Crazy week

So THIS will be a crazy busy week due to Hailey's 4th birthday and the shortened holiday week.  I'm SO excited!!  Truly, this week can take its sweet time.  I'm going to savor every moment.

Hailey's lunch for tomorrow: ham and cheese Santa crackers, mini pretzels, peach yogurt, blueberries with a Santa pick, carrots and a container of ranch, and a rice krispie Rudolph resting on a red of snow (mini marshmallows).

Too tired...nothing to say!

Hailey's lunch: cream cheese and jelly Christmas tree, cheddar cheese presents, raisins, blueberries, applesauce, mini marshmallows, and a Rudolph rice krispie treat.

Cailyn's lunch: cream cheese and jelly on wheat, applesauce, cheddar cheese, and blueberries

Baby It's Cold Outside

I love the cold weather.  I don't mind walking to my car when it is cold, the wind whipping against my cheeks and ears, my girls don't cry or complain about the weather (as a matter of fact, Hailey loves it!).  It gives me the perfect opportunity to crank the heat on our ride to work/school, wear lots of layers, or snuggle with my girls under a blanket at home.  I can't do anything about the freezing temperatures, so I may as well look at the positives!!

Hailey's lunch for tomorrow: ham and cheese with present skewers, grape tomatoes and ranch, cinnamon goldfish, diced pineapple, and marshmallows (REALLY hoping for a snowy weekend....maybe this is just as good as doing a snow dance??) under a Christmas tree. :)

I cannot get enough Christmas right now.

Hailey is starting to get SO excited about her upcoming birthday and Christmas.  I figured I'd play into it.  Well, let's face it.  I'm super excited too. :)  I know of some coworkers who wouldn't mind getting this lunch tomorrow either. :)  Let's see if they are reading tonight!!

Hailey's lunch for tomorrow is:

A cream cheese and jelly gingerbread man, grape tomatoes and ranch, cheddar cheese cubes with a Santa Claus pick, blueberries, vanilla pudding with holiday sprinkles, and two marshmallows on a present pick.  

Last full week of work!!

Last week was beyond crazy.  I was out too many late nights due to work events and my birthday (happy birthday to me!!).  I was lucky I even had time, or the desire, to make lunch.  I did have bentos for Hailey each day, but didn't have the energy to take a photo or blog.  Anyways, I'm back for (hopefully!) another full week this week.  Hey, December is crazy for most, right?? :)

This week is another "full week" of work.  Next week will be only 3.5 days before the long Christmas break.  Can't wait.

Hailey's lunch for Monday:

Ham and cheese on homemade bread (in the shape of a present, under a Christmas tree pick), blueberries, peach yogurt, a clementine (I tried to get another present cutout, but it didn't quite work....), mini shortbread cookies, and scooby fruit snacks.

Cailyn's lunch for tomorrow:

Blueberries (sliced in half), cheddar cheese cubes, garden tomato snacks, peach yogurt, and cinnamon goldfish

Snow!

There was no snow on the ground when I left my house, so I was shocked when I saw snow on the ground in the town where I work!  I loved seeing all the flurries outside my classroom window today, and it made me really want to get hit with a BIG storm right about now. I will keep my fingers crossed. :)

Hailey's lunch for tomorrow:

Ham and cheese on sandwich thins, with an extra cheese santa on top, grape tomatoes and a container of ranch, a clementine, mini pretzels, and a marshmallow snowman.

Cailyn's lunch isn't colorful, but I know she'll think it is yummy!  She is having homemade mac and cheese, applesauce, clementine, cheese, and some animal crackers.  I'm sending some yogurt also.

It's the holiday season!

This week will be a busy one.  A full week of work, my 29th birthday (ok 31, but is anyone actually reading this?), my Winter Concert with school, and a night out with my bestie.  Too bad the weekend couldn't have lasted an extra day.  We ended up cutting down our tree for the 1st time this year (fun!), decorating with the girls, finished up most of the holiday shopping, got Cailyn's 1st birthday pictures/family pictures done (finally!), and more.  Seems like the weekend FLEW by, and I'm just plan exhausted.  I wish I could just go to bed right now, but it is only 7:30.

Anyways, here are Monday lunches for my cuties!

Hailey has two candy cane sandwiches (cream cheese and jelly), a babybel with a candy cane cutout, goldfish, yogurt, and two mini sugar cookie presents under a Christmas tree.  I also sent reindeer snacks with ranch (think she will eat them if I refer to them as reindeer snacks?  We will see!)

