"Organize It" Party - "Control It" - School Lunch

Ready for more “Control It” Kids stuff from school papers to bedrooms? Let's talk about how to "Control It" when it comes to our kids lunches. Amy Hemmert and Tammy Pelstring share with us some great school lunch organization ideas. Be sure to also get your party favor and open the next gift (giveaway).

Streamlining Your School Lunch Routine
by Amy Hemmert and Tammy Pelstring



It’s 6:45 a.m. The morning news is making it’s way to your sleepy brain, and you realize that it’s time to haul your tired body out of bed: time to get the kids up, get them dressed, and get them fed. And then you remember...LUNCH. You wish you could make it fun, healthy, and cost-effective too. But the clock is ticking, and you have to think FAST, so peanut butter and jelly it is, along with a bag of chips, an apple, a single-serve yogurt, a power bar, and a juice box.

MAKING THE CHANGE

It’s not as NUTRITIOUS as you’d like, and the single-serve packaging makes it a bit more expensive too, but it’s fast, CONVENIENT, and you know the kids will eat it. Make it through today, and you’ll be able to make changes tomorrow. If this story sounds familiar to you, and you’re tired of racing around in the morning only to find yourself stuck in the peanut butter and jelly rut, then these 10 strategies for improving your lunch routine may be just what you need. It just might change the way you feel when you wake up in the morning.

START TODAY

Don’t WAIT until tomorrow or the next day or the day after that. You only have a few years to shape your kids' eating habits. And if you get them trained to each expensive, processed, high-sugar, high-fat convenience foods now, they will be doing it their whole lives. HABITS are much harder to break down the road.

HAVE A CHAT

TALK to your children about their lunches. Find out what nutritious items from each food group they’d like to see in their lunches. Provide healthy choices and allow them to CHOOSE from among them. A complete list of fruits and vegetables, grains, and proteins can be found at OnlineOrganizing.com's Laptop Lunches product page under "lunch ideas". Print off the list, sit down with your children, and ask them to circle the foods that they’d like to see in their lunches.
(we have also posted the list at the bottom of this article)

SHOP WITH YOUR KIDS

Take your hildren’s lists to the GROCERY store with you. Encourage your children to help pick the items from the shelf and put them in the cart. Practice reading INGREDIENTS labels together. If the items you select are high in fat, sugar, salt, and artificial colorings and flavors, put them back. Search for more nutritious alternatives. Children are more likely to eat wholesome foods that they’ve had a hand in choosing and preparing.

KEEP PLENTY IN THE HOUSE


Make sure you keep the right foods in STOCK. Keep a copy of your lunch list in your wallet or purse so you’ll have it when you find yourself at the grocery store unexpectedly. Make purchasing nutritious lunch items part of your WEEKLY shopping routine. Keep dried fruits and nuts (for older children) on hand for use when the cupboard is growing bare.

MAXIMIZE LEFTOVERS

Don’t forget about leftovers! Packing leftovers in your child’s lunch can save you TIME and energy, and kids love them. When you’re deciding what to cook for dinner, think about how you might incorporate leftovers into a lunch for the following day. Make a few EXTRA servings for dinner and pack them in small containers (stored in the the refrigerator) for lunch the next day. Here are a few ideas for making it work:

* If you make chicken breasts or grilled vegetables, prepare an extra serving and slice it for SANDWICHES the next day instead of purchasing deli lunch meat.


* If you’re making a salad for dinner, slice some extra VEGETABLES, such as cucumbers, carrots, bell peppers, and celery -- and pack some extra dressing for dip.


* While you’re making dinner, boil a few EGGS. Pack the eggs whole, make deviled eggs, or use them in egg salad.


* Make extra pasta, couscous, or rice and make side SALADS for lunch by cutting up vegetables and adding salad dressing.


* Make an extra baked POTATO and pack it with nutritious toppings.

If you’re worried that it might seem less appealing the following day, consider packing it for lunch TWO days later, provided the food will remain fresh for an extra day.

MAKE LUNCHES THE NIGHT BEFORE

When you’re doing the dinner CLEAN-UP, line up your lunch containers and fill them with wholesome food for the next day. In the morning you’ll be glad you did!

