Review: Goodbyn Bynto and Hero {with GIVEAWAY}

If you read my blog regularly, you know that we love our Goodbyn lunch containers! They were the very first containers I bought for my kids and they have proven to be one of our favorites over time. 

Besides the obvious plus points of the Goodbyn (carrying handle, dishwasher safe and leak proof), I love that the Bynto is easy to open for my kids even though it is still leak proof and my kids love the bright colors and convenience of being able to carry it without a lunch bag.

We packed this lovely purple Bynto with;

• a peanut butter sandwich on multi grain bread
• grapes and a stamped banana
• mini peppers

The Goodbyn Hero is truly a Hero! We love that it comes with two dippers which makes packing a breakfast style lunchbox a breeze. Just like the Bynto, this lunchbox is so versatile. You can pack a lot or a little and there is even room for a Goodbyn bottle!

Why do we love these Goodbyn containers?

• They are easy to wash (Top rack dishwasher safe)
• made FDA-approved Materials
• BPA- and phthalate free
• easy to open for little kids
• fun and colorful
• hold up throughout the school year! We had ours for years!
• 100% Recyclable

  This Goodbyn Hero contains:

• grapes
• cheese
• vanilla yogurt
• peanut butter sushi
• a Larabar and
• a few pieces of cereal to eat with the yogurt

WANT A CHANCE TO WIN THESE TWO? Enter my giveaway below:

a Rafflecopter giveaway 

Disclaimer: 

Open to US residents only. Winners will be notified via email. Winners have 24h to respond before a new winner is drawn. Good luck!

Goodbyn sent me a Goodbyn Bynto and Hero to review. All opinions are my own.

Van's NEW Gluten Free Granola and Snack Bars {with GIVEAWAY}

We love Van's products at our house and since one of my kids has a gluten sensitivity, they are our go-to company for cereal, granola and snack bars. We can never have enough in the house and snack bars go fast! I was so excited to hear that they have added two new granolas and two new snack bars to their line!

I am a HUGE granola fan and keep some in the house for a quick yogurt parfait or honestly just to snack out of the bag. We love both new flavors of their Soft-Baked Whole Grain Granola Clusters: Double Chocolate and Banana Nut.

I rolled some of the clusters into Granola bites and added them to today's school lunches! They are so delicious and a great addition to lunch.

Van’s Double Chocolate and Banana Nut Granola is baked with delicious, gluten-free, whole grain oats and offer 12-14 grams of whole grains per serving – with no artificial colors, flavors or preservatives. It is perfect for lunch, on the go, breakfast or to snack out of the bag ;)

Van's also added two new snack bars to their line: Chocolate Gramwich Sandwich Bars and Banana Bread Bars. We already love their PB&J Bars and let me tell you these new falvors are amazing! The Banana Bread Bars blend banana flavor with gluten-free oats and flaxseed to create a tasty and portable version of banana bread. And they are delicious! I am so busy these mornings and never think about my own breakfast. I have been enjoying the Banana Nut Granola and the Banana Bread bars as a great way to eat on the go! My kids on the other side have been thrilled with the new Chocolate Gramwich Sandwich Bars! Made with real chocolate sandwiched between two whole-grain, graham-style bars, they’re a real special treat for snack or lunch!

I have already requested these to be carried at our local grocery store to keep on hand for summer car trips and the pool! For now, we love them as an addition to lunch!

To celebrate these great new products, Van's is having an amazing giveaway! One lucky reader will win a Van's prize pack for you AND a friend. The winner will receive the $100 Visa gift card, Van’s water bottle, tote, two reusable snack sacks and coupons for free Van’s Foods. The winner will also receive another set of swag and coupons but doesn’t include the visa gift card for a friend.

ENTER HERE for your chance:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Boulder Organic Soups Review {with Giveaway}

I love food! And food loves me (a little too much!). So, what do I eat that is delicious, healthy and won't change my jeans size? Soup! Soup has more fiber, more flavor, less sugar and helps me stay satisfied longer than for example a juice.

Boulder Organic offers organic, gluten-free and Non-GMO soups and what could be any better than that!

