Bento Lunch #378: Inlaid Hearts Valentine's bento

It is only Thursday but seems like Friday to me, does that ever happen to you? Like my maternal grandma used to say in her both rapid and comical Chinese, " I am so busy until I can't even remember my name or last name", I am translating from Chinese word for word as what she used to say.:) We didn't dare to laugh then; and now I, myself, sometimes express the same thought to my husband - only in English. He doesn't dare to laugh either and I am guessing he is afraid he will end up on the couch!

This will be my last bento for this week and Nikolai is going to have school lunch tomorrow. Have a great Friday and a fantastic weekend everyone!

In this bento lunch:

• Main section: Heart shaped sandwiches with whole wheat and pumpernickel cut with heart shaped cutters in two sizes with inner sections swapped.
• Upper left: Lettuce and mini heart shaped carrot pieces with ranch dressing in the mini container.
• Upper right: Organic apple sauce topped with a strawberry half cut into heart shaped.
• Far right edge: Fork and spoon wrapped in cloth napkin. Packed in Laptop Lunches. 

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Bento Lunch For Mom And Hearts Bento Snack for Son

I seldom pack lunches for myself and this is the first one I am sharing on my blog! I have been very busy this week again and probably will be till after Easter. Today, Nikolai will be joining all the other second graders for a pizza party. The second grade students won the box top competition by bringing  the most box tops and labels for education. I packed a bento snack just in case he needs more food. One mini heart shaped cookie cutter did most of the cutting for his simple snack.

Mom's Simple Lunch

In this bento lunch:

• Honey ham roll ups.
• Mini pear.
• Cucumber pieces.
• Pumpernickel bread squares and Colby longhorn cheese squares. I added some cute picks for myself :)

Son's Simple Snack

In this bento snack:

• Wheat thins topped with heart shaped mild cheddar cheese.
• Strawberry slices with a cute cupcake pick and a food divider.
• Heart shaped cucumber and carrot slices. Packed in Steeltainer snack container. I love this container with the adjustable and removable inner divider. I did a review on this container here.

Here are the supplies that I used to make and pack this lunch and snack.

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Bento Lunch: Valentine's Waffles Breakfast For Lunch

How was your weekend? I hope you all had a good one! As usual on Mondays my refrigerator is quite bare and I am planning on cleaning out our freezer and shelves before I go for grocery shopping. I spent much of yesterday organizing our home and gave away lots of Nikolai's once treasured, but now forgotten, toys. I remember someone once told me that as our children grow older, their toys are smaller and typically fewer, but  more expensive!

First time I am sending waffles to school with him and I included his favorite MorningStar Farms Veggie burger. I used frozen waffles, toasted them and heated the veggie burger in the microwave, super easy for a Monday morning.

In this bento:

• MorningStar Farms grillers veggie burger. I used our FubBites Cube it.
• Waffles and organic maple syrup in small container.
• Heart shaped egg that fits nicely into a Mini-dipper which isolates the egg smell from other foods. I used a heart shaped egg mold to mold the egg.
• Cucumber slices.
• Strawberries cut into heart shapes.
• Packed in an Easylunchboxes container

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Bento Lunch: Tri-color Pearl Couscous and Nuggets bento

Happy Friday! I have been super busy this week but glad that we are going on a road trip again this weekend!:) We went to Ikea and Sanrio last weekend in Tampa, was a last minute trip as I was craving for some amazing Chinese food and dim sum at my favorite Chinese restaurant. My hubby enjoys driving and thankfully willing to drive to wherever that has good food, I love to eat and our son is quite picky but loves to travel.
Nikolai does like couscous and I recently purchased a jar of Tri-color Pearl couscous and made some for his lunch today. Have a fantastic weekend!

In this bento lunch:

• Main compartment -Tri-color Pearl couscous with olive oil and cute baran sheet in big dipper.
• Upper left - Shredded cheese in little dipper for the couscous and cucumber slices.
• Upper right - Strawberries and blueberries.
• Center - Yogurt covered star from Trader Joe's
• Lower left - All natural white meat chicken nuggets. Packed in Planetbox Rover.

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Bento Lunch: Valentine's Heart Tic-Tac-Toe

I will be making Valentine's lunches occasionally before Valentine's Day and of course there will be a lot of baking going on around here.:) I think heart shaped cookie cutters are the easiest and quickest way to create a fun lunch.

In this bento lunch:

• Main compartment - Valentine's heart tic-tac-toe for which I used a heart shaped cookie cutter for the sandwich with nori for the lines, mini heart shaped Asiago cheese colored with red food safe maker and X's are Colby longhorn cheese.
• Upper left - Edamame with a heart shaped cupcake ring.
• Upper right -Strawberries cut into heart shapes.
• Center - Yogurt covered star from Trader Joe's
• Lower left - Wheat thins with XO mild cheddar. Packed in Planetbox 

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Bento Lunch: Puppy Love Valentine's bento

I am a fan of Donny Osmond especially during my childhood days and love the song Puppy Love! My hubby loves pumpernickel bread which presently we have on hand, so I thought it will be great to use some for this Valentine's puppy bento. I have made a couple of puppy bentos previously but it's nice to experiment with different kind of breads.

