Skip the potato chips, fruit snacks, graham crackers, and candy. If you’re in a rut here are some quick, great real food any-time or after-school snack ideas for inspiration that kids will love (and adults, too!). Sticking with simple ingredients keeps snack time easy and fun. Keep these tips in mind: healthy fats, like what …
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School Lunch Roundup!
I’ve been sharing my kids’ school lunches on facebook quite frequently this year, and in an effort to put all those pictures in one easy-to-reference place they have all been reposted below (2018 update: There are so many of these updates now that I’ve put them together on a School Lunch Roundup Series page). Also, …
Real Food Tips: 10 Recipes to Freeze For School Lunches (which makes packing a breeze!)
If you want to send your child off to school with wholesome, "real food" lunches this year, planning ahead is key! I know it's tempting to just grab and go with those little prepackaged bags of cheese crackers and tubes of flavored yogurt, but giving your child nutritious foods throughout the school day can help them stay alert and do their best. Now if…
Real Food Tips: 10 Ways to Switch Up Your Kid’s Lunch
This is the first post in my new “100 Days of Real Food Tips” series. Enjoy! Think Beyond the Sandwich Bread… Pinwheels (pictured) Rolled up whole-wheat tortillas filled with: Cream cheese*, thin cucumber slices, and dill Goat cheese* and roasted red bell peppers (sold as pimentos) Peanut butter* and banana slices Sunflower butter* and all-fruit …
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DIY: Homemade Healthy Lunchables (that look just like store bought)
The number one way to know what's really in your food - and how highly processed it is - is to read the ingredients. There are some products that you just know are total junk food without even seeing what's inside like Doritos, Coca-Cola, and pretty much any Little Debbie Snack. Then there are others that I don't think are so obvious (to the…
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School Lunch Roundup IV (Also great for picnics, camps, road trips, and the pool!)
The school year is coming to a close, but I didn't want it to end without sharing one more summary of the school lunches I've been packing and posting on my Facebook page this year (almost daily!). And as summer is upon us I want to make it clear that these lunch ideas could go far beyond just the school cafeteria. I find myself…
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Nut-Free School Lunch Roundup
These days so many schools have nut-free tables or classrooms, and some are even entirely nut free! I know when I was first required to pack nut-free lunches for my daughters, I was pretty worried about this uncharted territory. I really had to focus on every. little. thing. I was packing to make sure there was no cross contamination or broken rules. I eventually…
Real Food Tips: 21 Ways to Plan Ahead for School Lunches
Last week’s “real food” school lunch tips were so popular I thought I’d stay on that bandwagon for at least one more week. Whether you want to spend one Sunday afternoon cooking up a storm or make a double-batch of something new every few days…planning ahead is key when it comes to making “real food” …
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My Favorite School Lunch Supplies
A lot of these items have been shared at one time or another on the blog, but I thought it would be helpful to have everything together in one post. So below are the supplies I love to use when it comes to packing school lunches. Please feel free to share your favorites in the …
Think Outside the Sandwich!
School is back in session and I'd love to encourage parents (and kids!) to "Think Outside The Sandwich" when it comes to packing school lunches.
School Lunch Roundup VII
Since not everyone sees the lunches I post almost daily on Facebook, below is a little summary for inspiration. Also be sure to check out our School Lunch Photo Gallery.
School Lunch Roundup III
Here's yet another "round up" of my kids' school lunches that I routinely share on Facebook. In case you are new here these links might help set the stage for you: School Lunch Roundup I and School Lunch Roundup II. Our favorite school lunch supplies including the divided Ziplock container. Everything you could ever want to know about the pictured, brightly-colored smoothie/freezie pop molds.…
School Lunch Roundup VI
Here is another school lunch roundup post for you so you can get ideas all in one place!
Real Food Tips: 10 (More) Recipes to Freeze for School Lunches
How about starting fresh in the new year with wholesome packed lunches for your little ones? My #1 trick for packing real food school lunches - even on those nights when I am feeling tired and uninspired - is making lunch items in advance and freezing them.
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How to Make and Freeze Homemade “Uncrustables” (plus 3 uses for the crust!)
Let's face it - even if your kids don't mind the "crust" of the bread...eating a sandwich without the crust is sometimes just a little more fun. My kids do currently eat the crust at our house so homemade "Uncrustables" are not something I plan on doing every day, but will I do it on occasion just to switch things up? Absolutely. One complaint…
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School Lunch Roundup V
Here is a another summary post of the lunches I've been packing for my daughters (and sharing almost daily on Facebook)! To learn more about the lunches I pack here are some links... Our favorite school lunch supplies including the commonly pictured plastic Ziploc divided containers (each compartment is leak-proof). Everything you could ever want to know about those colorful smoothie pop molds used…
Real Food Tips: Using Freezie Pop Molds
I seem to get a lot of questions and feedback from readers about the reusable freezie pop molds that we use (and recommend). First of all, I have absolutely no relationship with the company whatsoever…I simply found these molds online and have been a very satisfied customer. In fact, we own two sets now and …
Real Food Tips: 12 Ways to Deal with a Picky Eater
Winning over your picky eater is no easy task, but (in most cases) it can be done! Following is a list of tactics to hopefully convince your child that “real food” is good stuff. Also, don’t forget that it can take time for one’s palette to adjust to new tastes so if you experience some …
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Real Food Tips: School Lunch FAQs (the answers to all your questions!)
