School lunch packing help?

[la79al]

We've had 3 days of school and I'm already tired of packing lunches. 2 kids, 1st and 3rd grade. I'm at a loss on what to pack them beyond their thermos of water. The biggest problem is that they like completely different foods and I'm struggling to figure out how to get them each food they will eat but not spend a million dollars on it and not have it go bad or them get tired of it before its gone. Youngest would take a peanut butter sandwich every day except she's a messy eater and has a peanut allergy in her class this year so I don't want to risk that. I'm hoping she will adjust to sun butter or similar, haven't tried it yet but she did hate it when she was younger. Oldest hates sandwiches of any kind but can't give me other ideas. I've asked them for suggestions and even had them look at pinterest. I did go out this year and pick up some favorite chips/crackers/cookies so they get one of those for snack at school and one for lunch so I would prefer the rest of lunch is mostly junk free. Please give me some ideas on how to keep my sanity with this. Please.

 

[MommaBerd]

I wish I had suggestions but instead only sympathy. I *homeschool* and have this same problem - especially one of my kids. He's not necessarily a picky eater, but his tastes run in spurts...very frustrating when I've stocked up on items he suddenly can't stand to eat.

 

[Canooknic]

I try to plan my weekday meals so that my boys can take leftovers - chilli, lasagne, curry, casseroles (salads in the warmer months)
On days when there are no leftovers I'll give them wraps (ham, cheese, tuna etc) or use the wraps to make quesadillas. A firm favourite is pasta with sundried tomato pesto mixed in...super easy!!?..then I give them a container of mixed fruits and a granola bar/muffin for snack. I make the snacks at the start of each month and then bag them individuals and freeze them, throw them in the lunch bag and it doubles as a cool pack for the morning and is defrosted by the time they eat it.

I ALWAYS make their lunches the night before so at most I need to reheat something in the morning and then throw it all in their lunch bags.

 

[mommajo143]

I have two boys - one in K & one in 4th. We have a 'nut-free' school which has been very challenging. My boys love PB&J and nutter fluffer sandwiches ...

We do alot of roll ups - I buy wheat tortillas at SAMs club - 40 for under $5. It's easy to create variety with roll ups - I use leftovers mostly.

- chicken - chop it, add ranch or BBQ or honey mustard, add shredded cheese or spread laughing cow cheese or leftover melted velveeta, roll up & slice
- roast - shred it & add gravy wth mayo / mustard or just spread laughing cow on it & roll it up;
- when we have breakfast for dinner I put leftover bacon slices with tomato & lettuce
- porkchops - slice it thin & layer with a little 'kraut or add some fried noodles, chopped cabbage & apples a drizzle of teriyaki.
- pizzas - I put a tortilla in a baggy, some shredded cheese in a baggy, meat of some variety in a midgee cup & spaghetti sauce in another midgee cup
I also do a 'homemade' lunchables on Fridays - I found cheap reusable plastic containers with 4 sections @ dollar tree - In each section goes: quartered slice of cheese, quartered lunch meat (usually ham, occasionally chicken or Bologna) a few turkey pepperoni (I buy large resealable bag & keep in freezer - I just pull a few out at a time) & crackers / ritz in the other section.

We have done pita pockets & leftover hotdogs are always a hit - I keep ketchup & mustard packs from fast food & throw in so bun doesn't get soggy.

I grocery shop every other weekend. On the Sunday after shopping I make up baggies / small Tupperwares and fill the bottom drawer of my fridge & I fill an old pickle jar with 'junk' type foods (I portion out things like popcorn, chips & cookies into ziplocks, and throw in a few fruit roll ups & often candy from birthday party treat bags). My kids get to pick one item from the drawer (healthy) OR an item from our fruit bowl AND one item from the pickle jar I fill with treats.

in the fridge drawer I have - portions of raw broccoli (I buy one head & break it up), baggies of baby carrots, cups of grapes, occasionally Apple slices (since we got busted sending PB last year kids don't want apples much really) and I also usually have Tupperware cups of pudding or applesauce. I fill midgees with ranch & occasionally salsa or hummus. I tried caramel dip for the apples but it's kinda expensive... When I catch it on sale fruit cups & premade jello cups etc go in the drawer too.

My boys like water so that's easy. On Fridays I usually give them a Capri sun or something to go with their homemade lunchables.

Sometimes they take a thermos with leftover spaghetti, soup, etc - that's rare & mostly just my older son.

 

[vratiana]

It helps me to break down the 5 days into 5 different things. This is my current 5 day plan:

1. Turkey or ham sandwich (I freeze individual portions so it doesn't go bad only using it once a week and the sandwich stays cold until lunchtime without an ice pack).
2. Wow butter and Jelly sandwich (my son LOVES wow butter. You might want to try it if the sunbutter doesn't go over so well).
3. Thermos of something hot (leftovers or pasta)
4. Tupperware of plain yogurt with granola to mix in & a slice of homemade pumpkin bread or banana bread.
5. He buys lunch on Fridays (pizza day)

Doing 5 different days somehow helps it feel less daunting and I think keeps him from getting bored. Also, everyday he gets some fruit (or a fruit cup if I don't have anything fresh), and then something else- yogurt tube, cheese stick, pretzels, trisquits, carrots, cellery sticks, etc).

