria.

Fall Fun and Decor Round Up #1

Fall is by far my favorite season. I love the cooler weather, the colors, the food, the activities, and the holidays! I feel like we are finally kicking off the season here in Oklahoma (even though temperatures are still in the 90's!) because tomorrow I am accompanying my 4 year old and her class to the county fair. I plan to splurge on some local honey and a caramel apple :)

In the spirit of the season I've been getting a few ideas and projects together to share with my family and readers. So here it is, my first round up, for fall!

1. Hoot Owl Peanut Butter Cookies from Growing in Grace

These look so fun and TASTY! The best part is by substituting dairy free margarine, they are milk-free (so I can actually eat them)!
http://www.jo-ann-growingingrace.com/2012/09/hoot-owl-peanut-butter-cookies.html

2. Paper Punching Leaves from Grow Creative

Early fall is the perfect time for this fun kid-friendly activity. Get outside, take a nature walk, collect beautiful leaves, and punch out any fun shapes you'd like! The possibilities for creating with these are endless. Use them to make a collage, cards for family and friends, glue them to wax paper and cut out a pretty shape to make a natural sun catcher, or creating a mobile using fishing line.
http://growcreative.blogspot.com/2012/11/paper-punching-leaves.html

3. Spooky Dripping Candle Display

This simple craft is the perfect way to decorate your table, porch, or classroom without the mess, danger, and expense of real candles!
http://www.halloweenforum.com/halloween-props/111073-candle-cluster.html

4. Halloween Hand Treat Bags from The Queen's Card Castle

Perfectly creepy for passing out on Halloween night, or as a treat for your child's classroom.
http://queenscardcastle.blogspot.com/2012/10/hello-my-friends-hope-your-monday-is.html

5. Glow in the Dark Puff Paint Pumpkins from Balancing Home

If your kids are too young for carving or you just hate the gooey gunk from the inside of a pumpkin give this craft a try. You can use real or fake pumpkins and create fun designs or spooky images!
http://www.balancinghome.com/2012/09/puffy-paint-glow-pumpkin.html

6. Candy Corn Bark from My Baking Addiction

This looks so festive and DELICIOUS!
http://www.mybakingaddiction.com/boo-halloween-treat-and-giveaway/

7. Halloween Facts from Daily Infograph

Take the mystery and fear out of Halloween for kids young and old by sharing some history and facts regarding the holiday and its roots.
http://dailyinfographic.com/halloween-infographic

8. Fall Doodle Paints from Growing a Jeweled Rose

Teach your youngster about the colors and smells of fall while they create a fun, messy masterpiece with these awesome homemade doodle paints!
http://www.growingajeweledrose.com/2013/08/homemade-paint-recipe-fall-doodle-paints.html

9. Play in the Leaves

That's it...just PLAY!

10. Cinnamon Baked Apple Chip Snacks from Beauty and the Beard

These healthy snacks are even better when they are homemade, and perfect for a lunchbox or class treat!
http://beautyandbeard.blogspot.com/2012/03/baked-apple-chips.html#uds-search-results

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Thursday Lunchbox

I often pack meatless meals for my kids' lunches at school. I have a few reasons for doing this. First, it's cheap. Second, it's safe. There is no risk of the lunch getting too warm and my children getting Listeria. Third, it's healthy. All the sodium (salt) in lunch meats can't be good for their little bodies. Finally, they usually don't WANT any meat. It's almost always the item left in the box when they get home.
Today, the girls will have a meatless nacho lunch. In the large part of the container is a lidded bowl full of their favorite salsa, a silicone cup with fresh lettuce and tomatoes, and white corn tortilla chips. The small round part has California black olives, and each will get a tube of yogurt on the side. They will be choosing milk or juice from the cafeteria to drink.