The Chicken Vegetable Chili was hands down my favorite. I love thick soups and I found this one to be my go to lunch staple last week! It is chock full of chicken, tomato, carrots, corn, zucchini and three kinds of beans. 

But there are so many varieties to choose from that everyone will find a soup they love:

•  Butternut Squash with Sage
•  Roasted Tomato Basil
•  Red Lentil Dahl
•  Garden Minestrone
•  Cuban Black Bean
•  Green Chile Corn Chowder
•  Potato Leek
•  Golden Quinoa and Kale
•  Chicken Quinoa & Kale
•  Chicken Vegetable Chili

Which one would you love to try? 

I still have my eye out for the Potato Leek and the Carrot Ginger Soup with Coconut. One reminds me of home and the other of summer. Cannot wait to try them all!

To try these amazing soups for yourself enter my GIVEAWAY! I am giving away coupons to THREE lucky readers!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

US Residents only. The winners will be notified via email and have 24 h to claim their prize before a new winner is selected.

Disclaimer: I have not received any compensation for this post. I was sent two coupons to try the soup. The opinions in this post are my own.

National Nude Food Day 2015 {with Giveaway}

I am happy to say that I am a Nude Food Day Ambassador this year! Nude Food Day is celebrated every day during October this year and you can participate as well! I started my blog to journal our experiences with rubbish-free, healthy lunches. I am originally from Europe and being eco-friendly and earth consciencious is part of every day live where I am from. I love using eco-friendly and waste-free products and doing my part of keeping the landfills free of plastic baggies and disposables. I am proud to team up with Nude Food Movers this year!

Nude Food Day is a global initiative developed to encourage kids and parents to eat well and live well, and eliminate all unnecessary packaging and wrapping that goes into schools. Lots of schools around Australia have taking the opportunity to be involved. Nude Food Day has also launched in the UK and have secured Eco Schools, Keep Australia Beautiful, Wildlife Warriors and Australia Zoo as partners.

The official Nude Food day falls onto October 16th this year which also coincides with  Australia's National Nutrition Week and World Food Day. Using waste-free lunch containers is not just keeping your school rubbish free but also can save you quite a few dollars! Buying bigger containers of food items like yogurt will save you money in the long run, keep plastic out of landfills and help preserve wildlife.

Wondering how you can get involved? 

• Head over to Nude Food Day and register your school to participate in Nude Food Day 2015! 2015 marks the sixth year of Nude Food Day and to celebrate we are offering a MASSIVE $25,000 prize pool to six lucky schools!


• Share your favourite Nude Food Recipes/Photos/Events with us and our global community! Remember to share it with us by using #NudeFoodDay

• Enter to win one of three amazing Nude Food Prize Packs valued at over RRP $50 and containing: 

• Nude Food Movers Rubbish Free Lunchbox
• Nude Food Movers Coolskin
• Nude Food Movers Sandwich Box
• Nude Food Movers Snack Box
• Smash Sports Pop Top Drink Bottle
• Smash Stealth Drink Bottle 500ml

a Rafflecopter giveaway

This Giveaway is open only to residents of AUSTRALIA. The winner will be notified via email and has 24h to claim the prize!

Van's Cereal Review {and Giveaway}

We love cereal at our house but finding gluten free cereal my kids love has not always been easy. Thankfully, Van's has a great variety of breakfast cereals and recently added TWO new varieties:

Blissfully Berry and Cocoa Sensation! We were lucky enough to be able to taste them both and I highly recommend looking for them at your supermarket. We loved the chocolatey taste of the Cocoa Sensation and I had to buy another package to take pictures while the kids were in school. If it is in the house, they will finish it in one sitting. We also greatly enjoyed the Blissfully Berry and especially I appreciated the fruity flavor!

No matter if you eat cereal for breakfast or...

...pack it as a healthy snack to-go, we love having two new varieties of Van's Cereals to choose from.

As always, Van's cereal delivers 17g of nutrient-dense whole grains along with 5g of fiber per serving!

a Rafflecopter giveaway
The winner will be contacted via email and has 24h to respond to claim the prize. Open only to the U.S.

