Bixbee School Lunchbox Review and Giveaway

Eliana got a new lunch bag! :)

Bixbee was generous to send us their Purple Sparkalicious Lunch Bag to review! Eliana absolutely LOVES it! Not only is it one of her favorite colors: purple, but it has GLITTER all over it! She loves anything glitter related, so she is absolutely loving this lunch bag :)

So one thing I learned and love about Bixbee is that with every backpack purchase they donate a schoolbag with supplies to a kid in need. Their One Here. One There does an incredible service.  Being a social worker myself I stand by helping those in need and I know that programs like that are vital for some kids and will help them during their school year! Sometimes just a little help and a new backpack is enough to incite some desire to learn and start the year off right and I love supporting programs that help those in need!

They have an assortment of backpacks that range in size from small to large, are great quality and are very durable.  Eliana really wanted to the Sparkalicious Butterflyer Backpack (and that one only apparently) but we sadly did find it was too small for her already. She is on the tall side but for toddlers and shorter kids it would be soo cute! I do wish they made a larger Butterfly pack that was longer in length vertically. I know their style is the horizontal design for their backpacks, to keep everything easy to reach, but that is why it was too short on Eliana.  Bixbee Backpacks and Lunch bags are available at Mastermind Toys in over 20 Canada locations, in addition to buying them online! But back to the lunch bags!!

Bixbee does refer to this as the Sparkalicious lunchbox on their site and catalog, but I prefer to call it a lunch bag because that is honestly what I'm used to calling it!

Reasons why I love the Sparkalicious lunch bag:

*Glitter, glitter and more glitter.

*AND the glitter doesn't come off -- it is "flake resistant"

*Insulated

*Has a front pocket for extra snacks or addition items

*Has a customizeable ID Card holder under the front pocket flap

*Compact/smaller

*Fits an array of lunchboxes. (see picture below)

From Left to Right: LunchBots, EasyLunchboxes, Angry Birds Bento Box

I don't have many lunchboxes, but they all do fit into the Sparkalicious lunch bag (except for my yubo, which is a lunch bag and box in itself). For a more comprehensive list at which lunchboxes fit into the Bixbee lunch bags please see HERE.

Negatives: 

*Doesn't hold your lunches up right. That really isn't a problem if you pack accordingly, but it could be a bother for some people.

*It is smaller. It would not fit a large thermos container for example.. however it does fit so many other boxes.

Having fun with our new lunch bag and getting exciting for school (starting the 28th for us!) I decided to make Eliana an Easy Back to School ABC Bento lunch:

Eliana's Easy ABC Bento Lunch is packed in her EasyLunchbox(of course she wanted the purple lid) inside her new Bixbee Purple Sparkalicious lunch bag.

She has half a sandwich (Peanut free & nut free Chocolate I.M. Healthy soynut butter with strawberry slices. I made sure the strawberries were not in view of the "A,B,C" cut outs but they are there!) I made a simple "A, B, C" cut out with my letter cutters. I added a cute little School Bus cupcake ring decoration on top of her string cheese.  The ring didn't fit over the cheese stick so I just stuck it in the middle.

In her smaller compartments she had sliced peaches (freshly picked from the farm this past weekend!) in a purple silicone cup and sliced cucumber below it.  I added a cute ABC chalkboard bento pick to the peaches.

I decided to do the "shake test" because the Sparkalicious bag doesn't hold her lunches upright and I wanted to see how her lunch would look afterwards. We packed up her lunch, zipped up the lunch bag and Eliana ran around outside with it, swinging it around and acting her normal five and a half year old self.

This is what it looked like afterwards:

Not much different actually! The peaches and cucumbers look the same because they were packed tightly to the top and didn't have much space to move.  The half sandwich moved, as did the cheese stick.  If you put a bigger sandwich or something else in the main compartment it wouldn't have moved as much.  This lunch passed our shake test! :) A more intricate bento lunch may get messed up if not upright, so when using this lunch bag I would pack simple and tight! :)

Overall, we love our new lunch bag! Eliana is excited to start school and start using it! :)

I'm also  happy to tell you that Bixbee is teaming up with Creative Food and giving one reader the chance to WIN one of their Signature Lunchboxes! AND because of the demand through YOUR comments the Winner will also have the choice of the Purple Sparkalicious bag, if desired!

