Anyone else amazed at the lunch threads?!

[elektra]

My kids aren't in school yet so I don't have any idea about what the norm is for school food but I am amazed and feeling way under prepared for when DD starts needing a packed lunch!
My daily school lunch prepared by my mom usually consisted of a single piece of bread folded in half over some peanut butter. And an apple was often thrown in for good measure. Twinkies or chips were also staples. No crusts cut off or anything like that.
My mom did work full time and was a horrible cook but I am feeling like I was seriously deprived now!
I am going to really need to step up to the plate in a few years!

[bubbaray]

I have been packing my girls lunch for daycare every.single.day since they started daycare at 12m old. Its not that big a deal, you get used to it after a while. I try to get as much prepared the night before as possible, but I refuse to make sandwhiches ahead of time, so I do those in the morning.

[gatorsmom]

I"m not sweating it. Gator had 2 full days last year so ate 2x per week. I will say I HATED making his lunch for him (had to get up early to do it, couldn't always find his lunch box, his thermos wasn't always empty, etc). But this year I'll get him to help. He's pretty picky so I doubt he'll do school lunch. He usually just asks for a ham and cheese or pbj sandwich, yogurt and some fruit. Sometimes I throw other little things in for him but he usually just sticks to the same old. Maybe this year he'll venture out and ask for other things or try school lunch. Hard to tell at this age.

[Toba]

We have snacks to do this year (half day sessions) and I'm more worried about his teacher thinking we're stuck in a rut. My son is SO his mother's child and is very much a creature of habit. And he won't eat fruit or good veggies (NOT his mother's child there) unless we stand over him and force him (seriously, his pedi was just like, look, lady, he's way above his height range, he's perfect for his weight, and if he won't eat, then he won't eat ... he's not dying ... I have bemoaned to his pedi over and over and he just keeps telling me not to worry about it over and over, so I give up).

So I'm more worried about her thinking I'm a slacker because he'll demand to have an Oreo Cakester or something every. single. day. for 2 months straight. LOL

[gatorsmom]

We have snacks to do this year (half day sessions) and I'm more worried about his teacher thinking we're stuck in a rut. My son is SO his mother's child and is very much a creature of habit. And he won't eat fruit or good veggies (NOT his mother's child there) unless we stand over him and force him (seriously, his pedi was just like, look, lady, he's way above his height range, he's perfect for his weight, and if he won't eat, then he won't eat ... he's not dying ... I have bemoaned to his pedi over and over and he just keeps telling me not to worry about it over and over, so I give up).

So I'm more worried about her thinking I'm a slacker because he'll demand to have an Oreo Cakester or something every. single. day. for 2 months straight. LOL

Well, if his teacher is anything like the teacher that fed her student a cold pack, an Oreo Cakester will be nutrition of the highest order! LOL. Ok, sorry, that is not funny.

[rlu]

I haven't been reading the other threads. DS is also a creature of habit like PP's son. In Pre-K and today for K we sent some pieces of salami, a string cheese (MIL gave us some baby bel for the first week), baggie of baby carrots, gogurt, some pretzels, and for snack DH snuck in an oreo.

[Toba]

Well, if his teacher is anything like the teacher that fed her student a cold pack, an Oreo Cakester will be nutrition of the highest order! LOL. Ok, sorry, that is not funny.

Lisa, I have read that thread several times and I am just speechless, hence why I haven't commented on it. I just can't imagine seeing goo and thinking that was food. But I don't want to hijack and start talking about the same topic in another thread, so I'll stop there. Cakesters for everybody!! :)

Personally, give me a bag of grapes or some strawberries or even celery and I'm a happy girl. My son just doesn't know what he's missing. If there's a piece of cake sitting next to some melon in the fridge, I will ALWAYS go for the melon and not out of a conscious healthy choice, just because that's what I'd rather have.

[AngelaS]

I hate packing lunches. We homeschool, so thankfully I don't have to.

