Fun Lunch Series Sponsors - ya yah design

During the Fun Lunch Series we have had businesses donate product for giveaways.  I thought it was time to share with you all a little bit about the people behind the businesses and also why they are passionate about fun lunches!

Helen lives and works on the shaky Port Hills of Christchurch NZ with her Very Supportive Partner, Beautiful Teenage Daughter, Cheeky Preschooler and a Mad Little dog called Zoe.

Helen started making Ya Yah Giraffes to sell, about 2 and a Half Years ago and in the last six months started making  re-useable Sandwich and Snack Bags mostly because Preschool banned Glad wrap and Helen just couldn't fit all the little plastic boxes in her daughters lunch box.  Helen decided there had to be a better way and started experimenting with different types of bags. 

Most of the ones she tried her daughter was unable to open on her own or too complicated to redo if putting stuff back in. So Helen made a reusable version of what she had growing up - the plastic sandwich envelope.
It worked well  so she made some for friends and tested them out. Helen made a few small changes along the way and now there are a great range of designs to choose from!  Check more out here at yayahdesign.

Sandwich and Snack bags are:

• Great for kids lunch boxes or putting food in your bag.
• Can be used to carry all sort of things from biscuits to baby pacifiers, popcorn to spare cloths.
• 100 % cotton exterior and sewn in nylon lining so you can trust they are food-safe for your kids.
• Just shake out the crumbs or chuck it in the wash.
• Funky design kids love.

Fun Lunch Series : Part 3 - Putting it all together

In Part 1 and Part 2 we looked at Hamming up Sandwiches and Fun with Fruit.  In Part 3 we are going to look at Putting it all together to make an all round Fun Lunch.
There are a variety of ways to do this - start by hamming up a sandwich, making some fun fruit and then adding a few other things to make it an all round Fun Lunch.  These 'few other' things can be crackers, biscuits or fruit gummies themed to your kids fave character.  Egg molds are another way to get some wow factor into your kids lunchboxes.

These  Bento boxes, Muffin Tin Meals, Food face plates and Making a scene ideas  will inspire you and the kids to have fun.  It doesn't have to happen everyday, these ideas are a great go to guide when you need a little inspiration!

What is “bento”? I hear you ask.  A bento lunch is a compact, balanced, visually appealing meal packed in a box.  In Japanese, “bento” or “obento” refers to the packed meal, and “bento-bako” refers to the bento box itself. See the Wikipedia entry on bento for more details.

Muffin Tin meals are another great way to mix it up for kids.  It’s something a little different, breaking up the usual meal-making routine. It encourages the meal-maker (that’s you!) to offer a variety of foods, in small portions, which is a technique that generally appeals to children.  You can tailor your Muffin Tin Meal to a theme, fave story or different types of muffin tins.  

Or if a muffin tin is too big how about an ice cube tray??

Making faces with food is an oldie but a goody and with the addition of the food face plate the creative process becomes even more fun with Mr and Ms Food Face.

However if you want the kids imagination to run crazy wild here is some inspiration on other types of food faces from pizza to pancake faces.

Making a scene with food is another creative way for kids to make lunches their own and we all know when you make something yourself you have to eat it - right?

Thanks to Not Socks Gifts I have a Ms Food Face plate and from Remember When I Used To Be A Rascal I have a Car Egg mold to give away!  

Giveaway Details :
- to enter, leave a comment about your favourite fun lunch idea from the Putting Fun Lunches Together Pinterest board.  You can leave your comment either here or on the Facebook page.  My fave is the April Showers Bring May Flowers Muffin Tin Meal - see if you can find it. 
- one comment per person
- you must live in New Zealand
- giveaway closes on Friday 13th September. 

Good to know:
- if you like our Fun Lunch sponsors on Facebook you can stay up-to-date on all their goings-on and know about any deals or promotions that pop up, including giveaways. Check them out up there on the sidebar- 
- if you like justalittlebitcute and our sponsors on Facebook you will be the coolest kid in town. Or something like that. 
- these things will not earn you a second entry, but it will make me and my sponsors appreciate the love
- you can get discount at Yayah Design on Sandwich bags using the coupon code "FunLunch" during the Fun Lunch Series
-you can also get discount from bubbalooz (discount is 15% off on purchases over $25) during the Fun Lunch series.

IMPORTANT 

- make sure there is some way for me to contact you! Leave an email, or have your name clickable to a profile or something.  If there is no way for me to reach you then I'll have to draw another entry!! This has happened previously, so I wouldn't like to do this and disappoint someone!

GIVEAWAY CLOSED

Finding Nemo Birthday Party Inspiration

So Lily is turning 2 this weekend and its party time.  Seeing as she is a fan (bordering on obsessed) of Finding Nemo I decided to go with an underwater theme.  So Pinterest has come in handy once again to inspire and start the party planning process.

A few decorations to set the mood............

Some food to whet the appetite.......

Some cake............

And some more cake...........

Check out more ideas and sources for the above on my  Pinterest board - Birthday Party Inspiration

Market Mashup - Elements Market

I thought I would share with you some of my faves from my fellow stallholders from the recent Elements Market.  I will share some of my own market cuties next so keep an eye out for those.......

Little Red Riding Red from Baby Bird, Little Red Riding Set from Buttoflies, Goodies from Whimsy-oh!, Lou Lou Dress from Michael and Maisie, Shoe & Hat Set from Green Jean

Kid in a Bearsuit from BerriSwitchBlade, Reloved Chevron Table from Hibiscus, Reunion Bunting fabric from Fabric Fixation, Hearts from R.L.S Arthouse, Recycled Rimu Frames from Silvan Gallery

Next Market in Christchurch is the Vintage Encraftment Market.............

and Dunkleys Craft Show is also on the same weekend.........

