Ariana, my oldest daughter, will be starting preschool this fall (sob!) The kids bring lunches from home, so I need some ideas about what to send. I’ve always cooked hot lunches for my girls at home, and I figure I’ll need to introduce lunchbox foods to Ariana for a while in advance so she can get used to eating that type of food.
But what on earth do I fix? I don’t want to get her started on the unhealthy, overly processed stuff I ate when I was a kid – Lunchables, packaged snacks, etc. Besides PB&J on whole wheat, what other foods are healthy and work in a lunchbox? I do have a few ideas of my own to share, but I’d love to hear more ideas from y’all.
- peanut butter and jelly on whole wheat bread
- fruit (sliced apples, grapes, bananas, berries)
- veggies (carrots, celery…um…out of ideas here)
- homemade quickbreads (zucchini, banana, pumpkin)
- home-cooked turkey or chicken breast on whole wheat
- cheese cubes
- nuts
- yogurt cup, chilled
- granola
As you can see, I’m a little short on “main course” ideas. Any suggestions? (Oh, and don’t mind me: I’m just trying to stall freaking out over my oldest starting school, so I’m obsessing about school lunches for now.)
On a similar note, the “Beyond Organic” radio show did a whole hour on food marketing and kids that’s a real eye-opener (you can listen to the show at that link.) That show was the kick in the seat I needed to get me really thinking about what my kids eat and how they’re being marketed to (no more cartoon-themed processed foods in our house!)
