Packing lunches for school?

[melissel]

I hope this is the right place for this--if not, please move or let me know!

What do you do about lunch bags for your kids? I'd like to use something insulated so I could include an ice pack or a frozen water bottle or something, but everything I've seen that's insulated has all the yucky plastic/vinyl. Are there environmentally friendly options?

Alternatively, should I be less worried about the insulation factor? Odds are, most of the lunches I'll be sending will involved a sandwich of some kind, usually with natural lunch meats (i.e., no preservatives). Would it be OK for them to hang around for a few hours without any kind of insulation? I wouldn't think so, but then again, this will be my first time packing school lunches (sniff!)

TIA!

[Rebecca]

My 4 yr old goes to preschool and stays for lunch (his choice). I pack his lunch in a tin Thomas the Tank Engine lunch box and put in a cold pack or frozen juice container. It seems to work just fine.

[LISSA~K]

http://www.reusablebags.com has some lead free insulated bags. I like the idea better than paper.

[whoamama]

I never worry about insulation, its only a couple of hours.

[eirual]

I pack his lunch in a tin Thomas the Tank Engine lunch box and put in a cold pack or frozen juice container. It seems to work just fine

So simple, yet that never came to mind! MDC never ceases to amaze me!