I wanted to share with you a few lunch packing ideas. Hopefully one of these ideas will help you change up the lunch routine a little, and maybe save you some money!
This year I decided to buy reusable, plastic sandwich boxes. You can get them at Wal-Mart, Target, etc. for about $1 each. I found these puppies at Christmas Tree Shop for $1.39 for a 3 pack! (Btw- Christmas Tree Shop isn’t Christmas stuff. I was confused when I first moved here, too.).
I also invested in a few small, plastic food storage containers. I got an 8 pack of these at Joann’s pretty cheap, especially after I used my 40% off coupon! I also got a few bigger ones at Target in the dollar section. I love these because I can pack things for the kids’ lunches I usually wouldn’t, like fresh mango pieces.
My kids don’t eat a whole sandwich, so I put a half sandwich in one side of the sandwich box, then fill the other half with something else, like chips, Goldfish, grapes, or graham crackers.
It’s nice because it leaves more room in their lunch bags, you’re not using another bag or container for those items, AND when you’re only filling half a sandwich box with the chips they think they’re getting a lot of chips (since the box is full), but really they aren’t. Ha ha! Sneaky, eh?
I can split a “single serving” sized bag of chips between all three kids’ lunches and it works out great! Plus, that saves you money, because you can buy a normal sized bag of chips, goldfish, etc. AND you go through less sandwich bags. (BTW- I don’t usually buy individual bags of chips, but my hubby gets these at lunch and brings them home when he doesn’t end up eating them)
Another cheap-o thing I do for the kids’ lunches is pack a bottle of water flavored with True Lemon or True Orange . They think they’re getting “lemonade”, but I know the truth! Plus, True Lemon and True Orange are made with all natural ingredients, so the kids aren’t getting hyped up on sugary juice during lunch.
Oh! And the water bottles? Empty Cran-Apple bottles I told the kids not to throw away when they were done with them. Ha ha! Can we say
So those are the little tips and tricks I’ve been using to pack lunches this last week. What are your favorite lunch packing tricks? What do you like to pack besides PB&J, ‘cause I DO need help in that department!!
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The only problem with adding the chips/crackers to the same container as the sandwich is that they'll be soggy by lunchtime, especially if you pack lunches the night before. Maybe not enough that the kids will notice or care, and if that's true, then don't worry about it.
ReplyDeleteMy mom occasionally left notes for me in my lunch.
i always need help here! 3 kids. 3 different likes and dislikes. it's hard to keep it straight so sometimes one kid gets something the other actually likes that they don't. you can bet i hear about it! i recently found these individual jif p.b. packs at target and my kids love to dip celery, crackers, bananas, graham crackers etc. in them. anytime i find something new its exciting!!!
ReplyDeleteIsabelle (4) started bringing her lunch this year and LOVES making it. I bought reusable cloth sandwich/snack bags. So she makes a cheese sandwich (her fav!) and put them in one bag and then uses the other 2 for snacks. She also has a small Poland Springs water bottle that she reuses every day (we're thrifty, too!).
ReplyDeleteI like your idea with the sandwich box. Good way to maximize space! Following from the blog hop!
ReplyDeleteMel S
www.twomomsalittletimeandakeyboard.blogspot.com
My son loves packing his lunch so I"m always looking for ways to keep it fresh.
ReplyDeleteLove the photo of all your kiddos in purple (in a circle on the ground). Awesome pic!