The back to school sales have started. And while that’s a light at the end of the tunnel for many of us who have kids who are bored out of their skulls, it also means that we have to start thinking about back to school issues.
For our family that would mean getting the kids to cram those summer reading books into their last few weeks of vacation, battling over back to school clothing (man, those hems keep getting shorter), and getting the kids to bed at a reasonable hour to prepare for their normal school year bedtime routines.
But the thing that strikes fear in my heart the most is the darn lunch box. On the last day of school last year I did a happy dance to celebrate no longer having to make school lunches. I plum ran out of inspiration.
Give me algebra equations, times table drills, and solar system projects any day of the week. Because I find packing that lunch bag infinitely more difficult.
You see, my husband, myself, and my two teen sons are carbivores. My daughters? They are the anti-carbs. No bread. No potatoes. No pasta. No fun. And while this will serve them well as they get older, it makes packing their lunch a real nightmare.
Whether or not your kids love carbs, packing an interesting, varied, and healthy school lunch is a trifecta that seems impossible when you are fumbling around incoherently at 6:00am.
Trust me, I know. I’m not a morning person by any stretch of the imagination. So making something interesting, healthy and appealing is a real challenge pre-dawn when all I want to do is either crawl back into bed or snuggle up to a hot cuppa joe.
But the kids have got to eat. And buying school lunch every day for four kids is just not an option for our family. So, I thought I’d share some ideas with you on how to make this whole lunch packing thing a little more tolerable.
- On Sundays I prep individual portions of produce, cheese and meats, which I store in a small plastic basket in the fridge that no one is allowed to touch unless they are placing it in their lunch bag. Or else.
- Also on Sundays, I hard boil eggs and pre-cook plain pasta (for my sons). The great thing about pre-cooking pasta is that my sons can have a cold pasta salad with veggies and a protein or hot pasta with sauce in their thermos. Cooked pasta keeps very well if you toss it in your freezer and also holds up well in your fridge for a few days.
- In another basket I keep napkins, plastic utensils, and a baggie of change for milk money and other incidentals, which I store in my pantry. This eliminates the need to hunt for change in couch cushions, the bottom of my purse and the floor of my car. Been there. Done that. Not fun at 6:00am.
- In this house lunch isn’t complete without dessert. So, yet another basket is filled with prepackaged treats like granola bars, cookies, trail mix, Teddy Grahams, and other sweet nothings. But the rule in this house is that there is no dessert unless the kids choose something from the produce selection. No exceptions.
What about the stuff that needs to stay hot or cold? I use the tried and true Thermos for all things hot. I’m partial to the Thermos brand because in all of my seventeen years of parenting, Thermos has been reliable.
For the cold stuff I really like Fit N Fresh. The set above I found at BJ’s Wholesale, but it’s also sold in most major retailers including Amazon.
I love that Fit N Fresh has snap on ice packs that keep the food cold for hours. The stuff is built to last. And if you can keep your kids from losing the pieces, it’s well worth the investment. Not that my kids have ever lost the pieces, ahem.
I think half of the battle with school lunches is organization. The tips I’ve shared with you in this post make my mornings go smoother and also make packing lunches less painful. And this is good because with four kids, I need to reserve as much mental energy as I can for those solar system projects. Even though they kicked Pluto out of the lineup, that’s still a lot of Styrofoam balls to paint!
What are your tips for packing school lunches? Do you struggle with this too?
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oooh, I love those containers. I need snap on ice packs. I’m not in full on school mode yet because Coraline is only 3 but her one day a week at preschool counts
Kim- You’ll be packing lunches before you know it!
My daughter has ate the same lunch for the last 4 years: PB&J sandwich, plain Pringles, applesauce, and a banana. She has never asked for anything different and I haven’t offered!!!!
That is incredible. You lucky woman!
Oh, this made me chuckle. My son had a PB&J sandwich just about every day for ALL twelve of his school years–how easy was that?!? He was just a creature of habit (and still is!) and only adventured into Kraft Mac and Cheese, chicken nuggets, pasta with butter and cheese and tacos (who knew?) most suppers. Now he and his wife love to cook and eat way more gourmet than we do. I think when kids grow up with people who enjoy ecooking/eating good food around a dinner table most night, they will eventually remember the pleasure around that and follow in those steps. If I had known then what I know now, I wouldn’t have engaged in some of the food battles I did!