 

[usnuzuloose]

You could get them involved in helping. Let them pick out there menu for the week. It would take a lot of stress off you.

 

[Alexle2007]

My DS9 is going into 5th grade and I've been packing his lunch since day 1 of kindergarten. He gets carrot sticks, some type of fruit, and a snack everyday. Some days we mix it up with dry cereal or pasta in a container. He doesn't eat sandwiches or peanut butter so those aren't an option. Monday we'll start this all over again.

 

[Soulsearching]

Sometimes mom's over pack a lunch and it is wasted. Money right out the door.

I found through the years of raising my children that a lunch box with compartments (like a bento box) always helped. They like variety.

One apple cut up feeds three. Any fruit cut does the trick.
Baby carrots
Buy by the bag -Pretzels, crackers, chips, corn chips (no need for bread)
Cubes of cheese
Small yogurt
Rolled deli meat
Hard boiled egg - egg salad- tuna

No time to pack lunch that week. Buy a large pizza pie cut into 16 slices and send them with a slice of pizza and some fruit or vegetable. Pizza does not need to be heated to eat. (I eat leftover pizza for breakfast all the time lol).

Just don't over pack the lunch. I always told my children, "Do not throw out the left overs" it gave me an idea of what was eaten and how to adjust to the child.

 

[Jedimom]

Before you rule out peanut butter, why not check with the school and find out what kind of controls are in place for the child with the peanut butter allergy. At our elementary school, all kids had to wash hands before and after lunch, and peanut-allergy kids were seated at their own table with only those friends not eating anything peanut-y for lunch. I'm not unsympathetic to the allergy -- I have a child with a similar "life-threatening" type issue, but his is one which we can't reasonably ask classmates to simply avoid x, y, and z because they are abundantly common. It really sucks, I get it, I've lived it, but you just have to work around it (as I'm sure any parent can attest) and can't always depend on other kids/parents to watch out for this stuff for you.

Peanut butter. It's not evil. It's cheap, provides nutrition, and kids love it.

 

[DawnM]

I only had one to pack for last year. But his school was completely nut free AND he is my picky eater.

I bought 5 four ounce Rubbermaid containers. I would open a med. size can of fruit something (pineapple, mixed fruit, peaches, etc...) and split it up into the 5 containers for the week. Much cheaper than those individual cups and easier to open.

Meat sandwiches or tortilla roll up sandwiches
Cheese stick
Bag of chips or similar
Rubbermaid container with cheese squares, cut up thicker meats, and crackers (like your own lunchable)
Cold leftover pizza
Cold leftover pasta

We weren't overly creative because he was so picky and the school had rules.

This year I have a 7th grader and an 11th grader and they are going to a school with no restrictions. Lunch is $2.30 should they choose to buy, and I am fine with that. Or they can pack their own. I am done.

 

[Soulsearching]

Oh! high School boys are not a problem. Mine ate all my dinner leftovers in a hero every day. Even pasta in a hero. I would make two for the day with snacks. He was on a team and he ate non stop trying to keep weight on. Long days. All is friends were jealous and I was happy to use up the leftovers! Needed to keep him energized for those practices.

 

[pittsburghmom]

I use a bento style lunch container I bought off Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/EasyLunchboxes-3-Compartment-Bento-Containers-Classic/dp/B004S129AQ
https://www.amazon.com/EasyLunchboxes-3-Compartment-Bento-Containers-Classic/dp/B004S129AQ

Not only does it save on plastic lunch baggies, but it helps me visualize a "meal" while packing and makes it so much easier for me. My 1st grader cannot have gluten, so we pack EVERY day. As soon as he gets off the bus, that is one of the first things I do. I typically will make him a wrap with ham/turkey/cheese on a GF tortilla, cheese stick or go-gurt, cut fruit or applesauce, granola bar, and either GF pretzles or crackers. Other times, I will make him a "lunchable" type lunch with cut up meats & cheeses with GF crackers. It can be a challenge, and when he starts complaining, I will ask him to help pack the lunch or at least offer suggestions for what he would like. Good luck!

 

[wenrob]

I agree about having them help you make the lunch and not overpacking. With a couple of rules-a protein, a carb, a veggie or fruit, one treat and a drink it's very easy for them to grab and stick in their lunchbox. I keep a variety of cut up veggies, cheese sticks, yogurts, lunch meat, crackers etc on hand and a crock with plastic spoons/forks on the counter near where they make their lunch. My kids favorite thing is to make their own lunchables. We have these:
http://www.target.com/p/sistema-3-pack-split-11-8oz-color-containers/-/A-50498627?ref=tgt_adv_XS000000&AFID=google_pla_df&CPNG=PLA_Grocery+Essentials+Shopping&adgroup=SC_Grocery&LID=700000001170770pgs&network=g&device=t&location=9030809&gclid=CjwKEAjwrvq9BRD5gLyrufTqg0YSJACcuF81_yKuOO4-_Q_2cvtWnqr9-qp8YuI1r3qJkgm49XfIThoCqxDw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds
They have a nice tight seal and are very easy to clip on and off. (even my 20 yr old uses them) They follow the rules while filling them and making lunch takes two minutes. I've tried all sorts of fancy, kid friendly, lunch ideas but have found a reasonable variety and simple has worked best for my kids.