And always remember...........

Source

Fun Lunch Series Sponsors - Keeping it Kawaii

During the Fun Lunch Series we have had businesses donate product for giveaways.  I thought it was time to share with you all a little bit about the people behind the businesses and also why they are passionate about fun lunches!

Rebecca from Keeping it Kawaii is excited about fun lunches so it wasn't hard to convince her to be part of the Fun Lunch Series.  I asked Rebecca a few questions about her fun lunch tips and how to make it exciting.........

What is your favourite accessory that you sell that would make a great go to item for making fun lunches?

My favourite accessory for making fun lunches would be our Bear Sandwich Cutter. I love how it seals the sandwich and the filling all stays in the middle! Cute for boys or girls and toddlers seem to especially like it encouraging them to eat a healthily filled sandwich!

Do you have any fun lunch tips yourself? Hmmm, fun lunch tips...... My boys love fruit so we always have lots of fruit in their lunches. I use sandwich cutters to make things a little different and exciting for them and they also love a boiled egg using one of our egg molds (fave being the car!)

Why did you decide to be a part of the Fun Lunch Series? I love to make my boys lunches different every day so they have some surprises in their lunch boxes.

And with loads of cute fun lunch accessories online at Keeping it Kawaii we can see how exciting their lunchboxes must be!  I'm in love with the Strawberry Bento Boxes *sigh*

Also a little secret....(well maybe not a well kept secret!)  Rebecca is the Becky behind Liked. by Becky

Becky had this BIG idea swimming around in her head for a couple of months. There were so many gorgeous and talented and amazing businesses out there and Becky loved the whole concept of new business ideas and getting alongside business owners to promote and encourage their ideas.  So Liked. by Becky was born.  Make sure you head on over to the blog and check it out!

Fun Lunch Series Sponsors - Remember When You Used To Be A Rascal

During the Fun Lunch Series we have had businesses donate product for giveaways.  I thought it was time to share with you all a little bit about the people behind the businesses and also why they are passionate about fun lunches!

Jane from Remember When You Used To Be A Rascal is passionate about fun lunches so it wasn't hard to convince her to be part of the Fun Lunch Series.  As you can see there are plenty of fun lunches happening at her house.

I asked Jane a few questions about her fun lunch tips and how to make it exciting.........

What is your favourite accessory that you sell that would make a great go to item for making fun lunches?

Love the egg molds, they are great for kids of all ages.

Do you have any fun lunch tips yourself? My fun lunch tips would be to keep it exciting and try new things, lots of little things make a lunch fun to eat. I often go to Kosko Asian supermarkets cause they have lots of great biscuits, crackers and treats that come in all shapes and characters.

Why did you decide to be a part of the Fun Lunch Series? I am passionate about making my daughter fun, healthy packed lunches that she will love opening up and eating. 

You can find Remember When You Used To Be A Rascal at Elements Market or on Facebook

Also spotted from Remember When You Used To Be A Rascal, these cute Angel Wing Denim Jackets now available at Hapa in Restart Mall, too cute *sigh*

How to throw a ROARRRING good party! *Stuck on You Product Review & Giveaway*

Thanks to our friends at Stuck on You releasing their new Party range we were able to throw a ROARRRING good Dino party at Lily's Preschool recently.  We decided on a Dino Party as they had been learning all about Dinosaurs so we wanted to celebrate all things dinosaur.  And they loved it.  Like really LOVED it!

The Dino Details...

It was easy to create our own Personalised Party details from Stuck on You like the Party Wall Sticker, Party Place Cards, Party Food Cards, Invitations, Party Dots Stickers, Party Water Bottle Labels and Straw Flags.

Dino Party Food...

Swamp Jelly (Lime jelly with Milo sprinkles in upcycled yoghurt cups), Prehistoric Popcorn (plain popcorn) , Bronto Bites (Ham and Cheese Sandwiches cut into dino shapes), Dino Bites (Sugarfree Dino Jellies), Cretaceous Cupcakes (Vanilla cupcakes with Chocolate frosting and Dino Toppers), Dino Eggs (grapes), Dino Toenails (Vege crisps)

Dino Party Decorations...

The coolest tree in the jungle made with the artistic talents of Lily's Preschool teachers, Dino Cupcake Toppers (small toy dinosaurs), Dino plates (plastic plates with holes cut through to sit on top of larger dinosaurs), Dino Noticeboard and Dino Bunting.

Dino Fun & Games...

Fun and Games included Pin the Dino in the jungle Canvas party game from Stuck on You, Dino Playdough, Doing the Stegosaurus dance, Dino Dig (digging for dinosaurs in sand) , Bubbles (wouldn't be a party without bubbles), Dino footprints and Finding Dino eggs (plastic eggs with dinosaurs inside).

Dressing up...

It wouldn't be a Dino party without Cave People and a cute Stegosaurus! 

Dino Party Favours...

I made these Dino Party Favours using Party Place Cards and created a Dino Dig bag full of goodies - bubbles, shredded paper, Foam Dino stickers, Bubble Dino stickers and Dino Rubber Sets.

Giveaway...

To inspire your own Dino Party, I have a Party in a Cup and I x set of Party Dots cards to giveaway.  The Party Dots can be used for so many things - Favour bags, Cake Pop tags, Food Decorations.  To be in to win comment below about your best kids party go to trick - it can be a fave food that you make, game or decorations that have the wow factor.

A big THANKYOU to Lily's Preschool Teachers Megan, Jess and Bea and Jenna our Photographer.  And to the cutest little Cave People you ever did see!  You are Party animals!

And remember Dinosaurs say ROARRRRRR!!!!!!!!!