How To Teach Your Kids To Pack Their OWN Lunch
Back to school is a crazy hectic time. It marks the end of days without schedules or demands. As much as I love spending lazy days playing all summer with my kids, a little part of me, OK OK a big part of me craves the schedule and routine that going back to school brings.
This year as my kids are getting older and better able to take on more responsibility I thought I would hand over the torch of lunch making and put it in the highly capable hands of my dear sweet kids.
With that being said if I did not give them ANY guidelines they would pack nothing but snacks! Which maybe yummy in thought but will not give their little brains the proper fuel it needs to function at its best!
Teaching your kids the basics of healthy meal prep is simple and easy! We’re starting with really simple lunches and then as the year progresses we can create the craft all the more!
The most important thing as a parent is supplying my kids with awesome healthy food that they can choose and pack themselves! When they have only healthy goodness to choose from…guess what they’ll pick? Hint hint … they’ll pick healthy stuff!
I love going to Smith’s (Kroger) where they have an amazing selection of high quality organic products at a very affordable price. This allows me to load up my pantry and fridge with easy to grab choices for my kids without breaking the bank.
Their organic and whole foods section makes this mama a little giddy! I love finding yummy and healthy goodies! It’s like Christmas every time I shop!
So the first step in teaching your kiddos how to make a top notch lunch is buying top notch stuff to add to their lunches!
I even made up a simple printable that you can put on your pantry door or wherever to help remind your kiddos of what should be included in their lunches.
(Just right click and hit save as to download)
- Pick A Main Dish: At our house that usually means a sandwich. We love the Simple Truth Organic Peanut Butter and Jams. We use bread, tortillas and even buns! It’s a quick favorite, even my 7 year old can make.
- Pick A Drink: My kids love the Horizon Organic Chocolate and Strawberry Milks – They are easy for little hands to grab from the fridge and aren’t loaded with scary chemicals and additives! We also do refillable water bottles.
- Pick A Veggie Or Fruit: Tip have fresh fruit and veggies already bagged and ready to grab! I make them pack veggies every other day. If I left it solely up to them they would pick fruit EVERY time!
- Pick A Snack: My Kids Personal Favorite… My kids love the Simple Truth Organic Sweet Potato Tortilla Chips. Kroger has a TON of choices; they carry yummy brands like Silk, Yulu, and Horizon! Organic fruit snacks, cheddar crackers, and yogurts! I just buy a few different choices and they can pick their own for the day.
Your kids will feel so cool and grown up packing their own lunches! And bonus if they pick their own lunch hopefully they’ll eat it all… 😉 It really is a win win situation.
So grab this fun printable and hand over the torch to those adorable kiddos! They will love having a job and it will teach them to be more responsible!
This conversation is sponsored by WhiteWave Foods. The opinions and text are all mine.
