We have been in a GROOVE with school lunches.
They have been easy to shop for on autopilot, simple (ish-- the scale prevents the task from being totally simple) to pack, and well received.
But! In the last couple of weeks the kids stopped eating their lunches. And then came home all crabby and snackish.
And sure, this is the point where you tell me to just make them handle it themselves. But! Then! I say MINNIE. Dorothy and Coper and Jack were all fending for themselves at the beginning of the year, but then Dorothy and Cooper saw me packing for Minnie had started asking me to just pack theirs, too or delaying the task and then freaking out in the morning, and I would throw stuff in a bag for them. And Jack started spending all of his money on fast food.
Sooooo, I took on everyone's lunch. (With Ben's help).
BUT THEN THEY STOPPED EATING IT.
New plan! New food! New me! (J/K same me.)
(BUT I did buy yellow opal apples because I AM A FUN MOM)
Yoggies and fruit snacks to augment Jack and Coop's beloved applesauce
BLUEBERRY MUFFINS! Because I AM A FUN MOM
I will die on the hill that preparing lunches is one of the circles of Hell. Dante forgot to include that...
ReplyDeleteKids! When in doubt, be the fun mom. There really isn't any other solution besides waiting for them to grow up and leave the home.
ReplyDeleteWow, you are a fun mom! Those are all great choices. I personally have been in a lunch rut for the past few weeks. Maybe you need to come here and pack my lunch? Lol, you have nothing else going on, why not a 30 hour road trip?
ReplyDeleteYou are the most fun mom! Hoping you find a new groove soon, and everyone is less crabby after school. The post-school/didn't eat much hanger is the worst.
ReplyDeleteThis is very fun and easy food! You get bonus points for being the fun mom!
ReplyDeleteI am NOT a fun mom. As a mom who's packed many lunches in the day, I still think they should do it themselves. Make Minnie do her own too. A girl who likes to pick her outfits for the week on Sunday would probably love planning her lunches for the week!
In my house, the minute they whine or don't eat their lunch, the kid is on their own. Which is why I'm still packing lunches for my three sons who take cold lunch. They eat the same boring foods every day and don't complain. (Bless them!)
(I'm a bit of a hypocrite on the lunch issue.)
You are a fun mom. I have eaten the same lunch for approximately five years and would my expect my (non-existent) children to also eat the same foods every day. VARIETY IS SCARY.
ReplyDeleteI am very very glad I do not have to pack a lunch. The kids eat at school and it's free for all kids. We would pay for it if it's not free. Our kids eat things at school that they won't eat at home which is bizarre but oh well. Like Paul loves tacos and spaghetti and meatballs at school - but won't eat them at home. Sigh. When we have to pack lunches for non-school days, I dislike it so much!
ReplyDeleteUgh. Lunch!!! Luckily I only have one kid to pack for, but that's hard enough. I would challenge everyone who insists that kids should pack their own lunch. Are these people okay with their kid saying "Okay, just forget it then, I'll get a diet coke from the vending machine"? I think not! Your options look amazing.
ReplyDeleteI would be fine with it. Honestly, I save my battles, and food battles are ones I avoid.. And after a few days of diet coke for lunch, natural consequences will follow ( they'll realize their hungry and make a lunch the next day) or they'll eat something when they get home. Food needs to stay neutral.
DeleteThe lunch packing ship sailed a long time ago around here. The boys just buy lunch at school, the end. Yes it's maybe a little more expensive than if they packed, but honestly probably NOT that much more expensive (not like groceries are exactly cheap anyway) and it's approx 1 million times easier. We used to make them pack their own lunch a couple times a week back in middle school, but that tended to involve me overseeing it anyway too often. I am not willing to pack their lunches just because they're too lazy to do it themselves, and I don't need another thing to do. They are perfectly happy buying lunch at school and this way no one wastes time doing it AND I don't need to buy a bunch of extra groceries, so, the added cost, if there is one, seems worth it for us!
ReplyDeleteI am a person who essentially eats the same damn thing every day for lunch, so I don't tend to try to buy new exciting options for the kids' lunches. They go in spurts, like We love cuties. Then there are moldy cuties in the fridge and We hate cuties. I was very glad to have them make their own lunches, and I've never looked back. They'd be so hungry if they didn't pack a lunch and none of them want to spend their own money on food at school, so they make their lunch and occasionally someone who is running late will call out Mom can you make me a PB and J. Or cut me an apple, but for the most part, they manage it. Thank goodness.
ReplyDeleteYou win my vote for fun mom with the best rotating array of snacks ever.
Having to make lunches is THE WORST. We never made our kids do it because I don't know why, and they never ate sandwiches so ughghghgh. I think I got in a good groove of fruit, vegetable, granola bar or equivalent, protein thingy and carb thingy just before they left home. Now I do my own, and it always includes a tub of raw broccoli or cauliflower which sometimes is fine and sometimes makes me want to DIE.
ReplyDeleteCan you buy school lunch? I’ve done both…when kiddo stopped eating my packed lunch they got a school lunch. I have account restrictions on there so they can ONLY buy the school lunch. It’s $3.50 and I don’t think I can pack one any cheaper.
ReplyDeleteSchool lunch FTW! If they don’t eat that shit, they are crazy.
ReplyDeleteYou are a fun mom! My kids mostly eat school lunch which is free here but I would pay for it if it wasn’t. My problem is that it’s hard to remember the days that my daughter wants a packed lunch since you have to order a lunch in advance.
ReplyDeleteYou're definitely a fun mom! I can never guess what's going to be popular. Some days they'll love what I pack and other days nothing gets eaten. I request input, but mostly end up packing the same 8 or so things
ReplyDelete