My girls went to a daycamp this summer and I had to pack lunches every day. Oy. Definitely not my favorite thing at all! LOL

[egoldber]

I have been packing my girls lunch for daycare every.single.day since they started daycare at 12m old. Its not that big a deal, you get used to it after a while.

:yeahthat:

I had to pack lunch for preschool for Sarah since she was 2. When she started elementary school, she hated everything except the pizza on Fridays. And once I saw the lunches I didn't blame her. Even foods she likes, like pasta, looks gross. Then Amy started preschool and was in 5 days a week last year while I job hunted, and I was making 2 lunches every day but Friday.

You just get into a routine. I used to make them in the mornings, but now that I am full time WOH, I do most of the prep the night before.

[maestramommy]

Dora went to 2 weeks of summer camp with lunchtime so I got a small taste of packing her lunch. By day 7 I was seriously having trouble figuring out what to pack. But turns out she was so busy talking to her new friends she hardly ate her lunch. They also had snack time, so on top of her breakfast she just wasn't that hungry. So after a while I didn't bother sending how sandwiches and snack and fruit.

I have to get better at it though, cause the school lunch is just crap.

[egoldber]

I think the key is to build a repertoire of lunches. I have about 10 things that I pack in lunches and rotate them. I'm not trying to be creative every day. I admire the people on those vegan bento lunchbox type blogs, but a) my kids won't eat that stuff and b) I don't have the time or c) the desire. :ROTFLMAO:

ETA: Also, all of Amy's lunches have to be vegetarian so that makes things a bit more challenging.

[boolady]

I have been packing for DD for over 2.5 years now too, and as others noted, it's part of the routine. She loves leftovers, so if you've got a Funtainer or your daycare or preschool will heat, as ours does, it's a great thing. DD's pretty open in terms of what she eats, but we have definite items that get rotated/included frequently.

[hellokitty]

I like packing bento style lunches, but my kids aren't in full day school yet. With that said, you can always be like my mom and basically after 2nd grade, she made me pack my own lunch. It was a drag, b/c it was the same thing everyday, b/c she would just buy the same thing all of the time for me to pack. By high school, I was just buying stuff at school for lunch.

[Andi98989]

My daily school lunch prepared by my mom usually consisted of a single piece of bread folded in half over some peanut butter. And an apple was often thrown in for good measure. Twinkies or chips were also staples. No crusts cut off or anything like that.
My mom did work full time and was a horrible cook but I am feeling like I was seriously deprived now!
I am going to really need to step up to the plate in a few years!

My lunches were the same way! The lunches I see people talk about here seem so "fancy" compared to what I remember having as a kid. I pack a lunch for myself and DH every day, and it's pretty basic - sandwich, apple, 100 cal snack pack of some sort. That's it. I'm not worried about eventually getting into the routine of packing a lunch for DS, but it seems like I may have to step up the creativity level!

[Meatball Mommie]

Well, I definitely lack the creativity gene when it comes to lunches. During the school yr I pack 4 lunches/day (2 kids plus DH and myself) and we all pretty much get the same thing every day:
-Sandwich (I buy salami or pepperoni for the kids and ham or turkey for us)
-apple or pear or maybe grapes
-snackie kind of thing (crackers, pretzels, pirate booty)
-cheese (either string cheese or baby bell type) - kids only
-dessert (i.e. cookie, pudding or fruit leather)
-drink

I get an extra fruit instead of carb snack and DH gets a granola bar and yogurt since he doesn't eat b'fast at home and eats it as soon as I bring it to work at 8 (we work together).

*Sometimes* the boys get spaghetios (Annie's brand), mac and cheese, or chick nuggets warm in a thermos, but usually only in the winter or because I've run out of bread. They might also have a nutella or pbj sandwich or on crackers, but that's rare. I might take leftovers on occasion myself, but that's more from laziness/cleaning out the fridge than for variety ;)

Honestly, the kids don't really care and eat everything that I give them (mostly). They have a rule at their school at lunch that it's "protein first", so sandwiches/yogurts must get eaten before a teacher will open a dessert-type thing, but it's a small school and the kids are all 3-6 yrs of age in their lunch room.

eta: I wouldn't stress too much over it. Honestly, after a couple of months of making lunches, a routine lunch makes it soooo much easier (in terms of prep and grocery shopping).

