To be dreading making packed lunches every day?

[ParsleyAndTime]

I know AIBU in a way, and obviously whatever it takes to prevent the spread of Covid is a good thing. But is anyone else dreading making (multiple) packed lunches every.single.day?

No school dinners, an endless line of wilted sandwiches until Christmas...

Or does anyone have any great ideas for exciting lunches? I’ve never thought I’d be the kind of mother who gives their child stew in a thermos but it’s been a surprising year...

@nanbread

Sandwiches are shit. Mainly cheap bread with a tiny bit of usually crappy filling.

There, I've said it.

But struggling to think what else to put in school lunches that are easy to eat, quick to prepare and provide nutrients.

So sandwiches it is...

You make crap sandwiches

My child is in nursery and they are providing food as normal, but YANBU at all - devising, shopping for and making packed lunches is one of my least favourite chores. I’d rather clean the bins 😩

@Viciouslybashed I put a little olive oil on the cooked pasta to keep it a nice texture. Actually it usually has pesto on which is oily anyway. Dds favourite.

We have been doing packed lunches for ages mainly because it's cheaper and i feel healthier than the school lunches. Granary bread with houmous in it plus they get plus fruit/veg, yog/cheese and some kind of biscuit. It doesn't take long. In fact it is no bother to me at all because DH always makes them

My children will have to have packed lunches which is fine with my 12 year old but 14 year olds not happy.
It's a pain as my husband needs a packed lunch too. Sometimes though they'll have a pack of lunchables with fruit and yoghurt. Or take crackers with fillings. Eldes likes bagels and salads too so mix it up a bit.
It doesn't really take long. The thought is the worst part and now I usually make them all do their own lunches (but obviously doesn't work if your children are young).

For some asking why some schools are not serving hot lunches....

We can't do hot dinners because we don't have a school kitchen so couldn't keep the meals at the correct serving temperature for a staggered lunch. It gets delivered to us just before lunch. The serving area is in a classroom which would mean other bubbles going through to collect their lunches. We also eat in the hall normally which is a classroom and as the children are that squashed in now with the tables as they are, they wouldn't be able to get to their tables with food in their hands. We are having a cold lunch delivered to each bubble door.

Why not get the children to make their own dinners? Saves you a job and teaches them lots of different skills.

Mornings aren’t great around here but I’ll try to get the DC to make their own lunches! DD used to insist on it when she was about three but I think things may have changed now she’s a tween

I loathe making packed lunches too. Fortunately here all kids in their first 3 years of school are entitled to free lunches. Might start a school lunches savings account to make sure Incan just pay for school lunches after that!

I’m in Ireland and we always had to do lunches as (primary) schools don’t have dinner halls/canteens here.

I’ve bitched about it every single day since DS started school.

But I’m delighted to be back to it now. (Let’s see how long it lasts).

Where your kids are opting for packed lunches, and they're 10+, it's easy enough to say "yes, but you make it yourself". DD decided to switch to packed lunch from year 8 and has always done her own, although it's usually a good idea if I'm around to remind her to put fruit/veg in.

I hear you - so annoyed at this. Its just another way covid rules make life just that little bit more shit.

Apparently our school are packed lunches only for key stage 2, because restrictions on how many can be in the hall at once, and they didn't want to have to stagger lunchtimes that much so its only hot meals for key stage 1.

Dc2 will not eat sandwiches. Doesn't like bread. Normally, not a massive issue, but this means I've got to be creative in the mornings.

My children’s school are providing packed lunches instead of hot dinners

I always make them the night before and put the lunchbox in the fridge overnight. Otherwise I’d never get out the door in the morning.

I put in a little salad ( cucumber sticks, cherry toms, carrots sticks, pepper sticks) plus some cocktail sausages or little pork pies. Either half a sandwich or crackers with cheese in. Fruit, a yoghurt and a snack bar. Sounds a lot but I don’t put much of each thing in. I find mine eat better if I do a small amount of loads of bits.
Works for us.

Our primary still doing hot dinners, bubbles at tables with space between. They ordered extra cutlery and trays. Think it's important to maintain good nutrition with covid, for health of all and the families with lots of income. They provided hot meals for key worker children throughout.

I suppose furloughing kitchen staff would be problematic. And meals are decent cooked from scratch onsite

I just cook a bit extra the night before and stir through some pasta sauce then leave in fridge- in the morning add some chopped tomato and cucumber and cooked chicken and mix it all in. He doesn’t like mayo either so likes his with tomatoey sauce. You could stir through a tiny bit of oil to stop it sticking if you don’t want it tomatoey?

Sorry that was supposed to reply to @viciouslybashed

For anyone who doesn't know schools providing packed lunches they are really crap! Cheap nasty thin sliced white bread, sparse filling of ham or cheese, horrible cheap margarine, usually a piece of fruit, a biscuit and one of those naff tiny cup drinks with peelable lids.

We’ve got the option of hot food, but no details of what it might be so it doesn’t work for our fussy eater.

We’ll be sending them with a cold pasta dish every day.

Leftovers! Any curry, soup, chili, salad, stir fry ... Get a flask as suggested above although some things (Stir fry) work just fine cold.

If you want to take it to the next level, add a little packet of crisps or crackers that match the food: prawn crackers or poppadums for curry for example. Also you can get super cute sauce containers from Japanese shops for soy sauce or sweet chili sauce.

I personally hate making packups but there’s something very pleasant about knowing DC are going to have a nice lunch. I love taking something good to work & looking forward to it all morning, DC should have that as well IMO.

At my DS’s primary school they aren’t allowed to take packed lunches. At DD2’s secondary school there is a limited range of school meals and ability to take packed lunches as wished. There is no common ground at all.

Pasta salad is a big favourite. Or couscous. With some pesto and pulses and roasted veg.

No hot lunches here either. My two always had packed lunch about 2 days per week when they didn’t like any of the options. I didn’t mind doing the same lunch every time then but I don’t really want to be doing that 5 days per week. The 6 year old is so fussy though! (and also why she’s not having the free school packed lunch) 🙄

I'm dreading it less than a second round of homeschooling (I thought I was chill with that, but I'm actually getting homeschooling flashback nightmares as the new school year is looming near )

My DC have made their own lunches since y5. No angst at all!!!

Our primary are not providing hot dinners but will provide a packed lunch. The school is small. No way of accommodating lunchtimes in the hall for each bubble so they will eat in the classrooms hence the packed lunch only.

Yes @kaiserin. We should count our blessings!

When I did casual supply teaching, I made up batches of rolls so I could grab them out of the freezer and go within 5 minutes of The Phonecall. Much easier and cost effective to make up 20 in one go, and better for making a few varieties for variation.