Hi Pikachu

I haven't used my Pokemon sandwich maker set in a while. Ryan was excited to see Pikachu.

Ryan's
lunch:
steamed
broccoli;
Pikachu
sandwich
of soy
cheese,
smoked
Tofurky,
lettuce
on wheat
bread;
rice
Pokeball;
blanched
spinach;
juju
stars.




My food yesterday:
7am- smoothie: 1/2 banana, 1/2 mango, 1 T. almond butter, liquid DHA, water.
10am- 1 avocado.
12pm- small bowl of raisins, date pieces & sliced almonds.
3pm- 1 apple w/almond butter.
5pm- soaked steel cut oats w/walnut-cashew creme.

Not much else to report...
so I suppose I'll show you
Maia, who insists on
sleeping with an (empty)
Hello Kitty soap dispenser...

And her usual blue bear
and Jessie of course...

Along with quite a few
other Hello Kitty's.

The tiny Hello Kitty
figurine that she likes
the best is the most
difficult to keep track
of...not terribly pleasant
to have misplaced at
naptime!

Peek-At-Chu

I've really dropped the ball on cute lunches during Vegan Mofo so far. Sorry! It's hard with a husband who travels a lot and 4 kids to schlep here and there. This is a sad excuse for a character lunch, but Ryan appreciates it nevertheless...I'll try to do better next week!
Ryan's lunch: Italian pasta salad; smoked Tofurky, soy cheese, lettuce, mustard sandwich on wheat bread w/ a soy cheese pokeball and Pikachu peeking at you.

What often goes down
at breakfast time...or
for a before-school snack?
A smoothie, or "snoovy"
as Nate calls them.

Tropical Kids Super
Smoothie

4 chunks frozen mango
4 frozen strawberries
80ml strawberry rosehip GoodBelly drink
1/2 cup coconut milk
1/4 cup orange juice
6 drops vegan DHA
1 tsp. vegan kids multivitamin drops
plain almond milk to fill the rest

Put everything in a blender (I use a Magic Bullet, which I prefer because there's one less container to wash and everything dirty can fit in the top rack of the dishwasher) for 15-20 seconds.
Maia loves this. Here
she is, forcing herself
between me and the
counter, waiting for
her share. She loves
coconut anything!

catchup and musturnip greens

After
my
husband
was
away
last
week,
I had
to catch
up on
stuff...
like
getting
away
from
the
house,
kids,
and
computer
for
some
hikes,
grocery shopping, and yard work. So time to play catch up!

Before Dada arrived home, Ryan sold cookies and cider on sunday. We have these red dragonflies in the area, and I think this one was waiting to purchase something from Ryan's stand, hanging out right under the menu.

On monday I was out of
food and motivation, so I
grabbed some crescent
rolls out of the drawer, some
of those cinnamon apples
I'd frozen in ice cube trays
last month, a handful of
frozen spinach, and a quick
grate of soy cheese...

These disappeared FAST.
Ryan got a cinnamon apple
roll and a spinach-soy cheese
roll in his lunchbox, along
with a soy yogurt, a side of
watermelon, and a drink of
rice-almond milk.

By tuesday I was a little more organized...and I skipped a fall themed bento in favour of something quick in one of the new bentos my husband picked up at Daiso in San Jose...

Ryan's
lunch:
grilled
nutri-
tional
yeast
cheez
sand-
wiches;
canta-
loupe;
red bell
pepper;
peanuts;
green
beans
dressed
with
soy
sauce.


This slim 510ml bento
fit well into his lunchbox
and held just the right
amount of food for a
6 going on 7 year old's
appetite when densely
packed, along with a
bottle of chocolate almond
milk.

Turnip Green Fried Rice

2-3 cups cooked rice
2 T. peanut or canola oil
1 small onion, chopped
1 cup raw turnip greens
1/2 cup corn, fresh or
frozen
1 T. soy sauce
1 tsp. salt

If you have leftover rice, great! If not, cook some and let it sit for a bit.
Wash and chop a bunch of turnip greens. Lay them in a pile and slice of chop into strips.
Heat oil in large skillet or wok.
Add onion and cook for 2-3
minutes over medium-high
heat, stirring often. Add rice
and stir to combine. Add corn
and turnip greens, soy sauce
and salt. Cook until heated
through and turnip greens
have wilted. Serve hot.

The kids will eat almost
any veggie in a fried rice
dish! And we are getting
tons of greens in a huge
variety from the farm
right now.

First day of fall, and
I spied the first red
maple leaf on our lawn.
Lots of raking is in my
future for sure.


And now we're up to today's bento...