The creature of habit comment is funny. My 8 year old thrives in a structured environment and doesn’t really know what to do when things aren’t “routine.”
Even though I don’t have children’s lunches to make anymore, my husband still needs a lunch every day and that can get pretty tiresome too!!
Love your new look – I’ve been following you for a while…
How sweet of you to pack your husband’s lunch!! Thanks for the kind words. I’m glad you like the new site.
my family is going to be gluten free by the time school starts (sept. 6th) and we have done gluten free lunches before. the only real struggle is getting my daughter to understand why she can’t order lunch like of the rest of her friends. thankfully my little man will only be in 1/2 day pre-k this year.
Missy- I’ve been packing gluten free lunches for a couple of years. It is definately a challenge but it is doable. My son likes Jack links meat sticks and my daughter takes hormel pepperoni’s and little cups of pizza sauce and cheese and dips her peppeonis in them. They usually take a bag of chips or GF pretzels and maybe fruit snacks or soemthing similar. Fresh fruit works too. Good luck! Feel free to email or check out my blog.
I saw that set when I was at BJ’s the other day with my kids. I started to look at it but with 2 boys chomping to finish the shopping I moved on. I’ll have to check it out again. School lunches just about did me in by the end of the school year this year. The last couple of weeks my oldest was asking to buy almost every day (and he rarely asks to buy) so I finally asked what was up and he basically said he was sick of what I was packing. And I discovered by accident (I had to pop in at lunch time to give my oldest something and saw my youngest so sat down to chat with him) that my youngest was basically throwing away his 1/2 eaten lunch. Explained why he was so hungry recently after school. I find if they are more involved with packing that it went better so I was trying to do it at night with them but we didn’t always have time at night. I’ll have to start the year with Sunday prep and involve them so we can try to avoid the ho hums of packing lunch. Thankfully my husbands packs his own!!
OMG, your story reminds me of a similar experience. Two years ago my daughter came home with a huge cafeteria bill. I only allowed her one or two “buy days”, so it didn’t make an ounce of sense. As it turned out, she was going to the school breakfast program and telling them that I didn’t feed her breakfast. So, they fed her and charged me for it. Also, there were days she would throw her lunch away and buy. That’s when we suspended her charging privileges. I was mortified. The way I look at it now is that there are tons of choices in this house. I mean c’mon, I’m a couponer. Lots-o-choices. So, if she throws away her lunch, then it’s her problem. She still gets a light snack after school, but other than that she has to wait for dinner. Kids. Sigh.
My son was doing that at his school, but he wasn’t throwing away his lunch he was eating his and THEN getting a free lunch and told them that I wasn’t packing him a lunch. It wasn’t until about 3 weeks into it that the teacher called me and she was concerned that I wasn’t packing him lunch and sending him to school without food. I was so embarassed!! I told her he got a lunch everyday that already had a lot of food. I asked why he was getting free lunches and he said “because they have pizza and hamburgers and I like those”
Kids!!
dealseekingmom had a great recipe/instructions on how to make the uncrustable pb&j’s yourself and freeze for later. i will be trying that out the first week of school, as my kids didn’t care for the store bought versions. They smell like coffee beans! I have a hard time finding things my six year old will eat & stays warm/cold long enough for her. She hates lunch meat, tolerates pb&j and leftovers she can take but they aren’t kept warm enough for her liking in our thermos container. I’m at a loss!
I’l have to check that out. One of my sons doesn’t mind pb&j, and he might enjoy that. Thanks! I feel for you as far as the issues you face with your daughter. That sounds challenging!
It really is, but I am on a mission to find something this child will eat! Or really a few things, so she doesn’t get burnt out on the same lunches. I hope you post more on this once school starts! Love all the feedback and of course your blog!
If you haven’t already, you might try warming or cooling the container before putting the food in….might help keep it at temp longer. Also, my mom used to wrap my stuff in a napkin then with aluminum foil…not sure if that would work…but maybe some combination would help. Good luck!
Hmm…Can you put a thermos for soups in the microwave? I wouldn’t think so, how else would you heat it?
Anyone have any suggestions for durable cold packs?
You can try filling the Thermos with hot water, putting the lid on and letting it sit for 5 minutes. Then pour out the water, dry it and put your hot food in it. That should help keep it warmer for a little while longer.
Ahhh, school lunches! The bane of my existence! Great tips, though…it is all in the organization, I think. Two weeks until reality kicks in around here!
