As with a lot of things in life, the best meals are often the most simple. And also, I like butterflies.
This simple meal is gluten, soy, and nut free. Delicious and well-balanced, as well as being safe for Beaker!
For a light snack he has a handful of popcorn. He also has a few garlic-free mini sausages with ketchup for dipping, some carrot and cucumber bits, Van's Say Cheese GF/SF crackers, and a Udi's GF/SF brownie bite.
Beaker loves his apples sliced this way. I slice them length-wise and then use a mini cookie cutter to cut out the center core. For this lunch, I stacked them up and filled with raisins and dried cranberries.
Love-ly chicken!
Yogurt with a happy heart, strawberry slices, cheese bits, GF/SF multigrain crackers, GF/SF lemon cookies, and sliced peaches.
And one more:
Ham and cheese roll-ups with halved grapes in the top container.
Snap peas, broccoli, and carrot discs in the middle container.
Allergen-free ginger snaps and pretzel rings with watermelon balls in the bottom container.
Tiny carrot hearts make it extra special!
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A few sausages is 12? I know they are small, but WOW! For a young child? As an adult, I wouldn't eat that much.
ReplyDeleteMaybe Beaker wanted this many. Maybe Beaker wanted to share with friends. Maybe Beaker wanted to eat this over the pace of a day.
DeleteMaybe you shouldn't leave judgey comments unless you have all of the facts.
I think the lunch looks great and better to have too much than not enough.
My five year old girl eats that much or more almost every meal... I don't know where she puts it all, she's pretty skinny... but if I don't keep her belly full she gets super cranky :)
DeletePerhaps some people choose to dish up a plateful of snarky comments and wash them down with bitter tears. I would prefer to feed my son some of these lovely bentos. Bile and judgment have far too many empty calories.
DeleteAs an adult, I wouldn't eat that much either. But I am an adult, not a growing kid who burns tons of energy. I also do not have the allergies Beaker has, which means if I pack a small meal for myself and eat it all, then wind up being out longer than I expected and am hungry again, I can just stop by any store or drive thru and grab a quick snack. That isn't an option for Beaker. His allergies mean that finding food he can eat is sometimes a challenge. Especially when we are at an event or a place like the Zoo, where just leaving to find a grocery store to buy some fruit and veggies (usually the only ready-to-eat foods that are safe for him, and even those have to be scrubbed to remove possible allergens and often cut up to make eating them easier for him to eat)) is not an option and there are literally NO safe foods for him available. Ever hear a toddler cry because they are hungry and there is nothing for them and no place available to purchase something they can safely eat? Yeah. Never willing to repeat that experience if I can reasonably prevent it from happening.
DeleteIf you notice, most of his meals are fairly large. Like all kids his age, he is growing fast. He goes through random spurts when he eats like a small horse, way more than I do for sure. It's kind of impossible to predict from one day to the next when he will go through one of these spurts, so considering his dietary restrictions it is FAR better for me to be prepared, just in case.
Anything he doesn't eat comes home for the chickens, who are super thrilled with the scraps. Also, Beaker has four older siblings who are quite happy to graze on his lunch when I pack too much for him. And often I pack a lunch big enough for he and I to share. Easier than packing two separate dishes, if I'm in a rush or know I won't be very hungry myself.
It IS a lot of food. And it is the perfect amount for him.
I'm LOL-ing at the fact that this person counted all of the sausages. I wish I had some of their free time!
DeleteGreat lunches! We had butterflies on the brain in today's lunchbox too!
ReplyDeleteYour butterfly lunch is very attractive!
ReplyDeleteJohn would be SO jealous of the Pinky Pie sticker! I love that you have a Brony, too .... and that yours is also the type that could eat enough for three grown men ;) (Let me guess ... growth spurt?)
ReplyDeleteOh yes. Beaker is growing like a little weed! And he is a total little Brony. G-man, too!
DeleteThis is a beautiful lunch! My 4 year old has a hollow leg, too. That's what my mom always called it when my brother was young. He eats more than me sometimes! Of course, he is a little Taz and is constantly on the go, so he must need it!
ReplyDeleteThey must be fueling up for back to school. I can not feed my petite flower enough right now. Beautiful lunches, as always!
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