I used to think my kid was a picky eater, until I realized that he wasn’t. It was the uncreative food options I gave him day after day. I’d get sick of the same food every day too… My son is allergic to all nuts so it’s sometimes hard to figure out what to give him. And my husband and I always seem to find it more difficult to pack his school lunch, because the things he readily eats at home, are often the same things he won’t touch when he finds it in his lunchbox.
Healthy-ish, nutritious, and filling are our main concerns when it comes to what goes in his lunchbox. At school the teacher really doesn’t have the time to get every single kid to finish his lunch, so it’s up to us, the parents, to give him something he’ll enjoy!
So here’s what’s working for us today: Unsweetened applesauce for morning snack. Chickpeas and tomatoes for lunch. (Thank goodness this kid likes his veggies for the most part.) For his afternoon snack, a Kashi bar and his juice box. Of course he has a little water bottle to sip throughout the day. Now this might not be enough food for your little munchkin, and at times we have to adjust portions and sizing when he comes home and we see what has, or hasn’t, been eaten.
What are your simple lunch box options for your little one/s? I’m always looking for ideas!
Full Disclosure
My husband added some rice in a thermos, which my son also ate, after I wrote this up.
Chickpeas came back uneaten.