What do you typically pack for lunch? Looking for ideas!
Also, curious how you pack lunch? We have a yumbox panino and thermos food container.
What do you typically pack for lunch? Looking for ideas!
Also, curious how you pack lunch? We have a yumbox panino and thermos food container.
coconut / 8079 posts
This will be my first year packing lunches for DS1 who is going to K.
I got these to pack lunch in: Rubbermaid LunchBlox Leak-Proof Entree Lunch Container Set, Small, Blue 2000664 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XF3RZ7B/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_w7oqDbJFZ5BKG
We will start with more snacky type lunches: fave fruits and veggies, cheese and crackers, yogurt, etc. He doesn’t like sandwiches very much.
nectarine / 2242 posts
We have the Yumbox Panino and typically send half a bagel with cream cheese, or two mini bagels instead with a string cheese and apple sauce pouch in the big section, fruit or veggies in one of the smaller sections, crunchy carb-y snacks in the other smaller section, and a small treat in the tiny section. My kids have eaten the same thing for lunch for years and have no desire to change so we just keep on doing the same thing!
pomelo / 5258 posts
We use three compartment Easy Lunch Boxes in built style bags. https://www.amazon.com/EasyLunchboxes-3-Compartment-Bento-Containers-Classic/dp/B004S129AQ
I pack an entree, a veggie, and a fruit (+ two snacks for my soon to be 1st grader). The entree is often dinner leftovers (chicken and rice, noodles). When I don't have any leftovers on hand my standby is a black bean and cheese burrito because we always keep those ingredients on hand and the kids eat them. The veggies rotate between broccoli, tomatoes, carrots, cucumber, and bell pepper. The fruit is usually berries or a cutie.
pomelo / 5621 posts
Following for ideas.
DS starts grade one in September and it will be the first time I’ve had to pack a lunch for him.
pear / 1992 posts
@jhd: We also use a rubbermaid lunch blox set (but without the snap-lids). We bought two sets and they've held up for two years straight so far, about to use them for year 3! I use silicone cupcake liners in the containers sometimes to divide them up further or keep foods separate.
My DD is quite picky about food so she gets a lot of the same things every day. I'd love for her to have more fruit variety or any veggies at all... but mostly it's the below. Glad to get some ideas from this thread so we can maybe expand our list.
We do a 'main' that almost always has some combination of PB/nutella (on crackers, or sandwich).
Then fruit (apples, grapes, or mandarin oranges).
A carb/crunchy snack (cheeze-its, pretzels, rice cakes).
Something sort-of sweet/treat-like (graham crackers, teddy grahams, yogurt-covered pretzels, a couple small cookies).
I'd love to pack a veggie or different fruits but they'd just come home uneaten and her mad at us
pear / 1565 posts
I had to return our Yumbox b/c it doesn't fit into the PBK lunch box I already got that's non-returnable
Anyway, we've been packing lunches since the beginning of time as our daycare does not provide. So here are our usual; nothing original, just stuff the girls actually eat.
Variations of sandwiches
- PB&J, cream cheese & jelly, just cream cheese, grilled cheese
Chicken nuggets
Sweet potato fries
Shumai's
Dumplings
Cucumbers
String cheese
Mac&cheese (in thermos)
Boiled egg
Fruit
cherry / 108 posts
@graceandjoy: my panino fit in the PBK classic. It was a snug fit though.
Thanks everyone for the great ideas!
honeydew / 7463 posts
I’ve been packing lunches for about two years.
Here’s our regular rotation (pick one from each category). We always have a “main”, a veggie, a fruit a dairy and a treat. If the main is dairy heavy then I’ll usually forego the other dairy.
***Main***
Cream cheese and jelly
Sunbutter and jelly (schools here are generally peanut free)
Turkey sandwich (relatively new for him, he likes just turkey and bread)
Homemade lunchable with turkey pepperoni, string cheese and seed crackers
***Veggie***
Carrots
Mini peppers
Sugar snap peas
Cucumber
***Fruit***
Strawberry
Blueberry
Raspberry
BlackBerry
Applesauce pouch or cup
Grapes
(For his lunches, I tend to stick with fruits that don’t require a lot of cutting/a fork or produce a lot of juice to avoid messes)
***Dairy***
String cheese or babybel
Yogurt
Sometimes as a treat I’ll send a vanilla or chocolate milk box, pre-K last year only provided white milk or water so it was special when he had it.
***Treat***
Fruit snacks
Some kind of gummy candy like 3-4 Swedish fish
Chocolate covered raisins
Mini Oreos
Milano cookies
Teddy grahams
Mini muffins
Granola bar
This year my goal is to try more warm meals. I’ve very infrequently done warm items in his foogo thermos and they’ve been a hit. I just usually don’t feel like it in the AM rush.
I’ve done earths best meatballs, Annie’s stars mixed with parm, hotdogs mixed with peas, chicken soup. I’ve done each of these exactly once That’s it in 2-3 years.
It’s also harder clean up I’ve found, more things to wash and whatever was in the thermos rarely stays in the thermos. But I’ll give it a go now that he’s older and can follow instructions a bit better.
Oh and I always forget about something like grilled cheese or a quesadilla. It’s easy enough and works at room temp or even cooler. But again, seems like work in the AM. But we’ll see.
honeydew / 7463 posts
Oh and for gear, this last year we used a pbk lunchbox, which was fine I guess. It was gifted to us, not totally sure I would buy again but maybe. Considering the ice pack one since it seems bigger.
