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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

AIBU to pay for school dinners because I am too lazy to make packed lunches and the price is a small one for the convenience.

29 replies

swanriver · 30/03/2011 10:15

There is enough to remember every morning with three kids.
Violins, homework, clean uniform, waterbottles.
There is enough cooking of healthy meals and washing up every evening.
A packed lunch would cost me 80p per child anyway if it is good quality ingredients. I have to shop for those extra ingredients. There is natural wastage on having extra bread, ham, cream cheese etc in the house.
When I pay for a school dinner, I support the school dinner service which benefits those who take free school dinners.
My children eat salad, cooked veg and try new things as a result of school dinners.
Their school dinners are very good quality and cost £2.
I would rather spend that time helping with homework, and chatting to them or my husband, not screaming at everyone because I can't make packed lunches to everyone's individual specs..
I can save that money elsewhere by cooking/shopping frugally, and consider the dinner money well spent.

OP posts:

pjmama · 30/03/2011 10:21

What's wrong with school dinners and why on earth would anyone think you're BU to choose them over making packed lunches? Am I missing something?

LindyHemming · 30/03/2011 10:23

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Onetoomanycornettos · 30/03/2011 10:23

I pay for school dinners too for the same reason, don't get in til late, limited time in the evening with children, one less thing to do. But like pjmama says, it's not really a big deal and no-one would think you lazy for it, would they?

Bramshott · 30/03/2011 10:24

Of course YANBU - why would you think for a moment that you are?!

StayingDavidTennantsGirl · 30/03/2011 10:24

No - you are not being unreasonable at all. I did this sometimes with the dses when they were at primary school, and they have dinner money every day now they are at senior school. I got sick and tired of emptying lunch bags and cleaning them out, and of sending the same piece of fruit to and from school for half the week because it never got eaten. Also I feel a bit nauseous in the mornings (a side effect of my medication) and so I hate touching food then.

I always gave the children a proper cooked meal in the evening, so it didn't matter too much what they chose for lunch.

DorisIsAPinkDragon · 30/03/2011 10:25

Only if money is really tight.

We can't afford school dinners and after school clubs, dd has to choose she choose the clubs.

so BU depends very much on if you can afford it...

caughtinanet · 30/03/2011 10:26

Choos whichever suits you best, don't worry about what other people think. In fact I can't imagine anyone giving a second thought to who has what - unless teachers have a special mark in the register for SAHM who can't be arsed to make a quick sandwich

StayingDavidTennantsGirl · 30/03/2011 10:27

And lets not forget that by choosing school dinners you neatly sidestep all the 'Healthy Eating' rules that schools apply to packed lunches, and the extra hassle that causes - like not being able to send in a home made chocolate cupcake for your child, when you know fine well that the school dinner children are getting chocolate cake and chocolate custard for their pudding!

anastaisia · 30/03/2011 10:27

YANBU; it may be slightly cheaper in money terms to do packed lunches, but your time isn't worth nothing. If it's better for you to get hot dinners then do it.

worraliberty · 30/03/2011 10:27

What an odd thread? I just don't see the point in it lol.

Just do what suits.

compo · 30/03/2011 10:27

Yes this is what I do
I alsojust give sandwiches or toast in the evenings
it's what my mum did and we survived

MitchiestInge · 30/03/2011 10:28

how do you do a packed lunch for 80p?

Onetoomanycornettos · 30/03/2011 10:29

Plus if they have a hot dinner, you can give them a light tea without guilt, whereas if they had sandwiches, I'd feel obliged to do the hot dinner in the evening!

mamatomany · 30/03/2011 10:30

YANBU no need to make your life harder is there ?

Original poster

swanriver · 30/03/2011 10:31

I'm being slightly tongue in cheek by AIBU, not really worried - just the other thread made me wonder? We've had packed lunches for a few terms here and there, and I've always always been deeply relieved to get back to school dinners (and so have children They love custard!

OP posts:

Francagoestohollywood · 30/03/2011 10:32

YANBU, school dinners are fine, much better than a sad sandwich

worraliberty · 30/03/2011 10:32

Whenever my kids have had a school dinner, I've always still cooked a proper family meal in the evening...it just seems weird not to.

JenaiMarrHePlaysGuitar · 30/03/2011 10:33

I have to do packed lunches in the holidays when ds goes to holiday clubs - and I bloody hate it.

So, errr, YANBU.

Unless the dinners at your DC's school are dreadful I suppose (they're pretty good at ds's and he has never asked to have sandwiches - pretty good going seeing as he's in Y6!).

Chandon · 30/03/2011 10:37

yabu to agonise over this.

no man would agonise over something like this. Why do women beat themselves up about trivial things and look for strangers on MN for approval ?!

Original poster

swanriver · 30/03/2011 10:38

We have hot dinner in evenings too, but they are older and greedier.

It could be done more cheaply than I'm making out, I concede. I suppose if you think in terms of one pot of cream cheese is going to be equivalent to six sandwiches, and one loaf of bread to six sandwiches, I egg I sandwich, Perhaps it is just all the little added bits, yoghurts, cheese strings, that they demand that makes it seems just as £. I think I'll give it a go again for summer and see whether I can be more efficient and ruthless...and have some homemade cakey items(non choc!) ready...

OP posts:

SpringchickenGoldBrass · 30/03/2011 10:42

DS nearly always has a school dinner. Because he is a very hungry child and has also been used in the past to eating his main meal at lunchtime. ANd when the weather's cold I would rather he had a hot meal in the middle of the day.
But there's no getting away from cooking another dinner in the evening. As I said, DS is a hungry child...

HecateTheCrone · 30/03/2011 10:44

You're bonkers to be even worrying about this, even lightheartedly

I pay for school dinners for my two. They sometimes want to switch to sandwiches and I say no, I am not messing about with packed lunches every pigging morning.

bonkers20 · 30/03/2011 10:47

Love school dinners, hate making packed lunches. DS has always had school dinners.
I do get annoyed at people who say they can't afford school dinners for their children. Right, so you can't afford to feed your children well, but you can get them 4 different games consoles and drive around in a fuel guzzling monster. Priorities wrong I think. Oh man, am I going to get flamed?!

worraliberty · 30/03/2011 10:54

I make you right bonkers

Also, school dinners in primary look at first glance as though they wouldn't fatten a flea...very small amounts of everything.

But it's more than enough for a midday meal..especially when you consider they go straight out to play afterwards.

Honestly, some of the packed lunches I've seen Infants take in are unbelievable. A lot of them take 2 rounds of sandwiches, salad, cheese, fruit, yoghurt and god knows what else...then you can often hear their Mums moaning that they never finish their lunch

Haribojoe · 30/03/2011 10:55

It's school dinners all the way in my house.

I loathe making packed lunches and DS much prefers having a cooked lunch, he has definitely lost weight since having them as he is having his main meal at lunch and the running it off at school rather than having it later in the day.

Am even more glad of them now I am back at work as it means DH hasn't got to worry about cooking a proper dinner on nights when I work.

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