School's Starting...How about a lunch packing thread.

[mrzrich]

I don't want to send my kids to school with PB&J everyday.

What are your kids packing?

 

[Dismom+two]

I think this is a good idea...I could even use some ideas for ME. I get so tired of bringing the same old thing for lunch!!

 

[talulabelle]

I have picking kids. One wont eat Peanut butter!!! One won't eat tuna, the other won't eat egg salad. I find I am usually packing 3 different things.

Here are a few of the things that go over with all three:

-Chili or chunky soup in a good quality thermos (that doesn't leak).
-pastrami, cole slaw and russian dressing on rye (called a cloak and dagger)
-Ham or turkey sandwich (I put the tomatos in a separate baggy so they don't make the sandwich mushy- and they put them on the sandwich at school.
- this one is a huge crowd pleaser: when we have spagetti and meatballs, I puposely make extra meatballs and sauce and put them on a subroll in the morning and cover in shredded mozzerella, and nuke it for a few, then wrap in foil. They love that!

 

[mrzrich]

One thing I do is make "lunchables"

I buy lunchmeat and cheeses they like, and cut it into squares or triangles.
I give let them pick out a variety of crackers at the store to put the meat and cheese on.
I add a healthy snack and a drink and they're good to go.


We make these a lot when we camp.
(Sometimes we make these back in the hotel room if we're doing a tight budget WDW trip too!)

 

[Tinkerbelle99]

I cant wait review everyone's ideas - you can get in such a rut with lunch! My DD doesn't do lunch meat, so sandwhiches are limited too tuna. To keep the smell to a minimum, adding a little celery to the mix helps and adds a little zip.

She also likes to take fruit, like apples. I cut them up, place them in a ziplock bad and add a couple squirts of lemon juice too keep them from browning (but it wont alter taste). DD wont eat the if they turn brown.

DD loves to take soup as well. Usually, one can made up in the morning will make two meals - breakfast and lunch. DD loves that. She loves to have croutons on the side on soup days.

Sometimes she wants to take cereal for lunch. So I pack her a small bowl and spoon, put some cereal in a ziplock and she will buy a milk at school.

Drinks are an issue too, she is not big on drink boxes either. She perfers water which is great really. Except even getting her to finish one of those super teeny water bottles is tough. usually she takes two sips of the water and thats it. Although I have to say, the Danimals drinkable yougurt goes over pretty well.

 

[casjen72]

My ds is 5 and here are his favorite lunches. I just got a laptop lunch bento box for him b/c he saw it and was beyond excited to have his lunch in it. His school is currently not nut free.

Hummus and crackers
Laughing cow swiss "cheese" spread and crackers
Oven roasted turkey breast and organic cheese sandwiches
Organic yogurt and fruit salad
Organic berry apple sauce
Pumpkin muffins and organic cream cheese
Organic cream cheese sandwiches
Banana and peanut butter rounds (PB between 2 slices of banana)
Mixed fruit
Grilled chicken and dressing to dip in
Apples and peanut butter
Fruit of any and all kinds
Grilled cheese
Pancakes

That's all I can remember for now. He'll often take home baked muffins etc i fortify with omega 3 eggs and ground flax seeds.

 

[kimnscott]

today my dd 9 took mac and cheese in good thermos with water and a crystal light choc pudding cup and carrots with ranch dip.
yesterday she took a home made lunchable crackers cheese and deli turkey cut up brocoli with ranch dip teddy grahams and water with a crystal light pack. I aam very proud of my dd about the water I bought drink boxes but she wants to drink water. Hurray maybe I am doing something right.

I will keep you posted
kim

 

[PudgetteD]

Neither DS8 or DD15 eat meat and are pretty boring eaters. Both chose the same thing this week: PBJ (grape) uncrustables, nacho cheese Gripz, grapes, and Poki (strawberry). I think I spelled that correctly, they're strawberry flavored cookie type sticks but they aren't really that sweet, I find them in the Asian aisle.

 

[Maleficents_Revenge]

pack them something fun....

luchables... cookies... a fruit drink... stuff like that

make the other kids wish their parents were as cool as you !!

honestly though, we pack something that we know she will eat. with only 30 minutes to eat, the last thing i want her doing is sitting there thinking about how much her lunch sucks. usually a peanut butter sandwich, or ham and cheese, some chips and she will usually buy a milk or we send a capri sun. we actually do send lunchables too. they are good when you get ready to pack lunch and realize you ate the last of the bread for a bedtime snack.

 

[PudgetteD]

pack them something fun....

luchables... cookies... a fruit drink... stuff like that

make the other kids wish their parents were as cool as you !!

honestly though, we pack something that we know she will eat. with only 30 minutes to eat, the last thing i want her doing is sitting there thinking about how much her lunch sucks. usually a peanut butter sandwich, or ham and cheese, some chips and she will usually buy a milk or we send a capri sun. we actually do send lunchables too. they are good when you get ready to pack lunch and realize you ate the last of the bread for a bedtime snack.

You think like I do! Honestly, I'd rather have them eat something, even if it isn't as nutritious as I'd like, than have them trade it for something else. Besides, DD15 has vending machines in her high school, so she'd just spend additional money buying junk if I didn't pack what she wanted. I work five 12 hour shifts/week, so simplicity is the name of the game @ our house!

 

[Hannathy]

I don't want to send my kids to school with PB&J everyday.

What are your kids packing?

You know I used to feel bad about my DS taking the same thing everyday and would try to get him to take something else and finally realized it is his lunch not mine and if he is happy why should I care! So probably 9 out of 10 days he will take PB&J, a fruit roll up, and a Rice Krispie treat-he will take the peanut butter or plain so some variety! and on mornings when I realize I have no bread he will take Spaghetti-o's and meatballs, same sides. Occasionally I can get away with a Ham and cheese sandwich. I agree with I just want him to eat so he can do his work and am constantly asking if he would like something different and he says no. Once in a while he will pick out a different dessert but that's about it. Now my DD is easy, she loves everything and variety and buys-she is my favorite child in the mornings!