The signature lunchboxes are exactly the same configuration as the Sparkalicious ones-- just the outside color is different. The winner will get to choose which color (blue, red, pink or purple) he or she wants!! Enter below for a chance to win!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Giveaway comprises of one Bixbee signature lunchbox or purple sparkalicious lunchbox. One lucky winner will get to choose which color Bixbee lunchbox he or she wants. This giveaway begins on August 12, 2013 and ends on August 20, 2013 at 12:00 a.m. Winner will be contacted through email and will have 48 hours to respond.  If winner fails to respond within 48 hours I will draw another winner. This giveaway is for U.S. and Canada residents only.

Creative Food Supplies:

**Disclosure: Bixbee sent me their purple Sparkalicious lunchbox to review.

 As always all opinions expressed in this post are my own**

Two Year Blogiversary Giveaway!

How else do you celebrate your 2 year blogiversary but with a giveaway?! I've been behind and meant to put this up on my actual blogiversary, but here it is!! :)

Creative Food is teaming up with Bento USA (All Things For Sale), CuteZCute and EasyLunchboxes! There are FOUR AWESOME PRIZES total for the lucky winner! Not only are these prizes awesome-- they would be perfect for Back to School!

1 and 2. EasyLunchbox container set AND cooler bag (your choice of color):

We love EasyLunchboxes! They are simply one of our favorite lunch boxes. Not only are they affordable (four containers priced at $13.95) they are durable. I have had the same set for over a year and a half and have had no wearing or tearing or warping, even with use of the dishwasher. They are also safe for the freezer and microwave AND they have no BPA, Lead, Vinyl or PVC so they are a great choice to make food safe waste free lunches! I love how the compartments are separated naturally so that food doesn't have to touch. I also love how they stack! I can pack all of our lunches ahead of time and stack them in the fridge with different color lids. 

We love both the Classic set (with lid colors blue, red, green and orange) and the new Brights (with lid colors teal, purple, yellow and pink). We also love to use the cooler bag as well. I like how it holds the lunch upright and you can pack up to three EasyLunchboxes in it. You can also get FREE shipping through the EasyLunchboxes Amazon Store! (USA or Canada)

You can see other lunches I have made in EasyLunchboxes HERE.

3. CuteZCute Cutter:

I LOVE the CuteZCute Cutter. This 6 piece set gives you the tools to make so many different food creations -- the options are endless! You get one outer face cutter and four different animal face cutters/stamps. One side of the animal face is used as a cutter, the other is used as a stamp. You also get an adorable little panda pick that helps you poke out the food that gets stuck in the cutter. It is seriously one of the best bento tools I have. You can make a simple sandwich so cute in a matter of seconds! I love how you can use the same outer face cutter and can change the animal faces!

4. Vegetable Cutter set (in either small or large, winner chooses):

These Vegetable Cutters are not just for vegetables-- they so versatile! You can use them on cucumbers, carrots, bell peppers, apples, pears, cheese, deli meat, breads, etc. They are very easy to use and cut through the hardest of vegetables easily because of their stainless steel edges. They also come in an awesome plastic case so you can keep them all together neatly.

Using the prizes I made up this fun and cute lunch: The Frog and The Fly Bento.

I decided to go back to my roots to celebrate my second blogiversary. I found inspiration from one of my first ever creative fun food creations I made for Eliana, Two Frogs on a Log (please excuse the horrible lighting!) Creative Food has come a long way since Two Frogs on a Log and I am so thankful to my family and to all my readers and followers (YOU) for helping me get here today! I mainly started Creative Food because of suggestions from family and friends. I seriously love making creative fun food for Eliana and I am glad to say that all this fun food has made her eat better! She is more involved in food preparations, eating healthier and with more variety :)

To make The Frog and The Fly bento lunch (packed in an EasyLunchbox) I first used my CuteZCute cutter on a sandwich. The Frog is a peanut free/nut free wowbutter sandwich (I actually forgot to add honey and cinnamon, which is how Eliana loves it, but no worries--Eliana had me correct my mistake before she would eat it lol) The tongue is organic fruit leather.

