Beyond the Label: #SeedtoSunButter

I was given the opportunity to travel to North Dakota to visit Red River Commodities and the sunflower fields that make  Top 8 Allergen & Gluten Free SunButter Sunflower Butter and to learn about their processes, as well as, commitment to allergen control.  Below is the sponsored post as it relates to the brand and my trip. All opinions are my own. Disclosure.
I've been fortunate over the past few years to get to know many food allergy and gluten free brands on a deeper level. Having been afforded the opportunity to attend meetings, talk to the owners, and even travel on their behalf.
Although they're doing great things by providing us with a product, there are few out there that truly care about our community with drive and passion. It's not just a profit, they realize they're a part of something much greater going on. They're changing lives... saving lives. For me, SunButter saved ours almost ten years ago. 

SunButter & Jelly French Toast Sandwiches {Egg Free #Recipe}

SunButter & Jelly French Toast Sandwiches are a fun treat for kids for breakfast or lunches! This recipe is allergen-friendly & egg-free, depending on the brand of bread you use.
Making french toast for breakfast is always a fun change-up in our household. We are typically a pancake or eggs kind of family. 
However, I always challenge myself to make things as allergen-friendly (and gluten free) as possible when I'm working on new recipes or ideas to share here. 
Years ago, I was playing around with my own recipe for egg-free/ dairy-free apple cinnamon french toast. I decided to circle back around and find a way to amp that up + make a fun recipe that could be used for both breakfast or lunches!

Lunch Made Easy: Back to School Ideas!

For a family with food allergies or dietary restrictions, packing food never stops. It becomes second nature to always BYOF (Bring Your Own Food) wherever you go.

The same goes for school lunches. We pack, every day. And always have. 

You'll find me sharing what Little Miss is having over on our Facebook and Instagram pages, daily. Make sure to follow us there to not miss out on the daily fun!

I've put together a fun round-up of our favorite lunches we've packed for school so far (she started back in mid-July) to help give you inspiration for when your family heads back:

How to Keep Apple Slices from Turning Brown {Lunch Tips + Video}

It's Back to School Time!! That means time to start planning for school lunches and snacks.
One of the most frequent questions I get asked is how we keep our apple slices from turning brown?
I've put together a fun video with some tips and tricks that we use to keep our apples from browning. 

Lunchbox SunButter Spice Bars {Top 8 Allergen Free}

This post is sponsored by SunButter Sunflower Butter. All opinions are my own. Read our full disclosure here. 
It's that time of year again... back to school! Time to get those lunch boxes ready.
Little Miss started a school that follows a "balanced calendar" -  meaning, she is on an almost "all year school" calendar and school began back on July 18th. Crazy, but it's let her start developing friendships right away, which is great.
I'm always looking for simple lunchbox ideas and recipes that allow me to pack in protein and yummy allergy friendly ingredients she can enjoy at school. Just like these SunButter Spice Bars. They're gluten free and top 8 allergen free. 

Nut Free {No Bake} SunButter Energy Bites

There are a number of recipes I've made so frequently over the years that I no longer measure them. Just get out the bowl and start eyeballing the ingredients needed. 
Our Allergy Friendly {No Bake} SunButter Energy Ball Bites are one of those recipes.
Each time I share about them or pack them in a lunch I post on Facebook or Instagram, I get messages or comments asking for the recipe. And each time I tell myself, "Next time I'll measure!" ... but I never do. 
WELL, I FINALLY DID! While Snapchatting last night about dinner and knowing I needed to make more of these bites, I made sure to measure so I could *finally* share them here. 
They're gluten free and top 8 allergen free (that means they're nut free and great for school snacks)! 

20+ Easy Lunch Ideas for Work or School

When your child has food allergies and/or dietary restrictions, you pack lunch. Daily. It's just part of the normal routine. 
Some days, we get creative and make (what I call) "silly sandwiches" or sometimes the lunches are completely sandwich free. They don't have to be complicated or artistic, but it is fun to mix it up from the usual.
Lately, life has been busy. I've been traveling a lot for work and due to my health issues I require a lot more sleep than I use to. That's why having an arsenal of easy and quick fix lunch ideas are a necessity. I still want my daughter to be excited for her school lunches, and not feel left out, but keep my sanity intact. I'm sure many of you feel the exact same way!
Here are 20+ inspiring ideas for work or school lunch:

Lunch Made Easy: Healthy & Fun School Ideas

As many of you know, I don't blog every lunch from every school day... but, I do share them daily on our Facebook and Instagram pages. 
So, I try to put together "round-up" posts every so often for the blog where you can get a bunch of healthy school lunch ideas in one spot!
As always, all our lunches are completely nut free (no peanuts, no tree nuts). They're also all gluten free and many are dairy free or top 8 allergen free. Perfect for your food allergy family or if your child attends a school that has a "free from" classroom. 
Here's what we've been packing:

Lunch Made Easy: Food Allergy Awareness Love #TealTakeover

This week, May 10th-16th, marks Food Allergy Awareness week for 2015. This is something we actively participate in each year. 
There are great ways to get involved within your community to raise awareness, including handing out bracelets, information sheets, reading an allergy-friendly book to your child's class, sharing information on social media, and May 12th is #TealTakeover Day.
Teal is the color of food allergy awareness. By wearing teal today, you can help support your friends and family by raising awareness for food allergies. Little Miss loves sporting her teal and I love making her a sweet lunch to go with it. 

