tree hugging with style
School Lunches
Ah, school lunches. I personally always had a love/hate relationship with the afternoon meal time. I was either ecstatic at the pizza and french fries on the menu, or I was devastated with the bologna sandwich dropped onto my metal tray by the lunch lady - who was actually quite nice. On occasion she surprised us with mini Snicker bars. But I digress...
Loving parent reading this - take the opportunity to make school lunch a blast!! Give your child butterflies of excitement when they anxiously open the packed lunch waiting for them when the bell rings. This doesn't mean going out and purchasing sugar snacks or pre-packed "lunch" meals with preservatives, it means making smart (and fun) choices when choosing how to provide adequate nutrition for your little one. Here are some easy tricks and tips to making lunch time extra special and more importantly, healthy!
- Let your child pick out their lunch box. Allow them to creatively decorate it and make it their own.
- If they are old enough to pack the lunch themselves, let them. Provide the ingredients and give them the space to feel they have a right to choose their own meal. If they are still too young to take on the task by themselves, let them help you.
- On that note, if you find you have difficulty getting your child to eat their lunch in the first place, this is a beneficial way to encourage their appetite.
- Always choose organic, fresh ingredients. For example, even peanut butter can be purchased fresh these days. If you're on a budget make practical decisions: swap the JIF for Smart Balance.
- Use cookie-cutters on the sandwiches. It's all about the details.
- Keep those cookie-cutters out and make shapes out of blocks of cheese. You don't want to overdue it on the dairy, but every now and again everyone can appreciate some cheese.
- Add a little maple syrup or agave with a fruit salad for a little extra something.
- Switch up the bread. One day use an english muffin, the next day make the tuna with a bagel, whole wheat if you can get away with it. There are also delicious glutton free waffles on the market you can substitute for toast - it'll give a run-of-the-mill sandwich a slight sweet kick.
- Veggies are always more fun when there's something to dip them in. Natural Peanut butter is perfect for this!
- If you're feeling particular domestic on some random day, blend garbanzo beans in a food processor and pair it up with some festive blue corn chips.
- Make plain old yogurt unique with honey. (You can also pair the honey with some cream cheese and make a salty, sweet spread for crackers.)
- Have a theme day once a week. Incorporate different cultures to help expand your child's palette and increase their respect for culinary expression .
- Every now and then splurge - throw in an organic cookie or brownie.
- Water, water, water! Skip the juice box and teach them the importance of H20. Skip the plastic bottles! Save the Earth (and money), and reusable smart bottles instead.
You don't have to spend a lot of money to make a big difference. It may take a little extra effort, but your child's health and views of food will last them a lifetime. They are worth it.
And I'll throw this last little nugget of advice in just for fun, if possible, please, please, avoid high fructose corn syrup!
Loving parent reading this - take the opportunity to make school lunch a blast!! Give your child butterflies of excitement when they anxiously open the packed lunch waiting for them when the bell rings. This doesn't mean going out and purchasing sugar snacks or pre-packed "lunch" meals with preservatives, it means making smart (and fun) choices when choosing how to provide adequate nutrition for your little one. Here are some easy tricks and tips to making lunch time extra special and more importantly, healthy!
- Let your child pick out their lunch box. Allow them to creatively decorate it and make it their own. - If they are old enough to pack the lunch themselves, let them. Provide the ingredients and give them the space to feel they have a right to choose their own meal. If they are still too young to take on the task by themselves, let them help you.
- On that note, if you find you have difficulty getting your child to eat their lunch in the first place, this is a beneficial way to encourage their appetite.
- Always choose organic, fresh ingredients. For example, even peanut butter can be purchased fresh these days. If you're on a budget make practical decisions: swap the JIF for Smart Balance.
- Use cookie-cutters on the sandwiches. It's all about the details.
- Keep those cookie-cutters out and make shapes out of blocks of cheese. You don't want to overdue it on the dairy, but every now and again everyone can appreciate some cheese.
- Add a little maple syrup or agave with a fruit salad for a little extra something.
- Switch up the bread. One day use an english muffin, the next day make the tuna with a bagel, whole wheat if you can get away with it. There are also delicious glutton free waffles on the market you can substitute for toast - it'll give a run-of-the-mill sandwich a slight sweet kick.
- Veggies are always more fun when there's something to dip them in. Natural Peanut butter is perfect for this!
- If you're feeling particular domestic on some random day, blend garbanzo beans in a food processor and pair it up with some festive blue corn chips.
- Make plain old yogurt unique with honey. (You can also pair the honey with some cream cheese and make a salty, sweet spread for crackers.)
- Have a theme day once a week. Incorporate different cultures to help expand your child's palette and increase their respect for culinary expression .
- Every now and then splurge - throw in an organic cookie or brownie.
- Water, water, water! Skip the juice box and teach them the importance of H20. Skip the plastic bottles! Save the Earth (and money), and reusable smart bottles instead.
You don't have to spend a lot of money to make a big difference. It may take a little extra effort, but your child's health and views of food will last them a lifetime. They are worth it.
And I'll throw this last little nugget of advice in just for fun, if possible, please, please, avoid high fructose corn syrup!
Writer/Contributer: Giselle Rodriguez
Comment
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Comment by Michele Blue on September 1, 2010 at 1:26pm -
As they get older they want to take their lunches more. At least that is how it was for my daughter. In 1st grade it was all about the experience of standing in line and getting to say (somewhat) what they wanted on their plate. But as the years went on and she became more social; she wanted to sit down right away to talk with her friends longer. They all started planning who was bringing a lunch and on what day so they could sit by each other.
As for the food - it also seems to get easier the older she gets. I was very lucky with Claire, she loves ALL kinds of food! Not too picky. But we did go through a "i will only take PB&J in my lunch!" phase in 2nd grade. There are so many snack foods that stay good in a lunch bag all day. Not like when we were kids and our choice was a twinkie or a ding-dong to go with our sandwich.
i love the cheese line! my daughter and her friends always say, "everyone needs to eat a *little* cheese with every meal..."
great topic for back to school time!
*peace*
Michele Blue
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