The Fly is sitting in yogurt (in a Mini-Dipper). I made The Fly out of a mini chocolate chip and confetti sprinkles with chocolate sprinkles showing the "fly path".

For the flowers, because a Frog would be in a pond and ponds have flowers right?, I used my vegetable cutters to cut my cucumbers and yellow bell pepper. The cucumber scraps are underneath.

SO Back to the giveaway!!

One lucky winner will get one EasyLunchbox container set (winner can choose which set; classic or brights), one Insulated Lunch Box Cooler Bag (winner chooses which color), one CuteZCute cutter set and One stainless steel vegetable cutter set (your choice of size; small or large)!!!!!

Enter below in the Rafflecopter for a chance to win!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Giveaway comprises of 4 (four) prizes total for 1 (one) winner. One lucky winner will receive one EasyLunchbox container set (winner can select which set; classic or brights), one EasyLunchbox lunch bag (color of choice), one CuteZCute cutter and One vegetable cutter set (winner can choose which size set; small or large). This giveaway begins on August 2 and ends August 16 at 12 am. Winner will be contacted through email and will have 48 hours to respond.  If winner fails to respond within 48 hours I will draw another winner. This giveaway is for U.S. and Canada residents only.

**Disclosure: All Things For Sale sent me their vegetable cutters for the purpose of this review and giveaway.  

As always all opinions expressed in this post are my own**

FunBites Giveaway!

A FunBites Giveaway!!

FunBitesare food cutters that cut your food into perfectly bite sized pieces. With the Cube it you can cut food into 12 small square pieces. With the Luv it you can cut your food into 8 geometric shapes and two mini hearts. With the Triangles you can cut food into 8 small triangles and 2 larger triangles.

You can use the cutters on fruit, veggies, sandwiches, pancakes, pizza etc. The options are endless and the cutters are sturdy and long lasting! I'm doing a giveaway today so that one lucky winner can try all three FunBites cutters! With back to school right around the corner these would be a fun tool to use to make school lunches!

Here are some of the fun food creations I've made with FunBites: 

Using FunBites Cube it:

Here I used the Cube it (my personal favorite FunBites cutter) to make a Fun Lion out of cantaloupe, pineapple, watermelon and bread. For more details see HERE.

Using the FunBites Luv it:

Using the FunBites Luv it I made Eliana a simple lunch surrounded by some heart strawberries and cucumbers. For more details see HERE.

Using FunBites Triangles:

Here I used the FunBites Trianglesand made a giraffe.. although Eliana said it clearly was a dinosaur.. You be the judge! Either way there is a lot of potential to make some fun shapes with this cutter too! :) For more details see HERE.

So if you want to try out the latest FunBites cutter -- and make some giraffe looking dinosaurs -- look no further! ;)

Enter Below for a chance to win!  One reader will win one FunBites Cube it, one FunBites Luv it and one FunBites Triangle cutter! (**Winner will choose which color FunBites Luv it cutter he or she wants**)

Creative Food Supplies:

 
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Giveaway comprises of 3 (three) total FunBites cutters (one of each) for one winner. Winner can choose which color FunBites Luv it he or she desires: red or pink. This giveaway begins on 7/25/2013 and ends 8/1/3013 at 12 am. Winner will be contacted through email and will have 48 hours to respond.  If winner fails to respond within 48 hours I will draw another winner. This giveaway is for U.S. residents only.

**Disclosure: FunBites sent me their new FunBites Triangles for the purpose of a review. They also send me some extra FunBites cutters to do with what I please, so I have decided to have a giveaway!  As always all opinions expressed in this post are my own**