And they call me Super Mom

S.Rube started preschool last September and I was faced with the dilemma of preparing a snack for her each Tuesday and Thursday.

Now, we haven't talked much about S.Rube's eating habits here, yet, but I can tell you that she is a picky eater. and borders on anorexia. She is one of those kids who is better off eating the exact same few things day after day, just because she's actually getting food in her that way. I still continue to offer her what we're eating, but I also include something that I know she'll like.

Little did I know that my method for her school snack would become a successful tool at home and, really, with every meal or snack she eats.

One of the Chaws introduced the idea of Bento'ing to the group last summer, just prior to the new school year starting. The pictures on the websites and the blogs that I visited to see more about this "Japanese art of presenting food in a box" totally awed me! It was the creative look that initially attracted me. But, it seemed like a fair amount of work. I decided to give it a bit of a loose try when September rolled around.

Here's my first attempt in September:

And, I'm still bento'ing over 7 months later. I haven't missed a day of school and now all of our snacks and lunches out get prepared in this way.

Last month, I started creating the girl's meals in the same manner, because I've seen how well they make S.Rube eat! T.Rube... now she's a different story. She doesn't need help eating - the little piglet.

My bento experience is a fairly simple one at this point, as you'll see when I post pictures, because S.Rube eats a limited numbers of food. So, I use the same things over and over again. This has made the practise of bento'ing super easy, with fewer choices to make. But, your options are limitless!! It is best if you include foods that can be eaten at room temperature, although you can get bento boxes that have two levels - so you can prepare one part that gets microwaved and one that doesn't.

Now, you can spend a fortune on bento supplies. (ebay has great options, but is more expensive than just about anywhere!). But, you certainly don't need to. I suggest starting out small, like I did. Use your plastic Gladware or Tupperware to figure out what sizes work best for you. Buy a few paper or silicone cups to use as separators. You're good to go.


There are a ton of bento sites and blogs out there. Some of the sites that I liked the best don't seem to be posting much anymore and some of the ones that are actively updating their blogs aren't that great, but here you go....

http://www.bentoyum.com/

http://www.cookingcute.com/

http://www.lunchinabox.net/

http://www.bentolunch.blogspot.com/

http://freakintastybento.wordpress.com/2007/08/19/bento-for-cheap-bastards/

http://theoriginalmybentodiet.blogspot.com


Check out this site of bento pictures!!! They're incredible!

http://flickr.com/search/?q=bento+&m=text





You can expect to see pictures of my bentos every once in a while. Because I'm a bit of a rube that way.....