what's for lunch?

As summer begins to dwindle, I can't help but think about packing lunches each day.  In the beginning, I am revved up to concoct artful and creative packaging to entice a sometimes picky eater.  As the school year progresses, I must admit that this excitement fades and the lunches seem to appear more and more identical.

BUT for now, I will revel in my excitement and attempt some artful creations inside the little lunch sack she carries each day.

Have you ever seen this fun blog?  This mom makes super cute lunch displays in her son's lunch each day.

  They are amazing.  While I won't be making such creative food arrangements in my girl's lunch sack, I do enjoy being inspired to try new foods and mixtures of foods.  

She also has a ton of great healthy recipes too.

I also really enjoy serving a variety of color each day.  Even if she picks at the veggies and devours the fruit [and always the carbs], at least she will be exposed to a healthy mixture.

These are our favorite staples for snack-time during the school year.  They are all healthy and a snap to pack.

These are our lunch sack staples.

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Less always seems to be more when it comes to lunches.  So many times, I pack a ton and she comes home with nothing eaten.  It is almost as if it defeats her to even try to eat it.  This year I am going to focus on mini-portions.  "Mini" definitely seems to go over better in the lunch sack.  Mini portions seem to entice the little hands.

While I love my girl's compact and sturdy lunch sack, I am considering a Bento box to help compartmentalize and separate the foods.  

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I know a friend that uses silicone cupcake liners to separate foods too.

Another friend always cuts her son's sandwich with a fun-shaped cookie cutter.

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What are you packing for lunch this year?  Any ideas/creations to share?

all tucked in

As I made my way to bed, I noticed these little guys fast asleep on the couch.  No, it wasn't the kids or the dogs, it was the beloved "Mo-Mo" and "baby."  

The pillows were carefully placed on either side of the couch.  Their little heads were lovingly placed on each pillow.  Their heads were kissed.  The feathery light muslin blanket was stretched out across the two of them -- this takes some time for the babe to accomplish as she insists that it reach both of them equally and when she tugs on one side, the other slips off.

These days, our every move is centered around the needs of these two.  We tuck them into bed, we feed them when we eat, we change their diapers and we buckle them into car seats.  They are never forgotten by their ever-doting mother.

"Night, night."

summer tea

My big girl attended a little tea party recently at Pottery Barn Kids.  A sweet friend told me about the event and we thought there could be nothing better on a Friday afternoon {when the heat index is above 115} than the cool air-conditioned mall.  We went not really knowing what to expect.  The kids were suppose to bring along their favorite doll or stuffed animal to accompany them to tea.  

My girl was extremely excited to attend this little event because it meant that her sister, who is not yet old enough, would not be coming.  It meant a little mom and daughter time, alone.

The kids were seated at little tables and given apple-juice and a wonderfully whimsical frosted cookie.  They listened to a few stories and then made a little craft.  They were given old PBK magazines and then taught to accordion fold the paper into a little butterfly. The addition of a pipe-cleaner made the craft all the more desirable by the 12 children seated at the little tables in the back of the store.

The summer tea was a big hit and offered a great opportunity to discuss manners at a tea-party with my girl.  

PBK regularly holds free activities and events for children.  You can get on their mailing list to get them emailed to you OR you can just check their website.  I highly recommend it if you are looking for something different and fun to fill the last of these hot summer days.

Monthly Organization: sweet memories project

A good friend recently wrote a little post on keeping her son's artwork and special little things in a box.  I thought it was a great way to keep all those sweet memories organized without all the hassle of scrap-booking.

I began thinking and realized that I have a whole drawer full of papers of my daughter's.  Aside from her school work and art (which I keep in a three-ring binder), we have birthday invitations, birth announcements, holiday cards, special programs, and all the stuff she came home from the hospital with when she was born.   All of this stuff is important to me and I think it will be important to her someday.

I have been on the look out for a good box to put some of these important things in but never seem to find just the right thing.  I recently ran across this website and fell in love with their "Memory Keepers."  They are high-quality boxes that can be personalized and used for all those papers you want to keep.

 

I made a few for my kids and some for gifts too.  Wouldn't one of these be a perfect baby gift?

Anyway, I just fell in love with the idea and thought I would share in case anyone else has an entire drawer full of paper for their kid that needs to be kept and somehow organized.

P.S. They have a sale going on right now on these fun boxes - 40% off and free shipping - use "MEMORY BOX" at checkout

simple summer: fish tacos

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Fish tacos are such a healthy and fun summer meal.  For this, we used halibut [we have also used mahi-mahi] but you could use any white fish.  This marinade it so good but doesn't require any strange ingredients that you have to shop for.  I got this recipe a long time ago and only used on chicken.  We tried it on fish for the first time a few weeks ago and it was a big hit!

Fish or Chicken Marinade
[for fish, we only marinade for about an hour, for chicken we marinade longer]

1/2 cup soy sauce
2 Tbs olive oil
2 Tbs sherry
4 garlic cloves, crushed
4 chicken breasts or fish fillets

grill fish or chicken on a grill until fish is flaky or chicken reaches an internal temp of 180 degrees (about 10 minutes a side)

After the fish is done cooking, we break it apart with a fork and place it on corn tortillas.  You can add anything to the taco to suit your own taste.  Our favorite fish taco toppings are:

tomatoes

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guacamole

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cilantro

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freshly squeezed lime

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black beans

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and a dash of sea salt

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This makes the best summer meal!  It is so light and so tasty!  Enjoy!

watercolor

Watercolor at Grandma's house means a few special things:

complete creative freedom

no worries about mixing paint colors 

[it is actually encouraged by the former art teacher]

hand-made water bowls to dip the brush in and 

a story about how they were made that goes along with them

paper, lots of paper

there are no mistakes...mistakes are turned into new works of art

big brushes for little hands

a table that doesn't mind being dripped on

Popsicles in one hand and a paint brush in the other

a mother who sits back and enjoys watching 

the freedom that she doesn't always allow at home

[because it usually makes a huge mess that requires a ton of clean up time on her part]

a grandmother who thinks nothing of clean-up

 but more about creativity and watching little spirits grow

next to you

Standing next to you, I marvel at your little feet.  Once chubby, thick and clumsy, they are now long and slender.  They are often adorned by dress-up heels or glittery flats that transport you to imaginary places.  They carry you around the room as you twirl to the music and drag across the floor when you procrastinate at bedtime. They have recently begun fluttering and propelling your body through the water.  They prance quickly across the hot summer pavement and linger in my bed in the morning.  They are perfectly and so wonderfully you.