PURCHASE THE RIGHT TOOLS

Make sure you have a set of reusable CONTAINERS clearly marked with your child’s name. Purchase a set of utensils that are the right size for your child. Invest in a sturdy refillable WATER bottle instead of relying on expensive, high-sugar single-serve juice boxes, cans, and pouches. Water is what your child’s body needs. For an all-in-one lunch system, consider the
Laptop Lunches kit.

SEARCH THE BULK BINS

Buying in bulk is less costly because you’re not paying for the PACKAGING. Purchasing in bulk allows you to purchase in QUANTITIES that are right for you. It’s a great way to try new foods too since you can purchase in small quantities to start. Kids love scooping and pouring these items too, so it’s a great way to keep them engaged in the lunchmaking process.

INVOLVE THE WHOLE FAMILY

Children of all ages can (and should!) HELP make lunches. Even small children can pick up a few carrots and put them into a lunch container. Older children can make sandwiches, cut fruit, and fill water bottles. They can also take RESPONSIBILITY for rinsing out their containers when they get home from school.

GO THE DISTANCE

Stick with it and congratulate yourself often because your children are eating BETTER and you’re spending LESS on food. And the next time that alarm goes off and you’re struggling to get out of bed, give yourself a few extra minutes to relax because your school lunches have already been made.


Amy Hemmert and Tammy Pelstring, two California moms, are co-authors of The Laptop Lunch User’s Guide: Fresh Ideas for Packing Wholesome, Earth-friendly Lunches Your Kids Will Love. Together they created the Laptop Lunch System, a set of compartmentalized food containers, utensils and water bottle that sit neatly inside a stylish insulated carrying case. All of their products are available directly through www.onlineorganizing.com.

Content provided by OnlineOrganizing.com -- offering "a world of organizing solutions!" Visit www.onlineorganizing.com for organizing products, free tips, a speakers bureau, get a referral for a Professional Organizer near you, or get some help starting and running your own organizing business.

LUNCH IDEAS

GRAIN (SERVING SIZES)

• 1 slice of whole-grain bread
• 1/2 cup of cooked whole-grain cereal, rice, or pasta

VEGETABLE (SERVING SIZES)

• 1 cup of raw leafy vegetables
• 1/2 cup of other vegetables

FRUIT (SERVING SIZES)

• 1 medium apple, orange, pear, peach, or plum
• 1/2 banana
• 1/2 cup of chopped fruit

CALCIUM-RICH FOODS (SERVING SIZES)

• 1 cup of skim or 1% milk or calcium-enriched soy milk
• 1 cup of yogurt or cottage cheese
• 1 1/2 ounces of reduced fat cheese
• 1/2 cup of cubed tofu (made with calcium sulfate)
• 1/2 cup of broccoli, spinach, turnip greens, chard, kale
• 3 ounces of canned salmon

PROTEIN-RICH FOODS (SERVING SIZES)

• 2-3 ounces of cooked lean meat, poultry, or fish
• 1/2 cup of cooked dry beans or tofu
• 2 1/2 ounce soyburger
• 1 egg or egg substitute
• 2 tablespoons of nut butter or soy nut butter
• 1/3 cup of nuts

BREADS

bagel

baguette

bread sticks

crackers

English muffin

focaccia

lavash bread

pita bread

pizza bread

rice cakes

rolls

sandwich bread

tortillas

SPREADS AND CONDIMENTS

almond butter

apple butter

avocado (mashed)

banana (mashed)

brie cheese

cashew butter

cream cheese (lowfat)

goat cheese

honey

hummus

jam (spreadable fruit)

ketchup

mayonnaise/mustard

peanut butter

pesto

pizza or tomato sauce

pumpkin butter

FILLINGS

carrots (shredded)

cheese (lite/low-fat)

chicken

chicken salad

egg salad

hard boiled egg

nitrite-free hot dogs

lettuce

shrimp salad

sliced avocado

sliced cucumber

smoked salmon

sprouts

tofu

tuna salad

FRUITS

apples

apricots

Asian pears

avocado

bananas

blueberries

cherries

cranberries (dried)