[niccig]

My mother never packed our school lunches. We didn't have a cafeteria for a sit down lunch, but a canteen where you bought your food then sat out on the playground to eat. You could get sandwiches, meat pies, fruit, chips. In elementary school, the lady running the canteen would only have healthy food, so no junkfood. I lived in a farming area, and most kids had packed lunches with homemade muffins etc.

I'm going to be packing for DS 4 days a week this year. The PTO has a lunch fundraiser every Friday, so we'll do that. The school also stresses healthy food, nothing like Lunchables - so I'll make my own version.

Like the OP, I'm worried about having to pack lunch every day, so I've been reading through lunch threads. I've gotten some containers, and I'm making a list of possible lunch items, so I can look at the list rather than try to think of something every night. I do hope I get into some sort of routine like PPs have said. I think the problem for me will be having what I need in the house - I hate grocery shopping and will put it off for as long as I can.

[hillview]

Agree with Beth -- come up with a list of options. I actually did this last year and it helped a ton. You have a range of veggies, range of fruits, range of mains (sandwich, pasta, soup etc) and then a range of snacks/carbs.
HTH
/hillary

[niccig]

I admire the people on those vegan bento lunchbox type blogs, but a) my kids won't eat that stuff and b) I don't have the time or c) the desire. :ROTFLMAO:


We have a bento box and I've packed it a few times. It only took me 10 mins - I put a sandwich in one container, cut up some melon in the other, put pieces of ham in a small container, cut up some carrot sticks for the 4th container. Threw in a cheese stick and water in a bottle. I know it only took me 10 mins, as I was running late to meet friends and only had that much time to get it done.

I will definitely not have the creative shapes etc that those blogs have, but I've been surprised at how quick it was to do. I love obento, and I hope it'll be more fun for me to make and for DS to eat - I do plan to use a lot of leftovers though.

[egoldber]

I will definitely not have the creative shapes etc that those blogs have, but I've been surprised at how quick it was to do. I love obento, and I hope it'll be more fun for me to make and for DS to eat - I do plan to use a lot of leftovers though.

LOL! The shapes and the food "art" is what I meant. :)

Also, the lunch boxes get banged around a bit and I don't think it would last until lunch time anyway. They drop off their boxes in a big bin on the way out the door to recess and pick them back up on their way back in and go directly to the cafeteria. The bin gets moved around and shuffled until lunch time.

I do lots of little containers of food, so it's bento-esque. ;)

My kids are not that into sandwiches. Plus Amy can't have meat at all and Sarah does not really like meat that much.

Our repertoire is....

Main dish
pita&hummos
black beans & rice
peanut butter (for Amy) or soynut butter (for Sarah) sandwich
leftover pasta in a thermos
cheese slice & whole grain cracker
leftover pizza (usually just put in in cold and they both like it fine)
ham roll-ups (for Sarah)
yogurt

Sides
Apple slices
Applesauce cups
Banana
Carrots
Peas
Grapes
Berries
Snappea crisps

I usually put a cheese stick in there too on days when they don't have cheese slices as the "main" entree.

I also pack milk for both girls to make sure they get some protein that way too.

[niccig]

LOL! The shapes and the food "art" is what I meant. :)

Also, the lunch boxes get banged around a bit and I don't think it would last until lunch time anyway. They drop off their boxes in a big bin on the way out the door to recess and pick them back up on their way back in and go directly to the cafeteria. The bin gets moved around and shuffled until lunch time.

I do lots of little containers of food, so it's bento-esque. ;)

My kids are not that into sandwiches. Plus Amy can't have meat at all and Sarah does not really like meat that much.

Our repertoire is....

