Bento-ing at 6:30am

I can't believe my kids will all be out of school/preschool soon. Where has this school year gone? Before it's over I want to blog about bentos. I have, since January, been trying to teach myself to be a morning person so I can bento. I have been waking up at 6:30am. Well, how it really goes is: Adrian comes in and wakes me up at around 6:15 in such a happy morning loving way, "Jenni it's 6:15. Wake up! The day is slipping away!" and I lay there in a comatose state until 6:30 when I force myself to get out of bed. Slowly. Grumbling a little. I wish I sprang out of bed and greeted the morning with a smile like Julia Child alla Julie and Julia. That would be great. But I do get up, so in my mind that's victory for the night owl that I am.

I made it a New Years resolution to get up and make my kids better packed lunches for school. Bentoing has helped me do it. I discovered this world of packed lunches in little divided containers through some Bento Mommy Blogs (click here for a favorite blog) and it is fun. I try to give my kids a nice variety of main dishes (sandwiches, muffins, soups, quesadillas, wraps, mini waffles, French toast sticks, bread sticks with marinara..), a fruit or vegetable, a crunchy side of some kind, and a treat. I made a spreadsheet to help give myself ideas and every Friday or Saturday I sit down and plan the kids' lunches for the next week. I love the little container aspect. Love having another reason to containerize something! But I also love the positive feedback I get from the kids. Ben tells me all the time how much he loves his lunches, even though he still begs for hot lunch sometimes. What is the draw of instant mashed potatoes and Bosco Sticks?? I don't know, but he wants them! Sophie is a total fan of the lunches I make since hot lunch in middle school is so not cool.

Here's some pictures of what I've been making:

Everyday Bento (I make something to this effect about 2-3 times a week): grilled cheese, cantaloupe and grapes with a giraffe bento pick, snack mix: chex, raisins, and choc chips, and a homemade chocolate chip cookie

Poptart Bento: homemade poptarts, cantaloupe (my kids love cantaloupe), popcorn, choc Teddy Grahams, and heart marshmallows

Bread Stick Bento (sorry for the fuzzy pic): bread stick, marinara, Pirate Booty, cheese cubes, fruit cocktail, and kisses -- my kids love bread sticks for lunch

Soup Bento: leftover chicken noodle soup in a thermos, turkey and cheese sandwich on a homemade baguette, pickles, ginger Bunny Grahams and chocolate milk

Banana Bread Bento: peanut butter banana bread sandwich, pretzels, peaches, lime Jello, and choc milk

Ever-Favorite Leftover Pizza Bento: leftover homemade pizza, grapes, sandwich cookies, and choc milk

Holiday/Valentines Bento: heart shaped PB&J sandwich, heart shaped cheese slices, heart shaped kiwi slices with a puppy bento pick, heart marshmallows and a Valentine fruit snack with a Vday sticker

Wrap Bento: turkey wrap (flat bread, cream cheese, and turkey rolled up) pretzel crackers, grapes, and kisses

Super Fast Bento: a nutrigrain bar, Babybel cheese, grapes, crackers, and cookies

I'm working on making the lunches healthier. We do normal milk now or water in the place of chocolate milk, because choc milk does have a ton of sugar like Jamie Oliver says :), and I've been buying organic crackers and cookies for sides and treats if I don't make them myself. I think it's all about trying to do my best to have my kids like their lunches and make them as healthy as I know how. The lunch system that I use is Easy Lunch Boxes for the containers and lunch boxes to fit them in. I have heard great things about Laptop Lunch Boxes, maybe I'll give those a try sometime, but I do love the Easy Lunch containers. I use silicone muffin cups for dividers in the containers if I need to, plastic "souffle cups" to put sauces in that I bought in serious bulk from Costco's restaurant supply section, and little bento picks that I bought on Amazon for when I give them melon cubes, etc. I don't make my bentos as freaking cute as some bento bloggers do, but every once in a while I slip in a sticker for Ben, a note for Sophie, or make faces on something in the lunch with a food marker.  Once I put candy eyes on a mini waffle and Ben thought it was awesome.

So there you go. I bento and I think it's cool! It might seem goofy to say, but it has brightened my mornings. Even though I still feel like I truly wake up after the kids have gone to school, I'm working my way towards being that mom who springs out of bed and greets each child and my husband with a happy good morning. Seriously when that happens I think Adrian will be shocked speechless. It can happen though. I know I will get there as long as I have Saturdays to sleep in.:)