Lunchbox Round Up

Today is the first day of our school week this week, and the girls have a lunch box packed with nachos consisting of corn tortilla chips, salsa, shredded cheddar cheese, lettuce, cherry tomatoes, and sour cream. They each have an apple juice box and Joplin chose fresh plums while Isis has orange slices as her fruit choice.

I have written posts about most of our staple lunch box meals, an will not be posting a daily lunchbox post in an effort to expand my blog. I will continue to post when we have special themed lunches or new ideas, and please feel free to contact me or comment with your ideas and suggestions! I'd love to get the input of other moms and dads!

Just as a refresher I'll list the lunch box meals I refer to time and again to fill my girls' bellies with healthy, yummy food. I always start with the main dish, and add sides that fill in the gaps in the meal. My goal is to have at least 1 protein, whole grain and dairy item, two fruits and two veggies. Sometimes I don't get all of them in, but I make up for it at dinner time. 

To start, here is the meal they are having today...
1. Nachos 

2. Cheese, meat, and crackers

3. Peanut better and jelly or honey

4. Cream cheese pinwheels or flour tortillas

5. Salad

6. Cheese wrap/roll ups

7. Peanut butter crackers

8. Hot Dogs (preservative free turkey dogs)

9. Sandwich with turkey/ham and cheese

10. Breakfast food

Friday Lunchbox

It's a lovely cool Friday morning here in the south. I watched my oldest daughter receive an award for running over 10 miles in PE this month! She is a smart, sweet, mature, 7 year old, but isn't too interested in athletics. So this is quite an accomplishment in an area where she really has to work hard to excel. I'm so proud of her!

The girls have the same lunch packed in two different containers today. They will each eat all natural deli turkey and Monterey Jack cheese off picks adorned with jack o lanterns.
A small side salad with no dressing actually consists mostly of cherry tomatoes, which are always a hit with the girls. They have some cinnamon applesauce (and I forgot the spoons!), a mini fruit roll up, a granola bar, and pretzels shaped like bats and pumpkins.

The girls have Monday off school, and we have LOTS of activities planned for next week including a small fall festival Monday morning, which should be fun!

Have a great weekend!

Thursday Lunchbox

I'll be brief today since I have to take the baby in for a vaccination in about 10 minutes. Isis has whole wheat crackers with peanut butter for spreading, some raisins, cherry tomatoes, and peeled celery in the lower half of our one piece container. The top holds a mini rice crispy treat and a bag with five fruit swirl marshmallows. She is also drinking water from home today. I'm picking Joplin up at lunch time to take her out for a special lunch at Braum's, and ice cream for dessert (for her at least)!
Have a great day!

Wednesday Lunchbox

The week is already half way over (almost), and I am still running behind on just about everything. I'm not going to sweat it too much in my normal control freak fashion because I might drive myself crazy if I did! October is always a busy month at our house. It kicks off most of the fall events in our community, is full of family birthdays, and is the start of a crafting frenzy for this stay at home momma.
So, once again I didn't get a picture of the girls' lunches, and it's a shame. Today they had mini turkey and cheese sandwiches on a pick. I used a small round cookie cutter to make circles out of whole wheat bread, then i stacked preservative free turkey, Monterey jack cheese, and more bread until the pick was full. They each got 5 cherry tomatoes, a whole apple, and cheese flavored multigrain chips. There is also some all natural vanilla yogurt with heart sprinkles in the air tight bowl on their plastic container, and I stuck a mini strawberry fruit roll up in there for dessert.
Now I'm off to work on a few of the many projects I have going that need to be done ASAP! Laundry, cleaning, crochet hat orders, and Halloween costume sewing are first on the list.

Monday Lunchbox

We had a decent break from the normal routine, but today it's back to business. I packed the girls some baked mozzarella rolls (in flour tortillas) with some marinara for dipping. They have a silicone cup filled with baby carrots and a pick with romaine lettuce strips rolled up for easy dipping in a separate container of ranch dressing. Isis has a bunch of red grapes on the vine wrapped up in a paper towel and tied with a pink ribbon, a rice crispy treat (sent home with them by Nana), and a mini fruit roll up. Joplin has a green apple tied up in some gingham ribbon and a pack of oreos (also a treat from Nana). I tossed a bag of pretzels into each box at the last minute, and they will both choose a drink in the cafeteria.
Tomorrow I am tagging along for the Pre K trip to the pumpkin patch, and may be accompanied by my husband. I'll be packing lunches for my daughter and us to eat instead of spending $3-$5 each on hot dogs, chips, and soda from the concession area.