Ryan's lunch: rice with a
nori Pikachu face; green
& purple grapes; steam
broccoli; bean salad; a
side of black raspberry
applesauce.



I made the bean salad,
along with some more
apple cinnamon crescent
rolls, for the teacher
appreciation luncheon
at the boys' elementary
school. Hopefully some of
the staff enjoyed it. With
600 kids there are a lot
of teachers!

Day at Disney

Today is Game Day in Ryan's kindergarten class. At home, one of Ryan and AJ's favourite games is the Pokemon Spinning Figures Game or "Pokemon Spinners" as they call it.

Ryan's
lunch:
green
beans;
blue-
berries;
straw-
berries;
baby
carrots;
a pickle;
Pikachu
peanut
butter
& grape
jelly
sandwich.



I had the opportunity to take just Ryan to Disney's Magic Kingdom while we were in Florida. We don't do lots of theme parks, usually just one day, and all the boys had been there before. Just Ryan wanted to go, so off we went, bright and early...

We didn't even have to use the parking shuttle we were parked so close to the entrance. We ran most of the way, LOL.













Ryan was fascinated by the topiary. We took the monorail around the lake (the boat wasn't even running yet), watched duck families waddling around, and headed to the castle to wait for the ropes to be removed at 9am. Entertainment included bubble blowers, meeting the Fairy Godmother, and eating a quick snack.

The tile mosaics inside the castle tunnel are really quite impressive!

Disney is funny this way...
you can become preoccupied
by the gaudy commercial
monstrosity, or you can
choose to admire the truly
talented artwork and gardens
that help transform the place
into the fairytale fantasyland.

A pic for my husband,
the mouse-lover.

Our promptness and
patience was rewarded
by being on the first
Dumbo ride of the day!
(This ride often has one
of the longest lines for
what is probably the briefest ride in the whole park.)






















It's A Small World hasn't changed at all since I first rode it when I was 10 years old. And surprisingly this was Ryan's first ride on a carousel!

The Winnie The Pooh ride
was cute--I actually hadn't
been on it before. Though I
do miss its predecessor: Mr.
Toad's Wild Ride.




I loved the haunted house
as a kid. When I was Ryan's
age I used to write haunted
house books...all of them
pretty much the same: "X
number of people go for a
walk in the woods and get
lost..." etc.

After I failed miserably
conveying the significance
of the term "Fast Pass" to
Ryan, we stood in line for
45 minutes at Big Thunder
Mountain Railroad.

A contraceptive tip to the
childless readers out there...
It was more enjoyable to stand in a winding claustrophobic 90F degree line with a whining 6 year old carrying a backpack and often said child, than it often is to spend an hour at home with all 4 kids on a good day...so consider your actions carefully. That torturously long line was rather enjoyable! Happily, he loved the ride.






















Pirates of the Carribean doesn't have Fast Pass, and Ryan had learned his lesson and understood why we wouldn't be riding it that day! Instead we cooled off with popsicles and spitting tiki masks and a walk through the Swiss Family Treehouse.

We frugally brought most of our own food, but vegetarian treats abound in the Magic Kingdom, even more than Vegetarian Walt Disney World indicates. There were even a few places where I spied vegetarian wraps on their brief menus, apparently recent additions since the latest Magic Kingdom map was printed. "Well-balanced" and "vegetarian" options are indicated on the map with a red apple...and most restaurants had that pretty red apple listed next to them! Certainly there is less available for vegans, but still it's not hard to buy your food there if that's what you want to do.
And they don't hose you on concession prices like movie theatres do...just on the admission price. Amazing, considering they grow some amazing exotic produce nearby just for Disney in their greenhouses (I first learned about them on a PBS show of all places).

























Next we went to Tomorrowland and Fast-Passed the Buzz Lightyear ride (Ryan & AJ's favourite). While we waited we went to meet Buzz, admired the local wildlife (!), and bought some cotton candy for Ryan to try (with plenty to bring home to share).

I was suckered (haha) into
buying a twirly lollipop
which Ryan enjoyed on the
boatride back to the parking
entrance. We also picked up
a bouquet of little Mickey
Mouse lollipops to share with
the brothers.

I hope next time we're here,
Dada can take Maia to the
Magic Kingdom and do the
father/daughter thing. Now that would be cute!

short cuts

First I'll brag about my
cool husband this week...
While in SoCal on business
he stopped at Ichiban Kan
and did a bit of shopping
for me.



I sent him with a printout
of my online shopping cart,
but much of what is online
is not stocked at their
smaller retail stores
apparently.

But that didn't stop him!

