Saucy soy containers

Just look at these adorable little soy sauce (or liquid aminos) containers! They are so itty bitty cute...too small for baby (choking hazard) but delightful to my seven year old. I fill them all at one time, using a handy-dandy squeeamajigie that came with one of the sets when I bought them on eBay (links to the right).




I love that they are also perfectly portion controlled, as any parent will appreciate if you've ever seen a kid in charge of a soy sauce bottle before. ;) Just another of the little treasures that make bento'ing so much fun!

Cupcake and Butterfly Bento

My 14 month old's breakfast bento - Stonyfield Farms organic strawberry yogurt, served in a plastic cupcake stocking stuffer container I picked up at W'mart last year and never figured out what to do with. :) She ate most of it with her spoons, but also enjoyed dipping with her banana cookies. Organic cheerios added an extra nibble. She ate very well this morning and played with her cupcake for quite a while!

Okay now, no laughing! Remember, I'm a bento beginner! :P This bagel butterfly was decorated with craisins, mandarin oranges, and strawberry jam, served with cuplettes of strawberry yogurt, and surrounded by organic grapes and organic strawberry flowers. Very amateur, I know, but who cares? My little man *loved* it! :}

Quickie Breakfast Bento

I've been sick the past few days, and taking care of two sick kidlets as well. But this morning I whipped up this quick brekkie for my little guy. Honey wheat bagel halves, topped with Earth Balance and served with a tiny jar of blueberry jam (brought home from hotel room service a few weeks ago). Organic grape cluster and organic strawberry shooting stars (made with small metal cutter) were gobbled up happily, and he loved getting his vitas in the itty bitty carrot dish. Baby just had a cup of Stonyfield Farm baby yogurt and I soothed my sore parts with leftover egg drop soup. lol I'm looking forward to feeling better and more creative in a few days. ;)

Lazy Day Bento

Here are our lazy Saturday bentos! My son was snacking much of the afternoon and said he wasn't hungry for dinner, but when he saw me cutting heart crisps, he requested a PB & J in his Pokemon bento. :0)

Baby's bento - pretty simple tonight. Two-bean chili, chunky cheddar slices, and Wasa light crisps (which worked surprisingly well with my metal heart cutter). The little chick seasoning container is just for visual appeal and my little trick to get her to sit in her highchair. ;)

My seven year old was thrilled with his "Pokemon" organic PB & J on wheat (gingerbread cookie cutter)! And hubs and I are thrilled to see the difference that bentos are helping to make in his eating habits (well, that and seeing the computer generated images on, "Honey We're Killing the Kids"). He's always been very texture sensitive, so fruits and veggies can be a challenge. Tonight he ate every morsel of his organic grapes (Pokeberries ;) and organic strawberry shooting stars (cut with small metal flower cutter). YAY!

Homestyle Bento

When the baby and I got up from her nap late this afternoon, dh and ds were in the kitchen, fixing dinner together! (I told you he was wonderful!) I added something green, but the guys did everything else on their own! Yum!

Baby's bento was a huge success tonight! She loved everything - teddy bear broccoli nugget (Morningstar Farms, they are DElish and work great with plastic cutting tools), creamed corn, Stove Top stuffing ball made in a snap with our rice ball molds , asparagus spears seasoned with Earth Balance and garlic salt.

Big kid bento included Morningstar Farms soy protein nuggets (he didn't like the broc nugget at all), also in teddy bear shapes, a mustard-filled carrot dish for dipping, and a larger bowl of creamed corn off camera. Chocolate ice cream for dessert and everyone's happy!

Tired Mama Bento

Finally, we made it to the grocery store for a few things! Well, actually, my sweet hubby went for me. Whatta guy! Seriously, he's the best. Still, we're all recovering from colds and the baby is SUPER clingy, so this was the best I could summon tonight.







The beloved Pokemon box! Wedge of pizza (one of two he ate), accompanied by an organic applesauce river (note to self - don't try to cram applesauce), strawberry flowers (LOVE my metal flower cutter!), mandarin orange wedges, honey roasted cashews, and spinach and bleu cheese salad tossed in olive oil and sea salt. Yes, I know what you're thinking, and yes, my 7 yo actually ate two bites of the spinach salad, proclaiming it, "not too bad". It didn't hurt that Daddy promised to play Monopoly Jr. with him as soon as he was done. ;)

Baby's bento shows her love of strong flavors. Bleu cheese crumbles (she ate every last morsel and licked her fingers clean!), diced thin Genoa salami, Arostica chicken breast, organic unsweetened applesauce, and a few of her favorite organic Cheetos to stir up interest so we could get her to sit in her highchair. ;) Off camera is a baby-sized pizza slice which bought Mama enough time to actually eat my whole meal at once! Small pleasures, eh? :D

Hillbilly Bento

Okay folks, this is what newbie kiddie bento looks like in my house when everyone is sick, the family has just returned from a two-week vacation, and Mama hasn't been able to get to the grocery store yet. Gawk at your own risk!

I made this for my sick hubby. What else could I call it besides, "Hillbilly Bento" when I realized I was filling it with fried egg sandwich hearts with mayo and a heaping serving of Batman spagettios? Am I a hillbilly because I don't know how to spell spaghettios? lol Also included are the ever-elegant Flavor Blasted Goldfish crackers, freshly sauteed broc that somehow survived two weeks in a sealed fridge package (kinda scary if you ask me), and canned organic apricot halves.

My son's bento included a rolled slice of meunster cheese. He wasn't happy with his bento today - frankly he was insulted, he informed me, because he knew it was a baby bento box in disguise and incomparable to the Pokemon box. The discriminating taste of a seven year old....

Baby bento - fried egg yolk heartwich on wheat, teeny cup of spaghettios, organic apricot bits with puppy dog spear, baby sized broc and Gerbers sweet potato puffs (the only acceptable flavor). About half was consumed and the rest, worn, of course. ;)

Had to share one of our new adorable itty bitty forklettes. They are pure choking hazards so I keep them far from the baby, but today I thought they might cheer up a feverish hubbyman when he saw one hanging out on his favorite veggies. It kinda worked. lol