Buying school lunch is cheaper than making it!

[Disney1fan2002]

UGH. The 1st of the year, I decided to started packing the kids a lunch, instead of feeding their lunch account with money. It cost me $30 a week for all three. At first, I bought school lunch food with regular food shopping. Last week, I decided to make a special trip JUST for the school lunch stuff. It cost me OVER $30. The bigger problem? I have to make more than one trip a week because they eat through what I bought. So I am paying much more than $30 a week to pack them a lunch.

They are now back to buying lunch at school.

 

[mommasita]

That is a really good deal you are getting at school IMHO. My son's cafeteria charges 3.50 for the daily meal. He gets money 2x a week, and takes his lunch the rest.

I agree with you. For 3 children your price is better than buying the stuff.

 

[jax677]

The problem here is that they prefer what I make to what school offers. For me its not about the price and more about what they will eat.

 

[Karamia]

My daughter lets the children get the school lunch just on the days they like the menu..chicken strips, ziti for example. So much food from home is wasted!

 

[luvmy3]

I wouln't let my kids eat a week of school lunches even if they were free

 

[JESW]

My dd10 (4th grade) buys lunch just about every day for $2.50 (Ds14 brings his). On the days that she doesn't like the lunch she buys the salad so we are lucky that way. I find thinking of things for lunch tough. When I went to school (way back when) I had peanut butter & jelly for four days and then tuna fish on Friday since we are Catholic - easy! No hot lunches back then.

Jill

 

[PatsMom]

DD is making her lunches this year. She gets an allowance and it is up to her to either buy her lunch or hit the grocery store for something to prepare. She finds she is saving money by making it herself. She does sandwiches or cuts up veggies and brings salad dressing to dip them in. She'll get water out of the drinking fountain or sometimes buy milk at school.

The school lunch price went up a lot this year. She tells me that lots of other kids who used to buy their lunch/breakfast are now bringing it from home. Of course about 2/3 of the kids gets free/reduced breakfast/lunch so you can always trade your homemade sandwich for the school lunch with someone if there is something on the menu that you like. Seems like her fresh veggies are in pretty big demand if she decides that she wants school pizza for lunch.

 

[ajk912]

I hear you. My kids are $1.75 each so it isn't that bad. So $3.50 for both. Most days I have stuff from home anyway to make their lunches, but on the days I don't have the stuff anyway I don't make a special trip to the store. It's $18 a week (about) for them to buy lunch, so even on bad weeks it's not horrible.

I almost always have bread for pb&j, and a fruit of some sort, and granola bars around, so it's not too hard to scrounge up some crackers for their lunch. To me, this seems like a "free" lunch (though not really, but in my mind it seems that way). I know it's not the healthiest, but to do the cute organic, super healthy lunches I see posted on here sometimes looks like they cost at least $4 each!

 

[kinntj]

I agree that my DD6 could eat cheaper at school, but what she's getting just isn't as healthy as I make at home.
She gets organic juice, sandwiches on ww bread, applesauce, soup, spaghetti with white and ww pasta mix. She understands that what I pack will feed her brain to last the whole day. She's also less hungry when she comes home when I pack her lunch. She notices the difference.
I will let her eat Ceasar's Pizza every 2 weeks to give her a break and that costs $3.00 for 2 slices. So I spend $6.00 a month on school lunches. I don't really add up the one's she carry's, because that is priceless.

Whatever works out for your individual family is the best bet.

 

[Erin1700]

Our lunch is 1.75. Rachael buys about 2-3 times a week. They have more than one option though. When I pack, I pack healthier stuff so I think it is more expensive to pack.
She often will take yogurt and fruit salad.

 

[KadysMom]

DD7 brings her lunch. She cant eat much at school because of her food allergies. She isnt a big eater, so she doesnt take much. Today was a Peanut butter sandwich, 2 soy milks, and a fruit snack. When she is hungry though, I will also add a banana and some strawberries. She sometimes "sneaks" a third soy milk.

