Tangerines

As a child our stockings always had fruit and nuts in the shell in them.

The toe of our stocking always had a tangerine in it!

To this day, Tangerines remind me of Christmas.

Tomorrow's lunch (which was prepared in a hurry, so please excuse my messy "gluing"),

contains carrot sticks, a cheese stick, an artichoke with mayo under it for dipping, and a tangerine!!

The Artichoke halves are my Christmas Trees, decorated with cheddar stars, and provolone ornaments.

Merry Christmas!!

I didn't make a lunch last night..

Because I had soup for lunch instead of a bento.  I was going to make a small fruit

bento to go with it, but ended up just grabbing a whole piece of fruit instead. 

However, tonight I went to a Relief Society Christmas Dinner, where as per the normal,

I was allergic to the majority of the meal.  SO, I packed a bento to bring with me.

Originally I was going to make a quinoa dish to take, but since I got home from my doctor's 

appointment later than I planned (not my doctor's fault), I just did a sandwich bento.

Dinner tonight for me was an avocado and veggie patty sandwich, cucumber and carrots
(I LOVE my carrots from my CSA, so yummy), salad with Thousand Island and baco bits,

and some pomegranate.  I was a VERY good girl and did not even go raid the dessert table!!!

Let it Snow!

I wish I had time to go for a drive up the hill to see the snow.. maybe next week.

I ordered some new bento picks, a set of leaf picks I've been drooling over since I started 

packing Bento, but have never seen at Daiso or Ichi Ban Kan, a set of alphabet picks (if those

ever appear in JTown I want to get three more sets for phrases or words with more than one

of a letter since this set only had one of each), a set of little hats, and a CuteZCute cutter.  

I used the new alphabet picks to spell snow :)

Check out the cute little snowman sliders!!

Fruit for the lunch has a tangerine (with one of my new leaf picks!!), and some kiwi cut into

Christmas Trees.  I got this HUGE kiwi in my produce bag, I should have taken a picture of it, it was

as big as my hand, and sort of fan shaped.  The salad has some Thousand Island hiding under it,

and some baco bits tucked in the side.  The snowmen are made of light bread, "sausage" patties cut into 

rounds, a circle of provolone each, a bit of carrot for the noses, and a few dots of food coloring.

Let it Snow!!!

Not the Gum Drop Buttons!!!

Despite not putting up a tree this year (which by the way feels wrong)..

I am enjoying the holidays.  Today I had to go over to Sacramento to go to the 

dentist.  While I was there I stopped off at Trader Joe's.  I love their meatless meatballs,

and I was out!  I also picked  up a few other things, but I forgot extra virgin olive oil... I forgot

to put it on my list, so it's my own fault.  Oh well, I have to go back next week, so I will

get it then.  ANYWAY.. tomorrow's lunch is Gingerbread inspired, and while

I was making it, I thought of Gingy... from Shrek... Do you know the Muffin Man??

Here is tomorrow's lunch:

There are carrots and cucumber with hummus, a tangerine topped with an edible 

gingerbread candythat I found at target (it's pure sugar though, so I doubt I will actually eat it.. 

it was just SO CUTE).  The sandwich is a meatless meatball sandwich

 topped with a cheddar face, and colby jack buttons with some marinara sauce to add 

to it when I eat.    As a treat, I have three gingerbread cookies,

dipped in white fudge icing.  YUMM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

December

I love the holidays, I love time with my family, fun crafts and discoveries with my students,

the feelings of good will and cheer that are all around, and memories.

One of my favorite memories is a star.

My Dad had a star that used to be on the top of our Christmas tree, until it was falling apart.

I inherited that star, and for several years, it limped through Christmas on my tree, until two years
 ago Ireplaced it.  But I didn't have the heart to get rid of Dad's star.  So every year I would
take a momentto remember Dad, then put it back in the box with the ornaments.
 Last year I decided I wanted to put it in a shadow box, and now it is out year round!
This year I want to go through some of the pictures at my sister's house and find a picture
of the Christmas tree with the star on it, hopefully

one with my Dad in it too.  I want to frame the picture and hang it with the start.

So tomorrow's lunch is a star themed salad.

There are spinach greens for the base salad, carrots, string cheese rounds, bacon bits,

and ranch for the salad.  Some wasa with some new blue cheese laughing cow cheese,

topped with two colby jack stars.  The pomegranate is for dessert! YUMMM!!!!!!

It's a Delicious Mystery!

I accidentally deleted the menu from my CSA this week.

In the fruit part of the produce bag, I got these YUMMY green fruits.. the flesh

inside is white, and they are sweet and tangy.. no clue what they are, but one is in my lunch!

Over the weekend we were hit with a big WET storm.. parts of my house flooded, 

today they came and extracted the water from my carpet, so my house is in shambles...

The worst of the damage to my stuff was in my garage, but I don't think it was to bad.. I hope..

So I didn't pack a lunch for today.. but I need one for tomorrow, hence the super simple lunch above..

Cucumber with seasoning salt, some salad with ranch (mostly for the cucumbers, but some will go on 

the salad), a wrap, one cheese with a star cut out.. a mandarin orange, and the green yummmmmmmy

mystery fruit.  Truly no clue what it is, but it is YUMMO!  I hope I get more this week!!!!