 

[pigletto]

Ds starts school again in 1.5 weeks and I am not excited to start the school lunch packing again. He's 12 so he packs while we clean up from supper.. that's not a big deal. But making sure the right things are in the house, constant reminders that he needs fruit and veggies at every meal, cleaning out the yoghurt that exploded, running to the store.. blah. Not my favourite.

Ds likes what he likes and could eat the same lunch for eternity. So it's pasta leftovers, whole wheat chicken fingers in a thermos, perogies in a thermos, homemade whole wheat pizza, maybe leftover chicken .. and that's about it. I mean he would take pizza pockets and hot dogs and stuff that's terrible for him every day too, but I'm not allowing it. Healthy snacks are easier... fruit cups packed in water, fruits and cut up cucumbers or carrots, greek yoghurt, cheese, crackers, gold fish, raisins etc. It's the main part of the meal that I have to make sure I make enough of that there is leftovers for lunches the next day.

 

[Eureka]

When my kids were that age, I made homemade "lunchables" for them since they told me bread was "yucky." (Almost 10 yrs later, they now have no problem with bread, but I also probably buy better stuff now). I'd roll up lunch meats, cut chunks of cheese for the kid who likes it, add grapes, carrot sticks, whatever. Turkey pepperoni and a dinner roll were big hits for awhile. I used paper muffin liners to separate things in the same Rubbermaid-type container. That was their main course and then they got an apple and a treat. Back then, they liked juice boxes, so I made sure to buy the 100% juice kinds.

 

[KennesawNemo]

Having them buy lunch at school?

Ours is $2.75 a meal. It's definitely not gourmet food, but balanced to certain point. On the days I don't feel like packing, mine just buys lunch from school.

 

[msmama]

My son took a mini bagel with cream cheese just about every day last year.

Other things we've done are soft pretzels, mac n cheese (I make one of the cups in the morning and put it in his thermos container and if there is any left at the end of the day, it's still warm), leftovers (rarely), chicken nuggets (in the thermos cup again), home made "lunchables" (crackers with cheese and turkey) and the occasional turkey sandwich. I just never really let him have PBJ (unless it's the only thing I have in the house).

For sides we do cheese sticks/mini babybel, yogurt, applesauce, cherry tomatoes, fruit (usually grapes or apples as I've found others can leak and make a mess) and then one "snacky" kind of thing like pretzels, popcorn, pirates booty, etc.

Also, to make it easier on me, I usually get out everything that's room temp stable the night before while I'm cleaning up the kitchen from dinner. Then the next morning I only have to do the perishables and put it in the lunchbox.

 

[scrapquitler]

non sandwich ideas:
Tupperware with cereal in it, pack a spoon, buy milk.
cheese/crackers/pepperoni
leftovers from last nights dinner (many things can be eaten cold: chicken, turkey, ham, pizza, my kids like cold pastas)
pasta salad (add meats,veggies, cheese as desired) made with italian dressing instead of mayo
tossed salad
my mom used to send a hotdog in hot water in my thermos and a separate bun
soup in the thermos
bagels with cream cheese

 

[MaryLovesPoohBear]

I don't have kids in school, but I pack lunches for almost every family activity that we have.

I use Laptop Lunches containers. They work for a picnic or to eat in the car. They also have many lunch ideas on their web site.

I also bought a great book called "Betting the Lunch Box Blues." It doesn't have more than a couple of recipes, but it gives ideas for different combinations of basic foods.

 

[texasroni75]

My older kids have started just getting the in-school hot lunches - since I got tired of them rejecting home-made lunches, and they don't want to make their own most days.

But to be completely honest, I just want them to have something in their belly to get them through the second half of the school day. I make sure they get a nutritious breakfast and dinner at home, so if they had a twinkie and milk at lunch it's not the end of the world! But some things I pack for my youngest are:

Bagel with butter or cream cheese
Rolled up deli meat and cheese
Crackers
Fruit (so many options there)
Cold pizza
Soup in a thermos
Sandwiches with meat or jelly
Cheese sticks
Yogurt
Applesauce
Mac N Cheese
Baked potato chips /SunChips
Hotdogs - pre-cut

**I am a parent of a tree-nut-allergy-kid, so a shout out to all the parents of kids who DON'T have allergies, but are considerate enough to leave those types of foods for at home! It is extremely appreciated, and we really don't see PB as the devil (I love it immensely and it used to be a staple in our house) but our family had to give it up altogether to keep our little one safe.