In this bento lunch:

• Puppy face sandwich made with a heart shaped cookie cutter for face and ears, candy eyes, raisin nose and pumpernickel bread for ears and freckles.
• Blueberries.
• Salad with shredded cheese and heart shaped carrots. I included salad dressing and a fork but not in picture.
• I used food safe marker for lettering on the banana.
• Packed in our new Easylunchboxes brights. and I also included a lunchbox love note. 

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Winner Of Blogiversary $50 Amazon Gift Card is.....

Before I announce the winner I would love to thank everyone who has left comments, participated and shared my giveaway. Since I delayed celebrating this first one, my second Blogiversary will be coming up in only a few months! I hope you all will be back to celebrate with me again. I plan for the next Blogiversary to be even better! I am also very honored that some of you have been inspired by my bento lunches. And here is the winner......

No.120

Olivia RameyJanuary 9, 2013 at 6:07 PM

Happy anniversary and thanks for the giveaway! I am following you on gfc.

oliviaramey1 at gmail dot com

Congratulations Olivia Ramey! I will be emailing you shortly.

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Review: FunBites Cube It- Clock bento lunch and Initial bento snack

I was given the opportunity to review the FunBites Cube It cutter. It comes as two pieces, one piece that's the curved blade to cut foods into pieces and the other is the popper topper which helps you to remove the food within seconds. I was impressed as to how easy it was to use and this product not only worked for sandwiches but also worked on variety of foods including fruit, cheese, pancakes and more. The cutter is not sharp to the touch and it is even safe for kids to use. Besides school lunches, I am planning on using the FunBites cube it for some party platter foods as well when entertaining family and friends!

FunBites Cube It is made of high performance material for strength, sharpness and durability to create fun, bite-sized meals in less than 10 seconds. It works best on flat surfaces, is top-shelf dishwasher safe and BPA free.

I made one bento lunch for school and one bento snack for Nikolai to eat in the car after school since we have an appointment today. Check out my $50 Amazon gift card blogiversary giveaway here.

Clock bento lunch for school.

In this bento lunch:

• Main section: Turkey and Gouda cheese pumpernickel and smart white bread sandwich bites made with FunBites cube it. Face of clock is from smoked Gouda with hands of mild cheddar cheese and raisin center.
• Upper right: Cube it cut cucumber.
• Lower right: Cube it cut watermelon
• Far right edge: Whole wheat thins. Packed in Laptop Lunches.

Last name initial bento snack for after school.

In this bento snack:

• Main section: Sunbutter pumpernickel 'L' shaped for his last name initial and smart white bread sandwich bites made with FunBites cube it.
• Upper let: Cube it cut watermelon.
• Upper right: Cube it cut mild cheddar cheese.
• Lower right: Veggie chips. Packed in Trudeau Fuel Everest sandwich box.

Here are the supplies or similar that I used to make this lunch and snack.
 
Disclosure: FunBites generously provided me with the product for review without cost to me. Other than receiving the product, I have not received any compensation to write this review.

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Bento Lunch: Panda bento using CuteZCute cutter

I love using our all in one CuteZCute sandwich cutter. It is so easy to use, easy to clean and I am sure this bento lunch will put a smile on my son's face. Recently he has been asking me to include a LunchBox Love note daily with his lunch which I try to remember. The nice people over at sayplease.com recently sent me several additional boxes of Lunchbox Love notes and I love reading them myself.

Note: If you like what I am doing, I would also love for you to follow my Facebook page since I post more often there with some cute and fun foods which I occasionally find on the web.

In this bento lunch:

• Panda shaped ham and smoked gouda cheese sandwich using CuteZCute sandwich cutter. Inserts for eyes, nose, ears are organic fruit leather and pupils are from smoked gouda cheese. Blanched sugar snap peas and mild cheddar alphabets.
• Wheat thins crackers.
• Seedless red grapes and strawberry slices. Packed in EasyLunchboxes container. Panda clip for LunchBox Love note is from dollar section at Target.

Here are the supplies or similar that I used to make this lunch.

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Bento Lunch: Meatballs bento from freezer stash

Happy Monday everyone! This is what I managed to find in my refrigerator this morning and I am thankful for my freezer stash meatballs. I need to go grocery shopping this evening for sure. Here is a simple and fast bento that I managed to put together with what I had. Packed in our favorite stainless steel Planetbox.

In this bento lunch:

• Main compartment - Meatballs on lettuce leaf and mild cheddar cheese in silicone cup. I love the giraffe food pick that can be used as a mini fork.
• Upper left - Seedless green grapes and strawberry slices.
• Upper right - Cucumber slices.
• Center - Yogurt covered raisins.
• Lower left - Organic whole grain rice crispy bar. Packed in Planetbox and I included a LunchBox Love note.

