On a typical week, how many days does your K-3rd grader eat PB&J for lunch at school?

[justlearning]

s/o poll for fun -- On a typical week, how many days does your K-3rd grader eat PB&J for lunch at school (either ordering it there or in a lunch that you pack)?

[MamaMolly]

Poll?
and my answer: Zero ;)

[JBaxter]

At least 4 sometimes 5. I can send another sandwich but it doesn't get eaten.

[egoldber]

My older DD does not actually like PB. She does eat soynut butter and she brings that usually once a week. This week it was twice, but that was a fluke. ;)

Younger DD likes soynut butter, but prefers PB. I try to alternate them so that she continues to eat both. So about every other week. There are some classrooms at her preschool/daycare that are nut free, but hers is not. The school is considering going nut free, but they are a kosher school and the kids already cannot bring in meat, so they are somewhat hesitant about banning yet another protein.

(FWIW, PB&J is on our public school lunch menu as an option every day.)

[wellyes]

Didn't vote because I dont' have a kid that age but truth be told, *I* have a PB&J once or twice a week :).

[KpbS]

DS1 and DS2 have some nut allergies and don't eat nuts. They do eat Sunbutter a couple of times a week.

[boolady]

DD's not yet in K, so I didn't vote, but she's still in preschool and she takes pb&j about once a week, maybe not as often in the winter when she takes more hot lunches.

[JMS]

I voted for the last option, "never, b/c .. nut free school" but that's not really true. Our school isn't peanut free but out of consideration for families with allergies, I decided that my kids could do without peanut butter during school hours.

[DebbieJ]

Well, the poll should really be how many days do I SEND a PB&J to school. Because the likelihood of it being EATEN is an entirely different matter. LOL!

[Katigre]

DS is pre-K but eats a lot of peanut butter - we're mostly vegetarian and nuts are our major source of protein during the day for all of us.

I just purchased almond butter for school lunches b/c it's a peanut-free building (the almond butter is twice as much $$ as peanut butter so otherwise I wouldn't buy it).

[Meatball Mommie]

I voted "2" but that's for my older son, who is going into 2nd grade. Some weeks he could eat it every day, but *I* prefer to vary what I send in for him. My other son, who is going into K, never eats PB sandwiches. He doesn't like the jelly! He will eat PB on cut apple slices or on crackers, but only at home.

[egoldber]

My other son, who is going into K, never eats PB sandwiches. He doesn't like the jelly!

Neither of my kids like jelly/jam. I am not crazy about it either. They eat their sandwiches with just the "butter" part.

[niccig]

I voted for the last option, "never, b/c .. nut free school" but that's not really true. Our school isn't peanut free but out of consideration for families with allergies, I decided that my kids could do without peanut butter during school hours.

:yeahthat: A boy in our playgroup has very severe peanut allergy, and having seen him having a reaction and ended up in ER, I'm not having DS's lunch do that to a child.

[AshleyAnn]

Didn't vote because I dont' have a kid that age but truth be told, *I* have a PB&J once or twice a week :).

:yeahthat:

If my workplace went nut free I'd starve to death.

[alien_host]

I voted for the last option, "never, b/c .. nut free school" but that's not really true. Our school isn't peanut free but out of consideration for families with allergies, I decided that my kids could do without peanut butter during school hours.

:yeahthat: A boy in our playgroup has very severe peanut allergy, and having seen him having a reaction and ended up in ER, I'm not having DS's lunch do that to a child.

:cheerleader1: :cheerleader1: :cheerleader1: :cheerleader1:

As a mom of a peanut allergic child, I just wanted to say "thanks", it's nice to see the consideration of others when it comes to food allergies...your posts made me :)..well not the child that went to the ER part, but you know what I mean.

My answer is "never" due to nut allergies....she is just starting K and I think I will send sunflower butter in the lunch rotation. I didn't send SFB in preschool b/c I figured the teachers would think it was PNB.

[KpbS]

I voted "2" but that's for my older son, who is going into 2nd grade. Some weeks he could eat it every day, but *I* prefer to vary what I send in for him. My other son, who is going into K, never eats PB sandwiches. He doesn't like the jelly! He will eat PB on cut apple slices or on crackers, but only at home.

Honey is a great alternative to jelly/jam :)

[giavila]

I voted "never or almost never", but it's more like 1 -2 per month. She's not crazy about it, but sometimes when I haven't done grocery shopping and that's all we have that what she gets!

[almostmom]

I voted 3, but it is soynut butter because his class was nut-free last year. He also rarely has jelly with it.

DD in preschool has it 3 times a week at least too. It's pretty much the only sandwich they will eat.

[rlu]

(FWIW, PB&J is on our public school lunch menu as an option every day.)

I'll have to check when we get the food calendar next week, but I think our public school doesn't offer PB&J at all. The "I forgot/parents forgot to pay for lunch" is a cold cheese sandwich.

OP, DS does not care much for PB except on celery and that's too messy to consider for school. Plus, we had a FA kid in K.

My sister and I lived on peanut butter sandwiches (or on salt crackers) throughout our school years.

[egoldber]

This isn't an "I forgot" item. It's a daily menu item that kids can choose to buy every single day if they like.

