What do you put in your childrens lunch????

[r3ngels]

My DD is in first grade so this is the first year I am making lunches. It seems all I make is PB&J and those lunchables everyday... she said she wouldn't mind something different but doesn't know what else she wants. She doesn't like buying lunch because it takes to long in line and she doesn't have enough time to talk to her friends (typical little girl, talk first... eat later).
I have tried frozen go-gurt, cheez-its, grapes, carrots. She says her apple gets brown and "yucky".

I really don't know what to put in her lunch... what do you guys do for lunches?!?

 

[momof3disneyholics]

bologna and chees sandwich
chips
grapes or apple
cookies
drink box

 

[grinningghost]

I feel your pain. I have the pickiest eater in the world for a daughter. For years, she ate the exact same lunch. PB&J with crusts cut off, a bag of Doritos, an orange and a water bottle. It was so embarassing to send her off with that same stupid lunch everyday.

Now she's a freshman and FINALLY has started buying her lunch. Of course it's the same dumb lunch everyday too - a plain baked potato and chocolate milk. But it's a move in a different direction.

 

[Pete's Mom]

Pete's in 1st grade too. This morning I made

Half a Goober Grape sandwich
Bag of Pretzels
Cup of Mandarin Oranges
Two Baby Crunch Bars
Apple Juice Box

Sometimes I pack strawberries, blueberries, or rasberries. He also like carrots. I have a friend who also rolls up slices of ham and cheese together (no bread) and her son loves that.

 

[aprincessmom]

DD (who is 8) has been packing her own lunch this year. She likes thinking up what to take and putting it all together. Some of her favorites this year are:

Ham and cheese or turkey and cheese rollups -- in either lavash bread or flour tortillas

Carrots and celery or red/green peppers with a dip -- typically ranch or bleu cheese dressing or hummus

Apples dipped in cinnamon sugar -- we sprinkle some lemon juice on them to keep them from browning

Bagel with cream cheese

Salad with some grilled chicken for protein

Leftovers -- especially spaghetti and meatballs which she eats cold

Cheese, crackers and ham -- cheddar or havarti cheese

Cold cereal and yogurt -- she mixes it into the yogurt

Soup -- likes clam chowder or chicken noodle in a thermos

A "berry bag" -- blueberries, strawberries and raspberries in a plastic bag eaten just plain

"Ants on a log" -- celery filled with peanut butter and sprinkled with raisins

Cottage cheese with fruit or vegetables mixed in -- crushed pineapple, strawberries and blueberries or shredded carrots.

And always a big bottle of water. She's a big water drinker. We buy lunchables as a treat on occasion but otherwise she likes taking charge of her lunch.

 

[bigsis1970]

my DS also a first grader eats the same sandwich every day he has cold lunch .. 1 slice of bread with 1 slice of american cheese folded in half !!! craziness I know but he likes it and he eats it.. then he usually gets chips, a fruit or apple sauce, crackers and 3 cookies. ( oh and a juice box )

 

[AirForceRocks]

My kids still want the same thing every day - I couldn't stand to eat the same thing every day!! PB&J for DS, turkey on a rolled up tortilla for DD. I also send a bag of some kind of chips, a fruit, and a cookie. They get milk at school.

The only variety they want is their fruit...apples, pears, oranges, bananas, cantaloupe, strawberries, blueberries, etc. I try to always have 4 or 5 kinds of fresh fruit in the house so that they have a choice for their lunches.

 

[CEDmom]

Here's what DD had yesterday:

tuna salad
crackers
mandarin oranges
olives
grape tomatoes
chocolate chip granola bar
juice


Some other ideas:

PB&J dip (mix PB&J together & thin with a little juice or milk)
apple slices (soak in pineapple juice to prevent browning)
bread stick or crackers

pinwheel sandwiches (spread cream cheese on tortilla, add finely chopped veggies or anything else child likes, roll and slice)

 

[The Mystery Machine]

My first grader mainly buys her lunch but not always. Today she brought.

Baloney sandwich
Strawberry/Banana yogurt
Slice of Colby Cheese
Tostitos scoops chips

& she buys her drink, chocolate milk of course!

 

[beattyfamily]

I have a 2nd grader. I let her buy if she wants but she also brings in lunch when she doesn't like what they are offering.

She's very picky. She does not want sandwiches so I recently bought a very nice quaility Thermos made specifically to keep food hot. Here's a sample: thermos You can get it much cheaper at Walmart for about $12. and it's the 'Thermos' brand.

I now pack Mac & Cheese (I make the quick single serve kind), Spaghetti O's, Chicken Soup, and other kinds of soup.

She loves that! A tip, fill the thermos with hot water for a few minutes and her food is nice and warm 4 hours later at lunch!

 

[piglet too]

Wow, I must be the mean Mom! My son (who is in fourth grade) usually buys 2-3 times a week.. When I do make him a lunch all he gets is a PB&J sandwich and either some Oreos or a fruit roll-up. He gets milk at school and does take a $1 to buy some snacks they have available there. I would love it if I could send all that other stuff, but he just would not eat it, so why spend the money on it?

 

[ZebraStripes]

My DD8 (2nd grade) is the empitome of a picky, fussy, yuck I'm not eating that eater. Here is what she takes. I'm keep waiting for the principal to call.

Salsa with chips
cereal
goldfish
pretzels
lemonade and apple juice boxes

On a rare occation whe was taking carrots with dip.

The doctor continues to tell me she will eat what her body needs. My mother is convinced she is severely malnurished. She is the healthiest kid around though.

 

[CamColt]

Usually a bologna & cheese sandwich, but this week he ventured out and tried salami a couple days. For snacks its either cheezits or goldfish crackers, and either fruist snacks or fruit roll up, or a cereal bar. Not much variety here.

 

[TimeforMe]

Originally posted by CEDmom
Here's what DD had yesterday:

tuna salad
crackers
mandarin oranges
olives
grape tomatoes
chocolate chip granola bar
juice


Some other ideas:

PB&J dip (mix PB&J together & thin with a little juice or milk)
apple slices (soak in pineapple juice to prevent browning)
bread stick or crackers

pinwheel sandwiches (spread cream cheese on tortilla, add finely chopped veggies or anything else child likes, roll and slice)

WOW! Can you pack my lunch? Pretty please???? I LOL when I read what her lunch for yesterday was. Wish I was having it!

 

[SandraM]

My DS's favourite is chicken, salsa (the hotter the better), cheese and lettuce in a tomato wrap.
Once a week I let him buy a breakfast roll in school, it's a hot roll with bacon, sausage and fried egg in it. Makes my stomach churn but he adores it.

 

[newholiday]

M, W & Th he has a YoCrunch, 2 gran bars and 2 drinks
Tu & F I send a Lunchable instd of the YoCrunch

 

[JerseyJanice]

My boy is in second grade and likes sandwiches. Roast beef and american, turkey and swiss, ham and american, bologna, even liverwurst. He likes the crusts cut off his bread, but other than that, he's not picky. Could be white or whole white or rye--just no crust.

For snacks, I pack 2 or 3 things. Things like grape tomatoes, bananas, baby carrots, oranges, Polly-O string cheese sticks, cubed cheddar, Cheez Doodles in a baggie, cookies, Little Debbie cakes, Fruit Roll-Ups. For beverage, I always send a small bottle of water and a small juice (or juice-like drink--depends what's on sale).

You guys who can pack PB&J are lucky. We aren't allowed to send any peanut butter to my son's school. Two kids with peanut allergies are there, so peanut products are out.

 

[browneyes]

I put money in their lunch. They rarely pack a lunch. They like their school food most of the time.