Is It Lunch Time Again?

Are your kids like mine and they demand lunch, every day?  It's so tricky to keep everyone fed and happy!  Our morning routine of showering, getting ready, eating breakfast, packing lunches, and getting out the door is CRAZY! So this year I'm trying something new.  This is the first time I have four lunches that need to be packed each day.  I had to change something.  I happened upon some suggestions on the Internet, and I adapted them to what works for my family.  I prepackage the snacks and fruits and veggies.  That way all that needs to be made each day are the sandwiches.  This helps us tremendously by saving time and making the lunch packing quick and easy.  I make a sandwich for each kid, I set out the snacks and they pick which ones they want to throw in their lunches, and then we run out the door.  

I pack one container with the bagged fruits and vegetables.  For us this often includes carrots, broccoli, celery sticks, go-gurts, cheese sticks, strawberries, and applesauce pouches.  I also put ranch dip in small containers for them to take.  

I also put together some bags of chips, crackers, and pretzels.  I have looked into buying individually prepackaged chips, but it is cheaper to do it myself.  This also helps me have more control over portion sizes.

Lastly, everyone picks a dessert to take.  For us this is usually 2 Oreo cookies that I bag up.  As you can see here, it is sometimes difficult to have enough containers to store all these snacks in.  So I reused a box that came with mandarin oranges.  It's the perfect size to stash in the pantry with our lunch desserts and snacks!

Prepping ahead has really sped up our morning routine.  My oldest son, who is 14, packs his own lunches.  He recently thanked me for having all the snacks ready in advance.  Can you believe that?  A teenager thanking his mom?  So this must be really helpful to him as well.  

What do you do to help with packing lunches quickly and efficiently?  Post a comment and let me know!