meet our new lunchboxes.

 

i like to organize.

i also like to just throw my clothes all over the floor.

and sometimes i like piles of stuff.

 

my husband calls me a "selective organizer"...and well, he's kind of right.

i organize areas of my life that i think will help me stay sane.

 

my clothes all over the floor is just what i've grown up doing. 

don't hang that shirt up honey---i won't be able to find it tomorrow when i go to put it on!

true story. 

i know exactly where i put my things on the floor.  just like all my bobby pins...i purposefully put them in random places all over the house, so that in case i need one, i have one hiding in that room.  mr. anderson likes to play "let's find all the bobby pins".  i think that's rude. 

look, i'm doing him a favor by not making him get up and get me one later.  i'm always thinking of him.

 

where was i going with this?

oh yes.  i like to organize!

basically i like to make my kids organize.  and i like to organize their life.

it's this little idol in my heart called control, but whatever.  at least i'm making our life easier for a while with my control.

so, when elsa came home from africa, i thought "oh my word, i have 5 kids...i need to get my act together!"

so, i gave each kid a color...and bought all their essentials in their color.

cups, bowls, plates, silverware, pillowcases, toothbrush cups, towels...you get the point?

look, i'm a bit of a germaphobe.  i don't like them sharing cups, pillows, towels.  that stuff is kind of grody, not gonna lie.

if my towel even has a hint of "someone has touched this" i won't use it.

i know, i'm extreme.

with school, i wanted to get them each a backpack with their own color, but they put their foot down and wouldn't let me.  dang you kids.

but i did win in the lunchbox department.

 

kelly from easy lunchboxes sent me a lunchbox for each school kid (in their color!) and a couple of containers for each box (in their color!)

i mean, it's kind of amazeballs.  you know i must be excited about these lunchboxes because i set them up like a family at a photo shoot.

my kids are all "uh, mom, why are you taking photos of our lunches?"

"because i am children, just go with it."

mommy does crazy things when she's excited.  like a cannonball.  but that's besides the point.

 

so, i'm not gonna lie.  these lunchboxes are pretty amazing.

i actually get excited about making lunches because i get to line them all up and they look so neat and pretty.  (i'm sure this excitement will eventually wear off when i'm making lunch #285, but i'll go with it for now).

they are also practical for our family...we have 2 kids with peanut allergies and 2 without...so, with their lunchboxes different colors, i don't accidentally send caedmon with a peanut butter sandwich instead of milo.  {shudder}

plus, these bad boys can go in the dishwasher and since we run the dishwasher about 18 times a day, i can just throw it in there...or i can hand wash them.  i still love to hand wash stuff.  takes me back to the day when i didn't have a dishwasher and life was much more peaceful and calm with only 2 children.  sigh.

 

it's nice to not have tons of ziploc baggies for trash too.  i feel good about not leaving that mark on the planet.  even though i throw 30 diapers away every day and i run my dishwasher 18 times in a day.

every little bit helps though, right?

{i'm a bit of an exaggerator on the dishwasher, mkay?}

the word on the street is that you can write on the tops of the containers with dry erase markers---little notes to your kids.

fun times!

 

my schedule is that i make lunches during the day, for the next day---that way i'm not up in the morning going crazy about lunches.  that stresses me out.
so, i usually always have a cute helper like this one:

here's a few more tidbits about these babies

 (the lunchboxes, not my anderson babies--although i do treat these lunchboxes like they are a part of our family):

-no BPA, lead, vinyl or PVC

-washable cooler bag

-affordable, durable and eco-friendly

-dishwasher and microwave safe

 

now, while we are on the subject of lunches, i need some good, healthy lunch ideas.

please, do share what you feed your little ones!

 

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