dates

figs

grapefruit

grapes

kiwi

mango

melon

nectarines

orange sections

papaya

peaches

pears

pineapple

plums

prunes

raisins

raspberries

strawberries

tomatoes

VEGETABLES

asparagus

beets

bell peppers

bok choy

broccoli

Brussels sprouts

cabbage

carrots

cauliflower

celery

cucumbers

eggplant

green beans

green salad

lettuce

mushrooms

seaweed (nori, wakame, hijiki)

shelling peas

snap peas

soy beans (edamame)

spinach

squash

sweet potatoes

yams

zucchini

TREATS

apple crisp

applesauce

baked chips with salsa

dried fruit

fruit bar

fruit leather

granola

homemade cookies

notes from home

popcorn

pretzels

stickers

trail mix

vanilla yogurt with fruit

SANDWICH IDEAS

Cheese, avocado, and sprouts

Grilled cheese with cucumber or sprouts

Leftover grilled vegetables with cheese or pesto sauce

Cheddar or mozzarella cheese with apple slices

Brie cheese with mustard and sprouts

Cheese, tomato, sprouts or lettuce, and pesto sauce

Leftover turkey loaf with tomatoes, and lettuce or sprouts

Sliced leftover turkey, cranberry sauce, and lettuce

Sliced leftover chicken, honey mustard, tomatoes, and lettuce or sprouts

Sliced leftover beef with mayonnaise or horseradish, sliced tomato and cucumbers

Chicken salad made with celery, lettuce, and tomato

Tuna/cucumber/green pepper salad with tomato

Salmon salad with lettuce or sprouts

Shrimp salad with lettuce or sprouts

Lowfat cream cheese, and smoked salmon (with tomato, and red onion)

Freebie Party favor time:

Each day I place a note in my two youngest boys lunches to remind them that I am thinking about them through out the day. Our next FREEbie party favor for you, is sharing with you the FREE places you can down load lunch box notes and jokes that you can print off and place each day in your Children's lunches so they too will know you are thinking about them.

Trish Berg has both printable lunch box notes and lunch box jokes at http://www.trishberg.com/html/freestuffformoms.html

The Gingerbread nook has some adorable pritable lunch box notes http://www.gingerbreadnook.com/backpacknotes/

Family Education has a nice variety of lunch box notes at http://printables.familyeducation.com/forms-and-charts/lunchbox-notes/51404.html

Blues Clues lunch box notes at http://www.nickjr.com/printables/blues-lunchbox-notes.jhtml

The heart of mother hood has lunch box note sthat fit the avery business cards http://www.the-heart-of-motherhood.com/printable-lunchbox-notes.html

You can also purchase Lunch Box notes at the 24/7 MOMS Store in our 'Organize It' Department.





Our next GIFT ( Giveaway) for today is from Happikins http://www.happikins.com/


What’s a Happikin?

Do you have kids? Do they have mouths? Do they eat lunch with those mouths? Do they sometimes miss their mouths when eating lunch... maybe getting said lunch on their face and hands?

We can't stop your kids from making messes, but we can help clean them up without making a mess of the environment. Happikins™ are machine-washable cloth napkins for school lunches. Purchasing them for your child can help reduce the 18, 760 pounds of unnecessary waste generated by the average elementary school cafeteria each year. All of those paper napkins affect more than the environment. Did you know that most kids use $200 worth of paper napkins a year?

Happikins™ are a fun and easy way to teach your child about the importance of making smart choices for our environment. And for wiping that PB & J out of the corners of their mouths.

Happikins and 24/7 MOMS are giving away one set of Happikins. To enter for your chance to win, enter your name and email address in the box below you will be signed up for today's Happikins giveaway as well as be added to the 24/7 MOMS E-list(if you are not already a 24/7 MOMS subscriber). Drawing to be held on February 1, 2009.






Join us tomorrow for another day of the "Organize It" Party when we will "Simplify It"
be sure to tell all your MOM friends to join us for more fun, party favors and Gifts.

Oh, I almost forgot - are you a MOM blogger? Invite your readers to join us. We even have a fun button you can place on your blog, grab the HTML code on the right side of our blog and invite your moms to join us.