It’s been a while since I have written a blog as life with a husband, two children, an online business and back working full time this year has kept me busy.

This year our little family has grown into the life of school. My daughter Avery started prep this year, which means the start of many years of preparing school lunches. So I thought I would share with you my tips on how I provide my daughter and my son Archie who is at kinder with a healthy lunch each day.

My biggest tip is to find the right lunchbox! Hate losing lids to containers that you put in your children’s lunches? The solution is to use a lunchbox that has compartments. This also enables you to mix up the children’s lunches each day. There are lots of great products out there and the one I bought for my children is the Yumbox, pictured below.

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These lunchboxes are leak proof so you can add foods like yoghurt, pureed fruit and it seals with one lid. They are BPA-free and phthalates-free and are dishwasher safe. They come with different compartments inside and you are helping the environment by not utilsing plastic wraps and other plastic bags to store and protect food. They also fit perfectly in the bottom of the squiggle two compartment lunchboxes so you can add more food for both of their school lunch/recess breaks in the top compartment.

So what types of food do I prepare for my children? Here is a list of all the things I include:

  • Wholegrain sandwiches or wraps filled with so many different combinations
  • Carrot Sticks
  • Red Capsicum Sticks
  • Celery Sticks
  • Slices of Cheese
  • Cucumber
  • Cherry Tomatoes
  • Corn on the Cob or sliced off
  • Fruit cut up including watermelon, strawberries, cantaloupe, blueberries, mango, kiwi, raspberries, apples, oranges, pears, mandarins, grapes etc.
  • Yoghurt
  • Left over veggies from dinner
  • Left over cold pasta i.e. penne (gluten free)
  • Cold homemade chicken nuggets with homemade tomato sauce (recipe in the first Healthy eBook)
  • Dips especially hummus (children love to dip food)
  • Cold pieces of frittata or mini egg delights (recipes in the first Healthy eBook)
  • Cold meats
  • Olives
  • Dry wholegrain biscuits and cheese
  • Pureed fruit (my children love my apple sauce recipe)
  • Sultanas
  • Medjool Dates
  • Dried Fruit (check no added sugars)
  • Boiled Eggs
  • Avocado slices
  • Omelet wraps with lots of different combinations
  • Zucchini Fritters
  • Rice crackers
  • Healthy homemade sweet muffins or biscuits
  • Left over homemade skewers, lots of combinations i.e. chicken satay, veggie skewers, honey and soy chicken.
  • Left over healthy pancakes (recipe in the second Healthy Lifestyle eBook)

This is by no means a full list but are some of the ideas I utilise for my children’s lunches. Raw nuts and my healthy treat balls would be great too but most schools don’t allow nuts due to allergies.

My children have always loved a mezze plate or antipasto plate full of lots of choices. It makes lunchtime more enjoyable and interesting. Here are a few pictures of my children’s lunches and I hope this gives my lovely fellow mummas some ideas.

Lisa x

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