Two weeks!!?? Aack. At least I have a month still. Oy.
I feel you Melanie, my daughter buys school lunches but my son has an eating disorder Selective Eating Disorder and it’s almost impossible to pack his lunches daily it’s actually sad because it’s the same foods day in and day out
Angie- Have you heard of bento boxes? Go to pinterest and search it. It might give you some ideas that you haven’t thought of.
I’m starting to dread school lunch. My son is starting half day kindergarten this fall, so all I need to do is snacks, but I’m still wondering. He’s a type 1 diabetic, so I try not to pack things that are too high in carbs, but the things he likes for snack (cheese, yogurt, hummus, and such) all need to be kept cold. I’ll have to look for these containers at BJ’s – they look like that might work well for the things I would be sending with him.
Jen- I just love those containers for exactly what you described. My kids eat just like that.
My daughter is type 1, and the school she goes to has a small fridge for her to keep her protien snacks in. One of the biggest issues we’ve had with her is sneaking food and treats that other kids were getting and having her blood sugar go through the roof. So just be cautious that the teachers are well aware of what he can and cannot eat.
I just got a set of the fit and fresh containers for my daughter to start 1st grade I’m in nm and i got a set at ross dress for less for 7.50
Also any ideas how to keep sandwiches good until lunch not soggy or all hard?
Wow! Great price! The only tricks I have for sandwiches are the following..
Wrap the bread separately from the filling, and let the kids assemble at school. That takes care of the soggy issue.
When making PB&J, put a thin coating of PB on both sides and then put the jelly in the middle. The PB works like a barrier and keeps the bread from getting soggy.
Hope that helps!
Great tips on being organized and getting the kids involved (invested?) in their own lunches. I am still smiling at visions of painting Styrofoam balls and how Pluto has been kicked out of the planet category. LoL!
Poor Pluto. It’s a cruel solar system.
I refuse to even think about packing school lunches until I absolutely have to, which is 40 days from now. And even then, I will only do it grudgingly!
That said, I do think I will look into those Fit & Fresh things. But that’s because shopping is fun, even when it’s for something practical like school lunches.
Jen from Quincy
40 days? Why does it seem so much closer than that? Or maybe it’s just wishful thinking on my part, lol.
I am loving your new site design! I have always enjoyed reading your articles and views on life and will continue to look forward to reading more! Could I ask you .. what camera setup do you use to take your photos? Your pictures are always so vibrant, clear and just extraordinary! I have a point and shoot Kodak digital camera and was contemplating the purchase of a new camera. Any advice is greatly appreciated
Thank you! For the past two years I’ve been using a Canon Rebel. I absolutely love it. It has nothing to do with my talent. It’s the camera.
My son starts kindergarten this year (all day, 5 days/wk – yeow! But yea, only 1 kid to pay for in daycare!). My first battle is convincing my husband it’s ridiculous to pay for our kid to eat the crap they serve in the cafeteria every day. *sigh* Unfortunately, while we don’t fall into that bracket, we live in an area with a large number of folks whose kids are on subsidized lunches. The rest have parents who don’t really care how much it costs or what they serve. That means few kids packing lunches, which means my husband is worried it will make our kid “stick out”. I say tough. I’m not forking over that much money for nutritionally worthless food. I say let’s start a trend and make it cool to bring your lunch.
I’m totally on your side. The stuff they serve in the cafeterias is crap. My kids stick out too, but I’m not willing to pay that kind of money for that kind of food. I’m on board with making bagged lunches cool. Power to the lunch box.
i so can relate 2.00 a lunch for fried burritos… i think not! This year 1st grade me and a friend are trying to make our kids bentos:) I tried somewhat last year but when i sent the bento lunch box to school her friends laughed at her cause it was tiny, so i just started taking the bento box and putting it in a larger lunch box:) Problem solved! You might bring up the obesity rate in children rising to your husband it changed my husbands mind on buying lunch!
Bentos are wonderful and there are websites totally dedicated to the subject. A great place to find inspiration!
Try having to pack your kid’s lunch M-F all year long fora school that allows no peanuts or peanut butter product and your kids hates ALL vegetables and only apple, apple sauce (yes I know it’s the same thing) or banana’s for fruit but refuses to take banana’s bc they get brown even in skin even with coolpack. SIGH. it’s cheese, pepperoni, yogurt, apple sauce almost every day. I tell the teacher’s that’s all he wants so I don’t look like an awful parent. if I could even just send a pb sandwich . . . .