Cailyn will have cream cheese and jelly, cheddar cheese, peaches, and yogurt.  I may send her some vanilla pudding also.  Hopefully, I will remember!

Oh Christmas Tree.....

I'm so excited for this weekend.  We are going to get our Christmas tree, decorate the house, maybe even get the lights up outside (Paul...yes??).  I absolutely love this time of the year - from the cold weather, to the smells of festive candles, to the hustle and bustle of the shops....so much more.  I'm loving making holiday themed lunches for Hailey.  I hope she doesn't get sick of them by the time Christmas is actually here!!!

Hailey's lunch:

A ham and cheese Christmas tree with a cheese star on top, cheddar cheese gifts, cherry yogurt, strawberries and blueberries, cinnamon goldfish, mini marshmallows, a teddy bear of raisins, and some chocolate candy treats.

Hailey asked for blueberries and strawberries when I went grocery shopping last weekend.  Those two items cost over nine dollars!!!  Hence, the reason Hailey has had strawberries and blueberries this week....every.single.day.

Cailyn's lunch for tomorrow:

Chicken and peas, cherry yogurt, cheddar cheese, blueberries, and some animal crackers.

December is almost here!!

I've been listening to the Christmas music for a few days, the nativity, stockings, and advent wreath are in their special places, and my shopping is just about finished.  I feel like I'm actually a bit late starting to get into the holidays this year!  Well, my husband said we weren't going to "get into Christmas" until December 1st.  Well, you can bet that my girls will be up later than normal tomorrow so we can start putting more Christmas in this house!! 

Hailey's lunch for tomorrow:

A cream cheese and jelly santa, a babybel cheese with a star cut out, some strawberries, blueberries, tomatoes, and carrots (I told her these were reindeer snacks!), a rudolph shaped rice krispie treat (even stuck on a little red "nose"), and some vanilla yogurt with holiday sprinkles.  There are some mini marshmallows for an extra treat.

Cailyn's lunch is much less festive.  Let's face it....she doesn't care.  As long as she has her favorites, she is happy.

Cream cheese and jelly, blueberries, cheddar cheese, vanilla yogurt, and some animal crackers

A Gift for Hailey

I bought some cute holiday cookie cutters (made by Wilton), and thought I would try them out (well, the present shape anyways) for tomorrow.  I started to giggle as I made Hailey's "cheddar gifts".  I thought back to the year that my mom, claiming she didn't have any Christmas ideas for me, presented me with a huge basket of cheese and crackers.  A variety of different cheeses.  I was in heaven.  My mother certainly knew that this silly gift would make me smile.  The cheese basket wasn't the only gift I received from my mom that year, but I absolutely loved it.  My girls have inherited my love of dairy.  Maybe one day, I will give them a cheese basket too.

Hailey's lunch for tomorrow: Cheddar cheese presents, wheat thins, veggie sticks, applesauce with a pinch of cinnamon, strawberries and blueberries, and some marshmallows. 



Nice holiday break with the family

It was so nice to have the extra time home with my family over Thanksgiving break.  I've decided the work stress just isn't worth getting worked up over.  I was determined to have a relaxing 4 day weekend, and boy did I!  It got to the point where I just sat in complete silence reading a magazine for a good hour and a half on Saturday. I can't remember the last time that happened!!  I also did get some shopping done, visited with family, ate lots of yummy food, and spent quality time with the best little girls one could ask for.  And, yes, I did manage to get a teeny bit of work done too. :)

Lunch for tomorrow:

Cailyn will have a half of a cream cheese and jelly sandwich, strawberries and blueberries, vanilla pudding, and some animal crackers.  

Hailey's lunch is ham and cheese on a mini bagel, veggie sticks, a container of raisins, vanilla pudding with some heart sprinkles, strawberries and blueberries, and a couple of shortbread cookies.

Happy Thanksgiving!

So this short week was super easy.  Monday's lunches were simply leftovers (for the most part) from Cailyn's 1st birthday party on Sunday. Today's lunches were very simple, and tomorrow is the girls' Thanksgiving Feast at school.  I'll get back to making "cool lunches" on Sunday evening, but for now, I'm going to try to relax, spend time with my family, and enjoy the extra long holiday weekend. 

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!

