Happy Vegan MoFo! Let's make one thing clear... I'm NOT one of those crafty moms who scrapbooks, decorates my house for every season, turns vintage suitcases into shabby chic conversation pieces, or makes masterpieces of boxed lunches.
I'm just not. What I AM is a mama who's always looking for fun, easy ways to get food into my kids' bodies, while acknowledging our entire family's hodgepodge of food restrictions:
I'm vegan, Pepper has digestive issues (we're still working on identifying those -- she's heading toward a referral to a GI specialist), Curlytop and Snugglebug are allergic to Red Dye 40, and poor little Snugglebug can't have fruit if it's juiced or dried due to the change in sugar concentration.
(Oh, by the way, please
go VOTE for this blog in the Circle of Moms Top 25 Food Allergy Mom blog contest! Sexy Vegan Mama was a late nomination, and there are only a few days left of the contest, so I have a lot of catching up to do! You can vote once every 24 hours. Thank you!)
I also don't have a ton of time on my hands, so when I see those crafty moms cranking out cute-as-a-button bentos, I'm absolutely floored that anyone,
anyone would spend so much time creating a meal that's going to roll around in a backpack for a few hours before its precious owner gets around to eating it.
Still, there's something to be said for a cute lunch when you're a pigtailed princess in kindergarten or the first grade... So I made a quickie little bento that's so simple, even a caveman mom of seven can do it.
Read the rest of this post over at Sexy Vegan Mama!
Read the rest of this post over at Sexy Vegan Mama!
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Comments (10)
How do you make the bear ?
@dw817@xanga - I explain it in the full blog post (I think you have to click through to the link), but it's just a cookie cutter used to cut the bread. :)
@SexyVeganMama@healthkicker - Thanks. Reading from link. BTW, most peanut butter has sugar in it so for 'snugglebug' be careful. There's a LOT of sugar (1st ingredient in fact) in Nutella.
The Broccoli is a nice touch tho. Always room for broccoli.
That is a lot of chewing tho unless the veggies are boiled. Do you have some kinna healthy salad-dressing to go with the carrots and company if they're raw ?
@dw817@xanga - So true about the Nutella! I'm vegan, so Nutella isn't an option for us. I like fresh-ground peanut butter from just peanuts and a little salt, myself.
Snugglebug's sugar sensitivities seem to be currently limited to fructose. She can eat whole fruit just fine, but once the fruit is dried or juiced, the sugar ratio concentrates, and she can't process it correctly.
The veggies are all fresh, as that's the preference of my kiddos, but you could certainly substitute steamed veggies! And, my kids like their veggies nekkid (weird, I know), so no dressing/dip. :)
@SexyVeganMama@healthkicker - Welp, I'm definitely not on any kinna health-kick so when I chomp into celery, carrots, or broccoli, I like to have a little ranch dressing with it. Either that or broiled in butter.
Clearly not healthy but mighty tasty. *Grin* Sorry your little 'un has a problem with regular sugar. Thanks for the Bento Bowl recipe !
Oh if I could go back 30 years, as un-fartsy-artsy as I am, I'd make a scrap book with each child. Nothing fancy. They are so old now, and I've regretted with every fiber of my being not doing it, imperfect and sloppy as it would have been. I've got one from my early days, and granted, mom could have done a better job than just shoving leaves into it, but it's mine, and it's precious. It's the bits and pieces of time we spend that count, and the interesting things we let them decide on that make them feel special. I also didn't know mine were lactose intolerant, they are half asian, with that bing in the 90% for that condition, but I did figure it out with my doctor when my son was 9 months old, having diarrhea, stomach cramps, losing weight, etc., and when I quit breast feeding for soy formula his symptoms disappeared overnight. Daughter never told me her stomach hurt after eating at school, and son began drinking milk at school with his friends, and never told me about the stomach aches for years, so I assumed the situation was better. Talk about GUILT!!! Mother guilt to beat hight heaven!!! If your child has sensitivity to milk, do something about it for the poor little one!
@Pollypinks@xanga - I am so sorry to hear about your children's sensitivity to lactose! Animal milk is such a common allergen or sensitivity, and so easy to work around, once a mama knows the issue. Kudos to you for getting to the bottom of your children's health issues, and taking precautions to save them additional discomfort.
My two youngest are both Red Dye-allergic, and with them in school, I'm always on high alert. I pack their lunches every day, provide classroom snacks... but holidays - especially Halloween (all the candy, and so much of it is orange!), Christmas (everything is red!) and Valentine's Day (pink, red, oh my!) - provide so many opportunities for exposure when our kids are at school. I just try to stay vigilant, and let my children hear me politely decline offers of treats with a courteous, but simple explanation -- "No, thank you. They're allergic to Red Dye."
I've overheard my 6yo and 7yo repeating those words to relatives and even bank tellers who offer them treats -- "No, thank you. I'm allergic to Red Dye."
I know, as they get older, they may test the limits of that allergy, but for now, I know I'm doing all I can for their health.
*hugs*
Oh goodness! You'd think as a nurse I've have red dye implanted in my brain, but I didn't! You are right though, as they get older, things will change, and all it takes for them to be vigilant on their own is to have one bad episode with the dye. Then, by teen years, you shouldn't have to worry all that much, as they can take it on their own shoulders. I'm wondering now how many things have that in it that we cannot even see. Definitely aren't gonna be eating red velvet birthday cake, now are they. But that's okay, They'll do just fine, I'm sure you'll see how well they do after you've trained them. What a job, being a momma. Dr. Phil says, and I'm not a huge fan, that stay at home moms work as hard as two full time jobs, and that one I believe.
oh, i like bentos too. :) it looks very delicous and easy to make. i make my last bento with riceballs and eggrolls. :D~♥
cute