I’ve fallen into a pattern with my school lunches for Will. I pack him a fruit, a vegetable, a protein (usually hummus, sun-butter or beans, since we don’t eat meat or dairy) and a carb or starch.
It’s not as creative and exciting as I hoped my school lunches for him would be, but it gives him options, keeps him full, is easy to prepare (wash the raspberries, put them in a container!) and is pretty healthy.
Will’s school has a wonderful policy of sending everything home with each child, so I can see exactly what he did or didn’t eat for his lunch. That policy has helped me recognize which items he really prefers not to eat at school (I don’t send bananas) and which items he loves.
I’ve played around with sending him warm lunches in his thermos, like baked beans, vegetable fried rice, and even spaghetti (sorry, my wonderful amazing preschool that had to deal with pasta sauce!). I’ve found that he doesn’t eat as much of those as he does the little snack type foods like fresh fruits, vegetables, and crackers with hummus.
I now send warm meals less frequently, since they’re more work, he eats less, and he’s going to have a hot dinner every day and often a hot breakfast.
Here are three of his recent school lunches:
Hummus and pretzels, raspberries, snap peas
Vegan baked beans, apple slices with cinnamon and a hint of sugar, rice cakes
Whole grain sweet potato crackers, hummus, carrots, strawberries and grapes
I worry sometimes that I send too much hummus, but then I realize that kids often eat the same thing for breakfast six days a week – why worry if twice a week he has hummus with lunch? If he likes it, and I’m packing a variety of fresh produce to go with it, this is NOT a problem. This is a solution!
Find the easiest, healthiest options your kids enjoy, and pack away!