Need Help with Packing Lunches

My son had a similar complaint. Part of the problem is that if you pack too much they don't have time to eat it all and if you pack too little they end up hungry. Luckily my sons class (3rd grade) still has snack time and he also gets a snack at his after school program.

I usually pack a sandwich and 3-4 snacks. I buy the 100 calorie variety packs of chips, cookies and cheezits. I also buy applesauce cups, fruit and grain granola bars, fruit snacks, pretzels and cheese and crackers. I rotate the snacks so that he doesn't get too bored. I also send a caprisun juice box.

I also found dried tropical fruit in boxes like raisins (my son is not a fan of raisins) and he loves them!

We're a huge fan of the Bento boxes. My son has the Laptop Lunch:

http://www.laptoplunches.com/

I keep a few bins in the pantry of things that fit nicely in there - the Z bars, granola bars, booty, dry cereals, dried fruits, etc. I usually put one with dairy, one with fresh fruit/veggie, one with a sandwich, and one with chips and a dessert. So far he's loved it, he's had it for 2 years now without losing anything or breaking it!

S.

I feel your pain - believe me and my daughter hates school lunches - and she is a very picky eater as well.

Fit and fresh has some wonderful containers that have freezer packs that are removable that snap into the containers and keep the foods cold.

http://www.fit-fresh.com/index_alt2.php

I find them at ROSS and Target or Wal-Mart when I can. I even ordered a bunch of different containers they offered straight from their website - easy!!!

As far as what I fix my daughter for lunch - it ranges from simplke things like ants on a log (celery, peanutbutter and rasins) fresh snap peas, slices cucumber, small tomatoes, baby carrots, tuna salad sandwiches or other sandwiches, sliced apples with a dish of peanutbutter, salad with dressing.

I also bought plasticware from IKEA for her to take to school that she brings home and it washes easily and she loves because it comes in many differnt colors and its not SCHOOL issued.

with the fit and fresh container I find there isnt much I cant send to school for her lunch. My problem is find a way to send HOT lunches - but I made her a deal - pizza day she eats at school - so I know she eats one HOT meal each week during cold weather days. As far as drinks - I freeze the water type capri suns and use them as freezer packs and they tend to defrost in time for lunch as well.

A heads up - My daughters dentist says no Capri Suns that have sugar, no koolaide Sunny-D and so forth - no Gummy Snacks - even though I dont keep it at my house my daughter had acess at her grandparents house and her aunt and uncles house - lets just say her dental visit didnt go well - so I took those things completely out of her diet - but he did say Crystal Light was a winner and she loves the different flavors - so water bottles work as well.

I hope this helps - if you need anything - Just ask

go to flickr.com and type in lunch. they have pictures and cute containers, most photos will explain what everything is. now you dont have to get quite so artsy with the presentation but the food is great ideas. protein packed foods, fruits, nuts, berries, veggies. beans seem to be filling and a good carb packed with fiber. what about there drink. not too sure how pedi sure works but some type of filling milkshake, smoothy type of thing? packed in a thermo? I am very excited about this age when i get to pack lunches. there are all sorts of blogs to help. http://www.parentsconnect.com/home/index.jhtml

under the section that says your kids you can find recipes. goodl uck

weelicious.com is GREAT resource for kids of all ages (starting from home-made baby food for 6mth olds to packing school lunches. She has fun healthy ideas on feeding kids.

This is different than everyone else said but how I handled it with my three kids and I teach school full time. I believe in empowering kids to take care of themselves. I think as long as mothers are doing everything for them they tend to whine and complain alot.
I paid for the school lunch and then also took them to the store once a week and bought things that they could use to make a lunch. IF they were not happy with the school lunch, (we kept a school lunch calendar on the fridge) then the night before it was their job to pack their own lunch.
This puts them in control. They are choosing what to do about things and what to eat so there is no complaining and it is not my job to do it. I do not need another job.

I started this as young as kindergarten and it worked great. My kids are independent, grateful and now in college managing very well on their own.
Which is the point of mothering....

