Don't Shoot! - EasyLunchboxes Cookbook Photo Shoot Lunch

Since I will be participating featured starring in the upcoming EasyLunchboxes Trader Joe's Cookbook, I would need some fab new pictures. Kelly suggested casual and real. Like cooking in my kitchen. Pfft. First off, me cooking isn't exactly "real." And it would take a lot longer than the month we had to get our photos done and submitted for me to get my kitchen clean enough I'd let anyone see it. And my fabulous sister-in-law was in the process of moving, so I couldn't use her always-sparkling kitchen as my "stunt kitchen."

I thought it might be nice to do an outdoor picnic-y kind of thing. That way I could show off my bento skills and EasyLunchboxes while hiding my not-so-secret messy-kitchen shame. So my photographer suggested the local Tulip Festival.

Z's Lunch

string cheese nibblets, mini cupcake, Nutella roll-ups, Goldfish
Crackers, cucumber and carrots, orange

My Lunch

carrots and cucumber, kiwi and pineapple, dressing, mini
cupcake, Biscoff spread on sweet dark rolls

Hubby's (boring) Lunch

PBHoney, pineapple, cucumbers, salt

My husband doesn't like me to cute-ify his lunch, but since I was using my mini tulip cutter for Z's veggies, I thought it would be fun for us each to have one of the cut-out cucumber slices to tie them together. And since he likes salt on his cucumbers, and Z likes salt (and thus might actually EAT her cucumbers,) I put some salt into a little bento sauce container.

Mark not only made my lunches look good, he made US look good! Not that we planned ahead for this photo shoot by, oh, getting a hair style, applying make-up, brushing someone's rats-nest, or picking out special outfits for the girls. Yes, they're both there. Look closely. Baby E looks like a pile of rags. The sun hat was kind of big. It was Z's last Summer, and still in my trunk [no judging] when I was looking for something to protect them from the sun. Since we were so prepared and all.

Photo may not be used without permission

Photo may not be used without permission

But my favorites were the candid shots of my little bundle of fun. Z was so full of life. He got a few shots of me with Baby E, but they aren't as fun as these. And they have me in them. Bleah. Enjoy.

Photo may not be used without permission

Photo may not be used without permission

Photo may not be used without permission