Super Hero Allergen-Free Plate {Review & Giveaway} #MySafeFamily @SafeHappyFamily

I've followed Holly & Chris from Safe & Happy Family via Instagram for some time now. They are the founders of Safe & Happy Family™ and food allergy parents.
They started their company as a way to bring a little more fun and ease to food allergy families lives. (Sounds like my kind of people, right!? We're all about focusing on the fun!) ;) 
They were kind enough to send us one of their adorable dishware items to review and giveaway choice to our readers! 

Apple SunButter Baked Oat Bars {Gluten Free & Allergy Friendly}

There are some items I am admittedly addicted to... Crunchy Chips Pickles (Handfuls of) Enjoy Life Chocolate Chips Coffee ... and SunButter mixed with Apple Butter.
I eat SunButter & apple butter on gluten free toast almost regularly. I even make it into a quesadilla for lunches! When it's warmed, it's soooo ooey-gooey delicious. Seriously. 
Not a fan of apple butter? That's okay. You can make this recipe with any of your favorite jams or jellies. Heck, Little Miss thought it would be amazing with SunButter and chocolate chips even. She's right - but as you read above, I like to eat handfuls of them... every night... so we were out. Oops. ;) *add more to grocery list, again*

{Christmas Countdown} Advent Lunches 2014: Week 3

Twas' the week before Christmas and all through the days, everyone was preparing for next weeks craze.
Wrapping had started - gifts under the tree, And lunches were made with festive glee!
Friday marks only six days left on our countdown until Christmas. This week was also special because Hannukah began! Did you know there are 17 different ways to spell Hannukah? More on that below... 

{Christmas Countdown} Advent Lunches 2014: Week 2

Welcome to Week 2 of our Advent Lunches, Christmas Countdown, Round-up!
This week we did simple but festively fun themed lunches. They're all gluten free, peanut free, tree nut free, and more! Making them not only adorable, but allergy friendly. ;)

{Christmas Countdown} Advent Lunches 2014: Week 1

This week kicked off our yearly holiday tradition of #AdventLunches! Each year, I make Little Miss holiday theme lunches with a Christmas Countdown. I include the countdown number somewhere in the lunch, either written on a Lunchbox Love Note or made into a cute food item within the lunch itself. She looks forward to it every year! 
Here's what we packed for week one of 2014: 

Lunch Made Easy: Halloween Ideas for Kids

'Twas the week of Halloween, as the children prepared.  Costumes and buckets and goodies to share.  There were scary ghoblins and spooky ghosts,  but the tiny princesses were eager most. Going door to door, teal pumpkins in sight. Clinching each other hands, in fear of a fright!

Lunch Made Easy: Weekly School Round-Up #NutFree #GlutenFree #AllergyFriendly

What a fabulously fun last week and half!  I was in Las Vegas for the Food Allergy Bloggers Conference (#FABlogCon) until Monday. It was such a great experience - filled with laughter, tears, education, and surrounded by inspiring advocates within the gluten free & food allergy community. 
I'll be sharing more from this year's conference in the next week or two, but you can read my recap from last year if you want to know more about it. 
Just because this Mama is gone, Little Miss still has to eat! Here's a round-up of our latest lunch posts we've been sharing on Facebook and Instagram. Make sure you're following us there too! 

Lunch Made Easy: BUNCHES of {Nut Free, Gluten Free, & Allergy Friendly} Lunches!

The school year has kicked off with a bang! It's been busy between work, travel, all the homework, and tests that have already begun.
All our lunches are *always* Nut Free (my daughter is allergic). They're also Gluten Free & often Top 8 Allergen Free. So, if you're looking for ideas if your child is in a peanut free classroom or you're new to food allergies, you've come to the right place. Welcome!
What have we been packing? Let's check it out!

Lunch Made Easy: Microwave "Bread" Sandwiches {Gluten, Dairy, Nut, & Soy Free}

Pinterest scrolling always turns up interesting finds... like this one: "Gluten Free Bread in Seconds".
It's for a microwave, instant gluten free bread (that can also be made dairy free, as well as, nut & soy free). I was curious... so I gave it a try! 
The result... I'll explain more below, but I'd really call this a "Gluten Free Pancake in Seconds" rather than "Bread" since that's more the texture and consistency. Either way, fun to try in a pinch.

Lunch Made Easy: Back to School Bus!

Do you subscribe to Parents Magazine?  If so, you might have read the great article in the September 2014 issue about Food Allergies in Schools. If you don't have the hard copy, you can read the article online by clicking here. 
I was honored to be interviewed for the article and share a few personal experiences dealing with food allergies at school for my Little Miss.
While checking out the issue, there was a snippet inside for Family Fun Magazine and their Treat of the Month which happened to be a fun school bus lunch for back-to-school called "Miles of Smiles". I couldn't think of a more fun way to celebrate Little Miss' first full day of the new school year than with an extra special school bento lunch!

Lunch Made Easy: SunButter + Apple Butter Quesadilla #GlutenFree #AllergyFriendly

Often times, when I can't sleep, you'll usually find me on Instagram at 3am with a cup of coffee and eating one of my favorite combos: A slice of gluten free toast topped with SunButter and Apple Butter.
Heck, I even top pancakes with this delicious duo. Much like our SunButter & Honey Apple Sandwiches we make for lunch, there's something so magical about putting apples & sunflower seed spread together for the perfect nut-free bite.
I finally figured out a way to get my favorite pairing into my lunchbox. I didn't want to just do a traditional sandwich. No, this is so much better. My newest obsession... a SunButter + Apple Butter {Gluten Free} Quesadilla!
(Keep Reading + More Pics Below)