I pack a sandwich, 2 types of fruit or veggie (apple and carrots / apple and orange / apple and banana, etc.), either crackers or chips and juice. When fruit is out of season - I use canned fruit in 100% juice. You can buy "soup" bowls that will hold without leaking. Usually my kids complain of not having enough time to finish everything. You could add cheese with the crackers.

I pack a lunch everyday. I tried packing the standard; sandwich, chips and a fruit but it was never all eaten SO now that I pack the new stuff lunch is scarfed down. I pack applesauce of some sort, healthy fruit snack, nurta grain bars-2 flavors, small special K bar and chips. He has a snak in the am b/c lunch is so late and then for most days the rest is all gone each day. I pack his lunch in a lunch box that has star wars on it. If he forgets it at school then I pack his lunch in a gallon ziplock bag and put that in a grocery sack. Hope this helps! Best of luck packing good lunches!!

Hi C.,

I feel your pain! (: I struggle with the same thing with my kids. I bought a Thermos brand small thermos at Target. I have bought the cheaper containers before, like the crayola ones, but they don't seem to work near as well as the actual Thermos brand. It's not really a thermos, but more of an insulated container to hold hot foods. It's perfect size for lunchkits, and it usually comes with child like designs on them. My son's is Hulk and my daughter's is Hannah Montana. Anyway, I fill it up with extremely hot water and let it sit for about 5-10 minutes. Then I will heat up spaghettios, soup, raviolis or sometimes even a leftover casserole from the night before. You have to heat it up to be very hot though so it will stay warm until they go to lunch. My kids love it. It beats an old boring sandwich everyday. This usually fills them up and then I put some chips/pretzels/crackers, fruit snacks or fruit, graham crackers, string cheese and something sweet. The joke at my kids lunch table is how much I pack them. I just want them to have plenty. If they don't eat everything it comes back home. That way they always have enough to fill them up. I hope that helps.

When my kids complained they were tired of sandwiches, I pulled out the flour tortillas. A couple slices of lunch meat, a slice of cheese, roll it and wrap it in plastic. Anything you can put on bread you can roll in a tortilla. And, they come in all kinds a flavors and healthy varieties. I've also come across a snack recipe where you spread peanut butter on a whole wheat tortilla, add some banana slices, drizzle with a little bit of honey and sprinkle with some chopped almonds. Yum! My daughter also loves it when I freeze a tube of Gogurt and toss it in her lunch.

I usually pack 4 things, here is a list of things I use: PB&J or PB & honey, ham or turkey sandwich, yogurt, applesauce (I buy the healthy harvest brand that comes in different flavors like strawberry, peach, etc), granola bars, nutrigrain bars, fruit cups, banana, strawberries (or other berries), apple slices, cheese stick, raisins, pudding, jello, sandwich crackers (the ones with PB or cheese in the middle), graham crackers, pretzels, very rarely chips, and sometimes homemade cookies (usually oatmeal raisin or PB so they're a little more healthy). I pack a juice box (either 100% juice or capri sun roarin waters) but I know they also have chocolate milk you can buy in the same type of containers. Good luck!

do your kids have access to a microwave? My kids do not at there school so they have to be able to eat it cold or whatever temp it ends up by the time the eat lunch...
But at my friends kids school the kids can microwave things so she often sends those single microwaveable soups,mac & cheese, pastas, etc.
My kids often eat school lunches but when they do want to pack I always have them help me... what do you want, how much can you eat, etc?
String cheese or cut up cubes of cheese is always a favorite and is pretty filling. Fresh veggies and dips if they will eat that, my girls love it my son no way will he eat a vegetable if I am not around to make him so why bother:) And ofcourse sandwiches, depending on what your kids will eat the more veggies and stuff you can put on them the better for them and the more filling. My daughter loved turkey,cheese,lettuce,tomatoe, cucumber (if we have it), etc. Think subway and pile it all on! Peanut butter is also very filling (my kids like it thick) but I know kids get tired of it. Hard boiled eggs (poor teacher if it makes your kids gassy but) its good for them, fun,easy and filling. Yogart some kind of chips or crackers. I don't give desert often unless it is fresh fruit but if you don't mind a mini candy bar can be filling. Also if they would drink school milk instead of any kind of juice box or something that helps fill them up too... and its healthy. Obviously I don't pack all this every time but those are the staples and I basically let the kids pick what and how much. If they are bringing home half a baggie or chips or carrots (I do ask that they bring home what they don't eat except yogart, dips, etc.) then I know they are asking for more than they can eat. I try to pack everything in ziplock bags, even the ranch dressing for carrots. That way if they forget their lunch box for a week or 2 (my son is good for that) I don't have to be afraid of what I will find in there. I know it is not great for the environment but... neither is throwing away moldy tupperwear because you are too scared to open it up:) My husband is good for this too... if never seems to make it back into the house until it is totally gross!
Hope this helps:)

