Step Away From the PBJ #12: Gearing Up for School

The school year is peeking around the corner and taunting me already!  I hope everyone else is having a later start than we are this year.  We start August 16.  (And I'm going to stop fussing about it now...)  But with the thought of school is the need to plan lunches and bentos.

Here's my goal and I welcome you to join me in it:  Start freezing staples for school lunches - little pita breads (from a little more dough in my normal batch), left over meats and veggies, rice and grains, etc.  This should shave time off the morning schedule in those first few hectic getting back in the groove weeks. (Just remember to reheat any foods that aren't breads before packing them in lunches for safety sake.)

What will you be freezing for upcoming school lunches?

[caption id="attachment_718" align="aligncenter" width="450" caption="Riceballs with Carrots, Radishes, Cucumber, Peas, Raisins and Yogurt"][/caption]

Quick Shop News - Bug Fix and We're on Amazon

The pesky bug that made scroll bars disappear on the shop page has been fixed.  (Happy dance!  You don't want to know how long that took me to find the fix to that.)  If you have anymore troubles with it (or other site issues), please use the contact page to let us know!  Thanks!

We're now also selling on Amazon.  If you're curious, stop by our  Ojamiya on Amazon and take a gander or say hi.  There's much for me to learn about Amazon - but it's a fun place to setup shop.  Currently I'm researching how to sell my handmade items there as Amazon requires UPCs for most everything.  (There are exceptions but there's a wait limit to the main categories.)  So cross your fingers for me!

Bento Storage and Fun Fabrics

As my bento box collection grows, I'm finding I have to put my boxes away more carefully.  (My bin is getting mighty full.)  Boxes are stored on their end and carefully place with like containers. I love having different shaped and sized containers for different foods.

[caption id="attachment_735" align="aligncenter" width="450" caption="My bento storage box - Small tiers are put inside the bigger ones"][/caption]

Now, I'm finding I adore Japanese engineering.  They thoughtfully make most 2 tier boxes so that the smaller tier stacks inside the bigger one.  (I didn't know this for the longest time - so if you knew it go ahead and laugh.  But if you didn't know it - now you do, so feel smug about it.)  The Japanese are so considerate!

[caption id="attachment_733" align="aligncenter" width="450" caption="Smaller bento box tier just fits snugly inside the big one"][/caption]

What are your bento storage tips?

Shop News

New Fabrics and Bags!  I finally found some really cute Asian fabrics that work with my current bento boxes.

[caption id="attachment_722" align="aligncenter" width="450" caption="Bento Set with new Asian fabrics"][/caption]

Also, I'm still gearing up for this fall's class and practicing my sashiko like mad.  Though, I'm having a heck of a time deciding on projects for the class.  (i.e Whether I should have them do a pre-made sampler or trace a pattern of mine.)  Any suggestions?

[caption id="attachment_721" align="aligncenter" width="450" caption="Sashiko Embroidered Bento Set"][/caption]

That's what I know for now. But I have more posts in the queue! ;)

Tiger Lilies (Oh My...)

[caption id="attachment_720" align="aligncenter" width="450" caption="Single Tiger Lily"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_719" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Tiger Lily (aka Oniyuri - Demon Lily)"][/caption]

My favorite flowers of summer are Tiger Lilies and they are blooming in force now.  I found out yesterday that in Japanese large things can be referred with the word "demon" in the front.  Tiger lilies are one of those things - Oniyuri.  So I have a bunch of very big tall flowering demon lilies in the back of my yard.  Go figure. ;)

Step Away From the PBJ #11: Watching Calories during Summer Vacation

How are you doing with bentos and other healthy lunch styles this summer?

We've relaxed our bento efforts some this summer while we're all home, but will be resuming them mid August when school starts here.

New foods have been the thing for us these last few months.  Don't be afraid to try out new things this summer while you have a captive audience and can see the reactions right away.  I've tried quite a few new recipes.  Only one complete bomb that even I wouldn't eat.

Two of my faves came from the Just Bento site in the "Asparagus Salad and Quinoa Spring Bento".  I've fallen in love with quinoa (Keen-Wah) and it's simplicity - tasty and easy to fix!  I did make a bento from this meal (picture below).



