Bento #54 and 54 1/2

Hello!  I know it's been a while since I've posted a bento.  I've been making some, but not as often as I would like to.  So, I've decided to try to make a bento a least 3 times a week.  (My eating choices are always so much better when I pack my lunch!)
Below are bentos for me and my daughter.  (Hence, the 54 1/2!)  Almost the same thing...see below!

 

We both have turkey and ham roll ups with lettuce, veggie cream cheese and green onions.  

I have celery and carrots with blue cheese dressing for dipping.

She has broccoli, carrots, and green peppers with ranch for dipping. 

I have sliced apples and low fat caramel sauce

She has mandarin oranges with a palm tree pic (we just got back from Florida)

So, here's my first one for the week!  I'll post another tomorrow!  Enjoy! 

Bentos #52 and #53

That's right!  It's two...Two...TWO for the price of one!  One for me and one for my daughter!  Here's mine:

It's a really simple bento for work tomorrow.

Bottom:  Turkey and cheese lettuce wrap
Top:  Celery sticks and Cheddar Cheese
On the side:  Fiber 1 bar and bleu cheese dip for dipping

After I packed this, and started putting it away, I found 1/2 a cucumber that was wanting to travel tomorrow!  (HA!) So, I sliced him up and put him in with the celery.

Now, for my daughter's bento:

This bento idea came from Momables.  I subscribed to it in the beginning of the year for about 6 months.  I felt like I was fixing the same bentos all the time, so I purchased a subscription for myself for Christmas last year.  Each week I'd print off my weekly menus and kept them in a binder.  Tonight, I had her pick out several things from the binder that she would eat.  Then, I fixed one of them to surprise her tomorrow.  Here's what she's having:

Bottom tier:  Watermelon, carrots
Top Tier:  Asian Chicken skewers, cheddar cheese
Outside bento:  Garden vegetable dip for carrots, bbq sauce for chicken, thermos of chocolate milk

And!  A bonus bento!  Remember my post from yesterday?  Showing you my best friend's very first bento?  Well, she sent me their bento for tomorrow!  Here it goes:

A Hamburger bento!  I have one of these!  See it here!

On to what's in her bento:

Left:  Cucumbers and carrots
Middle:  Slim Jim and Cheese stick
Right:  Grapes and Strawberries
On the side:  PB&J and gummies

Hope everyone is off to a great start to their school year!

Enjoy!

Bento #51

Here is Rosemary's Bento for lunch tomorrow.  It's simple, but what she wanted.

Top left corner:  Ham, Turkey, and Cheese roll up
Top right corner:  Carrots
Bottom left corner:  Watermelon and Cantaloupe (fresh from our garden!)
Bottom right corner:  Pudding and ranch dip for the carrots

And shout out to my best friend and her kiddo in Florida!  They made their very first bento EVER for their first day of school tomorrow!  Here it is!

Top tier:  Grapes and a Bunny egg
Bottom tier:  Cucumber slices and string cheese
On the side:  PB&J and gummies

I am so proud of them!

Enjoy! 

School's Back in Session!

School started again, and we are getting back into our school routine...which means BENTOS!  Be on the look out for some lunches posted soon! 

Bento #50!!

I made it to Bento #50!  And this bento is, again, made for my daughter.  She wanted the roll-ups again, so it isn't as exciting as I wanted it to be.  (She isn't up for branching out her taste buds...yet!)  Here is her lunch for tomorrow:

She picked out my Hamburger Bento to use for tomorrow. 

Top:  In the green cup are mixed berries; pears

Bottom:  Carrot sticks and dip, turkey, ham, and cheese roll-ups

Go-gurt on the side

She really like today's lunch, and was excited about tomorrow's lunch.  She told me what to make for the main part (protein part), but then wanted to leave the room so I could assemble it all together.  She said she likes to go to lunch and be surprised by the picks!  LOL! 

Enjoy!

Bento #49

Look at me!  Almost to Bento #50!  I'll have to think of something special for #50!

Tomorrow's bento is for my daughter, again.  She liked the one so much last week that she asked for another for this week.  (And has requested another one for Friday!)  So, the other bento I fixed for her must have been a hit!  Here's what she's having for lunch tomorrow:

 

She walked around the grocery store with me and picked out what she wanted in her meal, and left it up to me to put/design it in her bento.

In the blue container on the left:  Turkey, Ham, and Swiss pinwheels.  I cut them and put them on a pick to hold the 3 together.

In the green container:  Tropical Fruit Salad

Purple container:  Carrots and ranch dressing.

