5 Tips to Packing a Great Lunch for Your Child
Packing lunch for your child is an important way of keeping them eating healthy. This way, you will know what sort of food your kid will be eating at school. As a parent, you will have the freedom to give them food that is rich in vitamins and minerals. You can also monitor their calorie and sugar intake.
If you are unsure of how and what to do, here are five tips on packing a great lunch for your child.
- Let your kids have the freedom on what to pack.
This does not necessarily mean that you will be giving them everything they want, but give them some healthy options that they prefer. Give them a list of options for veggies, fruits, and snacks that they like. Provide options for healthy drinks as well. Letting them understand what a balanced meal would greatly help and will make it easier for them to choose. And from to time, you can include some treats to their packed lunch too.
- Plan ahead.
Having a proper plan on what to pack for lunch for your kids would be a smart move. Make a weekly planner with a list of possible food choices you will be making. Do a research for a daily meal plan so you can give your child a balanced diet. You will also save yourself from a stress-free kitchen. This way, you will be able to give your child a variety of options and so their meals every week do not become repetitive.
- Get creative with how you pack the lunch.
Kids love attractive food and would appreciate if you get creative about it. For instance, you can form your sandwiches or fruit snacks into different figures and shapes. You can also make one of that cute bento lunches and place them in cute Yumbox lunchboxes. This is a fun and exciting way of making lunch for your child and allows you to think outside the box. Making a creative lunch idea is also less clutter and will help your child be organized.
- Pack enough food.
Avoid packing too much food for lunch. It will either go to waste if your child cannot eat all of it, or your child will be eating too much food, resulting in an unbalanced diet. There will be times where your child would get very hungry so to ease your mind, you can simply pack a heavy meal of your choice with fruits and drink. You can also add a few sweets if you like.
- Pack the same food that your child eats at home.
Not only will it make your decision making so much easier, your child will also have the same eating experience just like what he or she has at home. Know what your child prefers to eat at home and they will most definitely eat it at school as well. They may have a few slight preferences for a packed lunch, but always make sure that the food they are eating is somehow similar to what you provide them at home.