Nature's Bakery Fig Bar GIVEAWAY

We love Nature's Bakery Fig Bars! This is the only snack, everyone in my family can agree on!

We are always on the go. Be it for football practice, school clubs or music. Having a healthy and easy to eat snack on hand is important for those hectic afternoons.

I always have several Nature's Bakery Fig Bars in my purse.

Why do we love these Fig bars so much?

• Conveniently packaged for on-the-go snacking
• No High Fructose Corn Syrup
• Stone Ground Whole Wheat
• No Artificial Flavors
• No Artificial Colors
• No Artificial Preservatives
• Soy Free
• Dairy Free
• Cholesterol Free
• Contains 0 Trans Fats
• Non GMO
• Vegan
• Kosher
• ALL my kids love them ( a huge plus for Mom!)

I pack Nature's Bakery Fig Bars often ( follow me on Instagram to see more of my lunches!) and can trust that my kids will eat a good lunch!

Want to try Nature's Bakery Fig Bars for yourself? Just enter my easy-entry GIVEAWAY!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

US Residents only. The winner will be notified via email and has 24h to claim their prize.

Disclaimer: Nature's Bakery sent me samples to try. All opinions are my own.

Lunch with Honest Fizz

I have to admit that even though I try to eat healthy, I often crave a soda midday. I love the Honest Fizz line of sodas since I don't have to feel guilty drinking one with lunch. They are now all organic and have zero calories! Plus, if you haven't tried the new Golden Ginger Ale, pick one up at the store! Instead of an almost non-existent ginger flavor of other soda brands, this new variety of Honest Fizz actually tastes like ginger! Perfect for a hot day!

We also love the other flavors of Honest Fizz and it's my go-to-treat when the soda craving sets in.

Cheers!

Honest Tea was kind enough to offer TWO of my readers a variety case of their Honest Fizz, of course, including the new Honest Fizz Ginger Ale. For your chance to win, simply enter my Rafflecopter below! GOOD LUCK!

Lunch is packed in our Easylunchboxes and includes:

• an Honest Fizz Ginger Ale
• cucumber and grape tomatoes
• a roll with liverwurst and lettuce 
• half an apple

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Open to US Residents only. Winner will be contacted via email and has to respond within 24 h to claim the price.

Disclaimer: Honest Tea sent me a case of Honest Fizz to try. All opinions are my own.

Scratch-Off Lunchbox Note Review {and Giveaway}

My kids love lunchbox notes! There is just something special about finding a little note in your lunchbox with a reminder from home. My boys especially love jokes and silly lunchbox notes and the Inklings Paperie Lunchbox Notes add a whole new layer of fun with their scratch-off stickers! We couldn't wait to try these out!

What's in the Inklings Paperie Lunchbox Notes bag? You receive 

• 20 lunchbox notes with a fun black and white herringbone pattern on the back, 
• 20 scratch-off stickers and 
• a very handy storage back. 
• Also, included were a card with directions and idea starters.

   1. Write your message or draw a simple picture (like Wendolonia).

    2. Cover your message with the scratch-off sticker.

    3. Add a penny or something else your child can use to scratch off their message.

I have to say these lunchbox notes are really fun! My kids love lunchbox notes in general and we often add pre-printed ones with trivia and jokes. Recently, I started adding these pre-printed notes to my pre-readers lunch and she would thank me for them every day. One of the mornings when I was carefully choosing a card I asked her who read the cards to her at lunch. She told me that no one was reading them to her but she knew they said "I love you!" I was so touched but also realized that it would be more personal if I would draw her a picture for lunch instead of sending a written note. These cards are perfect for just that! My older kids loved the extra fun part of scratching the sticker off to find the written message from me but from now on I will draw my daughter a note. Besides that, I like that the design is gender neutral so they are great for both my daughter and my sons. They are also age neutral - meaning both my 5 year old and my teen like the design. And if you have different aged kids you can do both: write a short message or simply draw a picture for your pre-reader!