Momma on-the-go breakfast

Weekday mornings are always hectic no matter how much I prepare ahead. I spend my evenings packing lunches, laying out clothes, and going through homework, notes, and papers, but still find myself rushing in the morning. I'm no early bird, and not one of those ladies who gets up at dawn to exercise or do yoga before the kids wake. I get up about 10 minutes before my kids, which is just enough time to get a quick breakfast on the table for them. While they eat I dress and get ready to take them to school. Fixing hair (one of the "joys" of being a mother to 3 girls) and finding shoes, putting ice packs in the lunch boxes and getting the baby changed and dressed takes up the remainder of the morning. So I find myself short on time and starving!
Thankfully my husband is usually pretty good about getting a travel mug full of coffee ready for me to grab as we run out the door. Unfortunately, coffee is not considered a good breakfast for anyone, especially a breastfeeding mom.
I'm still working on ideas for easy and healthy take-along breakfasts. After realizing that smoothies are NOT quick (gathering 5+ ingredients, blending, pouring, then washing the blender...no thanks) I started thinking about less conventional options.
My favorite so far is this lightly salted rice cake drizzled with honey. Not everyone enjoys rice cakes, but the honey really adds good flavor, it's filling, and soooo easy. Add a piece of fresh fruit, and you'll have a few hours of energy, and none of the fat and processed sugars in other grab-and-go breakfasts.

Wednesday Lunchbox

My second grader, who is reading fluently now, came home today and informed me that the juice box I packed had VEGETABLE juice in it! I have given her Fruitables juice boxes in the past (before she was reading EVERYTHING), and she liked them. So today I packed her a Fruitiful juice box and gave her Pre K sister the Fruitables. So much for sneaking in more veggies to a 7 year old with a juice box! I'll just have to make up for those extra veggies at dinnertime.
The girls' are using our one-piece containers today packed to capacity. On top is the juice box and half a ham and swiss bagel-wich. Below they have a 4-pack of cheese crackers with peanut butter, strawberry fruit snacks, and sliced fresh bartlett pears (with a squirt of lemon juice to stop them from browning).

Tuesday lunchbox

We are back at school today after a nice 3 day weekend. We made an impromptu trip south to get Joplin some decent sneakers, so I stopped in Aldi and got a few extra goodies for the girls' lunches.

They will both be enjoying honey roasted peanuts and unsweetened apple sauce, about half a diced fresh tomato, and organic cheese cracker bunnies. The spoon is doing double duty as the skewer for kabobs with colby jack cheese and preservative-free turkey dog slices. There was just a bit of cheese left in the block, so i chunked it and added it alongside the kabob. l'll also toss in a fruitables juice box, which i got 10 for $2.24 at Aldi - score!

Holiday Weekend and Snack Share

I hope everyone is enjoying the holiday weekend! So far we haven't been very productive, other than buying my oldest some new sneakers so she can run in comfort next week when her class starts the "Mileage Club."
She will be running laps around the track on the playground, and earn rewards the more she runs.
Tonight my big girls will be staying at their Nana's house, which is a welcome break for them and me! They love spending time with my mom. They get to eat special snacks, stay up late, play, and watch movies.
Hubby and I will be taking the baby with us to a cook out with his family, then we'll come home and hopefully get little one to sleep and enjoy watching some shows we'd like to catch up on. Monday I'll have the whole family home with me, so I won't be posting a Monday Lunchbox article, but I may try to write a short blurb about what we have for lunch or dinner.
In the meantime, I'd like to share a snack I made today. I LOVED them, but the kids weren't too impressed so they will probably only be on the menu when I need a quick breakfast/snack.


Frozen Banana and Peanut Butter Vanilla Wafer-wiches

Instructions:
1. Slice a banana (I sliced them medium-thin so I could pop them in my mouth in one bite.)
2. Spread creamy peanut butter on the flat side of vanilla wafers (2 wafers for each banana slice - ie. 12 banana slices means you need 24 vanilla wafers)
3. place a slice between two wafers and put in a freezer safe container. They will tend to slide apart so I suggest setting them flat so they don't fall apart.
4. Freeze for at least 1 hour before eating.

These should keep in the freezer for up to 1 week.