Jaxon woke up to heart shaped pancakes, oranges, yogurt, and juice! He will open his lunch to heart shaped quesadilla's, a heart shaped brownie, strawberries, corn chips, and juice. Heart over kill...maybe, but it's not often that a mother gets to go overboard with her 7 year old and not completely embarrass him.

Carter and I are off to pick up a cold stone cake for my dear husband, some strawberries and organichocolate to dip for the boys, a few balloons and any fun coloring books that are Valentine themed, and few odds and ends of things we need for the house. We will also stop by starbucks and have a little "date"!

Brent is picking up some take out from PF changs and I rented a movie on ITunes for us to watch tonight after the kids get in bed! We are looking forward to a relaxing Valentine's Day! What is everyone else doing?

 A shopping day at Whole Foods yesterday meant new treats for breakfast and lunch today!  Jaxon loves having a donut, yogurt, and fresh fruit (grapes, strawberries, apple, orange) every morning for breakfast, it’s his “thing” and he prefers that I don’t change it up too often.  Yesterday I saw this new brand of gluten free donuts so I decided he should try them out, after all, eating the same (3 types) of donuts Monday through Friday has to get a little old, even for a child who thrives on routine.  Anyway, the donuts were a hit; they were sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar, but not caked with it.  You could easily add a little homemade glaze if you wanted to. Thank you Katz for your gluten free donuts!


 

Lunch today was quick and simple; Jaxon told me specifically what he wanted.  I picked up another product yesterday, Qbel whole grain crispy wafers (*these are not gluten free but Jaxon tested well for them at his doctors appointment), I will be interested to see what he has to say about them.  Along with the wafer (which will serve as his“treat” in his lunch) he got a ham and cheese roll up, a handful of grapes, organic lemonade, and some Santa Cruz applesauce (2 for $6 at Whole Foods right now).  I love when he picks out a few healthy items for his lunch; this way I know he will eat it all and have a great afternoon at school!

What did everyone else pack today?

Well, it is two full months into the school year and six weeks until Christmas break…which will mark the "half-way" through the year point!  Jaxon has definitely eaten more so far this year than he did all of last year combined.  I am still struggling to find new and interesting ideas that will “suck him in” and encourage him to eat!  I have found that by snapping a picture of his lunch now and then is actually a good idea because I can show him the pictures and he can tell me which lunches he enjoyed and which ones he didn’t care for.  I also hope that by sharing pictures of Jaxon’s lunches I might give some ideas to other moms who are also struggling (allergies or not) to find different things to send to school each day. 



Here are a few things from my “school lunch pantry”…

http://www.amazon.com/LunchBots-Trio-Stainless-Steel-Container/dp/B006T5BLNU/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1352168045&sr=8-6&keywords=lunch+bots
I use this one (with 3 divided spots) and love that I can use the silicone baking cups to separate different food items and have room at the bottom for sticks of fruit, meat and cheese rolls, or even string cheese.


http://www.amazon.com/Norpro-431-4-Piece-Silicone-Maker/dp/B0036B9KHO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1352168084&sr=8-1&keywords=smoothie+pop+mold
These are the pop molds that I use daily for yogurt, homemade pudding, homemade smoothies, or homemade applesauce.  I fill them up and put them in the freezer and grab one in the morning when I am making Jaxon’s lunch.  I have found that they work best if I don’t fill them completely full and squeeze any extra air out of the top before freezing them. 



http://www.amazon.com/Lunch-Munch-Snack-Boxes-3pack/dp/B0072MUD9M/ref=sr_1_cc_1?s=aps&ie=UTF8&qid=1352168109&sr=1-1-catcorr&keywords=wexy+bags
These have been great reusable bags for cookies, pretzels, chips, cut up fruit, and they are super easy to wash out, dry and use again the next day…no more throwing away baggies every night!


http://www.amazon.com/Kitchen-Supply-Silicone-Baking-3-inch/dp/B001ET7B9E/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1352168143&sr=8-5&keywords=silicone+baking+cups
I love these baking cups for lunches, they hold nearly anything you send in the lunch and keep food from touching each other.  They are really easy to wash which is definitely a plus in my house.


http://www.amazon.com/Animal-Cupcake-Picks-Food-set/dp/B004MO99HU/ref=sr_1_19?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1352168195&sr=1-19&keywords=cupcake+picks
As long as your school approves, I love using picks in Jaxon’s lunch.  They add a little “spunk” to his lunch and encourage him to eat.  I get ones that have a rounded end so they aren’t sharp.


http://www.amazon.com/Pure-Hydration-Insulated-Stainless-25oz/dp/B00295ERRG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1352168368&sr=8-1&keywords=pure+hydration+bottle
Best water bottle ever! I send ice water every day and when he gets home at 3:00 there is still ice in the bottle!

http://www.amazon.com/Sassy-On-Feeding-Set-Blue/dp/B004X7FMC2/ref=sr_1_cc_2?s=aps&ie=UTF8&qid=1352168414&sr=1-2-catcorr&keywords=sassy+lunch+container
My other favorite lunch container, it also holds anything I send for lunch and I can easily “separate” the different lunch items with ease.

http://www.amazon.com/YummyEarth-Organic-Gummy-Bears-0-9-Ounce/dp/B0023V65GW/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1352168446&sr=8-3&keywords=organic+bears
Our favorite “go to” organic gummies, no dyes, no junk, just good!  (My other choice is Surf Sweets bears.)

http://www.amazon.com/Surf-Sweets-Organic-0-9-Ounce-Packages/dp/B003G522W0/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1352169293&sr=8-2&keywords=organic+jelly+beans
I like having fun snacks to send in Jaxon’s lunch so h  feels like he is getting a “treat” while he eats.  These are great because they don’t have any icky dyes in them that make my child bounce off the walls.

http://www.amazon.com/Munchkin-Piece-Silly-Sandwich-Cutter/dp/B0076LAGQ4/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1352168522&sr=8-8&keywords=sandwich+cutters
My little one LOVES it when I cut his sandwich into fu  shapes.  Any cookie cutter will do!


  

Update on Lunch…


Well, we are over a month into school and Jaxon is still eating his lunch.  Some days are better than others, but we are definitely making progress since last year!  I am going to attempt to do some good ole’fashioned “canning” when my parents come and that will make for cheaper/organic (is that even possible) lunches!

Here are a few pictures of our Bento lunches…both Carter’s and Jaxon’s.