Yup!! One of my kids was in a nut free class last year and it made it super challenging. I respect kids with allergies, but it does make it harder. Every granola bar seems to have nuts in it and that’s one carb my girls like. It’s a pickle for sure.
Love your lunch prep ideas! My youngest is going off to college in one month, so I’ll just have to pack my own lunch!
My husband always buys lunch at work. In some ways, life is getting a lot easier.
I am so far beyond packing lunches. My kids went wild when we had grilled burgers because they wanted one to take for lunch. I did it once and it became a popular item. I just made the hamburger as soon as it came off the grill and refrigerated it. My son said all the other boys begged their mothers to do the same, but the other mothers made their children eat school lunch. Sticking out is not a bad thing.
Back in the 1950s, when I was in grade school/elementary, I always wanted to take my lunch because we got to stay on the school play ground and eat outdoors instead of crossing the street to the cafeteria. I can imagine we could eat anything and not gain weight with extra time to run and play.
My children’s favorite sandwiches:
Pineapple/Miracle Whip/bread
turkey/spinach/bread
hamburger fixed the way they liked
peanut butter/Miracle Whip/banana/bread
Sometimes, they got leftover sausage balls instead of a sandwich. Think of it as bread, cheese and sausage. Much of what they ate for lunch was some favorite leftover. Nothing was ever chilled. They lived. But, there was no yogurt to keep chilled.
They preferred grapes and a homemade cookie. There were always loose teeth, so apples were not popular and took too long to eat.
Melanie, when we moved here, there was no kitchen, so I had yellow countertops put in just because I could not see in the morning. I am not a morning person. Making lunches was less painless in bright light.
My biggest problem was getting the lunchboxes back home each day.
Bane of my existence, too! Very particular eaters, here. I also pack hummus and cut up carrots (or baby carrots) and cucumbers, peppers or celery – pita chips or bread for the carb lover. Mini salads, dressing on the side (double wrapped to prevent lunch box spill). I love your prep stuff and my kids are old enough to put together their own lunches. A new day is dawning – Thanks!
These situations are so incredible to me,having gone to elementary school in the 50s and early 60s. It’s sad and almost unbelievable what people have to go through these days to feed their children.
Here are some examples of what my schoolmates and I had packed in our lunches. There were no freezer packs to keep anything cold,including things with mayo or cheese:
Leftover chicken with mayo on white bread. Apple for recess,dessert for lunch grapes or some other fruit,maybe a cookie. Milk
Cream cheese or American cheese on white bread. Raisins for recess,cut up carrots and or celery for lunch and a piece of fruit. Milk.
Baloney sandwich w/mustard or mayo. Stalk of celery stuffed with peanut butter for recess. Fruit for lunch. Milk.
I can’t imagine throwing half my lunch away,or telling my parents that I was sick of what they gave me.
It’s all in planning ahead for me (I pack my own (graduate) school lunches)–how can dinner turn into lunch? Sometimes that’s just leftovers, but sometimes it’s a slightly re-envisioned leftover–say, shred some leftover chicken and turn into chicken salad lettuce wraps (which would work for the anti-carb brigade).
Having eggs boiled is definitely a good plan. Your anti-carb-ers might also like pinwheels of deli meat and cream cheese (add a tortilla for pro-carb people). They’re really easy to make. I just try to stay out of the sandwich rut–after a while, it’s just an ordinary habit in your shopping and food prep.
Melanie thanks for these tips, also love the new blog! I use the same containers as above and found them in Marshalls for 7.99 to 9.99 love them!
I also think there is a social aspect to children fibbing about what they get at home because they want to fit in and eat with their schoolmates. I went through some stuff when my son was in school,too. How do you explain to your children when they see other kids getting pizza or some other food they would like that you have to pay full price for it when maybe a lot of the other kid’s parents’ don’t have to pay anything for it or pay a much lower price?
This is probably politically incorrect but still,it’s true and worthy of consideration. If you do your best to provide for your children but it’s a strain to pay full price for the school meals, and your children don’t understand, what are you supposed to do?
No kids yet but hubby and I find it difficult to pack our lunches too. I gotta get better at it. Thanks for the tips.
I actually take their orders before bed so there isnt any question about what they find in their lunch boxes the next day..