Hello Warriors! One of parenting’s most frustrating chores has to be packing lunches. I can’t be the only one who tries to prep for the school year by pinning a bunch of ideas only to have them thrown in the literal trash by the end of the first month. Last year, we landed on a system that makes this easier, so I thought I’d share it today.
My kiddo likes different things for lunch every day. He takes after his dad that way, whereas I could (and often do) eat a similar lunch for months on end and be happy. But kids grow and their tastes change. And why is it when something is in your pantry, they want nothing to do with it, but they will eat that same thing literally anywhere else? (Goldfish crackers for us.) Throw in the inevitable I want what he/she has, school allergy restrictions, and craziness of the school calendar and it’s no wonder lunches are a frustration.
Now full disclosure, my kiddo is a pretty “good” eater. By that I mean that he is usually willing to try most things. He doesn’t always like them, but he will try multiple times, too. He also likes veggies and loves fruit, so we don’t typically have the issue of an apple just making a round trip. No one in our house has any food allergies or sensitivities, either.
Like every kid, though, he goes through phases of foods he currently likes and those can change without warning. He is also at the influenceable age that he wants some of the very highly processed things his friends are bringing. And he wasn’t helping with the decision making or the actual packing. So, in the thick of last school year, I decided I needed a different approach.
The first thing I changed was getting him in on the decision making. Believe it or not, packing lunches actually starts with grocery shopping. And grocery shopping starts (or at least it should) with a list. The day before I plan to shop, I ask what he would like for lunches. We always have a good variety of fruits and veggies, but he can tell me his preferences and we discuss what might be coming in season (watermelon and pears are faves). He also gets to pick one sweet and one savory snack for the week.
Once I’ve lugged all the groceries home, I prep anything that needs to be prepped. Usually this means fruit and veggies, but if he has asked for something that needs to be cooked or baked, I’ll take care of it in one batch so everything is ready to go. Everything gets placed in the fridge or pantry in an easy to access place.
At least once a week, he needs to help me pack lunches. I’ll try to pick an afternoon that is a bit quieter (no sports practice to run to, less homework). He will help me pack not only his lunch, but mine and his dad’s too. This is clutch for several reasons. First, this is an age-appropriate chore and we stress teamwork in our house. Second, he learns that mom and dad are eating the same things, just in different amounts. This (hopefully) promotes a healthy relationship with food and an understanding of what types of foods are satisfying and make a complete meal.
I’m sure by this point, you want to know what actually goes in our lunches. One serving of fruit, one serving of a vegetable are non-negotiable for all of us. My kiddo usually prefers carrots or cucumbers in his lunch, but they get eaten so it’s not a fight I’m willing to fight.
A good source of protein. This can come in multiple sources (i.e. a PBJ and some yogurt) or be fun (homemade Lunchables are a favorite), but we are really working on the idea that protein is what helps you stay full for the afternoon.
Complex carbohydrates, preferably with fiber. Bread, crackers, an extra serving of fruit, leftover noodles or rice from the night before. Young, learning brains need a lot of glucose to function properly and complex carbs will provide a nice slow release through the afternoon.
A no sugar added drink. My husband and I will just take our water bottles and be done. The kiddo has a water bottle, but he likes something else at lunch. Shelf stable milk and 100% juice are usually what we keep on hand.
A fun food. This is where the grocery planning comes in handy. I don’t have a thousand bags of chips hanging around. Or six open boxes of cookies. He gets to determine one or two things that we’ll buy for the week. One fun food goes in his lunch. And my kiddo is of the age where he has snack time still, so the other will go for snack (along with another serving of fruit).
While packing lunches is still tedious, this system has resolved a lot of the arguments. If all his buddies have Doritos, he knows he can ask for them during the grocery planning phase. And by helping pack on a regular basis, he sees balance in practice and knows he isn’t being asked to do anything differently from mom and dad.
What has helped your family with packing lunches? Tell us in the comments!