Love the Inklings Paperie Scratch-off Lunchbox Notes? You can win some right here:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Open to US residents only. Winner will be notified via email and has 48 hours to claim their prize before a new winner is chosen.

And if you cannot wait to get your own Scratch-off Lunchbox Notes, use my code "MAMABELLY20OFF" thru December 2014 to save 20% at Inklings Paperie.

Applegate HALF TIME Review {with Giveaway}

I am passionate about packing healthy, well balanced lunches for my kids. But there are those mornings when I wish there was a quick solution to lunch packing that was healthy and delicious. Because we all wake up with a head cold sometimes  have bad mornings sometimes and having a healthy lunch solution at hand can be a huge time saver!

This is why I am so excited that my favorite companies (Applegate, Annie's Homegrown and Stonyfield Organics) have teamed up to bring you HALF TIME - a lunch you can feel good about!

HALF TIME is available in 3 varieties:

• Turkey & Cheese
• Ham & Cheese, and 
• Bologna & Cheese

All three varieties include Applegate Naturals meats, Annie's Homegrown Buttery Rich crackers, Stonyfield YoKids Squeezers Strawberry and either Annie's Homegrown fruit snacks or graham crackers.

So we put HALF TIME to the test (actually the hungry Tween test. One hungry 12 year old vs HALF TIME Ham and American Cheese):

I have to admit that I was not sure if this would be enough food to feed my 12 year old son for lunch. BUT, I was pleasantly surprised when he finished and told me that he loved it AND that it was enough for lunch! He loved making cracker stackers and with the yogurt and cookies he felt full but not weighed down. SUCCESS!

What we loved:

• made with organic and natural ingredients
• free of preservatives, artificial flavors or colors
• all animals are raised humanely and without antibiotics
• the combination of yogurt, fruit snack and crackers with meat and cheese
• includes familiar brands we already buy
• enough for a tween for lunch

What to keep in mind:

• it does not include a drink (this was NOT an issue for me since my kids carry a water bottle to school every day) but it might make a difference to you.
• the current price is about $5 at our local Target, so a little on the pricey side. I still think it is worth the extra money to have a healthy lunch in the fridge for a busy morning or a better to-go food for car trips, after school activities, field trips, museum outings or ball park visits.

Would you like to try HALF TIME? Win an awesome prize pack!

Included in your prize package is everything pictured above:

• All three varieties of HALF TIME: Turkey & Cheese, Ham & Cheese, and Bologna & Cheese
• A draw-your-own lunch bag
• A set of permanent markers
• Coupons
• Activity book

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Open to US addresses only. Winner will be notified via email and has 24 h to claim their prize before a new winner is drawn. Good luck!

Disclaimer: Applegate provided me with a free HALF TIME snack kit. All opinions are my own.

National Guacamole Day #GuacitForward

Happy National Guacamole Day! I have partnered with Wholly Guacamole® and Laptop Lunches to celebrate this fun holiday (we all need a reason to celebrate with guacamole, am I right? Psst, find the giveaway from last week or at the end of this post and win some yummy guacamole and Laptop Lunches Bento Buddies!)!

Wholly Guacamole® wants to celebrate National Guacamole Day this year by paying it forward and they need your help!

Use the hashtag #GuacitForward on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to share how you are paying it forward! Together we can put a lot of smiles on people's faces! 

So, how did we celebrate National Guacamole Day?

We packed a fun Guacamole lunch in our Laptop Lunches Bento Box:

• Classic Wholly Guacamole® mini
• tortilla chips
• ham, cheese, salad and hummus wraps and 
• baby carrots and a piece of last night's corn

I also added a matching Lunchbox Love Card to encourage my kids to #GuacitForward today!

