why i bento

I started making bento box lunches for my then 2nd grader midway through last school year.  Not because my oldest, let's call her Sporty, is super picky and won't eat anything unless it's in the shape of a zebra, but because I was appalled at the number of plastic baggies I seemed to be using every time I made her a lunch to take to school.

As I started researching reusable lunch containers online, I stumbled upon the cuteness of the bento lunch box craze.  I've always loved Hello Kitty and Japanese kawaii stuff.....  Combine that with this environmental thing I was feeling at the time?  Tah-dah!  The kiddie bento box.

Now as a working mom, I absolutely do not have the time to get too fancy schmancy.  I strive for minimalist cute in not a whole lot of time. You'll also notice that I reuse a lot of the same containers and silicone cups and that I don't do a lot of the animal picks, egg molds, etc.  When I saw all those animal skewer and pick things that lots of folks use in their bentos, the first thing that popped into my head was, "Super cute, but my kid is so gonna lose all that!"  So again, for me minimalist is better.  Enjoy!

multigrain crackers | dried cranberries | chicken deli slice roll ups | tangerine sections w/ flower-shaped carrots | cookie crisp cereal | string cheese