Main dish
pita&hummos
black beans & rice
peanut butter (for Amy) or soynut butter (for Sarah) sandwich
leftover pasta in a thermos
cheese slice & whole grain cracker
leftover pizza (usually just put in in cold and they both like it fine)
ham roll-ups (for Sarah)
yogurt

Sides
Apple slices
Applesauce cups
Banana
Carrots
Peas
Grapes
Berries
Snappea crisps

I usually put a cheese stick in there too on days when they don't have cheese slices as the "main" entree.

I also pack milk for both girls to make sure they get some protein that way too.

Thank you for the list. This is what I need, to make packing lunches go smoothly.

I agree with the obento art - that is too much work/creativity for me. I lived in Japan and my host mother was surprised that I liked obento as she didn't make the shapes etc. What I liked was the variety, and the small portions.

Do you freeze the milk container? DS likes milk to be very cold, so I think I'll need to freeze it the night before...

[deannanb]

We use a Laptop Lunchbox for lunch - which I find making lunch very easy... a little bit of this and a little bit of that....

check out this bento box - I want one of these - be sure to watch the video! www.planetbox.com

[niccig]

We use a Laptop Lunchbox for lunch - which I find making lunch very easy... a little bit of this and a little bit of that....

check out this bento box - I want one of these - be sure to watch the video! www.planetbox.com (http://www.planetbox.com)

Now that is cool. We already have the Laptop Lunchbox, and I'm probably going to get a 2nd for me when I go back to work, so we can mix/match.

[brittone2]

I don't have to pack as DS is HSing, but I think part of it w/ the somewhat crazy lunch suggestions (i've suggested veganlunchbox, etc. before for some inspiration, although I would never take it to that level in a million years if I had to pack) came out of the original posters in several instances specifying their kids don't like or won't eat sandwiches. So that brings up blogs, etc. to brainstorm non-sandwich suggestions. I don't think anyone would imply there's something wrong w/ packing a sandwich if that works for you and your DC, kwim? The threads I'm thinking of recently involved moms asking for sandwich alternatives, ways to pack hot lunch, etc. which brings up some of the more unusual suggestions.

[cdlamis]

We use a Laptop Lunchbox for lunch - which I find making lunch very easy... a little bit of this and a little bit of that....

check out this bento box - I want one of these - be sure to watch the video! www.planetbox.com (http://www.planetbox.com)

I LOVE that lunchbox!! That is awesome. Rather $$ but worth it.

[mommysammi]

I went all out when I first started packing lunches. I read all kinds of ricipe books, read all the lunch threads, bought the perfect lunch box, etc. Now, it's just pb and j most of the time with juice, a fruit and whatever is left in the pantry that serves as a snack. The other kids eat the same lunch almost every day. DS didn't care much about variety or the fancy lunches. It does get easier. No need to stress or feel guilty if your lunch isn't the one in the book.

[elektra]

I went all out when I first started packing lunches. I read all kinds of ricipe books, read all the lunch threads, bought the perfect lunch box, etc. Now, it's just pb and j most of the time with juice, a fruit and whatever is left in the pantry that serves as a snack. The other kids eat the same lunch almost every day. DS didn't care much about variety or the fancy lunches. It does get easier. No need to stress or feel guilty if your lunch isn't the one in the book.

This is what I can totally see myself doing too- trying hard at first (the lunch threads are all about the start of school afterall) and then dialing it back to more boring stuff later. And yes I "stress and feel guilty" about enough stuff already! LOL

BTW- I live directly across the street from an elementary school and they had their open house tonight. I was so excited for the kids there showing up with their parents and it made me think of all the BBB kids starting school too. Here's to a great school year filled with yummy lunches!!!!

[kijip]

All of T's lunches can been distilled down to:

Starch/Carbs- bread, crackers, pasta or tortilla
Cheese and/or meat and/or other protein- often in the starch in sandwich form
Fruit- whatever is on hand
Milk or possibly juice
Sometimes a vegetable- usually carrots
Sometimes a bar (bought at the store) or homemade baked item

It's definitely a smack it together affair of whatever the hell we have on hand and does not feel all that different from day to day even if it is not the exact same thing each day.