 

[buzz5985]

Kids in my town aren't allowed to take Peanut Butter to school. We are a nut free district.

My DS likes Boars Head sliced Chicken. That's it. So that is what he gets, since I know he will eat it.

I volunteered in the school cafe, and I hate to say it - but most of the food we lovingly put in our childrens lunch box each morning - gets thrown out. That's why I put the Boars Head Chicken sandwich in the box every morning. LOL

 

[mickeylove2]

My DDs like to take cucmber strips, or baby carrots with colored ranch, side salad with gold fish swimming in it, lettuce, lunch meat and cheese rollups-whole wheat tortillas, tuna or chicken salad in a pita, apple slices with pb, any fruit, that's all I can think of. Thanks to everyone for the ideas! Keep 'em coming!!

 

[feedindy]

I made a ham for dinner last night. I like the flavor a whole ham provides, but it is obviously way too much for us so we use the leftovers. I'll make ham salad today that can be used for lunches with crackers or corn chips (gluten free here, so no bread for us). I have also sliced a bunch for ham & cheese. I'll freeze some so it will last a few weeks.

She really prefers ham to anything else so I try to change it up so she doesn't get bored. She also likes to take chips & salsa sometimes. We do a lot of leftovers by throwing extra meat in for lunch. She (oddly) loves cold steak so I always make an extra when we grill.

For sides, we keep a lot of fresh fruit. I also bought a bunch of yogurt the other day. I put most of it in the freezer. It will act as an ice pack, but be thawed enough to eat by lunch. Same with Capri Suns, but she usually just takes water. I keep a few juices around for a treat though.

 

[cajunpeach]

- this one is a huge crowd pleaser: when we have spagetti and meatballs, I puposely make extra meatballs and sauce and put them on a subroll in the morning and cover in shredded mozzerella, and nuke it for a few, then wrap in foil. They love that!

OOOHHH, great idea!!!! My daughter loves these, I don't know why I never thought about it before for school lunch! Thanks

 

[ceecee]

DD has discovered a new bread Oat Crunch with Hazelnuts in it and she loves it, so anything on that bread is fine with her. The slices are so large, it only takes 1 to make a sandwich. Her friend always ends upgiving her cookies (not even good ones) because she hates them. I told her not to take them. The reason I like to pack is to get away from the horribly non-nutrious school lunches. I work 2 days a week and always have the same thing....1/2 ham sandwich, sugar free rice pudding, a few pretzels and a pink grapefruit flavored water. Maybe I should branch out a little as well!

 

[smfritz03]

today was 1st day back to school:

Wheat bread w/ organic Peanut butter and homemade apple jelly.

Carrots and ranch. (wanted this over chips---teaching her well!!! lol)
Chocolate Pudding cup.

_____________

Other things we do:

Clubs (turkey, ham, bacon)
Sandwich wraps
Rice cakes
Cheese sandwich squares w/ meat rolled on the side
Frozen Fruits (they are chilled out by lunch and she loves these on hot days)
Chili
Homemade noodles
slices of green and red peppers
Veggie quesadillas (put in a thermas to keep warm)
Homemade mix of teddy grahams, chocolate chips and mini marshmellows
Cheese sticks
Mini bagel sandwiches
Chips and salsa
Pizza wraps---the night before I will flaten out a cresent and put pizza sauce, cheese and pepperoni's on it and then cover w/ another cresent and bake. Or I will unwrap a cresent-fill w/ these ingredients and bake. Of I will get up early and do this the morning of.
Orange Juice, water or she buys milk.

I also always put a note in her lunchbox. I know it's cheesy but even going in 3rd grade she looks forward to seeing a small reminder while she's at school that I'm thinking about her.

Something not so healthy but great "comfort" type lunch for when she has a cold but goes to school: I pack a paper plate--a piece or 2 of bread--one thermas I put mashed potatoes and the other I put chicken noodle soup. At lunch she will put the bread down, put the potatoes on top and then the noodles and eat that. Normally when I do this, I drop her lunch off about 30 min prior to her lunch hour to make sure its all warm. I should test it on the weekend to see how the potatoes would hold up...........

I'm not so big on pushing ONLY health foods 24/7 because I don't want her to get to school and then pig out on the fat and sugary foods. I try to put something that isn't a huge sugar intake in her lunch but that still satisfys her sweet tooth. I would feel horrible sending those juice boxes or cookies and such because of the initial "high" it gives her and then with her she gets real tired afterwards. And I don't want her feeling that way in school. I try to give her stuff she loves that will fill her up and give her that mid day zing to get through school.

 

[mepperson]

A couple of DD8's favorites:

tortilla roll-ups: tortilla with either sour cream or cream cheese (which ever I have) spread on top, with ham or turkey, shredded cheese and some picante sauce. Roll it up and then slice into bite-sized pieces. She likes to call this "sushi" because of the way it looks after I cut it up.

Wraps: again with the tortillas - maybe some leftover grilled chicken, avocado, diced tomato, whatever...

BTW - DD LOVES flavored tortillas - her favs are sun-dried tomato-basil and spinach

pbj, of course

"square ham" - I have the deli give me one thick slice of ham, instead of the usual "thin". Then I cut into cubes. Pack with cheese sticks.

sides: carrot sticks, applesauce, celery with peanut butter filling, yogurt, cheese, sometimes chips, wheat thins, goldfish, strawberries, grapes, kiwi, cantalope

I only pack now what I know she will eat. Usually she gets to choose her "sides".

She always buys milk.