Tuesday Lunchbox

Today I had planned to take Subway sandwiches to eat with my oldest at school, and pack a lunch for my pre k daughter. However, she woke up with an upset tummy, so I ended up packing for my oldest and keeping Isis home just in case she's got a bug. Joplin will have a turkey and cheddar sandwich on whole wheat bread cut into the shape of a large butterfly with whole grain, cheese flavored snacks called 'Skinny Straws.' She also has some baby carrots, a few fresh strawberries, a mini rice crispy treat, and a mini fruit roll up. I made lunch on the fly before sending her off to ride to school with my husband, and didn't have time to snap a picture.

Monday Lunchbox

The girls have a short week at school with fall break starting on Wednesday. So today they wanted to pack breakfast for lunch because it's one of their favorites. My oldest informed me that cold bacon is gross, and she doesn't want me to pack bacon in her lunch again. To get a little protein and iron in I packed a peanut butter and blackberry creamed honey sandwich on whole wheat. This isn't our normal breakfast fare, but it works. They also have a bag of dry cereal, a granola bar, some all natural vanilla yogurt with heart shaped sprinkles, and a banana. I added some fun stickers to the outside of the banana to make it a little more appealing. Joplin has a bag of organic trail mix including pumpkin and sunflower seeds, soy nuts, and dried cranberries, while Isis gets a mini box of raisins. 

Friday Lunchbox

We had a really busy Thursday between a trip to the pumpkin patch with my oldest and the fall festival so I wasn't able to fit in a lunch box post. I packed 3 lunches including mine, all with celery, cauliflower, snap peas, and grape tomatoes. The girls had ranch for dipping, and I used a mixture of olive oil, balsamic vinegar, garlic salt, and Italian herbs. We also had deli turkey and wheat crackers with mozzarella cheese for the girls. They ate some orange slices and granola bars as well. Joplin and I also shared some pomegranate.
Today I packed a pumpkin themed lunch in the one piece containers. Flour tortillas filled with cream cheese are cut with a cookie cutter in the shape of pumpkins. A jack-o-lantern adorned cupcake liner is filled with party mix, and the matching picks have grape tomatoes on them. A cutie orange has a fun face drawn on with permanent marker. They also get a pumpkin iced brownie and some candy corn and mallow pumpkins.
Sorry this post is coming so late in the day, but I spent this morning at the Just Between Friends Sale stocking up on winter clothes for my three girls. We also got a few books, a vanity mirror for my oldest, a lap desk for the car for my pre k middle daughter, and a fine motor skill building toy for the baby.

Wednesday Lunchbox

Today I am having lunch with my 4 year old. So instead of having her take the lunch box to school, I'll bring it when I come to her school at 10:25am (yes, that's lunch time for the pre-k students at their school). My 2nd grader is eating chicken nuggets in the cafeteria.
I made a turkey roll in a flour tortilla for her, and added some apple coleslaw to mine for a healthy wrap. She will have Pringles on the side and we will share apple and orange slices. We will both have grape juice boxes, a rice cake with peanut butter and creamed blackberry honey, and Mott's fruit snacks.
I decided to bring the entire jar of peanut butter because frankly, I just don't want to wash it out of a reusable container if I don't have to. Since I'll be there to supervise and take it home after lunch I don't see any reason not to, especially since none of the kids in her class have peanut allergies.

Tuesday Lunchbox

I hope everyone had a nice start to their week! Today is the last day I'll be packing a plain lunch for the girls this week. Tomorrow is chicken nugget day, so I will only pack for my 4 year old, Isis. Thursday I am packing a box for myself since I am tagging along on the my oldest's field trip to the pumpkin patch. Isis's class also starts learning about pumpkins this week, so Friday I will do a pumpkin themed lunchbox.

Today I packed preservative free turkey dogs, sliced and cooked to look like an octopus along with some cheddar crackers shaped like whales and guppies. They have 2 skewers, one with grape tomatoes, the other with peanut butter celery. We found some new small lidded containers that claim to be leak proof, so I packed vanilla yogurt in those. Hopefully they work better than the last set I got. They will have a grape juice box to drink today since I got them on sale, and I've learned that the cups of juice the school offers are tiny, so they have only been drinking milk.

Monday Lunchbox

Today the girls are having a turkey and cheddar slider on a homemade whole wheat bun. They chose Cheese It Party Mix in leau of chips. There is a veggie assortment with baby carrots, grape tomatoes, and fresh spinach leaves in the last compartment on the bottom of the two tiered, one piece containers.  

