About the bloody packed lunches?

[Illbefinejustbloodyfine]

I have 2 DC at primary school. One has packed lunch every day, the other 3 times a week. Every day, they eat about 3 bits of sandwich and leave the rest. Or dc2 will leave the crackers

Today he asked for chicken pieces and bread and butter. He also had some cucumber, some Greek yogurt, and a slice of Swiss roll. He left most of the bread. Yesterday left most of the sandwich. Weds left the crackers.

They go straight for a snack when they get home and it drives me nuts to find uneaten sandwickes/crackers/whatever in the lunchbox.

Several times I've said to eat the sandwich first. Yesterday I made a big point of it . Today, dc2 has snuck the uneaten bread into the bin.

Aibu to just give a sandwich and piece of fruit next week? Funnily enough it's never the "treat" that's uneaten.

For context, it's a 1 slice folded in half sandwich. They sometimes have wraps or bagels but do the same with those too.

I'm so fed up of throwing food away.

I totally hear you. My girls (6 and 9) have school dinners (one is in infants, so free, otherwise yeh, so expensive for two). But my 9yo has a packed meal twice after school and once on a Saturday for long gymnastics training sessions. She always leaves the sandwich. When I change it up eg. Tub with cheese, crackers, grapes, or pasta pot, we have more success. Also, if you can get your kids to eat homemade, I do a high fibre blueberry muffin that’s nutrient dense and I’m quite happy is better than most sandwiches (SR nutrition and Emily English do great recipes). My youngest devours this in his pre-school lunchbox. The girls have had too many years of processed cake so they’re not quite on board yet - I’m planning a summer snack detox where we cut waaaay back on the processed snacks. Wish me luck!

I’m a right cow. My kids don’t get treats in their lunchbox as it’s not staple meal food. Treats are given as and when (although usually most days if I’m honest).

sandwich
crudities
yoghurt
fruit

Only a treat (eg crisps or a chocolate biscuit) on a Friday. They had to eat it or go hungry. At home, only a healthy snack once they came home, however hungry. Nice treat after dinner.
It seemed to work. One was very limited as to what they ate. They probably had the same lunch every day for 13 years!

My daughter often complains she doesn’t get time time to finish her lunch as they don’t get a long lunch (45 mins) and they are always in a rush to go off and play. My daughter eats like a sparrow at the best of times but yeah it’s usually the sandwich/roll/wrap that gets left or the fruit or both not the treat! A few times I’ve threatened to only send the sandwich and fruit, no treat, but then it gets better for while (either that or she is just binning the main stuff!)
Seriously though I would just stop sending in the treat. Maybe get them involved in planning what they actually want for lunch? My daughter just isn’t into sandwiches but she does like crackers so sometimes I just send those with fruit and a small treat. They really don’t have time for big elaborate lunches and I always laugh at those cute but impractical ones you see on Pinterest. I’m always thinking they just don’t have time for all that!

Well this was my initial reaction but I felt mean 😅

Nope, I think I am!

They love homemade stuff and we do bake, so I will look up sone alternatives I can make.

Keep persevering because the weather is hot and appetites fluctuate. I'm actually amazed they haven't cottoned on and thrown the sarnie at school at their ages.

I've seen a lot of school packed lunches (primary teacher). I think many parents tend to send far too much. Commonly see a sandwich + several 'sides' (e.g. crisps, and yoghurt, and fruit, and crackers and a treat). Presumably if kids are at home they don't have all that?

Mine just get the same as what they'd get at home - some kind of protein + carb (e.g. sandwich / wrap / pasta / cheese & crackers etc.), fruit & a yoghurt. Always eat most of it.

I stopped treats a few years ago because they were always eaten but other food left, now mine are older, they still don't always eat everything but can have the rest when they get home and they often don't. They have a few grapes, a selection of veg and a wrap. If they're hungry they eat it and I live with it if they don't on the basis there's nothing bad in there

If they have leftover lunch they should finish that instead of any snacks after school. Fine in the winter, just add an ice pack in there for the summer.

She’s 12

12

They have to bring all "rubbish" home. Unfortunately for them!

That's what I thought of. Breadsticks and dip, crackers and cheese. Pasta salad maybe?

Cheese or buttermilk scones might go down well too if you are into baking.

https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/buttermilk-scones

Mine loved strips of toasted pita and a little pot of hummus x

Send crackers with cheese spread or hummus. Mini croissants, and a small container with rolled up turkey or ham slices and a bit of cheese. Or, send chicken or tuna salad. They can stuff it into the croissant, or not. I am here in the US, so I would think a container with slaw, or potato salad, or pasta salad. Egg salad. Using mini croissants or crackers may work better than a slice of bread folded in half. Make your regular sandwich on a tortilla and wrap it, slice into "pinwheels" and it is more tempting for kids. We have little rolls here at Aldi, that make small sandwiches.

@PurplGirl would you mind sharing the recipe for the high fiber blueberry muffins please? Thanks!

I'm a fan of bento type lunches. My bento has 5 compartments so I do a carb, a protein, a fruit, a veg and then something else.

Carb could obviously be bread but might be rice or cous cous, crackers or a pasta salad.

I find if I chop fruit or separate it, so for a satsuma peeled and separated I will eat it. If it is a complete piece of fruit for some unknown reason I don't always eat it.

Protein, obviously can be meat or cheese but also egg (shell before packing to limit the smell) chick peas, nuts (obviously that depends on the school policy).

It could also be hummus or a bean salad or guacamole.

Get them to make their own lunch. At 9 my DS use to only take one piece of bread sandwich and a yogurt tube. He actually ate more than if it was a full Lunch box as he would literally take one bite out of everything. He said he was too busy (wanted to go out to play) to eat!

Hes now 11 and eats everything in sight!

Sure! These are my go-to recipes for high fibre/protien. I increase the wholemeal flour (reduce the plain). And brush both with maple syrup as soon as they come out of the oven. They freeze really well.

Food is food. Does it matter what order they eat it in?

Another thing to consider is that some kids don’t like eating in dinner halls. My daughter would always come home having eaten barely a thing. She lost a lot of weight. She’s autistic and really hated eating in the dining room due to sensory overload.

Now she’s home educated, she eats nonstop and has put weight on. Just something to consider.

Please can you make me a packed lunch? Sounds wonderful!