Boring, but talk to me about this as a packed lunch for a five year old?

[SarahAndQuack]

The five year old is going off on a sport holiday club today. They're asked to bring two sets of snacks and a lunch (but will be home before tea time).

Packed lunch was:

• cheese sandwiches
• two cheese straws
• three snack packs of raisins
• two mini chocolate eggs
• two bottles of 250ml ribena
• two packs of hula hoops.

What do you think?

@Mariposista

Absolutely nothing in that lunchbox is healthy...

There is nothing unhealthy about cheese sandwiches and raisins.

Also is the ribena the sugar free style
I find this pack lunch thing a little over the top now a diet id about being balanced so judging made on one meal a child has
Mine at that age would of had
Sandwich ( cheese , ham , jam even)
Cheese string
Piece of fruit
Bag of crisps
Small choc or snack bar
Juice or squash
Bottle water
And extra piece fruit for morning snack
Prob not most healthy but they are older teenagers , no cavaties , not overweight and healthy so it can't of been too bad

@Mariposista

Absolutely nothing in that lunchbox is healthy...

Another one that thinks cheese sandwiches are the work of the devil 🙄

What kid wants to eat 3 packets of raisins?

@Beamur they all have different appetites
My elder ds would take sandwich bag of crisps drink and a bit of fruit and that would do him
He eats little portions
He is now nearly 6 ft though and at correct bmi so he must do ok on what he had but he is probably more a little and often person as too much at once
Ds2 would need 3 times the amount to of lasted the school day

@YvanEhtNiojYvanEhtNioj why ? Cheese has calcium etc its not that bad

@BertieBotts

My understanding of what a cheese straw is must be different but for a packed lunch I'd do

Sandwich, wrap or pasta salad (main item)
Fruit or veg, single portion (veg)
Small pack of crisps eg hula hoops or pot of mini pretzels (crunchy)
One more item eg raisins, more fruit or veg, cheese string (extra)
One sweet/treat item. Eg club Bar, 4 Jaffa cakes or yoghurt pouch (sweet)

I wouldn't double up on snack items as these are intended to be one portion. It seems a lot of food and I would expect them not to have enough time to eat it all. So the snacks would likely get eaten and the sandwich left. Not great.

I think squash is fine and 500ml not an unreasonable amount but if providing a commercially made drink I'd do a child's sized one so 200ml carton or sports bottle. And then a water bottle separately for the day.

It sounds like the kind of lunch DH puts together and I get slightly annoyed by.

@BertieBotts

DoItAfraid

BertieBotts
My understanding of what a cheese straw is must be different but for a packed lunch I'd do

Sandwich, wrap or pasta salad (main item)
Fruit or veg, single portion (veg)
Small pack of crisps eg hula hoops or pot of mini pretzels (crunchy)
One more item eg raisins, more fruit or veg, cheese string (extra)
One sweet/treat item. Eg club Bar, 4 Jaffa cakes or yoghurt pouch (sweet)

I wouldn't double up on snack items as these are intended to be one portion. It seems a lot of food and I would expect them not to have enough time to eat it all. So the snacks would likely get eaten and the sandwich left. Not great.

I think squash is fine and 500ml not an unreasonable amount but if providing a commercially made drink I'd do a child's sized one so 200ml carton or sports bottle. And then a water bottle separately for the day.

It sounds like the kind of lunch DH puts together and I get slightly annoyed by.

@BertieBotts

Thank you for admitting your understanding of a cheese straw might be different. I am a qualified pastry chef.

Please see photo attached.

@TriciaMcMillan

Unless you mean they have adopted this name locally, they don't. Assuming you mean these, they're called cheesestrings.

(they are awful, but my kids also like them)

Yes, I meant that's what they're called round here.

@knittingaddict

You obviously know that it's not an ideal or particularly healthy lunch or you wouldn't have posted about it. Just have the conversation at home. There's really no need to involve mn.

It's been really helpful, actually - very grateful to everyone.

Cheese straws

@worriedatthistime

You swaps sound fine, your mini egg is confusing me as well ? Do you mean 2 packs of mini eggs or 2 creme egg size To be fair my kids when on trips i overpacked them food , they didn't always eat i as they were able to regulate themselves as we really didn't ban any food Ds1 is a very fussy eater though and prob most schools would not pass his lunchbox nowadays

No, I mean something about 1.5cm long at the long end - the kind you get in little bags around this time of year.

@pastypirate

What kid wants to eat 3 packets of raisins?

Apparently, they were 'to share'. I have to admit when I was a child my friend always had the little red packs of raisins and I thought they were enormously desirable. But then, as we've established, the 80s weren't the pinnacle of healthy and desirable children's food.

On the rare occasions my mum did me packed lunch it'd be home-made crumbly brown bread with extra wheatgerm, with cheese or ham, and an apple. I don't think it ever occurred to her to do drinks or snacks. I bloody loved it when we got the standard school-provided one with delicious squidgy white bread.

The suggestions are really helpful, so thanks everyone.

Wth is so wrong with a cheese sandwich that you have to replace the cheese with HAM (a very highly proceessed product) jeez.

OP have the convo with your partner, highlight the need for veg as the child isn't a fruit fan.

@FlibbertyGiblets

Wth is so wrong with a cheese sandwich that you have to replace the cheese with HAM (a very highly proceessed product) jeez.

OP have the convo with your partner, highlight the need for veg as the child isn't a fruit fan.

Oh, she does like fruit. I just put the carrots in because she'll be fine with those too. I don't actually think she's a particularly fussy child, though, dunno.

Thumbs up.

I have a 5yo. I would have done

For lunch:

• cheese sandwich
• a pot of veg like tomatoes or carrots or cucumber
• an Organix bar
• an apple/ tangerine

For the snacks:

• a banana
• something savoury and filling

And a water bottle

@Pinkflipflop85

I think you're being intentionally goady.

I agree. No one thinks a 5 year old needs 2 packets of crisps.

Why would OP goad MNers to comment on a packed lunch though? What would be the aim? Honestly

@Organictangerine

Why would OP goad MNers to comment on a packed lunch though? What would be the aim? Honestly

For the amusement of competitive under-eating and under-feeding I guess .

Well there are some amusing responses…

I think quantity wise, if doing a sport holiday club I errr on the side of giving too much but explain they don't need to eat it all, it's just there in case he's hungry.
I put a far bit of whole fruit in so they will leave this if full. If I put all sugary snacky stuff in then he will scoff it regardless!

My 5 year old takes a yoghurt pouch, some crackers, an orange, a little tub of grapes, a bottle of water, sometimes an innocent smoothie or similar, occasionally she will ask for some Turkey slices or ham or maybe a pepperami. She used to enjoy taking sandwiches but they were coming home uneaten so we switched to crackers and an extra fruit portion and it's getting eaten.

@itssquidstella

Ooh I'll have to have a look. The greatest moment of my life was when I was about eight and I got a Trio with NO BISCUIT LAYER. It was just chocolate coating and toffee cream filling. Bloody delicious.

@itssquidstella I still remember the day I got a kit kat without the wafer. I even took a photo and it's on facebook/IG 😂

I do think they get more hungry at a sports club than a school. My 5 year old was at sports club today and had cheese and marmite sandwich (wholemeal), cucumber, blueberries, small pack of crisps, some of those chicken snack things, a penguin and a carton of apple juice. She ate a bit of everything but didn’t finish anything. That’s way more than she would normally eat at school!