How is my baby going to be ONE tomorrow??

Hailey is so incredibly excited for Cailyn's 1st birthday tomorrow.  It totally makes my heart melt to see my two girls playing, laughing, and showing each other so much love.  Hard to believe that one year ago, Cailyn was not even here yet!

Hailey's lunch for tomorrow has a little love from mommy: Half a ham and cheese sandwich on Arnold's Sandwich Thins - with an extra cheese heart on top, blueberries with a little turtle pick, pirate's booty, vanilla yogurt with heart sprinkles, and a few fudge cookies for dessert.

I forgot to take a picture of Cailyn's lunch.  It isn't anything "birthday" related, or anything "special" for that matter.  I did manage to send her with her favorite (grilled cheese), diced blueberries, and yogurt.  I also baked some sugar cookies (compliments of Betty Crocker - LOL) for her little playmates at daycare.  Where does the time go??  I'm feeling so sad that she is already through her first year...but I'm so incredibly happy that this sweet little lady is in my life. I love her more than words can say.  We are very blessed.

I think this lunch looks yummy - and colorful!  I'm hoping is brings a smile to my cutie's face tomorrow.

Hailey's lunch: Wheat Thins, a babybel cheese with an H cutout in the center, blueberries, pirate's booty, a few carrots and grape tomatoes (the ranch is in the little yellow container), marshmallow halves held in place by a little pick, and some vanilla pudding with "fairy dust."

One day down....

Four more to go!  I'm pretty excited that Hailey liked the Arnold Honey Wheat sandwich thins.  She hasn't really been eating the bread of her sammies anymore....regardless of the way they are cut (hence the regular "cheese and cracker" lunches!).  These are pretty tasty though, if I do say so myself.  She asked for another tomorrow.  I'll be interested to see if she does indeed eat it, or if she picks the meat and cheese out of the middle.

Hailey's lunch is a half of Arnold's Sandwich Thins with ham and cheese (and a turtle pick for some fun), some pirate's booty, grape tomatoes (I did add a small container of ranch after the picture was taken), applesauce, and some cute little treats for dessert....mini twizzlers, two hershey squares, and rice krispie flowers (the stems are just green toothpicks).

Full week ahead...

I'm beyond excited that we have a full week of school this week.  Well, no, not really.  But, it is the last full week of classes before Thanksgiving.  That is certainly something to be excited about!! Also, this is the week my baby girl Cailyn is going to be ONE.  Where did the time go?!?!?  Friday (her birthday) can stay away for the time being....I'm not ready to have her turn one!

I took pictures of our three bentos for tomorrow.  Enjoy.

Cailyn's lunch: Diced ham and cheese, diced blueberries, yogurt, peas, and a few animal crackers.

Hailey's lunch: Ham and cheese on honey wheat sandwich bread, mayo in the little container with a spoon for spreading, Pirate's Booty, blueberries, yogurt, and some marshmallows and raisins.

My lunch: Ham and cheese on the honey wheat sandwich bread, celery and carrot sticks with a container of blue cheese, Pirate's Booty, and a mini Snickers bar for dessert.  Hey...I should help get rid of the Halloween candy, right?? ;-)

I forgot to post Hailey's Friday lunch.  Often, I take the picture, and then get sidetracked, forgetting to update my blog.  Here was Friday....

Cheddar cheese with a little pick, wheat thins, grape tomatoes with a container of ranch, applesauce (I stuck a little blue spoon in there also), whole wheat goldfish, and a little fish container of M&Ms.

And This Makes Three!

I'm SO happy tomorrow is Wednesday.  One day closer to Thursday, which we happen to have off from school.  Therefore, no bento photos tomorrow...but, three days in a row? I haven't done that in a while (ever??).  Here is Hailey's lunch for tomorrow.



A bagel with cream cheese and jelly (her new favorite?!?!), mini pretzel sticks, raisins, tomatoes with a container of ranch, and chocolate pudding with flower sprinkles.

Two days in a row....

Well, I'm pretty impressed with myself.  I actually am remembering to post bento photos two days in a row!  Cailyn's lunch for tomorrow is nothing interesting (unless you take into account the amount of food!), so I have pictures of Hailey's lunch and my lunch.

Hailey: Cheese on a mini potato roll (with mayo in a small container, and a little fork for her to spead it on), some whole grain goldfish, grape tomatoes, strawberry cheesecake yogurt, Disney princess snacks, and two mini rice krispie treat hearts.

