Packing kids lunches can either be a struggle or a simple fact of life.

I want my kids to eat healthy meals and I don’t want it to be a big challenge for any of us, so I let them have some (measured) freedom in making lunch choices.

First we look at the lunch calendar ahead and pick the days to buy their favorites. Then we plan the pack days, by me asking asking for their general ideas first, then referring to this list and then planning the main item for each day together. I write down their decisions on the calendar so there aren’t any surprises (except the occasional treat I might pack, or a love or joke note from me) and then we are good to go until it is time to pack.

So what do we pack?

I typically pack a sandwich, kabob or roll-up with a crunchy snack-like side item, fruit and a drink.

(They pick and pack the fruit as I pack the rest. Sure, they could pack their own lunches, but I want to pack them for them at this age.)

Here’s our basic go-to list:

Kabob (use toothpicks or small skewers)

Hawaiian: Ham, pineapple, Canadian bacon

Meat and Cheese: Chicken, turkey or ham cubes alternating with different types of cheese

Fruit: strawberries, grapes, cantaloupe, pineapple, melon (whatever is fresh!!)

Add something sweet to the fruit: mini marshmallows, angel food cake, banana bread squares

Sandwich kabobs: make a favorite sandwich, slice it into quarters and put on skewers or toothpicks for a new twist

Depending on your kabob, consider adding a dipping sauce in a small container: peanut butter w/ a touch of apple sauce, honey and cinnamon, ranch dressing, yogurt, barbecue sauce.

Sandwich guts/ interior ideas:

Leftover barbecue chicken or pork

Chicken salad with grapes

Turkey, ham, roast beef (with or without cheese)

Melted cheese

Tomato sauce and sliced meatballs

Peanut, cashew or almond butter and thinly sliced apples or bananas (or both) with a touch of honey

Peanut, cashew or almond butter and jelly

• Add berries or bananas
• Add honey
• Add granola

Sandwich exterior ideas other than ‘regular’ bread when we need a change:

Crackers

Pita pocket

2 slices of bread flattened with a rolling pin, stuffed, rolled and sliced like sushi

Tortilla (rolled or toasted on the stove like a quesadilla)

Bagel or mini bagel

English muffin

Hot dog bun

Roll-ups:

Ham, turkey or chicken around a cheese stick

Ham, turkey or chicken rolled up & stuck with a toothpick

I keep this list handy and know my kids will eat from it, but I don’t make any effort toward rotating through the whole thing. Often we’ll go for weeks with the same 3 lunch items. And I think that is okay. Like I said, I try to keep lunch simple and enjoyable… and if all they want is something simple day after day, as long as it meets my nutrition requirements,  I joyfully give it to them.

I also try to get my kids involved in cooking in the kitchen as well as planning. Here’s a link to a post on our guest chef night where you can see another way I get them involved.

Hope this helps you in planning and packing your own lunches. Please share any ideas that your family enjoys. I’m always looking for something new and fun!

This post is linked to Works for Me Wednesday and Ultimate Recipe Swap.

Tonight we started cooking lessons at our house.

Not that I am a great chef or anything but I am a mom and I can cook some things and I think it is my job to teach my kids how to cook.

Last week I got out the calendar and decided that every Tuesday night would be guest chef night (or cooking school), rotating through the kids for a one one-on-one lesson each week.

Then I got out a cookbook designed for kids and asked each child to pick a dinner they would like to prepare and marked them on the calendar for the right night.

This week my oldest, who is eight, made tacos. He sliced tomatoes, lettuce and avocado. He measured spices and sauteed onions and garlic and browned ground beef. He decided what fruits to include in a fruit salad and he chopped and mixed them himself. He did everything or at least did the majority of each step, with me guiding him along the way.

And then, amazingly, everyone ate tomatoes and lettuce on their tacos in my house for the first time EVER.

And everyone asked for seconds and thirds. And my oldest beamed from the praise and asked when he could make tacos again.

I can’t wait for next Tuesday night when I get to cook with my middle guy. I bet it’ll be just as much fun!

This post is linked to Works for Me Wednesday.

Next week my husband will be in South Africa, loving every second of being a true football (as the rest of the world calls it) fan. He has been planning this trip for four years, just after we got back from the last trip we took so he could go to the World Cup.

I was a little nervous about being home alone for that long (Yes, I am a wimp.) and I love company, so I invited my mom to come stay with me. She was a bit non-committal, so I asked another friend and now my sister-in-law and her 7 children, that friend and her 3 children, AND my mom are all coming.

(This is why I have no problem announcing my husband will be away. My house will be so full, I don’t think any boogie men would even chance coming by!!)

And I couldn’t be more excited! My kids are going to love it. I am going to love it… I cannot wait for the guests to arrive. (Well, maybe I can a little. I have a bit of tidyingto do before they get here. The painters were here yesterday.)