ETA: And of course, I don't think all districts are like this. :) But it is true in ours.

Here's the June menu: http://www.fcps.edu/fs/food/food_at_school/menus/ES-June10.pdf

[niccig]

DD in preschool has it 3 times a week at least too. It's pretty much the only sandwich they will eat.

I don't often send sandwiches to school, if I do it's just jelly or vegemite. I know vegemite is not an option for anyone else.

We do a lot of leftovers from dinner or I make things for his thermos. Pasta and cheese is a favourite or oatmeal - DS loves oatmeal for lunch. He gets milk or yogurt with the oatmeal. I'll also do chicken nuggets, quesadilla or leftover pizza or hotdog - anything that I can cut to fit in his thermos. A friend's DS has a thermos container that has a wider mouth than what we have, and I think I'll get that this year to make it a little easier to get things into it.

[elliput]

I don't know yet. DD's first day of all day school is tomorrow. :) PB&J is the optional choice for kids who don't want the hot lunch served in the cafeteria, so I am sure she will eat that a good part of the time.

[sarahsthreads]

I voted one, but that is only because DD1 really, really, really wants to buy lunch like everyone else instead of bringing, but rarely, if ever, wants any of the hot lunch options. So *maybe* once a week she'll buy a PB&J sandwich. If I send in a PB&J type of sandwich it's actually sunbutter because DD1 prefers the taste of sunbutter.

(And can I just say that I absolutely HATE the fact that the school serves Uncrustables as their PB&J option? My kid used to be happy to eat natural peanut butter (or, well, sunbutter) and HFCS-free jam with chunks of actual fruit in it on wheat bread, including crusts, and now she asks for "Smuckers PBJ" because "it's so much yummier than the ones you make, Mommy!" Grrr.)

She had a nut-allergic friend in her class last year (and they're in multi-age, so unless his parents opted to pull him out he'll be there this year too) and she's fully aware that if she brings/buys PB&J she can't sit at the same table as this classmate.

[groundhog74]

DS doesn't like PB at all. Weirdo! lol

[noodle]

DD is starting K this year. One of her favorite lunches is a peanut butter
and banana burrito (pb&b wrapped in a tortilla). Over the summer I've
been slowly transitioning her to sunbutter (we're not at 100% yet, but
I'm hopeful). I don't believe her class will be nut-free (I know the school
isn't), but we have friends with peanut allergies and I'll just be more
comfortable sending nut-free lunches.

[o_mom]

DS1 is usually 2-3 of the five days. DS2 doesn't care for it (but will eat it in a pinch). The school serves PB&J every day on the menu, but has a nut-free table. DS1 would eat it every day, but I like to send a variety. If it were banned, I would have no issues sending other things.

[Moneypenny]

DD would happily eat it every day (because she can make it herself and she's really into "cooking" right now) but I limit it to 1x per week. Each grade has a nut free classroom for snack purposes and the cafeteria has nut free tables for lunch.

[justlearning]

This isn't an "I forgot" item. It's a daily menu item that kids can choose to buy every single day if they like.

ETA: And of course, I don't think all districts are like this. :) But it is true in ours.

Here's the June menu: http://www.fcps.edu/fs/food/food_at_school/menus/ES-June10.pdf

It's interesting to hear that many of your districts serve peanut butter in the cafeteria. Our school district's food services doesn't serve any products with nuts--instead, they offer sunbutter and jelly sandwiches daily as one of their options.

[luckytwenty]

I wasn't really sure how to vote. It's "never" and it's because he buys lunch at the cafeteria. The school isn't peanut free, but they don't serve anything with nuts in the cafeteria. At the teacher's discretion, they separate kids with allergies from children who bring lunches with PB.

[AnnieW625]

My preschooler will eat PBJ probably three times a week. I am very open to other alternatives though for DD1 once she gets into school and might have to deal with a peanut free classroom. I'd do almond butter for her then and limit it to once or twice a week since it is way more than regular peanut butter. DD1 isn't big on meat either, but loves nuts so they are big part of her diet.

[pinkmomagain]

Only one of my kids likes pb...the younger two have a very strong aversion to it.

[niccig]

:yeahthat:

If my workplace went nut free I'd starve to death.



Seriously Ashely?? Nuts are the ONLY think you eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner every day?? You choose to eat PB&J as you like it. There's a lot of other food out there that you could eat if your work did restrict nuts, so you wouldn't starve.

[smilequeen]

Never. He likes PB but he'd rather have a turkey and cheese sandwich or a bowl of soup.

We do also have a nutfree school, so I will send sunbutter if the occasion comes where he might like a PBJ. He can't tell the difference and doesn't care.

My younger son will probably get sunbutter and jelly sandwiches more often. He LOVES them. He doesn't bring food to school yet though.

[g-mama]

Neither of my elementary school-aged boys care all that much for PB, but my oldest used to take it once in awhile in his lunch. In second grade, his best friend was allergic to PB so my ds flat-out refused to bring it to school because they always sat next to each other at lunch and he didn't want his buddy to "get sick."

