What is the worst part of back to school for parents? If I think of back to school and what I dread, the first thing that comes to my mind is LUNCHES! What can I make, buy, or create that my little one will actually eat?!
Lunches for my Little One are a huge problem for us in this household. My Little One seems to never eat her lunch. I always thought it was because she was too busy chatting at lunch, but I realized that was not the case and here is how I discovered what I need to do for lunches…..
Last year my Little One was in Kindergarten. If you follow me regularly, you know that my Little One LOVES sports. She plays hockey, ringette, lacrosse, and the list goes on and on. Well last year she was knocked down from behind while on the ice by someone who could not skate. She did not know it was coming and fell backwards. Of course she had a helmet on and really good gear, but that did not stop her from getting her first concussion at 5 years old.
A concussion and a 5 year old is really hard and that is an entirely different story, but I bring her concussion up now because she was not allowed to play or go outside for recess. I did not want my Little One sitting inside the school at lunch hour for weeks on end while her concussion got better so every day I went to her school for lunch hour. I took her out with all the other kids so she could get fresh air. We then all trucked back in when the bell rang and that is when I discovered what happens at lunch time at school.
First of all, yes, my Little One’s school does lunch hour reversed where they go outside and play first and then come in and eat. When they get in they have 25 minutes to get their coat off, inside shoes on, go to the bathroom if needed, wash their hands, get their lunch kit, sit down, eat and clean up. WOW! I don’t know about you, but in 25 minutes at dinner time, my Little One does not get much eaten when all she has to do is focus on eating.
I realized during those lunch times, that it is not that my Little One is too busy chatting, it is that they do not give enough time for young ones to actually eat. My challenge then became to make my Little One’s lunches something she could access quickly, easily and that she would love eating.
Here are my TIPS for the Lunchtime Blues:
*Put everything in easy to open and close containers or packages. If they have to find someone to help them open and close the item, it is previous time wasted.
*Put a pair of kid safe scissor in your child’s lunch so they can cut open their own snack packages.
*Put an empty Ziploc or reusable bag in your child’s lunch to put empty containers and dirty spoons in. At my Little One’s school, they have to bring garbage home and they have to rinse it before they pack it. Wasted time right there! Just have a designated “garbage” baggie for them to throw it in and back in their lunch kit.
*Put lots of little things in the lunch. I have found that variety is the answer to lunchtime.
*Have a napkin in your child’s lunch so they do not need to run around for paper towel.
*Put a little picture or note in their lunch so they are excited to get into their lunchbox and get a message from you.
*Put a tiny treat in each lunch.
*Most importantly, have your little one pack their lunch with you. They know what they like and feel like so their input is golden.
Great snacks that even contain 100% of our Vitamin C requirement each day such as Mott’s Fruitsations + Veggie Snacks is a perfect example of a product to help solve the lunchtime blues.
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Mott’s wants to help you with your lunchtime blues and back to school this year with an amazing contest on the Life Made Delicious Facebook page.
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I hope that you have a wonderful school year and that maybe one or more of my lunchtime tips help with the lunchtime blues.
Remember to stay connected with Life Made Delicious on their Facebook page in order to stay in the know on all their amazing products and contests.
Disclosure – I am participating in the Mott’s Fruitsations & Veggie fruit snacks Blogger Campaign by Mom Central Canada. I received compensation as a thank you for participating and for sharing my honest opinion. The opinions on this blog are my own.