The kids are back in school, which means that I’m back in the business of making lunch every day. This is the part of “back to school” that is bittersweet for me.

Most days they take leftovers to school which is really easy to pull together. I usually give them a fruit or vegetable, and maybe some nuts or trail mix, on the side and that’s about all they really have time to eat. I pack the Thermos food jar full so hopefully they’re getting enough to carry them through the rest of the day.

Snack lunch is all packed up and ready to go

The fun day to pack their lunch is when our meal plan calls for Snack Lunch. This is where I can be creative and have a little fun in pulling together a variety of items that make up a balanced school lunch.

Most important to me is that I’ve covered the basics on what they need to be at their best at school: protein, grains, fruit and vegetables. We try to have a few things in each category so that they can choose what they’ll have for lunch.

I have to admit that our PlanetBox makes this lunch super easy to pack because it seems to have just the right spots that are just the right size for what I want to include. It’s perfect for my daughter – as long as she can focus on eating more than socializing at lunch time!

Maybe instead of little love notes I should include reminders in her lunch box to stop talking and start eating. Or, talk with your friends at recess, please.

Everything we need

My kids love the variety of Snack Lunch so we often have it at home on the weekends too.

How do you make school lunch easy?