And I alternated between the sistema containers/ziplocks or the bentgo box jammed into the pbk lunchbox. Mostly because my son seems to eat everything in the bentgo, he loves that thing. If it were just up to me I would skip it but he does really well with it. He thinks it’s so cool.
pear / 1565 posts
@imadreamer: I think ours is the Mackenzie and while I can push it in, I don't think my DD can get it out/put it back in! I was tempted to buy a new lunchbox, haha~
pomegranate / 3272 posts
We have the bentgo and some bento boxes from Ikea that I love. When DS started kindergarten, we did a muffin, 2 hard boiled egg whites, a fruit, a veggie and sometimes some crackers/cheese. He ate that every day for the first half of the year. Then he started wanting to branch out so we'd do half a sandwich either on bread or a tortilla. Usually just turkey/cheese. Sometimes PB and Jelly. On Weds, I usually put a treat in there. And Fridays get a juice box. But I'm going to have to figure something else out for a drink as he always takes a water bottle to school but he finally told me that he doesn't take it to lunch. Weirdo. A few times I sent him chicken soup but otherwise he didn't ask for a lot of hot lunch.
I will say DS1 is an amazing eater so he's been super easy. DS2 is horrible so I have no idea what I"m going to pack for him next year when he's in kinder. I"m guessing lots and lots of pasta b/c that's about all he eats....
nectarine / 2987 posts
We use a container with three sections by ziploc. I love that there is only one lid for them to open and they are cheap.
I do a veggie
Cucumber
Carrots
Celery
Bell pepper
Salad
A fruit
Strawberries
Banana
Apple
Orange
Peach
Melon
Applesauce
Dates
A protein or two
Salami
PBJ
Cream cheese and turkey roll up
Chicken salad
Hummus
Cheese slices
Laughing cow cheese wedge
Lunch meat on a bagel thin
And something crunchy
Pretzels
Pirate booty
Teddy grahams
Sesame sticks
Nuts
Popcorn
grape / 81 posts
All of these lists are such a great idea to keep on the fridge as a reminder! I always forget what I pack for lunches, so I started documenting for myself. After lots of moms ask me this same question, I decided to start an instagram page of my past lunches (these are for a 2 year old). Follow along on instagram: @elinoreats
pomelo / 5621 posts
@honey786: I’m following your page. Looks good!! My soon to be 1 year old starts daycare in a few weeks and I’ll have to be packing his lunch.
coconut / 8483 posts
Usually a carb type option:
Sandwich, cracker sandwich
Meat:
Pepperette, ham
Veg:
Peppers, carrot, cucumber, peas, anything. He loves veggies.
Fruit:
Anything in season!
Usually some cheese although he doesn’t eat that great.
Then always an apple sauce pouch and a yogurt drink. Sometimes an apple or banana as extra. I pack most stuff in his yum box and the drink, pouch, and extra fruit on top of it. All of it inside a skip hop lunch bag.
apricot / 338 posts
Hello new here and I am posting after a long break.. Liking the ideas posted here and Im getting tired packing the same lunch things over and over. My DS is entering 1st. K was a bust for lunch they hardly had any time to eat and pretty much most of lunch would be there at pickup. Hoping at least this year he has a routine down to eat and not talk as much.
We do a stainless steel lunch box its just one large rectangular box and I specifically looked for spill proof lunch box. I put silicone cups in for bento style compartments. These were his favorites for lunch last year - mac n cheese, anything pasta, pbj, grilled cheese, french toast, cheese quesadillas and sides of fruit/steamed veggies/boiled egg and a yogurt drink. We also had to send 2 snacks separately - one a fruit banana/apple/orange and the other a cracker, goldfish etc. This year hoping to add a bit more variety (if he would eat)
pomegranate / 3521 posts
I just started an IG for my bento style lunch ideas! They are pretty average(ish), healthy (ish, nice(ish) and totally average ideas haha. I’m using mostly replay plates for now but also using our yumboxes. I will be using our yumboxes as soon as DS starts JK in September.
My account is @youraveragebento
Here is a pic
There are also a bunch of other great inspo accounts on IG
grape / 81 posts
@ALV91711: Thanks for following along! Its not like insta-perfect but its a reality snap of how I pack lunches. Leftovers are my savior most days! Our school requires vegetarian, nut free lunches.
pomelo / 5621 posts
@honey786: I like that your posts are real and not perfect. I need real!!
nectarine / 2262 posts
My almost 4yo is very picky and doesn't mind eating the same thing every day, so I always pack:
- sandwich on whole wheat bread (either turkey or sunbutter and jelly)
- string cheese
- baby carrots
- a few crackers/goldfish/something carby
- cut up fruit
- applesauce pouch
- milk
They don't heat up lunches at his school and right now, I think dealing with a hot thermos is more than I can handle and it's complicated for him at lunch time.
I love all the lunch ideas posted but my son would eat, like, none of them. Lol
persimmon / 1023 posts
These ideas are awesome! Nothing to add but I realized like halfway through the school year that my kid likes to have literally the same thing every day. I was doing a lot of variety where I switched it up every day because I hate having the same thing every day, but then he wouldn’t always eat it. DW takes the same.exact.lunch every day for her whole life and she suggested to do the same thing. Lo and behold, he ate his lunch every day when it was the same. So don’t be surprised like I was if your LO is like that and save yourself the work
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