what do your kids pack for school lunch? spinoff

[wanderlost]

I get so tired of trying to pack healthy and fun lunches for my son...any ideas?

We usually do a sandwhich of some sort - tuna, pbj, lunch meat
a fruit of some sort - apple, applesause, orange, dried apricots or raisins
and a treat - fruit roll up, cookies, brownie
he gets bottle of water as well

but I wish I knew some other yummy but healthy options. Ds is a great eater and likes lots of healthy foods, I am just not that creative on packing lunches.

[RainCoastMama]

We only do snacks right now as it's preschool but here are a few ideas:

- Miniature quiches (they sell the mini pastry tarts in the frozen section) with egg-based quiche (egg, milk, cheese (ricotta, parmesan, etc.), salt and BP, bake at 350 deg for 10 min approx; can modify and add spinach, broc, red peppers, meat, etc.)

- soft burrito shells slathered in creamcheese and cukes, sandwich meat, humus, etc. rolled up and cut like little sushis.

- Edamame in the pods (she loves these)

I also bought a bunch of cookie cutters and cut sandwiches into shapes hoping she'll eat them

[oldgirl,newtricks]

It does get tiring.

I bought really good quality Thermos brand containers and send left-overs or soup/crackers. Once you can send hot food, it really increases the variety. My kids will even take a leftover veggie side dish.

Carrot sticks and dip. Yougart covered raisins. More different dried fruits. Cheese sticks. Containers of yougart. Nuts. Different nut butters. Salads instead of a sandwich. I just put the dressing in a separate container. Mine like canned fruit like peaches, pears and pinapple. Cottage cheese. Deviled eggs. I put in a cold pack to keep those items fresh.

I don't send a sweet every day. Just occasionally and they seem to enjoy it more.

If you have the appropriate containers, you can send almost anything you eat at home.

[supervee]

Love to hear new ideas! I get in a rut. We just got a Laptop Lunch thingy and it has been inspiring to fill in all the little containers.

In the main dish, I put a sandwich or leftovers (and/or put leftovers in a thermos if hot). I put yogurt or something else like that in the sealed dish. Then snacky type stuff in the other two (he has two snacks a day). For snacky, we've done cereal bar, trail mix, crackers & cheese, and fruit/veggies cut into appetizing wedges or sticks. He also takes a bottle of water.

[Babytime]

DD loves taking pasta salad -- just plain pasta mixed with steamed veggies and cheese, maybe a few beans. She doesn't like any mayo or dressing on it, just plain, and she'll eat a whole bowl of it! She also likes taking cut up fruits or veggies, cheese cubes, yogurt with or without granola, roll up sandwiches. I always try to have a "main course" such as the pasta salad or a sandwich, fruit/vegetable, dairy plus a sweet treat. We like variety! She only drinks water, so she also gets a sports bottle of water.

[Miny20]

My three year old would take..

hummus and pitas or kidney beans, feta, and balsamic vinegrette.

Strawberries, pears, apples, or blueberries.

cheese chunks

Carrot sticks or cucumber sticks.

Cup of water or cranberry juice.

[kewb]

Most of the time my kids just want the sandwhich and are unhappy if they don't get it. So there lunch is usually a sandwhich, a fruit, and their canteen of water. Sometimes I swap out the fruit with yogurt or applesauce. About once a month I will add a surprise treat.

Other things I have packed for lunch are:
Bagel w/cream cheese
Tortellini or ravioli
Soup
Veggies and dip
Leftover pizza (they love that one)
Yogurt & granola
Sushi (but we rarely have leftover so this does not happen often)
Turkey & lettuce roll ups

[pranamama]

my dd got bored w/ sandwiches, we just bought an insulated bowl and are sending hot soup.

[jkpmomtoboys]

My ds loves turkey rollups. Just a piece of deli turkey rolled up in a big piece of lettuce. A slgith variation on the same 'ol sandwich....