Summer Snack Bento

We were going up to Palma Sola to jet ski, so many places have been closed off due to the high rent areas want the water view to themselves. Money talks I guess. Anyway it's kinda fun up there because they will still allow horses on the beach there and many will bring their horse on a Sunday afternoon and have fun with the family.



We bring the pop-up so we can have shade, which we use year round here in Florida. I think I set a phobia in my daughter's head about staying out of the sun...hey she will thank me years from now when her skin is still so beautiful and cancer free.

I didn't get many pics of the horses most of them were on the other side of the causeway. That is where our friend went with her horses. My camera was acting up :(


Here is a snack bento that I brought along, some California rolls with brown rice, broccoli rabe, carrots, rotisserie chicken. Nothing special just a quick snack.,and I had another one with some sesame snacks, cheddar, poppy seed, and garlic onion. I used my new Lock and Lock lunch box. I am almost getting as obsessed with Lock N Lock as Not Exactly Bento is...almost, but she has been collecting longer.




Just a few things to share from my yard, my turmeric is popping up nicely...I have some in a pot too that is bigger.



my pineapple has just seemed to stall, maybe it's too dry or too wet for it...

... this ginger in the backyard that I don't harvest... I let go to flower...


...these Lilly flowers smell so strong you wouldn't think they would...I'll have to find out what kind they are.

Have a great day! Thanks for sticking with me.

Sunday Snack Bento

Hi all my bento friends out there, how have you all been? It's a busy week at school last week due to the FCAT testing, that's The Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test, and is administered to students in grades 3 - 11. Although I am not in the classroom anymore and working in the clinic I get a chance to see what nerves and working too hard can do to these grade schoolers. Anyway I really needed to relax this weekend and get ready for two more days of testing for the 5th graders. This year Our Spring Break was so early and testing is later than it has always been. I think as far as sickness, colds and allergies the later testing is better, but you still have kids coming in to school sick so they won't miss it....please stay home and take the make up test!!!

I finally used my new adorable bento box that my sister gave me for Christmas. Of course I got it in February because that's when she come down to Florida to visit. I love it, and I can't wait to use the fish onigiri mold. I also can't wait to get a new camera...I really want two. But bills have to be paid first.

The tier on the left I have some crispy curry tofu, some mini almonds, marbled cheese, grape tomatoes, cauliflower all on a bed of kale. I have some asparagus spears tucked in on the left but you can't see them. The little candy in the first pic is from my friend who brought a bag of little candy bars from South Africa.

The top tier: the last of some of this season's Florida orange slices green grapes with some of the pick my sister gave me, baby bella mushrooms, and oatmeal bread cut in a flower with cream cheese and peperoni spread with a chipotle rubbed, boiled lotus root on top.

I could not get this camera to focus on the baby pineapple. I wanted to show you how it has tiny purple flowers that start to bloom at the bottom and later near the top. ..

My camera is now really acting up, because I used to be able to focus pretty close... There is also a catch in the aperture, but I hope you get an idea of what it looks like.

My husband rode his motorcycle to Ft Lauderdale to a jet ski race to promote his new business that he just started last week. So Maranda and I decided to walk the beach early...we grabbed our coffee and flip flops sunroof open and headed out to Siesta Key...

We had our coffee and so did this guy...

We usually avoid going to the beach until after Easter when most of the snow-birds and tourist leave us, and we can have our beach back, and things get back to normal.

It is still a little early to see any turtles nests, nesting season is May 1, through Oct 4. We were thinking of volunteering to join the daily patrols during nesting season to help monitor the eggs and hatching of the baby turtles. Here on Turtle Beach you'll find many nests.

We were there early enough so the beach was still empty, and the waves were beautiful...so peaceful just to be there and listen...

The crystal clear blues skies really helped to show off the blue water, then we came home to walk the dog and sit by the pool and enjoy our snack bento....

Ready for the week?

Starting Out With Snack Bentos

I decided to start a new blog devoted to just bentos. I was going to wait until I got my new Bento Cookbook that I won from Lia Chen at Bentolicious her wonderful bento blog! I thought that July 1st would be a good day to start. I will post about the cookbook when I get it any day now! There are some many wonderful bento box bloggers out there who have been so inspiring, and encouraging to me in my bento venture. I will be mentioning many of there blogs as I go. I know I have a lot of work yet on my blog design....it will come. On my food blog The Tiny Skillet I post mostly recipes, many of them would work well in bento lunch boxes. I will post them here as well. So here we go ...I sure hope you enjoy it as much as I have learning all about bento box lunches.
Yes I know this isn't a bento box, but it would be in one if I was going to work. Since I am home for the summer (I work at an elementary school) this was my lunch, and I didn't need to take it anywhere except out to the lani.

Here is another snack bento...with some broccoli, strawberries, cantaloupe, kumquat, watermelon radish, asparagus, and edamame on a bed of spinach leaves. Very healthy, but I sent along some dipping sauces!

I hope you will bear with me as the dust settles and I begin my journey into the world of bento blogging!