Packed lunches - am I the boring mean mum?

[rumpleteaserspaws]

I hate doing packed lunches with a passion and am dreading doing them daily when the DCs return to school!
My DC's have had a few days at holiday club over the past three weeks, and I've had to do their lunches for that. They have been complaining (albeit nicely ) about them having a "healthy" lunch, because their HC friends have nicer (so read more sugary) stuff in theirs.

So, I'll tell you the contents and you can tell me if I'm boring;

Sandwich of choice, usually tuna or egg mayo, or cheese w/ tomato or cucumber.

Veg pot - carrot, cucumber, tomatoes.

Piece of fruit, sometimes two.

Squeezy yoghurt of some kind.

A treat type item, either crisps, a club-type of biscuit, mini Soreen loaf.

To me that seems like a perfectly normal packed lunch, mainly healthy but with a bit of fun stuff. We are not a mega healthy household in that they get sweet stuff more often than I'd really like. They certainly aren't deprived of anything. This type of packed lunch is what they'll be getting daily when they return to school, but I can already envisage the complaints I'm going to get, argh!

We have a no nuts policy and healthy lunchbox (no crisps or whatever)
So I give a roll or sandwich, apple or other fruit and yoghurt. Water. On occasion jelly or custard pot

Also a banana for first break

"As for the revolting comment about taking food from other children and going places and stuffing themselves with no self/restraint - nope. Again, I would have been more than happy for mine to go to parties and stuff themselves silly but it never happened. I never said they couldn’t have anything nor was there talks about unhealthy food. Mine would go to a party, have maybe a party pie or sausage roll, handful of crisps, a few lollies and be too full for the cake! If my kids went for play dates on pick-up the parents would fuss that they hadn’t eaten enough, not that they had bogged in like pigs at a trough! Apart from one with physical disabilities mine were all extremely energetic, active, played a lot of competitive sport etc, all very healthy and the boys over 6’ as adults, but yet never ate more than a piece of fruit for recess and a vegemite sandwich for lunch (1 had cheese on the v’mite sandwich in cooler months, the others preferred plain vegemite). Anything over and above that would remain uneaten, they couldn’t come up with anything they wanted as other preferences and they honestly didn’t have anything from anyone else. So again, while absolutely nothing wrong with what anyone else is feeding their kids, god I cannot stress that enough short of repeating it a thousand times, I am genuinely bewildered as to how the kids fit it all in with a lot of the lists that have been given. There is no way I could fit it in and I’m overweight, but do absolutely no exercise admittedly."

Some telling language here. Stuff themselves without restraing? Stuff themselves silly? Pigs at a trough?

That's the same sort of packed lunch i do op. It's fine

restraint*

Most primary age chn have far more than me for lunch. Too many packets of cleverly marketed packed lunch food. Keep it simple and real. No child needs a chocolate bar/cereal bar/crisps every day. Make it a Friday special.

Is it definitely that they want all the junk food and not just something a bit different than a sandwich? Could you do some tuna mayo pasta, or something just a bit different but still healthy?

I realise they're not babies, but I used to have to send a pack up to nursery for my 1 year old and I had an app which gave lots of healthier cooking options for pack ups, like cheese and courgette muffins, broccoli base mini pizzas etc, I'd make up a batch and stick them in the freezer ready for pack ups.

Another easy option is some cooked seasoned chicken breast with breadsticks instead of a sandwich?

Icantrememebrtheartist I can't possibly know what they have the rest of the time so cannot say whether it is too much or not but was concerned you might not be aware of just how many calories that was - 680 out of a 1,000 daily need is quite a lot and likely to be too much unless they are missing breakfast and having a very small supper with no snacks.

Usually supper would be the highest calorie content meal, but if the lunch is the main meal, it might be fine. If they have say salmon, 2 new potatoes and 3-4 green beans for supper then it could be as few as 350 calories, which would bring it within an acceptable range.

If they are having a supper of crispy chicken, plain pasta, cherry tomatoes and a carrot it would probably take it over their daily requirement (particularly if you add any butter, mayonnaise or parmesan).

It's not for me to tell you whether it is too much or not but it does sound like quite a lot for a pre-school child, in terms of calorie distribution throughout the day.

As a consequence of this thread, i've just eaten a packet of crisps and a cereal bar - bugger!! :o

DD (13 now) goes through phases of eating a huge amount, and at other times would hardly eat anything during school. Times when she will eat breakfast, other times when I would have to encourage her to have a few mouthfuls of something light.