He thought everything
looked too cute to pass
up (most items are only
$1.50) so he kind of
went nuts. His suitcase
was jam packed for his
flight home


If you're in the U.S., you can
buy most everything here at
Ichiban Kan online.

Now I have to go clear out
another kitchen cabinet to
devote to bento gear. Oy.


While my husband was
enjoying the warm CA
weather, we were hit with
a few feet of snow & sub-
zero temps.

Ryan tried to help Nate
outside to play, but it
was just too deep.

He took off his mittens
and finally sat down,
stuck, and had to be
rescued. I eventually made
a few paths, but he had
had enough.



Since my husband was
away for most of the week
in CA & IN, I thought it
would be an opportune time
to discuss bento shortcuts!

I do not employ outside
help to care for our kids,
so I have to be prepared
to put together healthy
lunches regardless of my
often solo parenting status,
the weather, or a crabby
baby.

Places like Whole Foods with
their antipasto, salad, & hot
bars are invaluable. I don't
buy a lot of anything, but
instead choose a few of the
smallest containers and add
just a few bites of this & that.

Sesame tofu & various pre-
made salads are the boys'
favourites. Easy peasy!

Tuesday:
Ryan's school rescheduled lunchtime and broadcast the Presidential inauguration in the classrooms.
Ryan's lunch: orzo w/pinenuts & herbs (& "Obama" written in nori); edamame; bell pepper strips; cherry tomatoes; black olives; grapes; blueberries; vegetable dumplings w/a bottle of soy sauce; green beans; sesame tofu.

Nate's lunch: bell pepper
strips; cherry tomatoes;
black olives; grapes; blue-
berries; edamame; green
beans; sesame tofu.




AJ's snack: edamame;
green beans; grapes;
sesame tofu.








Let's play "Spy the Baby"!
Maia has been on the move
lately. She was on the
pillow when I left to
start water boiling in the
kitchen...but 2 minutes
later she was playing with
her brothers' Lego manuals
across the room.



Oooh, my husband was
home 2 days this week...
husband's lunch: two
clementines; grapes &
blueberries; salad w/
chicken-free nugget
pieces & roasted red
pepper vinaigrette.

Wednesday:
My first attempt at a penguin didn't go so well...but by the second one below I had figured it out. Tip: use a piece of raw angel hair pasta to hold the hot dog piece onto the rice ball.
Ryan's lunch: cucumber "fish" shapes; rice ball penguin; cinnamon letter cookies; a pickle; carrots; grapes; sesame tofu.

AJ's snack: rice ball
penguin; a pickle; a
carrot; a grape; sesame
tofu; a cucumber "fish".




I had to post this dinner
because the boys and
my husband all raved
about it and went back
for seconds...

Quick Chili Mac & Chreez

1 lb. box pasta
1 recipe chili chreez sauce
(below)
1 can chili (I used Amy's
medium, or make your own)
1 medium can diced tomatoes
(drained--I save the liquid
to use in soup later)
1 medium can beans (kidney,
pinto, or black beans)
1/2 cup grated soy cheese (optional)
1/2 cup fried onions

Cook pasta al dente and drain. While pasta is cooking, make chreez sauce. Mix cooked pasta with chreez sauce. Spread into casserole dish (I use a 9"x13" glass baking dish).
In a large bowl mix chili, beans, & tomatoes. Layer on top of pasta.
Add shredded soy cheese (if using).
Cover and bake in a 350F oven for 25 minutes.
Uncover, add fried onions, bake another 5 minutes.

Chili Chreez Sauce

1/2 cup nutritional yeast flakes
1/2 cup flour
1 T. cornstarch
1 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
2 cups water
1 tsp. mustard
1-2 tsp. chili oil

In a saucepan, mix first 6 (dry) ingredients. Add water and cook over med-high heat, stirring constantly until sauce thickens.
Remove from heat and add mustard & chili oil.

This sauce is also GREAT with nachos!

Thursday:
Ryan's lunch: Italian pasta salad (recipe in index); cucumber slices; grapes; chicken-free nuggets; "2 of hearts" creme cheez & raspberry jam sandwich.

AJ & Nate had
smaller versions of
what Ryan had.





Maia is trying a few more
foods--avocado, grapes,
oatmeal w/coconut milk &
rice milk--but her favourite
is still chewing off bits of a
banana.






Friday:
I've seen people draw all sorts of things on clementines on Japanese bento websites. I thought Ryan would enjoy this one...
Ryan's lunch: a "Pikachu" clementine; blanched spinach; smoked Tofurky & soy cheese rolls; mini pumpkin muffin; a pickle; onigiri triangle; grapes.