0 Bento #226 - Gyoza & Tomatoes

This one's been hanging out in my bento folder for a few weeks now.  We've been on vacation from school and work, and enjoying our time off and relaxing!  Hope everyone else has been enjoying their time too.  My husband and I spend our 10th wedding anniversary at the Brasstown Valley Resort & Spa in the North Georgia mountains for a few days.  We went horseback riding, had spa treatments, a wine tasting at a local vineyard and more.  We even had our very own fireplace in our suite.  Heaven!

For this Planetbox bento, we have E's favourite chicken gyoza here, cut in half.

E has been bugging me about fresh tomatoes for the last few weeks.  She loves Romas!

Accompanying the tomatoes and gyoza are little cute bottles of ponzu sauce and ranch dressing.

All loaded up in her Planetbox!

Bento #226 - Chicken gyoza, ponzu sauce, celery sticks, ranch dip, roma tomatoes and multi vitamins.  Snack - Focaccia croutons and dried cranberries.

6 Bento #216 - Frog Prince Sandwich & Edamame

I just love these Lunch Punches!    This one is a frog prince, though I wish the features showed up better in the pictures.  Super cute.   As you can see below, I did an inside-out layered sandwich with 36 16 grain bread (doesn't it seem like they are now putting out bread with crazy amounts of grains?  This one was dropping flax seeds and nuts all over my counter.)

Edamame and some berry Yogurt Stars.

Ninja Aussie apple.

And all packed up in her PlanetBox.

Bento #216 - Whole grain bread and Colby cheese sandwich, berry Yogurt Star cookies, edamame, dried cherries and vitamins.  Snack - Aussie apple.

0 Bento #209 - Waste Free Wednesday Ham Sandwich & Bell Peppers

I desperately need to go grocery shopping after this long weekend; I'm down to my last fresh veg, and I think I only have a couple of oranges left.  I'm relying once more on some dried fruit, which is always nice to have around, especially since it's so portable.

By the way, this is part of E's school's Waste Free Wednesdays!  She received a tie-dye cloth napkin for packing a waste-free lunch!

Sandwich today is grilled baked ham and cheddar on rye.  The alphabet picks spell H-A-M (shocking, I know.)

I sliced half a yellow bell pepper and included a little piggy sauce cup full of ranch dip, and of course the aforementioned dried cherries with ring picks.  By the way, if you ever get a package of picks with these in there, tell your kids not to put them on their fingers!  We had a date with some dish soap and that ring last year.

I always say that you can find neat lunch containers in unexpected places.  This bento box came from a Crocs store!  They said that it was for storing Jibbitz, but it's a totally a 2-tier bento box, complete with a divider and an adorable bow band.  It even has space on top for utensils.  I think it was on clearance for $4.  I have been packing snacks in a drawstring bag one of my older bento boxes came with.  If something in her snack needs to be kept cold, I just stick it in her lunchbox with everything else.

Bento #209 - Baked ham & chedder on rye, dried cherries, sliced yellow bell pepper and dip.  Snack - String cheese and an Apple Carrot Crusher.

Speaking of bento boxes, AllThingsForSale is having a bento giveaway on their blog right now, check it out!

0 Bento #206 - Mac n' Apple Sausage

We have a Planetbox lunch today with Aidell's chicken & apple sausage and Trader Joe's organic white mac n' cheese.  Yummy!  The bell peppers didn't photograph too well, but they are cut in the shape of flowers.

Snack was an apple & banana crusher, (also from TJ's) which was completely new to us.  Also some organic baby carrots and dip.

Bento #206 - Chicken & apple sausage, organic white mac n' cheese, yellow bell peppers, dried blueberries and organic craisins.  Snack:  Organic baby carrots, dip and an apple banana Crusher.

0 Bento #196 - House of Ravioli and Wagamama Ramen

Bento #196 - Grilled chicken ravioli with herbs and parm, dried blueberries & cherries, organic baby carrots and ranch dip (and a carnation.)

Getting back into the swing of things!  For the first lunch back home I knew I wanted to use this completely adorable Cath Kidston food tray.  I picked it up as they were closing their Windsor location just outside the castle.  Bless the saleswoman, she allowed me to snap a couple of pictures (usually not allowed) to show you just how darling the store is!

Miss E, holding up our new find.

Afterwards, we grabbed dinner at Wagamama around the corner.  It's a ramen bar with locations around the world.  Ella was in fits of ecstasy at the prospect of Chinese noodles and gyoza.  

Ella had the "mini" kids ramen bowl.  It was huge!  It had a chicken and pork broth with a grilled chicken breast, sweet corn, shredded carrot, watercress and cilantro.  They also had these super cool kids chopsticks, gleefully demonstrated by Ella in the picture below.  

My mother-in-law had the pork ribs.

And I had the Wagamama ramen, complete with smooth dory, shrimp, kamaboko, (type of surimi) fried tofu, wakame seaweed, menma (bamboo shoots), mushrooms, watercress and spring onions.  Delish!

Yum!

0 Bento #180 - Grilled Ham & Cheese "Apples"

Today's a PlanetBox lunch with grilled ham & cheese cut into apples.  I think you can tell when I need to get to the store when we have dried fruit, but it's still healthy and very convenient, and they come unsweetened.  I always have a few bags on hand for lunches and as additions into quick breads.

Bento #180 - Grilled ham & cheese sandwiches, carrot chips, roasted peanuts, dried blueberries, cherries and banana chips and vitamins (multi/iron, calcium and Omega-3.)

2 Bento #149 - Dumpling Snack

This was a hearty snack I packed the other day when we went on a playdate at a local kids gym.  These chicken wontons are a new brand I found at Costco, Green Chopsticks, which look a lot like the chicken cilantro wontons from Trader Joe's.  We really like the TJ's one's better, but these aren't bad (especially with dipping sauce, otherwise they are kinda bland.)  I really like how fast they cook - 2 minutes!

Also, this is the last picture with my point-and-shoot camera.  After we got home from our playdate, my new DSLR camera was waiting on my doorstep!  Now to figure out how to use it....  Your photography tips are certainly welcomed.

Bento #149 - All natural chicken wontons on a bed of organic spring greens, organic baby carrots, Cheerios, dried blueberries and dried cherries.