Joplin has a snack sized zipper bag with organic trail mix. The mix has sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds, soy nuts, and dried cranberries. I had her taste the mix before packing it to ensure she would eat it. She didn't like the raisins or dried dates that were included in the package, so I spent an extra minute or two picking out (and eating) those things so she wouldn't have to waste time picking through it during her short lunch period. This may seem silly, but I think it will make a huge impact on whether she actually eats it or not. We'll see. 

Isis didn't show any interest in the trail mix, so I packed honey roasted peanuts for her. She also has a small bunch of red grapes, and a fruit roll up. My dad caught us at the store yesterday and bought the roll ups as a treat for the girls. I removed the raisins from Isis's box because it seemed redundant since she has fresh grapes. Joplin gets a green apple since she doesn't like grapes, and a fruit roll up for her as well.

I started taking "after"pictures of the lunch boxes on Friday, so I'll have a post about the aftermath, and how much (or little) they are eating this Friday. I also have to pack lunches for a field trip for my 7 year old and me on Thursday, so that will include some nice grownup lunchbox tips. 

Now I'm off to spend my 30th birthday with my husband and baby before picking up my bigs from school. Have a great day everyone!

Friday Lunchbox

I am ready for the weekend! How about you? According to my husband, my sleep talking has been waking the baby up throughout the night all week. She's been waking 6-8 times each night, and it has me worn out! I am also looking forward to a few hours away from the kids, hubby, and house having dinner with friends! I have not been out of the house without baby in tow since she was born!
In light of my groggy state, I made lunch easy today. The girls have baby carrots, grape tomatoes, and broccoli with ranch dressing for dipping. I put marble jack cheese slices in the bottom of a silicone cup, then layered plastic wrap to separate the turkey slices on top. They have whole wheat round crackers, a granola bar, and a whole apple as well. As a treat they each get a snack sized candy from their bag of candy gathered at the homecoming parade last week. Both girls will choose milk and juice from the cafeteria.

Thursday Lunchbox

I tried a little something new today. The girls love peanut butter and jelly, and lately I've been substituting local creamed blackberry honey for the jelly. This gives them a natural sugar instead of high fructose corn syrup, and since it's local, it can help with allergies. The only problem I've run into is that the honey (even though it's creamed) runs out of the edges of the sandwich. I've seen nifty little tools that trim the crust and seal the edges of the sandwich at the same time, and even found one for just $1.50! I figured I could do this myself without a little plastic tool. After making the sandwiches (one with a single piece of bread folded, one with two pieces) I peeled off the crusts and used the tip of a butter knife laid flat against the edge of the bread to press it closed. It worked like a charm!  Along with their sandwiches the girls have a bag of dry Life cereal, a Cutie orange, strawberry yogurt tubes and Mott's fruit snacks with hidden veggie juice. They both have water bottles packed today in an effort to get them to eat more. I think they drink their milk to quench their thirst, but it fills their bellies for the moment so they don't feel hungry anymore. They haven't been finishing their lunches well this week, and I hope this helps.

Wednesday Lunchbox

Today you'll all have to use your imaginations a bit. I didn't have time to snap a picture of the girls' lunch boxes. I packed each one a pick with all natural deli turkey and cheddar cheese. They have 4 baby carrots, a Cutie orange, and organic bunny grahams. As a special treat they have half a bagel to use for making a "sweet pizza" topped with peanut butter chocolate/white chocolate chips and mini marshmallows.

Some of you may wonder if the meals I pack ACTUALLY get eaten by my girls, or if they get full on the seemingly sparse portions, so I am going to take photos of the boxes after school for about a week to show you. I ALWAYS ask them how they liked lunch, and if they got full - everyday. I make adjustments to their meals according to the feedback I get from them. Everyday is different. Sometimes they don't enjoy what I pack, and some they just don't have time to eat it. That's why I think communication is the most important thing when packing a lunch box (or parenting in general) for a kid. I hope that our lunch banter will help them learn to make good choices when they are old enough to choose or pack lunch for themselves. More on that to come! Happy humpday friends :)

Tuesday Lunchbox

It's the first day of October, and I decided to add a few festive touches to the girls' lunches today. I got a set of jackolantern cupcake liners and picks for a dollar at the dollar store, and there are enough to use in lunches all month long. Today I made cream cheese and turkey pinwheels to stick on the picks along with a couple of grape tomatoes. The liners have pretzel balls in them, and I covered them with another liner to keep them contained in the compartment of the one-piece lunch kit. In a zipper bag I mixed the last of the kettle corn (honey roasted for Isis and cinnamon pumpkin for Joplin) with the remaining cinnamon rosted pecans for some tasty homemade cracker jack mix. They will each get their favorite colored whole apple and a blueberry yogurt tube.