I'm going to be leaving town for work on Valentine's Day so I thought I'd make a little early Valentine's Day lunch for my daughter.  My wife was sick all day, so with three kids needing my attention, I had time to do a simple but special lunch for this morning. When you are trying to make sure the kids don't destroy the house or disturb your sick spouse, some things have to take priority. In between the madness of bedtime for the older two, and feeding time for the newborn, I was able to throw this lunch together. Remember that you always have time for something, whether it is this lunch, a sandwich shaped like a heart, or even a simple note. Kids remember these moments, and it might just make the difference in their day!

This is an easy lunch to reproduce so please feel free to take my idea and make it your own! One of the fun things about this lunch is the Lunchbox Love note. The note you see is a valentine with a fun fact on the back. I am including a whole set of these valentines in my daughter's lunch so she can pass them out to her friends at school. I also packed some of my daughter's most well liked foods in this lunch. 

Cutie oranges are one of her favorite fruits (mine too). She also loves a good hot dog. Well, this is actually a sausage which she likes even more. I sliced it up so the amount included only amounts to about half of the sausage. This lunch is made in a Planetbox Shuttle lunchbox. It is great when you need a smaller container for less food.

Ingredients

1 hot dog or sausage
1 hot dog bun
1 slice of cheese
1 Cutie orange
3-4 strawberries
1 serving yogurt covered raisins
1 serving Greek nonfat yogurt
1 Valentine's Day Lunchbox Love note

Directions

1. Cook hot dog, slice it into small rounds, then chill in refrigerator. Put hot dog bun in your main container. Arrange chilled hot dog slices in bun. 
2. Cut heart shapes out of cheese slice. place on top of hot dog slices.
3. Slice strawberries in half, then trim to look like hearts. Skewer the the strawberry halves and place in side dish.  Spoon yogurt into small container and top with strawberry heart.
4. Drop yogurt covered raisins around strawberry skewers.
5. Use sharp knife to slice the shape of a heart out of a Cutie orange. Put in side dish.
6. Finish lunch with a Lunchbox Love note if desired.







I hope you have a great Valentine's Day and are able to show love to your kids and your significant other in a special way. Check back later in the week as I hope to post some more great stuff on here as well as on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest!

This is also part of a great Valentine's Day blog hop and link party. Click the picture below to get some fun ideas for Valentine's Day!

#lbdbento

Christmas Lunch Replay: Winter Snowman

Christmas Lunch Replay: Winter Snowman.  This is a fun Holiday lunch from last year.  My Daughter is on Christmas break so we didn't do a new lunch today.  This could be a great lunch to make together with your kids over break because you might have everything in your cupboards already!  

This was also one that we did on TV last Christmas season so below you will find instructions and a video tutorial of it.  Have a great Christmas!

Here is the recipe for this simple lunch. Use cookie cutters or two different size cups to cut out bread in circles. Put peanut butter on one side and jelly on the other and make two small circular sandwiches. Use your lunchbox container and put down lettuce for the background and then use shredded cheese for snow on the ground. After that, put your two sandwiches on top to shape the snowman. I used dried blueberries for the buttons and eyes with raspberries for the scarf. I cut out a little wedge of carrot for the nose. Attach them all on with cream cheese. Cut out some fruit leather or fruit rollup for the hat and your snowman is done! Then, dip a little broccoli in cream cheese for some snow covered bushes and use half a mandarin orange for the sun. Just like that you are finished!

Christmas Tree Lunch

Year 2, Week 18: Christmas Tree Lunch.  I wanted to do something simple, yet fun this week.  Like many of you, the holidays are so busy in our family and sometimes a simple lunch is best.  We had our first Christmas party this weekend and did a FROZEN movie weekend the week before.  Here is a link if you want to check out some ideas that I posted for Sven Sandwiches and Olaf Banana Snowmen. We have been loving Cutie mandarin oranges in our house this month and I wanted to make a lunch with one of those also.  I love December because these oranges are in season and available everywhere.  Cuties are healthy and taste so good.  

So if you are busy like us, here is an easy Christmas lunch to make for your kids!  I made it in an Easy Lunch Boxes container with a Christmas themed Lunchbox Love note.  

Ingredients:

--1 Cutie orange

--Blackberries, dried blueberries, or both

--A few white sprinkles

--2 pieces whole wheat bread

--1 slice lunch meat

--1 slice of cheese

--Handful of shredded lettuce

--Plain or vanilla yogurt

--A few green sprinkles

--3 raspberries

--1 granola bar

--green food coloring

Directions:

1.  Cut one slice of bread in the shape of a tree.  It doesn't need to be perfect, just the general shape of a Christmas tree.  Use the first tree to cut a second tree out of another slice of bread.  Put the lunch meat and cheese between the two slices and arrange the shredded lettuce on top.  It helps if you use some sort of spread between the bread and the lettuce to keep the lettuce on top.  I used pesto on this sandwich.  Place the sandwich in the main container but make sure there is enough room for the Cutie above it.

2.  Using a sharp knife, make shallow cuts on the Cutie to create the star.  It is much easier than it sounds.  Just cut one triangle at a time.  Slice only two sides of the triangle and then bend the orange peel up, working your way around the orange.  Be careful not to pull the peel all the way off.  Repeat for each side of the star.  When done, place the Cutie above the tree sandwich.

3.  Surround the tree and Cutie with blackberries or dried blueberries.  I actually used both in this lunch for some variety.  When done, spread a few white sprinkles on top to look like snow.

4.  In one side container use non-fat plain or vanilla yogurt.  Arrange a few raspberries on top of the yogurt and then spread some green sprinkles over both the yogurt and the berries. 

5.  Cut your granola bar into two pieces.  In this lunch is a sweet and salty almond granola bar.  Use a toothpick and draw lines on the bar with green food coloring so that it looks like a present.  You only need to do this on one piece.  Place both pieces in second side dish with the one that looks like a present on top.

6.  Finish by placing a Christmas themed Lunchbox Love note on top for a little lunchtime fun!

I hope you have an amazing Christmas!  Remember to follow me on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest to get even more great tips and reviews.  

#lbdbento