But I digress…

Since I love asking you, my dear, clever readers, for advice, I thought I’d throw this one out for you:

What should I serve my 13 houseguests to eat while they are here? I would love to pre-prepare as many steps as possible so that I’m not rushed at mealtime.

I already pored over FishMama’s (who is a once a month cooking whiz) blog, Life as Mom, for ideas and even brainstormed with her on the phone. She gave me some excellent pointers so I think I mostly know what I’m doing. Or at least I have a few bases covered.

But I would also love to read your ideas… recipes, tips, whatever. Comment with links or include your recipes in the comments. Just help me as much as you are willing.

Thanks, y’all… I can’t wait to read what you suggest!

Oh, and if you are nearby and want to swing on over, just let me know. We might have a few square inches left.

I am soooooo excited about my latest creation with my daughter.
We made these this afternoon for a friend…

I’m making some special cupcakes and have to stop to run an errand.

But my kitchen waits… ready for the next step.

(I can’t wait to try it out in a bit!!)

My relationship with my slow cooker (eh-hem, slow cooker collection) has not always been rosy. And I must admit there is still some trial and error going on in the 144 household.

However, my friend Connie at Smockity Frocks is hosting a slow cooker carnival and since she is such a great lady (and makes me laugh really, really hard) how could  I not participate? Plus, I’m hoping to hop over there in a bit and learn more from all the participants and their recipes. (Don’t forget to link up one if you have one!)

But first, I have a crock-pot/ slow-cooker story of my own to tell you…

At Christmastime I was trying to figure out how to optimize my cooking options and still serve a delicious meal.

That’s when I decided to put two slow-cookers into action: one for baking potatoes and one for sweet potatoes. And they turned out perfectly!

I scrubbed the potatoes, pricked them and wrapped them in foil. Then I put them in the slow cookers for eight hours on low and ended up with the best potatoes I think I have ever served in my house… Much better than the microwave and I think even better than the oven.

If you try this at  home, do NOT add any water… just use the potatoes, and foil, after scrubbing and pricking.

For the best results, use a slow cooker which will be completely filled up by the potatoes. For just 3 potatoes I use my mini, but for more, I load ‘em up in the big guy.

The clean-up is simple and the preparation super-easy, too.

For something a bit messier, click on over to read about my several-day apple butter adventure.

What a crazy mess that was!!!

So… I’m curious, what have you used your crockpot to make? Please let us know in the comments…

I feel like we have fallen into a breakfast rut over here in the 144 household and was  hoping a few of you could help me out with some new ideas.

Do you have any ideas for protein-packed,  low-effort breakfasts I could prepare for my kiddos before heading off to school?

I’m looking for ideas that will fuel my kids for a full morning of fun and learning at school. This morning I thought I was sending them off with a filling breakfast that would keep them going, but then found my own stomach grumbling about an hour and a half later. Ummmm… OOPS!

So, please, help a mom out… What do you like to make and serve at your house that keeps your kids tummies topped off?

Please leave me your ideas in the comments or link to your favorite recipes and ideas from the blogosphere. The 144 family needs you!

And just so I’m not taking without giving, I’ll offer our favorite energy-packed breakfast:

My whole family loves scrambled egg whites (sometimes I add in one whole egg for color), mixed with a bit of Italian seasoning, sprinked with cheddar cheese and sandwiched in  heated tortillas. Often I’ll add a bit of fruit on the side or pair it with a breakfast popsicle. Yummy, energy-packed AND portable (without the popsicle).

Now it’s your turn…  Do tell!

And if you’re not in the advice-giving mode but in the advice-getting mode, head on over to We Are THAT Family’s Works for Me Wednesday where you’ll find hundreds of solutions to all sorts of things.

My husband and I have decided we need to be more pro-active in showing our kids how to do more for themselves.

This morning I decided to show them how to prepare frozen waffles using the toaster and, to make it more exciting, invited my oldest to shoot an instructional video while I taught.

In case you’d like a more humorous and elaborate tutorial on breakfast treats, check out this video on making pop-tarts on TheHappyHousewife.com.

And for more good ideas in general, check out Works for Me Wednesday at We are THAT Family.

Bon Appetite!

At my weekly weight in I wasn’t too proud of myself, yet I wasn’t too disappointed, either.

My weight remained exactly the same.

I’ve been losing at such a steady pace that the stop was a bit of a surprise. However I know I didn’t track as closely as I should have over the weekend, so I can’t be too frustrated.

This week I’m back to being a picky tracker, so hopefully I’ll have a loss to report next week.

And thanks to my new tool, I bet I’ll find success:

To help me in planning low-point meals, I assembled a binder of recipes with their Weight Watchers Points values clearly listed. The binder only has recipes that I have determined the Points values. (I have a file of recipes awaiting calculation in hopes of adding soon. But they will not go in there until I know exactly what I might be eating.)

