5 Lunchbox Packing Tips
5 Lunchbox Packing Tips… get ready for back-to-school with these great tips to help organize lunch packing and make them fun! These simple tips will help make lunchbox packing less stressful for the parents, too!
My son is going to Kindergarten in just a few weeks and will be going five days a week instead of the two days he went last year in Preschool. One of the hardest routines to get set into was packing lunches.
I was excited to discover these Curate Kids bars, which do not contain any artificial preservatives, flavors, or colors. And the best part? My son love them!
Whether you pack lunches the night before or the morning of school, I wanted to share a few simple tips that will help make lunchbox packing easy.
Lunch Box Notes and Jokes
The first day of school can be a little scary for first timers or when your children are going to a new school. Add a fun little note or joke to help them know you are thinking about them and that they are awesome (scroll down for the free printable)!
Grab-and-Go Containers
Have a station or spot in your pantry where snacks are ready to grab quickly. Prepping snacks before hand saves time and frustration during an already hectic morning.
Place the containers in a spot where even the little ones can reach it. I love this method because I know what is in the grab and go container and I can feel good what they are eating at school like these new Curate Kids snack bars. My kids just love the Apple & Cinnamon bar!
Make Their Lunch Silly
Sometimes just adding a smiley face to your kids favorite food is just enough to brighten their day!
Add Variety to Your Kids Lunch
Using cupcakes liners is the perfect way to make sections in your kids lunch box container. Not only does it keep food separate from each other but it allows you to fit more in their container.
DIY Painted Brown Paper Bags
Help the kids get excited about school by being able to create and paint their own brown paper bags. Polka dots, flowers, watercolor paints and stickers are just a few ways your kids can decorate their bags and show them off at school!
Having a nutritious snack during or after school is key to a good day! It will fuel your kids with the energy they need to learn, play and go!
Free Lunchbox Printables
I like scratching little notes on a banana peel with a toothpick for my kiddo!
Having the right lunch container and accessories has made packing lunch so much easier. Before I was running out of sandwich bags and plastic forks and spoons. I also learned to organize all the snacks plus the grab and go fruits in the same spot so my son can help pack his lunch when I am running low on ideas.
I always serve macaroni and cheese on Friday in a thermos container. They always look forward to it and I don’t have to think about what to make.
Great tips! My favorite tip is adding little notes. Last year my daughter wanted to buy hot lunch and this year she wants to bring lunch because she found a cute lunchbox…lol. I’m going to have to try those new bars. Thanks for sharing!
My daughter grew up with Fruit Roll-ups and Capri Suns in her lunchbox. I always threw in a Hershey kiss… now she does that for her daughter!
I love what you did with the brown paper bags! They’d make cute party favor bags, too!
I love to pack it the night before so our mornings aren’t so crazy!
I cut all my veggies for the week on Sunday night and keep homemade muffins in the freezer to make lunches a little easier.
Make pb&j or sunbutter sandwiches the night before by spreading both slices of bread then jelly in the middle. The butter is a barrier from the bread getting soggy and squishy!
i love using the cupcake liners too!
It will be my first time packing lunches this year, but I’m hoping to make it less stressful by prepping on Sunday’s.
Great ideas, my son doesn’t like traditional sandwiches. I make my own lunchables with crackers, lunch meat cut and cheese. He loves getting pizza at school once a week.
I started out with giving my kid too many things in his lunchbox. Through a trial and error process, we found the perfect amount that works. I let him pick the main item and one side. I get to pick one side. The rule is that he has to eat his main item before he can touch the side items. This has been working great for us. Whatever is not eaten has to be eaten at home so food is not wasted.
Wow! I loved this article, totally cute, fun, and smart ways to make packed lunches that much more desirable. I pack 5 lunches a day (2 for adults, and 3 children) and these tips are going to help me with all of them! I am even going to use the cupcake liner trick first thing Monday mornings. I have finally gotten everyone out of their sandwich rut, and this will make it so much easier to pack all of the different yummy foods I can! Thank you so much for this post!
Make a list of lunch ideas together before school starts so you have somewhere to look when you are stuck. Prepackaged foods are fun but I don’t like sending processed foods. I like to have string cheese, boxes of raisins, and bags of plain almonds to mix up the mommy packaged foods sometimes.
I love prepping on Sunday’s (saves me some piece of mind!) and of course leaving funny little notes and drawings to surprise them!
I love using reusable bags from Itzy Ritzy for my kids snacks and my breakfast and lunch! Decorating the string cheese is so cute!
We made a list of lunch food options and it hangs on the inside of our pantry. It is a helpful reminder when it is late and we can’t think of anything to pack!
I put together a list with the kids to know their favorite ideas. I add in a note or surprise something every once in a while to mix it up. Thanks for the tip on the bars, we will have to try those.
I’m just getting started with my first kindergartner this year so no tips yet. But I’m looking forward to reading all of these tips.
Always make sure things are out in neatly and that nothing soft can get smushed.
I have found that fresh veggies get eaten more often if I include a mini leak-proof container of hummus, salad dressing, or dip in their lunch boxes. I have used commercially-made salad dressing containers that have a screw top and a wide opening, and have also re-purposed the little sauce containers that come with takeout if they are sturdy enough.
My favorite lunchbox tip is to pack it the night before! Seriously! Takes the stress out of the mornings!
We are just about to enter the world of school lunches as my son will be starting kindergarten in a few weeks. I’ve been pinning ideas on Pinterest for awhile now. And I think I’m most excited about using the Bentgo boxes for his lunch! One trick I’ve been using for years when we fly is to freeze yogurt the night before so it’s perfect by lunchtime the next day. Instant cooler in the lunch box too!
I like prepackaging parts of their lunch so they can help pick what they want easier.
My favorite lunch packing tip is: plan ahead. 🙂 We always try to pack lunches the night before & I keep a running grocery list on my phone.
Love these printables!
Thanks.
I love prepping as much as possible ahead of time and using divided containers to put a bunch of diff items that “go together” all in one container!
This is great, thanks!!
I like to include jokes in his lunchbox. Either holiday or Minecraft depending on the time of year.
I love cutting the food into shapes using cookie cutters!! My kids love it, whether it is bear shaped, heart shaped or even smiley face shaped!! I also like making faces with food – for example, fresh grapes for the eyes with chocolate chips as the eyeballs and a small banana for the mouth!! I am definitely trying one of those bars one of these days! 🙂
I try to pack what I can the night before. I also try to include a fruit, veggie, protien and a fun snack!
I love to draw a friendly face or some kind of design on my son’s napkin. He is in kindergarten so he doesn’t know how to read yet, but he told me the drawings make him smile which is good enough for me!
I try to give them a variety of different things each day, so they will eat & not get burnt out! They enjoy finding different things each day, to make lunch more exciting!
Great tips,They love to find sandwich cut in their current obsession…cut with cookie cutters dinosaur,airplanes and so on!
I like to pack snacky lunches–crackers, cheese, carrots, fruit, etc.
Curate are so yummy! I hope I win! Thanks for the great tips and cute printables