C.,

I pack my daughter z-bars by Clif. You can get them at Target and Wal-Mart. They are organic and have fiber. She loves the peanut butter bars.
I also bought her a short thermos that has a fork/spoon in the lid. (wal-mart) This has helped me pack her leftovers. If you add hot food to the thermos, it stays hot until lunch. I send her soup, raviolis, taco casserole, spaghetti, etc. The addition of the thermos has helped me ad variety to her lunch.
I also bought containers from Pottery Barn. They are small (squares and rectangles). They wash and tote well.
Good luck with healthy lunches.
Take care,
Danabeth

I get the micorwave mac n cheese and make it then add tuna or chicken to it, trail miz either bought or home made will fill him up i also get rhe little raviolis and add my own sauce and frozen meatballs I can zap in the am or just make enough extra at dinner that he can take leftovers
of course the old stand bys yougurt pretzels nuts fruit cups
hth

Breads for sandwhiches: hoagie rolls, pita, bagels, english muffins, tortillas, croissants, hamburger buns

Spreads for sandwhiches instead of mayo: cream cheese - regular and flavored, pimento cheese, veggie spreads like Alouette, herb spreads, hummus

Instead of chips: Whole fruits, dried fruit, pita chips, fruit chips, rice cakes, SoyJoy bars (lots of flavors)

Walmart has a great section of adult lunch containers. I have one where you can freeze the top and then snap it on the container to keep everything fresh and cool.

When mine were that age I packed so much that sometimes they would bring some home. There multi-layered sandwiches for the boys, Poorboys, Large roll or bun with 3-4 kinds of meat,several kinds of cheese, tomatoe, lettus, onion, and a dressing, most have a kind of olive dressing I because of the mess used just mustard and moyo. Small version for smaller children. Cookies,fruit,drinks,chips, cheese cubes vegetable's celery,carrots that can be used with a dip made from cottage cheese and bagged dressing mix.

I always included fruit- oranges, grapes, apple slices, pineapple chunks, small chunks of catalope or watermelon(favorite), or fruit cups. Salads were popular with my kids- greens(small pieces) in a bowl with lid, other toppings in seperate bags to prevent sogginess, remember the fork. Chicken Caesar Salad was a favorite with my kids, and so easy to prepare. If the sandwich had vegetables, I would bag them seperately to prevent sogginess. For variety, I would use cookie cutters on the sandwiches. I also included something crunchy- crackers, pretzels, popcorn, nuts. My youngest son did not have access to a microwave so his request for leftovers was a challenge, but I used a small thermos which I filled with hot water while warming the leftovers, then it was already warm when the food was put in it, and it was always still warm at his lunch time. My greatest challenge was finding a thermos big enough for his favorite soup-- I ended up sending it in 2 of the small thermoses with crackers, fruit, yogurt, caesar salad, spoon and fork.

I give my kids lots of choices. They have their standard entrees (chicken nuggests, pizza, sandwhiches, pasta) and then they have to have a fruit, dairy of some sort (usually cheese or yogurt) a morning snack (crackers or a piece of fruit, yogurt). Sometimes I let them have chips as a treat or a pudding cup. If they tell me they need more food, then I add more to the entree. 6 nuggets insead of 4 that kind of thing.

My eldest (12) likes to pack microwavable soup (they have a micro they can use) and that works well for him. The 2 younger ones do not have access to it.

Protein will fill him up best. Maybe add more meat to his sandwiches?

