First Day of School LunchBots Bento!

First Day of School Bento!, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

Hi there everyone!! We're back from summer vacation and all ready to tackle another school year. MisterMan is in 5th grade, and TinySprite is now in 1st grade. Over the summer, MisterMan had been preparing bento for himself and his sister for their summer programs. Today, I put out the empty bento boxes and guess what? TinySprite asked if she could put the food inside. She arranged the fruit and veggie side sections for both of them, and her brother did the rest. With all this teamwork, maybe I can retire as head blogger at Happy Little Bento and turn the reins over to the kiddos! I wonder when he can start cooking dinner for us...? I made a quick and easy dinner for us, consisting of colorful veggie pasta, pan-fried nitrite-free chicken sausage, and steamed corn. They added shredded cheese and spinach toppings. The other side holds two color grapes, cherries, tomatoes, and pickled baby cucumbers. All packed up in the LunchBots Duo. I got so much mileage out of this box over the summer; I think my boy took it every single day. He can fill it easily, there are only two pieces to keep track of, no latches to break, and after school he even washes it for the next day's use. I sure got spoiled this summer. Let's see how this coming school year shapes up!

Chili Jack O'Cheese Bento and TinySprite's 1st Day of Preschool Bento!

Chili and "Jack" Cheese Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

Today MisterMan has chili and rice, with a jack-o-lantern cheddar cheese topper. I could have melted it in, but I left it "raw" and he ate it. Yay! I also roasted some cherry and pear tomatoes in olive oil and garlic and put them in a silicone cup. For fruit he got strawberries and grapes. The rest of the gaps I filled with carved carrots, steamed broccoli, and peapods. Everything fit snugly in this EcoLunchbox. I love the separate lidded container it comes with; you may have noticed I usually use it for things like chili and other gravy- or sauce-type foods. I've also used it for yogurt or cottage cheese with fruit topping.

I'm including TinySprite's first preschool bento here too. It contains tortilla rollups with ham, cheese and spinach, carrots, a strawberry, grapes and orange melon. It was her very first day today, and she did great! They had a lot of fun, went on a walking field trip, picked apples and tomatoes, and she even made a bff. The teacher told me I'd hear all about her new best friend, since they spent a lot of time chatting and playing together. I picked her up during lunchtime, and watched her interact with the other kids. Sure enough, she was so distracted talking with them that she didn't finish. I was a little disappointed about that, but figured she could finish the rest at home. Well, this is what happened when she sat down to finish:

At first I thought she was just thinking, but then I saw this:

Guess she was pretty worn out!

First Day of School Bento

First Day of School Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

The first day of school! MisterMan started 2nd grade today, and to commemorate the day, he's bringing an "apple" to school. Okay, it's not really an apple; it's a radish with sesame seed and edamame detail. It sits atop a 4-bean spinach salad in a silicon cup. There are flower-carved carrots on the side. Sliced roast chicken in a lettuce leaf fill the next section, and the fruit selection includes grapes, cherries and a strawberry. A simple bento that contains his favorite foods is sure to give him energy to get through a full school day. And a bonus: this bento qualifies for the B.O.M.B back to school theme at Hapa Bento. Don't forget to enter! Have you started school yet? If you're still enjoying summer, lucky you!

Added this bento to What's For Lunch here. You can add yours too!