[StantonHyde]

At summer camp, he brings a nutella sandwhich 3x a week and has pizza lunch the other 2. Sometimes pb&j. It is the one thing I can count on for him to eat. My brother ate nothing but pb&j, lucky charms, and ice cream for years. He turned out just fine!

[Twoboos]

DD1 took it to school every.single.day last year in K. :bag She loves it and would eat it breakfast/lunch/dinner/snacks if I let her.

But y'know what? if there had been a severe FA kid in her class, it wouldn't have been a problem. As someone else said in the thread about the insensitive mom who commented on her DD not being able to take PB, it would have forced us into her taking something else. Which would have been GREAT!!!

I actually already checked w/her next school, they do not have a ban on PB. (Have nut-free table in the cafeteria.) I wanted to start as early as possible with getting her onto something else if I had to!

[GaPeach_in_Ca]

I put 5 days a week, but that's not accurate.

He also like nutella & fruit sandwiches, but I counted that since nutella is a hazelnut product, and hazelnuts are often an allergen.

I guess I'm one of the crap parents. :) I have tried a variety of food and it just doesn't get eaten (including food in the thermos). I'd rather he eat something in the middle of a long day than be extremely cranky when I pick him up due to hunger.

If we had a nut free school, I'd find something else to send. We don't have a nut free school and I appreciate it. Of course, I would not complain if it was necessary to be nut free.

[american_mama]

My older DD, who is picky, eats PBJ 2-3 times a week, roughly. It would be a frustration for me to send her with a peanut-free lunch because of her pickiness, although she will eat ham and sometimes other luncheon meat, so that's what I'd do instead.

DD2 has been at several peanut-free preschools, which have made her more flexible, plus she is less picky in general. She will happily eat tuna, luncheon meat, or a couple other options that I am blanking on.

[baymom]

Both mine have almond butter and honey sandwiches almost daily. They call them peanut butter and honey sandwiches, though. So, I voted zero times.

[kdeunc]

DS 2 is going through an extremely picky phase. He literally eats pb&J every day. Either for breakfast, lunch or dinner, sometimes 2 out of 3. :bag If he has a nut free classroom we will find something else to send, whether it is eaten will be a different story. Otherwise it will be pb&j each day.

[maiaann]

During the school year they're not allowed PB due to nut allergies at the school and DD "buys her lunch" (eats what the school provides.)

During the summer she eats PB&J several times a week. It's what she always requests when we have a "choose what you want" night. It's one of her favorites.

S/O... My DH's best friend can't stand PB&J as an adult. Too many years of packed sandwiches during his childhood and he developed an aversion. I find that amusing!

[essnce629]

Twice a week.

DS1 was peanut-free for about a year and now prefers the taste of soynut butter so that's what he gets. He'd probably like to eat soynut butter and jelly sandwiches every day, but I want him to have a variety of foods and don't think it's a good idea to eat the same thing every single day. So I only give it to him twice a week. The other days he eats sardines with crackers, tuna with crackers, or pita bread with cream cheese or hummus. He doesn't really like meat sanwiches.

[ilfaith]

Neither of my two older boys particularly like PB&J. Their preschool was/is nut-free, so they never had it at school when they were younger. They're not all that crazy about Sunbutter either, and frankly they really don't care for cream cheese and jelly. Maybe it's the jelly they don't like.

[ncat]

I voted never because of school restrictions. In reality DD's school has none, but her daycare/afterschool program does. I've been trained "no nuts" since she started daycare at 2, and I'm just not comfortable packing her a lunch for school that is not OK for daycare as her lunchbox and leftovers, etc. travel with her.

As I posted in the other thread, I was traumatized by a food allergy related death in my high school. I would never want to be the cause of a tragedy like that!

[bubbaray]

I don't know how to vote. Neither girl eats PB because they are allergic to peanuts, BUT both their daycare rooms and DD#1's school (along with the entire school district) is peanut and nut free. So, regardless of their FA status, they would never eat PB anyway. The in-home daycare they used to attend was also 100% nut-free as well.

Nut free places are very common here. Its not a huge deal to cope with the rules. I will say, however, that it is far far easier to find nut-free snack items in Canada than it is in the US, though. We struggle more when we travel in the US and often take an entire suitcase of snack/quick foods that are "safe".

[Clarity]

You're missing the obligatory "other". :)
DD2 does have a nut allergy and their school is now nut free but dd1 has no allergies. As a subsitute, my dd's get sunbutter and jelly sandwiches at school but I send them less than once a week. Maybe 1 every two weeks?

[mrshalco]

I didn't get to answer in the poll because my answer would be: None due to me not wanting to worry about triggering any allergy. His class last year asked for snacks to be nut-free due to allergies but he was allowed to bring PB to the Cafeteria and sit at the peanut table. I figured it was easier to just say "NO PB/NUTS" to him rather than worry about whether he washed his hands well enough (or at all) after lunch!

[octmom]

Never, though he didn't have any nut restrictions in K last year. We got used to no nuts when he was in preschool. The whole school (preschool- 5th grade) is nut-free. DS eats sun butter and likes it. He isn't interested in PB, though I sometimes wish he was because it is cheaper.