What can i put in DD's (3) lunchbox?

[nickelbarapasaurus]

DD (3) is starting nursery on monday - she'll be going in at 12 until 3, and they eat lunch at 12.
She'll be coming straight from playgroup, so it's fine to think of a full lunch (the leaders said that if she has lunch earlier at home normally to put a couple of things in a box so that she sits with everyone and eats)

Now, normally at home, she and I eat lunch together out of one bowl - it's something we've always done and it's fun. (rice or pasta for example)

We have been told that they make them eat savoury first and then sweet, which i've never subscribed to (just let her eat what she fancies and then mve on to the next thing), so really my question is more about portion size than anything.

If i put crackers in, should i put 1 or 2 in? bearing in mind that if she doesn't want crackers, she might feel forced to eat them...

As a help, we take a lunchbox to church, which usually has 4 or 5 items in, around the concept of cheese, crackers, egg, olives, orange, apple, carrot, raisins, yoghurt, that kind of thing. (eg, 2 crackers, one cut of cheese, an apple, an egg, a yoghurt; or cheese, yoghurt, apple, carrot; or olives, egg, orange, cheese, raisins etc)

Should I just do her a "church lunchbox" or something more subtantial?
She will eat sandwiches, but not reliably, and as I say, i don't want her to feel that she's forced to eat something she doesn't want just so she can have the yoghurt.

How many items of fruit? what protein? carbs?

Extra info: she's vegetarian (eggs and dairy allowed), allergic to peanuts ( only of nuts ) and sesame.

thank you

your church box sounds totally fine, and if it's familiar and she's used to it then you're one step ahead already.

FWIW DD is 3 and fussy, every day I pack her a punnet of raspberries and an almond butter sandwich.

DS is less fussy, when he 3 he had a small bento box and I did various sandwiches, or cold pasta pesto, a piece of fruit like an apple or berries or grapes put in a hard tupperware box, chopped carrots, had a little tub to pop houmous in etc.

He's now 6 and the lunch he takes to school is
Big box: sandwich or cold pizza or thermos of pasta pesto
Small Snack boxes: one with a home made baked good (no sugar, extra veg), one with either pistachios, cashews, raisins, pretzels or similar
fruit - he eats all of them pretty much, the only one I don't send in is Banana cos unless you have one ofthese then they go squishy and horrid

I think the familiarity of the lunchbox you already do will help. I have found that my DD (just 4) is ravenous on the days she is at Pre-School BUT, crucially, they aren't forced to finish their food if not hungry; anything they leave is sent home for Parents to see. This reassured me to pack a little more, as DD was regularly eating everything and I was concerned she wasn't getting quite enough. You might want to check their policy on this.

thanks all, i'm glad you think the church lunchbox is reasonable - i do worry it doesn't have much in the way of protein items, but we do have pulses and milks and (other) nuts at other times (like hazelnut milk on her weetabix), so i think she balances out.

Funnily enough, i haven't mentioned the lunchbox to her at all, but today, she insisted on packing her gruffalo lunch box with food to take to the libray for a picnic
That's big enough to fit a water bottle in too

yy, i'll check what they say on finishing food/sending it home - all i remember is that they said they wanted them to eat savoury before "pudding"
i hope they do send it home - she's only there 3 hours and i can save fruit etc for the next day