Lunchbox Newbie

Peanut butter and jelly on white bread. Luncheables. Doritos and a Coke. These are some of the favorite lunches kids take to school. Well-meaning parents pack the lunch bag with processed foods that they know their kids will eat. Unfortunately these are often laden with a lot of fat, salt, additives and sugar, which contribute to childhood obesity, diabetes and other chronic diseases. Eating these types of foods leads to an over-consumption of empty calories that don’t come close to giving our kids the energy they need to get through their long day at school. So, they usually reach for a salty or sweet snack to get them through the afternoon.

I am now faced with the dilemma of the school lunch box as both my kids are entering the era of staying at school all day. Gone is the complete control I had eating under my supervision. Gone is the ability to create a hot meal in the comfort of my kitchen at lunchtime. Gone is the ability to be completely disorganized and still throw together a healthy meal in the time it takes the kids to play one more game of the Princess and the Knight. Here now—the lunchbox.

I simply refuse to give into the proverbial sandwich on a daily basis, so I am confronted with a challenge that many of you are likely facing, too. Feel free to follow my quest as I fumble through the first year of packing lunch for my kids.

To start, I put together a list of criteria that hopefully gets me thinking ‘outside the lunch box’ and gets me ready for school.

Criteria:

1. Hot or cold, the lunch has to make it to lunchtime without spoiling
   - As eco-friendly as possible (re-usable, safe materials)
2. Healthy
   - No trans fat
   - No high fructose corn syrup
   - As little added sugar as possible, preferably sweetened with a more natural sweetener like brown rice syrup or honey
   - A good mix of vegetables, fruit, whole grains and protein
   - Avoidance of chemical additives, colorings and preservatives
3. Keep the kids satiated throughout the afternoon
4. Yummy
5. Past the friend test (Ew, what is that you are eating?) This one may be a wee bit harder, but maybe my kids can educate the other kids a bit on lunch beyond sandwiches!
6. Not require a lot of time and work (on my part)!

OK, I'm already starting a wee bit late. I only have two days until the start of school and I have a lot of research to do.