I have partnered with Dannon Danimals to discuss Danimals Yo-Tubes and Danimals Squeezables. I have been compensated for my time. However, my opinions are entirely my own and I have not been paid to publish positive comments.
Winter Break is over and school is about to start up again.  I think our family is in a âlunchboxâ rut!  There, I said it!  Iâm tired of making the same old thing and my daughter is tired of opening her lunchbox to findâŚâthe same old thingâ.  She has a really long day at school and I want to make sure she eats a well-balanced meal to get all the nutrients and energy she needs for the day.  Every lunch I pack should have fruits, veggies, grains, proteins and dairy I LOVE having Danimals on hand in the freezer because the easiest part of lunch is throwing in a frozen Yo-Tube and they will still be cold but thawed by lunchtime.  The Danimals Squeezables are great too!  Yo-Tubes come in a variety of delicious flavors and have no artificial colors, flavors, but they do provide essential calcium with vitamin D to my growing, energetic daughter!  Taking a Yo-Tube out of the freezer is a no-brainer for lunches!    Â
So, I have decided to start off the NEW YEAR with a blast of colorâŚbecause what makes my daughter happier than rainbows?  NOTHIN!  Every day my daughter eats, sleeps, breathes, and colors nothing but rainbows and unicorns. When you ask her what she is daydreaming about, it is ârainbows and unicornsâ, not kidding!  So deciding to liven up her lunch with some rainbows and unicorns was a no-brainer too!
It is very important to know before you get started making fun, exciting lunches, that you can make any lunch rainbow-licious if you add a little pizazz to it.  By pizazz, I mean food-coloring and sparkly glitter and any sort of decorative confectionery.  You can make your very own natural ingredient food coloring using beets, carrots, spinach, blueberries, and cabbage and keep these stored in little bottles for constant lunchbox dazzling!  Also, I went online and bought edible glitter, confetti, and nonpareils that were certified 100% natural (no preservatives, no artificial ingredients, no gluten, non-gmo, no soy, no dairy, nut-free, and no hydrogenated fats.) It is zero calories, flavorless, and it is not SUGAR so you can liberally sprinkle the entire nutritious lunch with ârainbow fairy pixie dustâ and your child will LOVE it and EAT it all!  The Danimals Yo-Tube also has no artificial flavors, colors or high fructose corn syrup and is a good source of Calcium with Vitamin D.  They are delicious and nutritiousâŚlike this entire rainbow sparkly lunch you are about to see!
Here is what I packed her for lunch this morning: Â
The ingredients were very simple:
pasta with olive oil and chicken
tomato & mozzarella balls
hard boiled deviled egg
veggies (red peppers, carrots, yellow peppers, snap peas) with pink ranch dip
fresh and dried blueberries
skewers of raspberries and mandarin orange slices with cheese stars
Dessert - dried organic golden berries and a Strawberry Explosion Danimals Yo-Tube!
Sprinkles of edible glitter and rainbow nonpareils throughout!
I know my daughter is going to explode with happiness and excitement when she opens her lunchbox today! Who wouldnât want to eat this ânutritiousâ rainbow surprise? Â
For the rest of the week, I can alternate different fruits and veggies in rainbow colors (kiwi, grapes, cucumber, strawberries, there are so many great choices). Â Instead of pasta, I can substitute with a rainbow grilled cheese or a colorful salad with spinach, tomato, carrots, and purple cabbage. Â
On Friday, it is my daughterâs 7th birthday and if you have to go to school on your birthdayâŚthen why not open your lunchbox to find the most AMAZING BIRTHDAY LUNCH EVER!  After almost a whole week of ârainbowsâ, it is time to bring some âunicornsâ into the lunchbox!
Imagine how excited she will be to open up her lunchbox to find a magical unicorn sandwich and âhealthyâ rainbow deliciousness to help her energize for the rest of the day.  The unicorn sandwich is made with 4 slices of honey wheat bread cut into a unicorn shape.  Each layer has a different veggie spread that I pre-madeâŚcarrot, spinach & peas, and beets steamed and pureed with cream cheese.  Itâs a unicorn tea sandwich!  A fruit roll-up is the saddle.  So colorful and delicious!  Green cucumber âfroggiesâ with magic cheese wands sail on a deviled egg boat through a carrot and pepper ocean.  Colorful fruit wands of watermelon, blackberries, and honeydew are sprinkled with coconut flakes.  Cinnamon rice cakes with some sunflower butter, pitted cherries and of course a Danimals Strawberry Explosion Yo-Tube for dessert.  Since itâs her birthday, I also put in a Swinginâ Strawberry Banana Smoothie for a quick pick-me-up before I pick her up and go celebrate her turning 7 years old with some after school shenanigans!  She could pretty much have the best day and the best lunch ever!   Â
Adding Danimals Yo-Tubes or Danimals Squeezables are easy to pack in a lunchbox and a great way to make sure my daughter gets the nutrition she needs to go through her day! I love that they can be stored in my freezer and they will still be cold and thawed in time for a lunchtime tasty treat! Â Squeezables have a little joke on them too to put an extra little smile on your kiddos face in the middle of the day!
The Danimals smoothies are also deliciously easy and come in many yummy lip-smacking varieties too!    Â
New Year, New Lunches! We will NEVER be stuck in a LUNCHTIME rut again!
Iâm already thinking ahead to St. Patrickâs Day for some creative lunch options and of course some Danimals Yo-Tubes or Squeezables thrown in for good measure. Â We love Danimals!