My lunch: Cheddar cheese, a mini potato roll, grape tomatoes, carrots and celery sticks (I have a little container of blue cheese also), and some chips with salsa.

Snow?!?

I'm sure it won't hit my section of CT, but it is kind of exciting to think snow (even just a little bit) is on its way!  I love getting all bundled up and going to work.  Well, I like the getting dressed in warm clothes, but I sure would prefer to cuddle with my little ladies at home. :)

Here are lunches for tomorrow.

For Cailyn: A 1/2  of a cream cheese and grape jelly sandwich (cut into bite sized pieces) on whole wheat bread, peach yogurt, and baby peas.

For Hailey: The other half of the cream cheese/jelly sandwich (just in triangles....but, I noticed I left the crusts on.  Oops.  I'll see if she notices....), a Babybel cheese (with a little heart carved into the top), grape tomatoes and a container of ranch, a little bear filled with raisins, whole grain goldfish, and two marshmallows and a mini kit-kat for dessert.

I also found this photo of Hailey's Friday lunch....

Cheese and wheat thins, slices of kiwi (...that also ended up coming home. She told me to send them to Cailyn instead). Heart shaped cucumber, and some grape tomatoes with a container of ranch, mini preztels, and some marshmallows.

Midweek!!!!!

Not much to say today - it's been a looooooong one!!

Hailey's lunch for tomorrow:

Soynut butter and jelly on a potato roll (her request.....), grape tomatoes (and I'm just realizing I forgot ranch.  Maybe I'll add some later!!), mini pretzels, raisins, strawberry yogurt, and some mini fudge stripe cookies.

Happy Halloween!

The girls had a ton of fun trick-or-treating in our neighborhood this evening.  I don't know what we are going to do with all this candy!!!  Actually, I'm sure Paul will know exactly what to do with it. ;-) 

I didn't take a picture of Cailyn's bento for tomorrow, but here is Hailey's lunch.

A cheese sandwich (on a mini potato roll), heart shaped cucumber slices, grape tomatoes, a container of ranch, mini pretzels, mango, and a cupcake that Hailey designed. :)

A Rainbow of Color!

What a warm week it has been so far! I don't think I mind the rain that has come along with it either.  After last weekend in NH and VT, the warmth as been so nice!  I decided I would send Hailey as many colors as I could tomorrow....did I succeed?

Hailey's lunch: grape tomatoes, a container of fresh pumpkin seeds (...that Paul made today), heart shaped mango with a little pick, crackers and a cheese stick (cut into circles), raspberry yogurt, and s'mores goldfish.

For Cailyn: Diced cheese stick, peas and carrots, raspberry yogurt, a couple of crackers, and some fresh mango.

Busy weekend...back to the grind tomorrow!

Paul surprised us with a trip to New Hampshire this weekend.  We went to Santa's Village, and then traveled to VT to eat ice cream and lots of cheese on Sunday!!  Needless to say, we are all so sleepy...and I'm certainly NOT wanting to go to work tomorrow!  Hailey's lunch is just okay, but I am tired, and haven't been to the grocery store.  Hopefully Paul goes for me tomorrow (hint hint!).

Hailey's lunch for tomorrow is  heart shaped ham and cheese sandwich (with a penguin pick for fun), grape tomatoes with a container of ranch, grapes, vanilla yogurt with heart sprinkles, animal crackers, and some candy corn.

Catching Up

I have been good about making the bento lunches, and even good about taking pictures.  However, then I forget to update my blog!  So, here are my lovelies lunches for Tuesday, Wednesday, and tomorrow.

Hailey Tuesday: Peach Yogurt, grapes, a cheese stick (cut up with a penquin pick), crackers, grape tomatoes and a container of ranch, two shortbread cookies, and a little container of raisins.

Hailey Wednesday: Soynut butter and jelly squares, heart shaped cheese, grapes, peaches, animal crackers, and a container of raisins.

Cailyn Wednesday: Grilled cheese, cheddar baby goldfish, vanilla yogurt, and grapes

Hailey Thursday: A cheese sandwich "ghost" with raisin eyes, black olives and grape tomatoes, some blueberry yogurt, grapes, half an orange jack-o-lantern, and a few indian corn.