Before I'd tried the Asparagus salad recipe, I'd never considered that asparagus could be edible raw.  I don't ever want to cook asparagus again!  Even my burnt out on asparagus family liked it. (Burnt out on asparagus <- remember in a previous post when my dear father in law bought 30 lbs of asparagus and during our trip to see him my kids saw it most every day...)

Another favorite new recipe (and it's worth the prep time) is Chelo.   It's a delightful Persian rice pilaf with a crispy crust.  We had it with a fried egg, multi-grain tortillas, strawberries and cucumber slices.  Yummy and low cal!

As far as weight loss goes I'm down 8 lbs from my heaviest weight since may - though there are cycles.  I seem to be on weight loss slide again.  Looking at the graph over the last couple of months though I can see the downward slope.  Counting my calories on The Daily Plate is pretty easy and really helping me get a good idea of where I'm at.  My calorie goal is 1600 calories and working well.  I've been eating on a salad plate or bento box every day and learning to find foods that have fewer calories in them.   I'm also exercising and drinking a ton of water.  I'm feeling better and not having the swelling in my ankles and stiffness in my joints as much.  (Before I was really wondering if I was starting to develop arthritis and other scary things.)  Not sitting in front of the computer for long times is helping too.  (Even though there's so much I could do for my shops!)

What's going on this summer as far as lunches and life in general for you?

Vote at Must Have Cute!

My Kitty Bento and Doughnut Lunch Bag are up for vote. Vote for me and any others that scream CUTE to you! http://musthavecute.com/vote/

[caption id="attachment_697" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Kitty Bento and Doughnut Lunch Bag are Up for Vote at musthavecute.com/vote (see post 07.7.10 2:39 pm)"][/caption]

There are also a ton of other super cute items to vote for there. Vote for your faves and give them a chance at the front page of Must Have Cute!

Sashiko Beginner Class at NCFF, Site Updates, and the Latest Bento Set

The Sashiko Beginner Class at North Country Fiber Fair (NCFF) has been confirmed for Sunday morning from 10am to noon. See workshop listings for more info.  Oh I can't wait!  I know the beautiful patterns will draw people in to learn more about sashiko and the Japanese culture.  I'll be getting the class info and projects together very soon.

You haven't heard of NCFF?  It's our local fiber festival.  Think yarn, wool, sheep, alpacas, mohair, spinning, weaving, felting and all other fiber arts goodness for the Dakotas and surrounding areas.

[caption id="attachment_674" align="aligncenter" width="510" caption="NCFF Information (links to NCFF Web)"][/caption]

Site News

If you're reading this from the blog you'll see we've made a few updates to the look and feel. I try not to change things around too often. But the last theme I used did not play nice with the shop. This one does and is much easier to modify. ;) (I can tinker with html and css, but don't like dedicating the time to it.)

New in the Bento Scene

With the new men's bento boxes in, I've been just itching to get a new bag made to go with them!  My goal is to try to do more with upcycled materials.  Bento is quite green because we reduce waste, but there's always room to improve - and upcycling is a perfect way.  Here's my latest skater shirt re-use bag and turned into a draw string backpack.

The Homefront

Our summer schedule seems to only have sped up compared to the school year.  Swimming lessons are the big favorite for activities, though we'll see how my son likes scout camp.  (I'm betting it'll be the new fave for him.)

I'm almost done with my Olympus course on Sashiko.  Waiting for the test materials and review of my work.  I'll be going through all the levels they have.

Looking at purchasing a manual treadmill.  Bentos and smaller meals in general are helping with the weight loss but I need to keep exercising!  I've been pacing the basement to walk and jog while relieving the boredom by listening to Japanese lessons.  The constant turning is not nice on knees.  So I'm trying all sorts of things to keep the turning to a minimum or slow it down.

This fall is quickly approaching.  It's just a little over a month until both my young 'ens are in school.  (Yes, my school district is insane as we start school in the best swimming weather...I can't begin to explain with out ranting so I'll not explain.)  I'll be working on my shop full time then.  I'm looking forward to it, but it will be a big change for me, the shop and my family!

That's all the news from here for now.  I hope your summer is fun and less hectic than mine!  What's happening for y'all?