 

[mlynn]

My daughter never wants to buy lunch. She eats Pbj 4 days aweek and on the 5th she brings a cheese sandwich. these are theonly things she brings. But school lunches here are $2.10 aday

 

[CLEVERGIRL]

I wouln't let my kids eat a week of school lunches even if they were free

I agree. I think parents should probably visit the school lunchrooms in their child's school and check out the food before letting their kids eat there. Some probably have great food but some don't. It isn't always the staff's fault but sometimes it is. I worked in a High School lunchroom for a few months and I don't know how those kids survived some of that food. My kids take lunches now.

 

[Camicar]

DD is making her lunches this year. She gets an allowance and it is up to her to either buy her lunch or hit the grocery store for something to prepare.

You make your kid use her allowance to buy food at the grocery store for lunch?

 

[mnasmom3]

I try to stay away from school lunches, too. YUCK! Here, it's a of junk.

Packing doesn't have to be more expensive. I realized long ago that much of the cost comes from buying for convenience. Those cute little cups of fruit and boxes of juice are costly! We go "green", so my kids have waste free lunches. That means that nothing in their box is disposable...right down to the napkin and spoon. I never buy any of the convenience snack pack packaged items or juice boxes. They take milk or juice in a reuseable Nalgene sports bottle, sandwiches go in a tupperware type sandwich keeper, snacks go into tupperware snack cups so I'm not buying expensive little bags of snacks or little cups of fruit/applesauce. Packing their lunch is much cheaper if there aren't plastic baggies, disposable snack containers, and juice boxes to buy. Consider if for the savings if not for the planet.

 

[luvmy3]

I agree. I think parents should probably visit the school lunchrooms in their child's school and check out the food before letting their kids eat there. Some probably have great food but some don't. It isn't always the staff's fault but sometimes it is. I worked in a High School lunchroom for a few months and I don't know how those kids survived some of that food. My kids take lunches now.

Thats exactly why I don't let them eat them! When my ds was in 1st (he's now in 3rd) I went in for a mom's lunch. I saw what was served and it was nasty looking, and I am sure just as bad tasting. There was nothing nutritious about it either. I made the decision that day that my kids could have 1 school lunch a week and they would bring their own the other 4 days.
I do have to say that if I just looked at the menu they brought home, I would think the choices were good, and semi nutritious but that all changes when you see the actual food. I don't think its the staffs fault at all, they can't control what the district has approved and picked for lunches. I think they try to do their best to prepare it so its looks and tastes good.

 

[Mkaz]

The problems with the school lunches here are the grease, and cheese.

At my daughter's high school everything seems to be soaked in grease. At my son's elementary school they are either feeding them something with melted cheese, sauce, or hot dogs. My kids won't touch hot dogs with a ten foot pole. They do offer alternatives for them, but they get tired of that too. Last year we invested in a stainless steel (Stanley) thermos for each of them. They were well worth the price.

 

[CLEVERGIRL]

The problems with the school lunches here are the grease, and cheese.

At my daughter's high school everything seems to be soaked in grease. At my son's elementary school they are either feeding them something with melted cheese, sauce, or hot dogs. My kids won't touch hot dogs with a ten foot pole. They do offer alternatives for them, but they get tired of that too. Last year we invested in a stainless steel (Stanley) thermos for each of them. They were well worth the price.

You mentioned the grease. I used to get in trouble all the time for trying to drain the grease off of cooked hamburger (soy,turkey, cardboard mixture ) meat. The lunchroom manager said it was time consuming. I would try to sneak and do it fast before she came out of her office!

 

[Mkaz]

You mentioned the grease. I used to get in trouble all the time for trying to drain the grease off of cooked hamburger (soy,turkey, cardboard mixture ) meat. The lunchroom manager said it was time consuming. I would try to sneak and do it fast before she came out of her office!

Wow.

 

[VolleyballQt07]

My mom found that out too. I'm in HS and my lunch is $1.90 for the basic lunch which is an entree (hot lunch, pizza, hot sandwich, cold sandwhich, or salad Plus a milk, a side and all the fresh fruits and veggies you want) . We have ala carte items too .

My brother and sister is $1.70 and they can choose between 2 entrees or a pbj and then again the milk, side and all the f/v they want. SInce they usually only pack pbj anyways when the do pack, its much easier and cheaper for my mom to just let them buy every day.

My brother and sister also get to buy a fruit/veggie snack every day for .50 and they keep backups in their backpack in case they don't like the choice.

WE have a great lunch program here.!