And to celebrate National Guacamole Day, you can win some fun Wholly Guacamole® and Laptop Lunches goodies:

• a set of Laptop Lunches Avocado Bento Buddies and 

• an awesome Wholly Guacamole® cooler full of:

• 3 Guacamole Trays (various flavors)

• 2 mini cups (various flavors)

• Chip Clip

• Avocado Squeezie

a Rafflecopter giveaway

National Guacamole Day Celebration with Wholly Guacamole and Laptop Lunches {with GIVEAWAY}

National Guacamole Day is this coming up this Tuesday and Wholly Guacamole® is celebrating by giving back to the community and encouraging others to do the same! With their #GuacitForward campaign Wholly Guacamole® wants to encourage everyone to pay it forward! They are also spotlighting their partners who contribute to charity and pay it forward. Wholly Guacamole® and Laptop Lunches have teamed up for an amazing Giveaway and you can win some fun and yummy lunch stuff while giving back!

Doesn't this Shrimp pasta salad look delicious? For fun lunch ideas using Wholly Guacamole® head over to their website. When you get there, select Lunch ideas and you can scroll through all the Grown-Up and Kid's lunch ideas. If you click on the recipe name, a convenient shopping list pops up to make it easier to pack your own yummy Wholly Guacamole® lunch!

I let my kids look at all the fun lunch ideas and this deconstructed Nacho lunch was their favorite. I am glad there is an easy printable list on Wholly Guacamole®'s website and I am always looking for new lunch packing ideas. Would your kids love this?

For more ideas on how to pack a great National Guacamole Lunch go to Wholly Guacamole®.

And to find out more on how to  #GuacitForward:

So what can you win?

• a set of Laptop Lunches Avocado Bento Buddies and 

• an awesome Wholly Guacamole® cooler full of:

• 3 Guacamole Trays (various flavors)

• 2 mini cups (various flavors)

• Chip Clip

• Avocado Squeezie

Enter my easy giveaway below! Good Luck!
(Shipping address has to be in contiguous United States).

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Winner will be notified via email and has 24 h to claim their prize before I will draw a new winner!

Goodbyn Hero Review {and Giveaway}

I am so excited to share the new Goodbyn Hero with you! We love our Goodbyn lunch boxes (they were the very first we started packing lunches in) and could not pass up the opportunity to try out the new Goodbyn Hero and give you a chance to win your very own!

My kids could not wait to unpack the Goodbyn Hero when it arrived. The box included the lunch box, two dippers, a drink bottle, a spork, and of course a sheet of stickers. My daughter immediately took off with the spoon to eat yogurt so it never made it into the picture but here it is by itself:

My kids love spoons and sporks and this was perfect for them. The spoon is deep enough to be great for soups but also yogurts, applesauce or other spoon worthy foods!

We packed some fun foods for school to try out the new Goodbyn Hero. This lunch contains:

• Annie's Cheddar Bunnies
• Cucumber slices
• Sunflower bread with salad and pepperoni and decorated with a CuteZCute bear made of cheese
• a happy banana
• and a yogurt (not pictured but that is what the spork is for)

My younger kids did not want to be left out of the Goodbyn test so I packed a smaller lunch for them:

• a Goodbyn bottle with 1/2 water and 1/2 grape juice
• strawberry yogurt
• granola as topping for the yogurt
• a pepperoni sandwich stacked
• and some champagne grapes

Our Verdict?

We love the new Goodbyn Hero just as much as the Goodbyn Original and the Goodbyn Bynto. Since I have 4 kids different ages I love that I can make the lunchbox fit for everyone! If I add the dippers and bottle to the lunchbox my Kindergartner can take it and have enough food and a drink packed conveniently all in one box. If I pack for middle school I can pack the lunch box to the top and add the dippers separately to the lunch bag to give my son the extra fuel he needs. And for the other two kids I can personalize it as well by adding the dippers and bottle or sending them separately. A real grow-with-you lunch box! The only thing to be aware of is that the lunchbox is large. It will not fit into a regular lunch cooler. It fits best into the Goodbyn Insulated Lunch bag! We have the insulated lunch bag that fits both the Bynto and the Hero so I had no issue with the size but wanted to mention it. 

And as always, the Goodbyn Hero is:

• dishwasher safe
• BPA- and phthalate free
• 100% recyclable

Want to win one for your child? Enter here! Good Luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

US Residents only. Winner will be notified via email and has 48h to claim their prize.

Disclaimer: Goodbyn sent me a Goodbyn Hero prize pack to review. All opinions are my own.