My five year old will not eat sandwiches, I don't get it. But I have found two alternatives that make him happy. Smart Ones (red box) frozen dinners have come out with mini pepperoni pizzas. There are 4 to a pack and 2 packs come in the box. It is the perfect amount and they microwave in 1 1/2 minutes. The fit perfectly into a plastic sandwich box. They taste great and are healthy. I eat them for lunch too! He also likes to take turkey corn dogs which I just wrap in foil after I heat. Good Luck!

Wishing you all the best.

You are not alone in feeling "this should be a no-brainer"! I hope you get some more ideas.

One thing I have turned to is double-decker peanut butter sandwiches. What I mean is making the sandwich with three slices of bread instead of two. Bread is one of the types of foods that can be more filling. My youngest likes to call these a "super-duper" sandwich! lol

I know what you mean. I have had this problem too.
What I sent this morning for my son was 2 sanwiches with jam and chicken (it tastes good), a piece of Chicken cooked and cut into managable sized pieces, 1 bag of Fritolay Chips, 1 banana, I organic snack bar, 1 small juice box. 4 wafer chocoloate coated cookies. This sounds like a lot, but he eats nearly all of it. He is 6years old and was looking thin, so I increased his food intake. He has gained 7 pounds in the last 3 months and looks great.
There are some foods that seem like they may not be so healthy but are not too bad. Friti-Lay chips are only potato and oil and are also gluten and dairy free.
The main lunch was the 2 sandwiches, chicken pieces and about a quarted of a small bag of the chips,banana,and the juice box. His snack is the chololate cookies, organic snack bar,and a small bag of Frito-Lay chips.

I don't send the same thing everyday. I try to put one of each food group and make sure he has an item that will take longer to eat so that it helps to fill him up. He needs to have a yummy component too, so it seems great to eat his lunch. Just have some things ready to put in as well. Cupcakes are great. THey contain eggs so have protein. Don't put in things that have too much sugar for lunch as he will get sleepy after lunch. Bacon sandwiches are nice.
One thing that helps a lot is to give him a high calorie breaksfast. I give him toast and eggs or bacon, something that is going to last a long while. When I make scrambled eggs I often add cinamon sugar to make it taste more like a breakfast food. It does not have much sugar in it, and it tastes good. Use butter instead of margerine as it tastes better and is not as bad for you.
It means that I have to cook often in the morning but it has helped a lot. You could even prepare waffles the night before and just heat them in the oven, not microwave (I hate them, they damage the food). There is a great brand of chiken tenders and nuggetts that we buy and they are easy to prepare, just put them in the over at 350 for about 20 minutes. They are not full of filling just chicken and crumbs on the outside. The brand is BELL & EVANS.
Let me know if you want to hear more of my ideas. I am constantly thinking up things to send for school lunches as my son is on a special diet and can't eat what the others have.
Good luck.

Sandwiches on hoagie rolls--lots of meat & cheese--still fill up my 21 year old when he comes home from work for lunch.

My son is one who doesn't like sandwiches, so I have to be really creative. I always put an ice pack in, and gave up trying to keep things hot because it is almost 6 hours from when he gets on the bus to lunch time. I've bought several sets of cheap containers, and just use the small sizes. I save & wash plastic forks from eating out and I don't have to worry if he throws them away.
I usually send a juice box, or a reusable plastic box with water. He could buy milk, but standing in line to buy it takes time away from eating.
He likes cold noodles or spaghetti, and I'll add parmesan cheese, black olives, and chopped ham. Sometimes I'll send crackers and a can of tuna and he'll eat the whole thing. He likes cheese sticks or the yogurt with toppings. Canned green beans, corn, beets, or frozen peas and carrots. I found some tiny containers at the dollar store to put salad dressing in to go with carrot sticks, celery, raw broccoli, cauliflower, and cherry tomatoes. Fruit cup, sliced apples with cinnamon, or a small can of fruit salad. I usually include a ziploc bag of raisins, walnuts, pretzels, pita chips, cookies etc. in case he's still hungry. I don't mind adding a pre-packaged dessert now and then so he can compare lunches with his friends. (His lunches look so healthy the teachers don't stress if he eats dessert first)