I was trying to get her to be more adventurous with her veggie and fruit choices, but she wasn't biting.  (Ha-Ha!)   I guess baby steps.  Hey!  The bento I fix for her tomorrow will be my 50th one!  So, SHE'LL get the special bento!  Hmmm...gotta think of something gooooooooodddddd.

Enjoy!

Bento #48

Tomorrow's bento isn't made for me, but for my 10 year old daughter.  Sadly, this is a last minute, thrown together, bento.  Had she given me a little notice that she wanted me to make her a bento (this is THE FIRST I've ever made her!), it would have been an extra special one.  I am short all kinds of things and need to get to the grocery desperately, but won't be able to get there until Thursday.  So, I had to work with what we had.  I, at least, made her leave the kitchen, so the bento would be some sort of surprise for her when she opens it up tomorrow.   Here goes:

 

On the left:  I made turkey and cheese kabobs. I used turkey luncheon meat, string cheese, and cheddar cheese.  I cut the string cheese into "coins" and wrapped the turkey around them.  Then, I cut cheddar cheese into hearts ('cause I love her!).  Put them on my picks and....ta-da! 

On the right:  Fresh mixed berries, carrots, and Bacon Ranch dip

In the lunch bag:  Cherry jello and vanilla pudding.  (Not together!  HA!)

Like I said, I was running low on fun things to put in here.  (One reason why I wasn't making myself one.)  But, she saw me making the boys lunches and decided she wanted one, too.  Hope she likes it! 

Enjoy!

Bento #47

Here is lunch for tomorrow:

 

Top left container:  Tossed salad with bacon bits and blue cheese dressing

Top right container:  Fresh strawberries, cucumbers, and a new Buffalo Chicken Sour Cream dip I found (I'm going to use it for the veggies)

Bottom container:  Egg Salad and fresh carrots

I used 2 bentos for tomorrow's lunch.  Ran out of room, thanks to my salad.  

I took a picture of my bentos closed and one with my hand in the picture, so my sister could see how small some of my bentos are.  Here they are: 

 

The giraffe one is as big as my hand and only one layer.  Honestly, it's just a tad bit smaller than my hand, but it's one of my favorite ones!  I love the compactness of it and, surprisingly, it can hold a lot of food.  Doesn't look like it from the picture above with the strawberries and stuff, but I didn't pack the food in. 

Have a great Monday, everyone!  Enjoy!

Bento #46

This bento is inspired by a friend of mine who had shrimp for a snack tonight.  It sounded so good, I made some for my lunch tomorrow!  Today's bento is also dedicated to my sister, whose birthday is in a week.  For her birthday, I bought her a new Thirty One lunch tote from my friend, Deidre who is a Thirty One Consultant.  (Want to see what Thirty One is?  Click here for more info!)  I filled my sister's lunch tote with all things BENTO!  I bought her a new bento, picks,  and some divider/muffin cups, and I gave her TONS of picks and divider cups that I had extra of, and a bento book.  I wanted to do this bento for her because she was curious what those things were used for (has she not even READ my blog?!).  So, here goes!

On the left:  Garlic Grilled Shrimp Wrap (wrapped in a cabbage leaf, topped with shredded carrots and purple cabbage); in the blue container is Orange Balsamic Vinagrette (for the wrap or the carrots); a Babybel Cheese (with the heart, since it's for my SISTER!!!!  Love ya, Heath!)

On the right:  Trader Joe's Trail Mix, Blackberries, Carrots

On the side (not pictured):  Greek Yogurt

Hope this helps you out, Heather!  (Or anyone else out there experimenting with bento making!)

Enjoy!

Bento #45

Back to school after Christmas break tomorrow.  Back on the wagon of eating smarter.  Below is my lunch for tomorrow.

 

I'm using my Laptop Lunchbox!  Haven't used it in a LOOOOONG time!  Here goes:

In the container on the left:  A B.A.S.  (Big Azzzzz Salad!)  with mixed veggies and grilled chicken.  In the small green container is a homemade vinaigrette...THAT I MADE MYSELF!  (Yeah, I did!) 

Bottom green container:  Fresh blackberries and raspberries

Top purple container:  Almond trail mix

On the side:  Greek Yogurt

I made the vinaigrette with some vinegar I bought at Trader Joe's.  Here's a picture:

I mixed it with Honey, Garlic Olive Oil, Rosemary, and a little garlic.  It was SO GOOD when I tasted it, that I had to make me a salad for dinner!!  Ha!  This is a keeper!  Going to have to keep a look out for some more flavored vinegars.  This was so good!

Have a great day!  Enjoy!