When September arrives, I will breathe a sigh of relief. For the first time, Jack will be purchasing lunch at the school cafeteria, as Ben has done for some years now. What’s that you say? You wonder why this sea change is such a big deal to me? Let me explain. Unpacking a used lunchbox and putting together the next day’s lunch is usually the last thing I do before I go to bed. And let me tell you, I can think of many, many things I’d rather do at that time. Can’t you?
So happy am I at this turn in my fortune that I thought I’d share with you some of the do’s and don’t’s that I’ve formulated in four years of packing a lunch five days a week:
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1. DON’T bother putting peanut butter in a sandwich. If not immediately, then soon enough, there will be a child in your son’s or daughter’s class who’s (probably violently) allergic to peanuts. There’s no point in getting your kid used to a food that will inevitably have to be withdrawn.
2. DO try hummus in a sandwich as an alternative to peanut butter. Jack has been (happily) eating hummus sandwiches for quite a while now. Bonus? Hummus is loaded with protein. Of course, we buy the plainest hummus possible for him, but hey, it’s still hummus. (Our supermarket carries a value “tub” of the stuff. Or you can make your own, if you’re so inclined.)
3. DON’T pack more than four or five items. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve helped out with lunch at Jack’s school only to see kids pull out veritable suitcases of food. That much choice is overwhelming to a child. Much of the food will get tossed in the garbage can. We send one “main” item, two “sides,” and a dessert. (Along with a drink, needless to say.)
4. And speaking of dessert? DON’T send cookies every day. How about a granola bar? Or fruit leather? Or berries with yogurt dip?
5. DO respect the power of dip. I pack baby carrots, and they get eaten! Because I also include a small container of ranch dressing to go with them.
6. DO mix it up now and then. Once a month or so, I try to pack a meal that’s unexpected and fun. Today Jack went off to school with waffles and syrup. Yep, breakfast for lunch! Why not?
7. DON’T bother sending milk to drink. Milk just doesn’t do well in packed lunches, even if your child’s lunchbox is insulated and you’ve included an ice pack. Very early on, Jack got used to drinking water (or, more rarely, juice) at lunch. He gets his dairy intake in other forms – cheese sticks, or yogurt, both of which travel far better than milk does.
Fellow veterans, care to add your bagged lunch tips to this list?
Photo graciously provided by Jeff Kubina, through a Creative Commons license, some rights reserved
7 responses so far ↓
InTheFastLane // May 9, 2008 at 3:54 am
This is one of the reasons I can’t wait until June 6th…my line up in the evening of lunches has gotten very tedious. Sometimes, I don’t put in sandwiches at all, just crackers and something to put on the crackers (cheese, cream cheese, so far we are still ok with peanut butter, meat slices…).
My other advice, don’t make too good of lunches, because if you are too nice, you kid will want you to keep making their lunches, forever. My 13 year old has a list of things that she wants in her lunch and I am thinking that if it were not for the fact I am still making other’s lunches, she would be doing her own or buying.
andi // May 9, 2008 at 8:11 am
You rock, Slouchy. You knew I had to click over here after the title of your post, didn’t you? Oh, how I laughed. (On an unrelated note, also – so cool that Blogger finally got on board and is allowing for scheduled posts.)
Anyway, thanks for the tips. I loathe packing my own lunches and am not looking forward to packing lunch for the kids. This advice is sure to come in handy.
Kelly // May 9, 2008 at 12:53 pm
Every morning, I pack my husband’s lunch. And to think next September, I’ll have to add another to the morning rush. Yippee.
The ‘mixing it up’ suggestion is especially appreciated. It’s so easy to get caught up in the tedium and not offer any surprises.
edj // May 9, 2008 at 4:51 pm
This is ONE advantage to the French system’s habit of the long, 2 hour lunches. They come home and I feed them there. I DESPISE packing lunches. If I’d had to, they would have been packing their own by first grade
Gift of Green // May 11, 2008 at 11:45 am
I’ll be bookmarking this for the Fall when we start the Great Lunch Packing. Thanks!
STL Mom // May 15, 2008 at 9:26 am
I used to mix it up, then realized that my kids ate better if I sent the same things most of the time. I have much more need for variety than they do.
Sunflower seed butter is another good alternative to peanut butter – my son takes it to his nut-free school almost every day. At the beginning of the year I had to explain what it was, because it looks so much like peanut butter, they thought I was breaking the rules. Unfortunately it’s not any healthier than PB, but it’s close enough in flavor to satisfy my son.
allthingspurple // Jun 23, 2008 at 6:11 am
I never thought of hummus. Thanks for the tip !
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