When I post my daughters' "real food" school lunch pictures on Facebook it often provokes a lot of questions. So here - all in one place - are some answers for ya! Now let's just hope we can get all those with the questions to actually read this post :) If I left out any of the more common ones please let me know…
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School Lunch Dilemmas Solved: Advice from Momables!
Today I am excited to share some great school lunch packing tips from my friend Laura Fuentes with MOMables! We all know that we should be packing our kids a variety of colorful, wholesome, healthy foods they will love, but sometimes that is just easier said than done. And that's exactly why Laura, mom of three kids ages 7-years-old and younger, came up with…
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School Lunch Roundup VIII
I’m still posting lunches pretty regularly on my Facebook page, but here is part 8 of my School Lunch Roundup Series. Also be sure to check out our School Lunch Photo Gallery. It allows you to search by dietary need and types of food. Lots of readers tell me they sit down with their kids to look at these …
School Lunch Roundup II
Our first “School Lunch Roundup” post quickly became one of the most popular pages on the blog so I thought I’d put together another one for you (2018 update: there are so many of these now that I’ve put together a School Lunch Roundup Series page where you can see them all)! For those who …
How to Make an Apple Sandwich
In case you’ve seen these apple sandwiches around, but have no idea how to make them…this is for you! First, you’ll need… Required Supplies: An apple (of course!) Some nut or seed butter like peanut butter, almond butter, or sunflower seed butter Large knife, small table knife, and cutting board Small round cookie cutter (I got …
Review: Our Favorite Lunch Boxes for Kids
It's time to think about packing school lunches, and we've done the research for you! Here are five of our favorite lunchboxes that should make your lunch packing a breeze.
How to Select and Use a Thermos
It’s no secret that I like to send warm soup (or leftovers) to school with my girls in insulated Thermos food jars. I’ve actually made a habit of doing this on Wednesdays because I like to have one night per week when I don’t have to be “creative” with packing school lunches. I make big batches of …
Video: How I Set Up for School Lunch (and Breakfast)!
I am excited to share with you our very first professionally made video, or "vlog" as some call it! There was just no better way to show you how we do set up for school lunch around here to ensure school mornings go as smoothly as possible. So enjoy (and be sure to check out the video notes just below). P.S. You'll get a…
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Sandwich inspiration (and my view on lunch meat)
To be honest, I never really liked lunch meat that much anyway so it was very easy for me to stop buying it. The main reason we gave it up was because (especially after watching Food, Inc.) we made a decision to only eat locally raised meats. And have you ever seen someone slicing off …
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Lunches for Kids with Momables (including recipes!)
Just yesterday we were talking about how the end of the school year doesn't necessarily mean the end of packing lunches! Summer brings so many opportunities to tote along a "real food" picnic, and today I have the perfect resource to help you with just that. In case you haven't heard there is a site called MOMables that specializes in kid lunch meal plans.…
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5 Ways to Pack Breakfast for Lunch!
I'm excited to share some easy ideas with you today to help you think beyond the typical sandwich for school lunches this year.
The Life Cycle of a (Packed) School Lunch
Almost every day on Facebook I share the school lunches that I pack for my daughters and almost every day there are a lot of questions about these lunches. Everything from "Where did you get that container?" to "Can I get that recipe?" to "Where's the protein?" But lately I've been noticing quite a few questions asking what these carefully prepared lunches actually look…
The Lunch Box Rumors Are True…
I'm sad to report that what you've heard is true ...the divided Ziploc lunch containers have been discontinued! :( I did some testing this week that felt pretty darn risky. But the results ended up being better than I expected, so let's get down to it!
Product Review: Lunchboxes
This lunchbox product review is a guest post from Kiran…to learn more about Kiran check out our team page! ……………………….. I’ve had a pit in my stomach for the past few days. I know that for many moms, back to school is a time to celebrate … but for me, I love the ease of …
Lunch Ideas (for All Ages) with LunchBots!
If you want to eat better in the New Year, packing yourself wholesome lunches from home can be a great place to start. I recently discovered and started using LunchBots stainless steel containers for some of my daughters’ lunches, which is why I am excited they’re sponsoring* this post today. Here are a few different ways to consider using their products: Lunches for Adults…
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Lunchbox Ideas for Your Yumbox
It's no secret that we're big Yumbox fans at my house. In today's sponsored post, I'm excited to share what we like about the Yumbox and also a list of lunchbox ideas to pack in it.
Lunch and Snack Ideas for Camp!
My girls recently went to a very active, outdoor all-day camp in some crazy southern heat. So I wanted to be sure I kept them fueled with plenty of wholesome food. Here's a little recap of what I packed for them each day
Real Food School Lunches
I would be lying if I said coming up with a variety of healthy, real food, peanut-free, tree nut-free, portable lunch options wasn’t a challenge. I understand that the school is trying to protect children with severe peanut/tree nut allergies, but I have to admit that I often feel their little rules conflict with what …