When she had dance exams coming up and had about 15 hours of classes per week we struggled to get enough food into her, starting with eggs on toast for breakfast and having a schedule of food throughout the day. At the moment, given lockdown and very little activity, she has a light snack mid morning, half a sandwich at lunchtime, some fruit as and when she feels like it, and a moderate amount in the evening.

Every child is different. If your child is a healthy weight, has plenty of energy and isn't constantly getting ill, you are probably on the right track. Of course it makes sense to focus on nutritious food instead of empty calories, but apart from that encourage your child to recognise their own bodies' signals.

OP - it sounds as if your children want more treats, rather than needing more food for the energy. Most children will try the 'all the others' approach, but try offering more of the healthy food. If they are hungry they'll eat it!

That’s what I will be packing for my 3yr when goes back to pre school for lunch

Minus the crisps choc as not allowed but maybe a pack of biscuits

Looks fine to me

This thread is an example of how fucked up our relationship with food has become.

Micro managing children's food, arguing over calorie intake, judging others choices and making virtue out of our own, extrapolating from our own experiences that this is how it must be for others.

It is certainly a battleground.

I think they lie about all the sweets, chocolates and crisps on other kids lunchboxes to see if you'll buckle. That's a great lunchbox, keep doing the right thing!

I think the first thing you aim for in a lunchbox is food your child will eat.

then I think you want the right amount for their appetite and activity level.

Then you want a mixture of carbs, protein, fruit and veg and healthy fats, it doesn't really matter what form that comes in.

If you want to add in a treat or if your child has a restricted diet for whatever reason then that is fine too.

The main thing is that your child is fed.

That's exactly what I send mine to holiday club with, op. Maybe one extra snack for break time. My son tries the 'everyone else has more treats' line as well.
Luckily for me our school does not allow children to bring in their own lunch, so I only have to pack lunches in the holidays.

I think one piece of fruit would be plenty, but apart from that it sounds perfect to me.

If they weren't going on a day out anywhere, our holiday club would heat food for them. they weren't allowed flasks, but you could send in a tin of soup or beans etc or put some spag bol in a microwavable bowl etc. Made a change from sandwiches. I wonder if that's what your DC are seeing OP?

I only found this out when I dropped them one day and had forgotten to pick up their lunches and it was a big detour to go back home for them. Lady said to just grab some tins of soup and a pack of rolls in the nearby corner shop instead. Revolutionary...

Kids are at sports activities all day long so ham sandwich or wrap, 2 small fruits, a little pepparami, square of cheese or cheese string, treat bar and 2 little yogurts with a bottle of water. I thought it seemed excessive initially but they are covering 25 to 30k steps a day and this keeps them going until dinner.

That’s what il be doing
Moir school says no to crisps, chocolate biscuits or sweets so It leaves just sandwiches, yoghurts , fruit and crudités anyway really

my 9, 8 & 6 each took...

small apple
4 lrg strawberries
raw carrot slices & snow peas
muesli bar
sml container of flavoured sakata rice crackers
thermos of hot green pesto x tuna pasta
1 x choc digestive and small amount of yoghurt covered sultanas

In Aus so no school dinners, but luckily our school had NO restrictions on what we can send. We are more likely to get told off for excessive wrappers/squeeze disposable yoghurts etc. Very hard on the whole Nude food policy.
I volunteered in my kids kindy over the years, I loved seeing what was packed in the lunches (nosy bitch I am). One kid (4years) pulled a whole (100gm) pack of salami.... and not much else.... was enlightening....

Blacktop👍

It's the Summer. They are moving from 9 until 4 non stop, fit, healthy and super happy. Their back to school lunch will be half a sandwich, one piece of fruit, cheese and a small treat and that works for them.

@WaxOnFeckOff exactly that!!! I feed for the activity levels and the associated appetite!!

Looks quite normal to me but dc don't like tuna and I'm wary of egg re smell so fillings usually ham/cheese/roast meat/salami.
Also don't like fruit or fruit yoghurt so plain yogurt or Greek n honey, plus protein snack so cubes cheese/ham/cocktail sausage/ bite chicken...
Plus lots veg sticks/olives
Flapjack type thing as oats long lasting and an apple as only fruit eaten ...
Adding the extra protein seemed to help with hunger level