I'll be honest, I have NO idea what happened to my photos of Cailyn's lunches from Tuesday and tomorrow. So, I'll post one more from a week or so ago that, of course, I uploaded and forgot to post on here.  

Mini flower sandwiches, goldfish, raspberries, cucumber flowers with ranch, some dried apple, a homemade chocolate chip cookie, and a strawberry-apple fruit twist.

Determined to get back into this!

 going to try my best to post 5 bento lunches this week - for both girls.  Let's see if I can do it! :)

For Cailyn:

Diced chicken nuggets, cheese stick - cut into little pieces, grapes - again diced, and some vanilla yogurt.  Hopefully that is a decent lunch for her!

For Hailey:

Ham and cheese roll up, a few crackers, grape tomatoes and a little container of ranch, grapes, "s'mores" goldfish, and vanilla yogurt with a few heart sprinkles.

A Couple of Bentos

I know I've been extremely lazy about posting.  I realized just this past week that I had a 1st birthday party to plan - and what didn't seem like a lot of time to plan it!!  I said I would be "as good" about planing/organizing/doing things for Cailyn as I was for Hailey.  Well, that is obviously not true (seeing as how my pregnancy scrapbook for C isn't even halfway done!).  Anyways....I digress.

Even though I haven't posted lunches, I have certainly been continuing my project....most of the time.  At least one of the girls received a bento lunch each day since I've last posted.  Unfortunately, I forgot to post the pics, and deleted a number of them from my phone.  Oops!!!

Here are two from the past week (both Hailey's lunches) that I DID manage to save.

In this bento, a grilled cheese sandwich (no crusts), baby carrots w/ranch, mini pretzels, homemade cinnamon applesauce, strawberries, and a few mini fudge cookies.

This bento contains a cheese stick (cut into pieces), some crackers, cucumbers with a container of ranch, raspberries, peach pudding, and cinnamon goldfish.

Hopefully I'll be 5 for 5 in posting next week!!! :)

Another Day, Another Bento

Hailey's lunch for tomorrow: mozzarella cheese hearts, Wheat Thins, grapes with a turtle pick, Cheez-Its, strawberry-banana licorice, and mixed berry yogurt

Putting the puzzle together

I saw sandwich cutters that form pieces of a puzzle. I tried to recreate with Hailey's sandwich, though I don't really think the soynut butter and jelly on wheat cam out like a puzzle!!  Ah well.  Along side that is mini pretzels, strawberry and banana licorice, vanilla yogurt, strawberries, and mini cookies for dessert.

Yay for Fall!!!!

Finally, fall is here!  I loved wearing sweats all day and snuggling with my girls.  I didn't love that the house temperature was 59 degress for most of the day, but I did a lot of cooking and baking which warmed things up nicely.  Looks like cold rain for the beginning of the week. I don't know how I feel about that...but, at least the heat is gone! 

I'm noticing tomorrow's lunch isn't very colorful.  I'll really need to start being more creative.  I find that I can't send Hailey with *too* much because she is too busy looking at everything and then rushes to eat.  I need to brainstorm a bit....

Lunch for Hailey is heart shaped ham and cheese on wheat bread (little picks holding the sammies together), mini pretzels, grapes and strawberries, peach yogurt, and mini fudge cookies.

No "bento" for Cailyn tomorrow. She is having broccoli-cheddar soup, diced strawberries, yogurt, and baby goldfish.

Almost Friday!

I'm not sure why, but I do not have a photo of Hailey's lunch tonight. Maybe I'm still tired from my alarm going off at 12am???  That, I can assure you, will NOT happen this evening.

I do have a picture of Cailyn's lunch for tomorrow. Her fabulous teachers have said that she is loving feeding herself, so I send a bunch of finger foods (and some vanilla yogurt).  I hope Cailyn doesn't give them a hard time with her teachers feeding her off the spoon!!  I know it is a matter of time before she will be able to do it all by herself. :)

Tomorrow's lunch for Cailyn: an open faced grilled cheese, diced strawberries, sweet potato puffs, and vanilla yogurt.

Summertime.....

I know it isn't, but it sure felt like it today!  I'm sick of the heat and ready for the changing leaves and cooler temps.  It sure doesn't feel like the end of September!!!

Tomorrow's lunch is boring, but I'm sticking with my "project."

Wheat Thins, mozzarella cheese hearts, grape tomatoes, vanilla yogurt with heart sprinkles, grapes, and a small handful of fudge cookies.