The excitement and anticipation of the beginning of school creates a magical time where parents forget the rushed mornings filled with hurrying the kids out the door while doing a quick inspection to make sure hair is combed, teeth are brushed, and backpacks are packed. Its kind of like child birth, if it weren’t for the brain erasing the most painful parts, there is no way parents would look forward to the hustle and bustle of the get-out-the-door, run-to-the-car, rush-to-school routine.
One of the biggest time sucks in the morning is packing a lunch. In the pre-back to school aura, illusions of lunch grander dance through parents’ head. Bento boxes with tiny compartments filled with color coordinated, organic, garden grown vegetables. Or tiny sandwiches cut in thematic shapes to mirror the books being read in class. The people of Pinterst would applaud your ingenuity! Unfortunately, the real world comes crashing down about 2 minutes after the alarm rings on the first day of school, and with it, the award-winning lunch. By Christmas, the Bento box has been replaced by reused ziplock bags filled with stale pretzels and carrots picked out of the salad from the night before. The end of the year is even worse; a brown paper bag with a mint from take-out the night before and the sinking feeling of failure.
It doesn’t have to be this way! Follow the easy steps below to create a stress-free (ok, you know it won’t be stress free, you haven’t had one of those morning since before kids!) morning routine.
Get Organized
Make sure each member of the family has their own, identifiable lunch box that can be easily found and grabbed in a rush. Sending your third grader to school with Dad’s frozen lean cuisine and weight loss shake results in an awkward call home. On the other hand, Dad wouldn’t complain about a traditional PB&J with a side of fruit snacks, so it also prevents a calculated “mistake” by the biggest of kids in the house.
Plan for the Week
Just like planning weekly dinners, lunches should be done in the same vain. There is no reason to become a short-order cook for multiple lunches. Mix and match components of dinner and repurpose them for the next day. Meatless Monday? Use pasta boiled the night before and throw together a quick pasta salad. Taco Tuesday? Use the black beans and cheese for a protein-packed bean and cheese quesadilla on Wednesday. Pizza on Thursday? Trick question, you don’t repurpose pizza. Pizza stands alone.
Work Smart Not Hard
It is a scientific fact all tasks take twice as long in the morning as they do at any other time of day. And, time actually moves faster in the morning than at night. If its on the internet, it has to be true, right?
Instead of prepping everything in the morning, do as much as you can the night before. This becomes even easier if you repurpose left overs. The kitchen is already a mess, put the leftovers directly in the lunch containers, and clean as you go. Nonperishables should be placed in the lunch box the night before and items that need to remain refrigerated should be brought to the front to prevent rummaging in the morning.
Don’t be Afraid to Ask For Help
Nowhere in the parenting guidebook does is say Mom or Dad have to be the designated lunch maker. Lunches are the perfect way to get your child involved in cooking. There is no job too small. Counting individual servings of carrots, dropping prepackaged snacks into each lunch box, or filling water bottles for the next day. Having the smaller tasks taken care of, frees you up to do the bigger items.
Celebrate the Victories
Parenting is competitive enough – lunch making doesn’t have to be. Did your kid get lunch every day this week? Celebrate with a glass of wine! Did your kid like their lunch? Celebrate with two glasses of wine! No phone calls home for inappropriate items accidentally added to the lunch box? Celebrate with all the wine!
Starting school is hard. Making sure lunches are prepared easily and quickly can streamline the morning routine. Use these tips and it is also guaranteed to help kids wake up before their alarm clock, make their beds, and get out the door ahead of schedule. Because if its on the internet it has to be true, right?
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