Tonight J and I are going out.

We will be out late. Very late. In pajamas. With our corgi. Where are we going? The drive in! Our local drive in is open March-September. We LOVE it! J takes our upstairs guest bed (twin size)and throws it in the back of the mini van. We make a very comfortable nest of pillows and blankets (we watch with the back of the van open and it gets cold at night) in the back area where the second back seat should be. The dog gets lots of walks and snuggles. In fact when it gets really cold we both try to coax him over onto our side of the van.

How is going to the movies frugal? The drive in costs $8 per person. For TWO movies. Our local theatres cost about $9.50 for ONE movie. At the drive in you can bring food from home. The local theatres do not allow food from home.

Drive in cost:
$8 a ticket x two people = $16
Home popped popcorn = few cents
Treats from dollar store = $4
Water form home = free

So lets say $20.07

Local theatre
$9.50 a ticket x two people $19
Large popcorn $7
Large soda $5

Cost $31
If you factor in the drive in plays two movies and double the local theatre's tickets the cost jumps to$50. J and I are really into movies and we do have ways to keep the local theatre's costs in check but that is another post.

Lets not forget the fun factor here. How much fun is it to be wearing PJ's (okay I wear comfy clothes that still look cute) with a dog, on a bed, outside, watching a movie? Its awesome!

The local theatre doesn't give us the great stories like the drive in does. One time I was able to see people being evicted by the sheriff for sneaking people into the drive in. The little girl I let walk the dog who just loved us and kept jumping in our van (her parents were OK with it, I wouldn't be!) and trying to walk off with our dog. Ew or the time their plumbing system stopped working and they didn't tell anyone. That was gross!

I really love the drive in. Its a frugal way to go to the theatre. Its fun. And its always an adventure.

Yesterday's bento.

I love bento. There is something about having a little of several different foods that is fun to me. Plus the different colors, textures, shapes and tastes. Bento really suits my personality.

Top tier: chocolate coated dried plum pieces, vanilla wafers (generic of course!), and raisins.

Bottom tier: carrots, pretzels, ranch and cheese. Yum!

Easter Egg Bento

I was so excited to use my new egg bento box that I made a bento the same night. :) It has a really fun shape and would be great for tall foods. I had to pack it in layers.

Bottom layer of the bento is a ranch cup, raisins, and chocolate almonds. Top layer has 2 peanut butter jelly dumplings, carrots and pretzels.

For people who love looking at Bento lunches

You have to check out the Bento Lunches Livejournal page. Its one of the most active bento communities I've found. I enjoy lurking there very much! Its interesting to see people's food choices, and the cute things they do with their food.

Bento dinner

I made J a bento dinner since we needed something easy. He has peanut butter, jelly dumplings. Carrots, a cheese bear, ranch (under the bear), sunflower seeds, and raisins.

One day I'll be able to find a nori punch for faces. But in till then all i can do is eyes! :)

Target bento finds: Easter gear

After I saw this post on Easter stuff for bento, I couldn't wait to get to Target. J had the Clone Troopers snack box in our cart so fast I hadn't even seen him pick it up! He was so excited! I wanted the transformers treat boxes, I love Transformers. We bought the big egg to use as a bento box. And the small M&M tin to hold Almonds.





Equipment cost:
Big Wonka egg $3.29
Star wars cups $2.29
Transformers cups $2.29
M&M tin $1.99

The plastic egg is another bento box (and a fun one!) that is readily available in the States. I've seen this egg is every Easter section I've checked. I'm not sure if the snack boxes will be used in bentos (maybe the tiffin? It is large) or I'll use them alone. We'll see! Everyone can bento, even if they do not have access to a Japanese store.

Walmart bento find: Easter

After our success at Target, i took a detour through our Super Walmart's Easter section. I had picked up one box of pretty eggs decorated like flowers. J found this set, and i couldn't swap them fast enough. The animal eggs are SO cute! The pack comes with 16 animals, 4 different animals, 4 different colors. It cost $5.

A better view with each animal standing up. I can't wait to use these, so cute!