Here are the supplies that I used to make and pack this lunch.
 

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Bento Lunch: 10 Cute and Simple Valentine's Lunch Box Ideas

Valentine's Day is around a month from now and I decided to look back at my previous bento lunches from last year. For us, it is not only Valentine's Day but also Valentine's eve that is memorable. It was the 13th of February 2000, in the gentle rain falling on the public garden at the foot of one of the world's greatest buildings half way around the world that my husband proposed sharing forever together. Anyway, here are several of my bento lunches in no particular order.

Sweet Valentine's Cupcake bento lunch

Love Letters Valentine's bento lunch

LOVE Valentine's bento lunch

XOXO Valentine's bento lunch 

Hearts & Initial Valentine's bento lunch 

Puppy Love Valentine's bento lunch 

Bee Mine Valentine's bento lunch 

Hearts on mac Valentine's bento lunch

Hugs and Kisses Valentine's bento lunch 

I Love You Valentine's bento lunch 

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Bento Lunch: Bear under blanket bento

Happy Friday everyone! We are all finally feeling much better from the cold and cough that has been spreading around. I am looking forward to spending more time outdoors this weekend. This bear under blanket bento was inspired by my artistic friend Yenny over at Mommy of twins. Have a wonderful weekend:) Check out my $50 Amazon gift card blogiversary giveaway here.

In this bento lunch:

• I used whole wheat round sandwich thins for the bed and blanket. The top part of the blanket was turned over and cut into bear shape. Bear's head is resting on colby pillow, candy eyes and raisin mouth.
• Organic baby carrots and ranch in little bear container.
• Seedless green grapes and strawberry pieces. Packed in EasyLunchboxes container.

Here are the supplies that I used to make this lunch.

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Bento Lunch: Tigger bento

I love using sandwich cutters with stamps, they are so easy to use and this set was purchased from e-bay. I added Winnie the Pooh and Piglet cupcake picks to keep the friends together :) 

In this bento lunch:

• Tigger SunButter(sunflower butter) sandwiches stacked and mild cheddar cheese. I used the stamper for the sandwiches and the cheese.
• Cucumber slices.
• Strawberry halves. Packed in Lock and Lock container with Lunchbox Love note.

Here are the supplies that I used to make this lunch.

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Blogiversary Giveaway- $50 Amazon Gift Card

Actually it was back in Aug last year when I should have celebrated my 1 year blog anniversary but I was too busy and simply forgot about it. Well, now that I have remembered it must be time to do the celebration!
  
Here is a chance for a lucky winner to enjoy some online shopping! I am giving away a $50 Amazon gift card.
Amazon.com Gift Cards never expire, so you can buy something immediately or wait for that sale of a lifetime.
This Giveaway is for Worldwide. 

To enter you just need to leave a comment on my blog - that's it!
For additional entries you may:
1. 'Like' Bento School Lunches on Facebook page. Leave a comment indicating that you've done so.
2. Join my blog via GFC by clicking on the followers widget on the right side of this page and comment that you have done so. Leave a comment telling me if you already are.
3. Follow me on Pinterest. Leave a comment indicating that you've done so.
4. Blog or pin this giveaway. Leave a comment indicating that you've done so.
5. Tweet about this giveaway. Leave a comment indicating that you've done so
6. Share about this giveaway on your facebook. Leave another comment telling me you have done so.

Entries will be accepted now through Sunday, 1/20/13 at 11:59pm EST. The winner will be selected at random using 'random.org', and announced on Monday morning (1/21/13). I will email the winner, who must contact me at no later than 1/22/13.
Please make sure I have a way to contact you. If I can't locate an email, I will draw a new winner.Good Luck!

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Bento Lunch: Shells & Cheese Pasta bento

Yesterday my husband was off in the morning and took our son to school. Today I had the honor of that duty, so I decided to prepare something quick and easy that I knew he would enjoy for his lunch at school.

In this bento lunch:

• Main compartment - Shells and Cheese pasta in big dipper.
• Upper left - Pretzels.
• Upper right - Seedless green grapes and cantaloupe.
• Center - Yogurt covered raisins.
• Lower left - Blanched sugar snap peas. Packed in our Planetbox Rover.

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Bento Lunch: Happy New Year Simple Sandwich Thins bento

Happy New Year everyone! I hope you and yours had a wonderful holiday season. This is my first bento for the year 2013 and I am starting off with a very simple one. I am still on winter break mode and take sometime getting back into school routine. Weather here has been so nice and we enjoyed being out and about a lot. Yesterday, it was around 80 °F while we were out for horseback riding with lessons. Sandwich thins are among my favorites for quick and easy lunches.

In this bento lunch:

• Arnold whole wheat sandwich thins with colby numbers secured by honey, Happy New Year pick and strawberries.
• Organic baby carrots.
• Wheat crisps and Clif kid organic Z bar. Packed in an Easylunchboxes container with Lunchbox Love note.

Here are the supplies that I used to make this lunch.

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