Sure, I have quite the collection of cookbooks and random recipes filed away in my own cookbook-style binders throughout the kitchen, but trying to meal plan with my new eating style was tough. I’d flip through all the books, binders and files of recipes, looking for ideas. I was tempted to buy a few new healthier cookbooks until I realized that I probably have more than a full cookbook’s worth of ideas already in my house… I just needed to get the ones I like, or want to try, together.

By compiling them all in one place I can flip through and make choices rather easily. I know this next confession isn’t too green, but it helped me: I even photocopied recipes out of cookbooks I already own (no copyright infringement) and slipped them in the binder. No more wondering where a favorite or potential favorite recipe is… they are all together. And after we try each recipe I write a few comments about the dish right on the recipe… or rip it out and trash it if I know it won’t work for us.

My new cookbook has been a great help for me. And I bet with time it will come to replace my other binders of recipes as our family moves toward this new healthier lifestyle. Sure, I’ll keep a few favorite indulgences, but I’ll also work to improve them and see how we can replace the unhealthy favorites with much healthier, just-as-delicious options.

I’m excited to begin this new collection and I have to ask… Do you have any recipes you think I should include? Please share in the comments!

I know I need to head on over to Simply Sugar & Gluten Free’s Slightly Indulgent Mondays. Anyone else have any ideas to share? I’d love to learn about them!

After my amazing weight loss victory from last week, I continued to lose another pound… until I boarded the plane for California last Thursday for an amazing long weekend in the wine country.

Sure, I could have waited until after the trip to start back at Weight Watchers, but then I’d probably be in more trouble! Instead, I enjoyed the vacation, enjoyed tasting some delicious wines and enjoyed (yes, you read that right, I did enjoy) making better choices at all those restaurants. Sure, I indulged a bit, but I also sought out healthier options to counter-balance some of the more indulgent choices. Plus, I didn’t want to be too light an eater while sampling at all those wineries.

(That’s my salad in the front, by the way. And I only dipped into that bread basket a few times.)

So, did my smart choices help?

Today I am happy to report that I weigh the same as I did when we left for the trip. And I did not feel deprived for one moment… I didn’t nibble on as many squares of Dove dark chocolate as I would have in the past, but I still enjoyed a few. And I never felt uncomfortably stuffed.

Before we left, and since we’ve been back, I’ve discovered a few more recipes to share.

Let me know what you think:

Almond Butter and Jam-Stuffed French Toast, apx 5 WW points per full sandwich

8 slices whole grain bread

8 teaspoons almond butter

8 teaspoons raspberry jam

¾ cup egg-whites

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

½ teaspoon cinnamon

2 teaspoons canola oil

Powdered sugar

1. Spread 4 slices of bread with 2 teaspoons of almond butter and then 2 teaspoons of the jam each.  Couple with the other 4 slices of bread to make 4 sandwiches.
2. Preheat the griddle or frying pan to medium-high. Add 1 teaspoon of the canola oil.
3. Beat egg whites, vanilla and cinnamon in shallow bowl.
4. Dip and saturate each side of each sandwich in the egg white mixture. (About 30 seconds each side) and place onto griddle or frying pan. Cook until browned, about 2 minutes on each side. Add additional canola oil as needed.
5. Slice sandwiches and lightly dust with powdered sugar.

My husband and children also added maple syrup, but I enjoyed my French toast with just the powdered sugar and found it delicious and filing!

Scrambled egg whites, wedge of Laughing Cow garlic and herb, a handful of spinach and 4 cherry tomatoes, Apx 1 WW point

Saute the veggies, add some egg whites and when almost done, break the cheese wedge in to pieces and mix into the egg mixture.

Turkey, Swiss and cranberry wrap, Apx 4.5 WW points

1 Flat Out Light flatbread

1 Tablespoon fat free mayo

½ teaspoon Dijon mustard

2 slices deli turkey

1 slice, reduced-fat Swiss cheese

Salad greens

½ cucumber, sliced

4 cherry tomatoes, sliced

1 Tablespoon dried cranberries

1. Combine fat-free mayo and mustard and spread on flatbread.
2. Add remaining ingredients, roll and enjoy!

–Adapted from a recipe in Weight Watchers 150 Comfort Foods.

Shredded Chicken Tortilla Soup recipe from Simply Sugar and Gluten Free

Super easy, super yummy and super healthy! I skipped the avocado because I’m just not a huge avocado fan. And the next time I might add a can of corn and a can of black beans. But I really enjoyed the flavor. I never would have thought to add cinnamon. Check the recipe out… you’ll thank me!

I think that’s it for the recipes this week. But I’ll be back next week with more…  and hopefully a weight loss to report, as well.

This post is linked to FishMama’s Ultimate Recipe Swap where you can find more yummy recipes. (I make no promises about WW points there, though. :) )