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There is nothing more frustrating than when your kid comes home from school and you reach into the backpack for vinyl lunch bag only to find that it is as about as heavy as it was when you packed it in the morning.\u00a0 Or even worse, when you open up the lunch pouch, you uncover that not one tiny morsel was eaten, and the napkin is still folded.<\/p>\n
You don\u2019t know whether to scream or cry.\u00a0 You want to scream because all your good efforts to pack a healthy lunch seem to be unappreciated. \u00a0You want to cry because you know that your ravenous kid hasn’t eaten since sunrise and it\u2019s now close to sunset.\u00a0 Ugh!<\/p>\n
I feel your pain. After too many of these heart-breaking, late-afternoon sessions when my son was younger, I smartened up and decided to negotiate with him on the foods to pack that he would actually eat. \u00a0I used my ABC strategy during our menu negotiations:<\/p>\n
A<\/strong>sk your child what he or she wants for lunch. I agree that there were times during the negotiations that I thought I would have to call in a lawyer, but we finally settled on these lunches.\u00a0\u00a0 I would kick in money for him to buy milk.\u00a0 All of these menu ideas contain at least 4 of the 5 food groups: grains, fruit, veggies, protein, and dairy:<\/p>\n Mexican Monday<\/strong><\/p>\n Baked whole grain tortilla chips<\/p>\n Salsa<\/p>\n Cheddar cheese, reduce fat, wedges<\/p>\n Clementine<\/p>\n Low fat milk<\/p>\n Tip: <\/strong>You can slice the cheese yourself or purchase it pre-sliced, individually wrapped. Insider Tip:<\/strong> This was very popular lunch at the lunch table. My son would end up having to share some of the chips and salsa with his friends so pack extras.<\/p>\n Thanksgiving Tuesday Sandwich<\/strong><\/p>\n Whole wheat roll<\/p>\n Turkey breast<\/p>\n Cranberry spread<\/p>\n Mayonnaise<\/p>\n Lettuce<\/p>\n Grapes<\/p>\n Low-fat milk<\/p>\n Tip:<\/strong> Cook a turkey breast for dinner on Sunday. Use the leftovers for lunches or buy the cooked, home-style turkey at the deli. \u00a0Insider Tip:<\/strong>\u00a0 This was my son\u2019s favorite lunch, and apparently, the favorite lunch of many of his friends.\u00a0 Years later, I found out that he would successfully trade half of his sandwich to the highest bidder for Red Sox baseball cards.\u00a0 He now works in business in NYC, and it all started with this sandwich.<\/p>\n Roast Beef Roll Up Wednesday<\/strong><\/p>\n Whole wheat tortilla<\/p>\n Roast beef<\/p>\n Cheddar cheese, reduced fat<\/p>\n Mayonnaise<\/p>\n Lettuce<\/p>\n Pineapple chunks<\/p>\n Low-fat milk<\/p>\n Tip: <\/strong>Layer the roast beef, cheese, mayo, and lettuce on flat tortilla. \u00a0Roll it up and place it in a container so that the shape stays intact.\u00a0 Insider Tip:<\/strong>\u00a0 Roast beef is a very lean cut of beef so is a delicious way to get protein at lunch.<\/p>\n Meatless Thursday:<\/strong><\/p>\n Whole grain crackers<\/p>\n Mozzarella cheese sticks<\/p>\n Hummus<\/p>\n Baby carrots<\/p>\n Watermelon chunks<\/p>\n Tip: <\/strong>Scoop the hummus into the bottom of a small container. Stack the baby carrots on top for easy dipping.\u00a0 Insider Tip:<\/strong> Pack extra crackers to share. There will takers around the lunch table.\u00a0 Trust me.<\/em><\/p>\n Eat Out Friday<\/strong><\/p>\n Take the day off. \u00a0Pack lunch money.\u00a0 You earned it.<\/p>\n I hope some of these ideas will help you in your lunch planning.\u00a0 Good luck!<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" There is nothing more frustrating than when your kid comes home from school and you reach into the backpack for vinyl lunch bag only to find that it is as about as heavy as it was when you packed it in the morning.\u00a0 Or even worse, when you open up the lunch pouch, you uncover … Continue reading Healthy Backpack Lunches That Your Kid Will Eat<\/span>
\nB<\/strong>e flexible but make sure that the majority of it is healthy.
\nC<\/strong>ompromise a smidgen.<\/p>\n\n\n
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