I remember the tears rolling down my face as I packed my children’s lunches for the 1st day of school. No, I think it was more like sobbing now that I think of it. Don’t worry, you too will survive.
Packing a lunch that your child will love is easy, once you get it down to what they love and what to have in the refrigerator. We’ve also put together some A+ lunch ideas for this back to school season.
Get cool gear. Let your child take part in choosing a re-usable lunch bag or sac and buy them cool gear that they’ll want to use. We love the “new again” trend of packing school lunches in reusable containers. It gives even pre-schoolers a chance to help save our planet. The fun part is, most lunch containers are so eco-chic today!
Funky food storage. It can be interesting, but it needs to keep food fresh, cool, hot or whatever temp the food you pack should be.
The Food.
Make lunches with foods you know they love or familiar with. If you are introducing something new, discuss it with your child to avoid them not eating the lunch you packed.
Add color. Cut fruits and veggies add color to lunches and are healthy.
Shapes make food more interesting. Try heart or dyno sandwich cutters, but large cookie cutters you might already have at home will also make lunch interesting.
Go with texture. Interesting grain breads, challah and pita bread shake things up a bit and are healthy variations.
Let’s talk leftovers. Just about anything can be made into a sandwich or put into pita bread. They also bring some variety to ‘sammy’s’.
Drinks
Send healthy drinks. Milk or 100% fruit juice are the best. Sugary drinks and the calories they bring should be avoided.
Something Special
Kids love notes, stickers, pictures or something special that says you are thinking about them. I sent one every day and my kids still remember them.
Think outside the lunchbox!
Whatever you dream up for lunch, pack lunches that your child will eat over what you think looks good to others. What they eat for lunch keeps them fueled for the afternoon and impacts their learning and behavior. Lunch should include protein, calcium, grains, vegetables and fruit. So…Think outside the lunch box. Be interesting, creative and surprise them.
Real lunches for real pre-schoolers:
Peanut Butter + Banana Sushi
By Deborah Shearer
Ingredients:
1-2 Tbl. Peanut Butter
1 Whole Bananna
2 flour tortillas
Directions:
Spread your favorite smooth peanut butter evenly over the tortillas. Lay ½ of the whole banana in the middle of each. Carefully roll up the tortilla tightly around the banana, forming a ‘roll’. Place seam side down and slice into 1” pieces with a sharp paring knife. These are great made the night before and packed for the next day’s school lunch.
Optional: Drizzle with honey, top with raisins and sprinkle with cinnamon for lunches at home or a family snack.
Stickwich
Ingredients
bread
cheese
lunch meat
grape tomatoes
lettuce
pickles
olive
Instructions
Cut up cubes of bread, cheese, and lunch meat (we ordered 1/2-inch-thick slices of ham and turkey at the deli counter).
Slide the cubes onto a skewer with other foods your child likes, such as a grape tomato, a piece of lettuce, a pickle, or an olive.
Include a side of mayo or mustard for dipping.
Hot Dog Mummies
Bottom of Form
Hot Dog Mummies
Ingredients
1 11-ounce can of refrigerator breadsticks
1 12-pack of hot dogs
Yellow mustard
Instructions
For each mummy, separate one breadstick from the roll and use kitchen shears or a knife to slice it in half lengthwise to create two thinner strips.
Wrap one strip at a time snugly around the hot dog. Depending on the size of the hot dog, you may not need all of both strips. Leave about 1/2 inch of hot dog exposed for the face area and continue wrapping the top of the hot dog.
Bake the mummies on a cookie sheet at 350º for 15 to 18 minutes or until the breadstick wrapping is golden brown.
Remove the mummies from the oven and cool them for 5 minutes. Add yellow mustard eyes just before serving. Makes 12 mummies.
Let Kids Help
One of the top picks we found!
 When her son Jacob started first grade, FAMILYFUN reader Dee Martin of Cleveland had to pack three lunches--one for Jacob; one for her older son, Kyle; and one for herself--so she established a new lunch system.
She rounded up three plastic baskets and filled one with fruits, another with vegetables, and a third with snacks and desserts. Dee lets the boys choose one item from each basket for their lunch bags. Then she adds a sandwich.
So far, the system is earning rave reviews. The kids like it because they're in charge.
Dee isn't ready to let her kids choose all the food, though. "We'd have ketchup sandwiches if I let that go on," she says.
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