• Lunch Box Surprises: A Banana with a Name

    Karlie & Brina’s bananas for lunch

    When I make school lunches for the girls I try to put in something fun or interesting into their lunch boxes. Usually they don’t see what surprise I have added until they open their lunch box at school.  I use a variety of different notes, treats, and special items for their lunches.  One of the treats I have been doing this year is tattooing their bananas before sticking them into their lunches.  They have gotten a real kick out of seeing tattooed bananas appear in their lunch boxes!

    I love discovering new and easy ways to add a little spark to their meal!  Both girls enjoy bananas and will take them in their lunches plus we typically have a variety of tattoos from random places around to put to use.  These tattoos were from the girls last visit to the eye doctor.

    One day as I was tattooing their bananas Jake suggested adding their names to the bananas too.  I took a butter knife and lightly scratched their names into the bananas and drew a heart around their tattoos.  As the scratched parts became exposed to the air the lettering began to darken and this is what it looked like a short while later.  Our family usually packs lunches the night before so these went in the lunch boxes and fridge at night; the next morning when I added the ice packs the bananas looked the same as pictured above.  The girls thought these were awesome!

  • Red, White, & Blue Smoothie

    Are you ready for a smoothie now?  Here’s a picture of the one the girls call our “red, white, and blue” smoothie.  It is tasty, healthy, and easy to put together!  Perfect for the July 4th Holiday.

    Red, White & Blue Smoothie

    • 1/4 cup Blueberries (fresh or frozen)
    • 1 cup whole Strawberries (fresh or frozen)
    • 1 Banana
    • 1/4 cup Vanilla Yogurt
    • 1 cup Milk

    Blend all the ingredients together and enjoy.  You can add more or less of the fruit or dairy if you prefer.  This recipe is for a single serving so if you want it to serve more you will want to double or triple it.

  • Fresh & Healthy: Lunch Box Meals

    Lunch Box – Chicken Salad Sandwich, Tomatoes, Cucumbers, Banana, Yogurt, Lime Jello, CheezIt Crackers, and Boost

    With the second semester of school in full swing I am back to doing school lunches again every day.  Someone asked me what I send with the girls in their lunch boxes and asked if I could share some of my ideas.  Their lunches are not fancy, but I try to make them well balanced and fun.  Here is another post on school lunches.  In every lunch I pack a meat or protein, diary, fruit, vegetable, snack, and drink.

    Lunch Box – Chicken Salad Sandwich, Banana, Cucumbers, Tomatoes, Yogurt, Lime Jello, CheezIt Crackers, and Capri Sun Juice

    Occasionally I will pick up some character sandwich bags at the Dollar Tree or other stores just for fun to add to the girls lunches.  The girls love getting Princess, Dora, Tinkerbell, Lightening McQueen, and a variety of other character lunches baggies in their lunch boxes.  Sometimes I will get great sandwich bread on clearance at the store and make what the girls call “football sandwiches” for an special treat as well (pictured below).

    Princess sandwich bags