Functional Lunchbox Hacks for the Whole Family
If you’re a parent, September may be one of your favorite times of year. Yes we know, back to school shopping can be daunting but pretty soon the kiddies will actually be back to school! Additionally, with COVID easing in some states, many of us that work from home are being called back into the office.
This may come with some additional expenses including lunch. If you’re on a tight budget or like me, on a special diet, you may prefer to bring your lunch. Here are some functional lunch box hacks for you and your child.
If you need your food to socially distance
I hate when my food touches. If it’s spaghetti and meatballs, that’s ok but dishes like salads can be ruined if you fail to keep your wet and dry items separate. I swear by these two items.
For the ultimate separation with cutlery included, try the Sistema Food Storage Container, 4.6 Cup . I love this item because it’s very versatile. With a sauce cup, cutlery and a detachable stackable separation tray, this is the ultimate gadget for anyone who is particular about what touches what.
Need to eat your salad on the go? Try the Komax Salad Bottle with leak proof salad sauce dressing case which comes in pink and green. This keeps you dressing separate from the rest of the salad ensuring you don’t end up with a soggy mess come lunchtime.
If yogurt is more you thing, try the Buybox 20 oz clear plastic parfait cups with insert, dome Lids and spoon . This container keeps your topping crunchy and comes with a spoon that snaps to the side.
Shapely Hack: If you’re in a pinch and don’t have these items available, use cupcake liners as inserts. Silicone liners work best, are reusable and decrease your carbon footprint however most disposable liners will do the job.
Ice Ice Baby
Photo Credit: Amazon
If packing a cold item with no access to refrigeration, this can become challenging and even unsafe in some instances - watch out dairy!
Ice packs are great and now come with most travel food storage systems. One of my favorites because of the shape, cost, and practicality is Fit + Fresh Cool Coolers Slim Ice Packs.
Shapely Hack:
Freeze your prepackaged yogurts. If you’re bringing your store bought yogurt in its packaging, unless it says not to, freeze it and it should thaw by lunchtime. GoGurt markets their product specifically designed with this thought process in mind.
Freeze a wet sponge and place it in a Ziploc bag. This can serve as an ice pack which should hold until lunchtime.
When I dip, you dip, we dip!
My friends call me the “condiment queen.” I like to refer to myself as the “sauce boss.” I love condiments! They can really kick your dish up a notch. With that said, traveling with a full bottle of ketchup can be a bit cumbersome. Here are my favorite dip picks.
Joie is one of my favorite on the go brands. If there’s a travel need, chances are they make a container for it. One of my favorite is their Joie 61001 container. With a compartment for your dip and dippables, it makes it easy to sauce it up.
Another one of my go to condiment containers is the Sistema To Go Collection 1.18 Oz. Salad dressing containers. They fit into many of Sistema’s larger containers, come in a variety of colors, are BPA free and reusable.
Shapely Hack: There’s no clever hack for this one. I simply put my sauce in a small Ziploc bag, twist it so it’s air tight and call it a day.
Entertain Me
Children can be pretty finicky when it comes to lunchtime. If you would like to put a smile on your child’s face, here are some ideas.
Gift wrap the lunch items. Surprise! If you want to add a layer of fun, have your child attempt to guess what it is before leaving the house. If they get it correct, you can offer them a prize. This also works well with spouses, the price for your spouse can be a bit saucy if you know what I mean. Wink Wink.
Make silly faces by adding eyes to various things in the lunchbox. If your child is of age to know not to eat them, this is a great idea! Add some to the sandwich bags or snack containers to lighten the mood. Remember, post-covid return to school may be a bit stressful for your child as well. As stated above, this may also work wonders for your spouse.
Last but not least, leave a note! In the digital age, it’s so easy to forget how far a handwritten note can go. As we adjust back to life as we knew it, somewhat, we could all use some words of encouragement as we go about our day.
Shapely Hack: Use clothes pins to make butterflies, this also is excellent for separating snacks.
For The Lunch maker
We couldn’t leave you out! Meal prep can be daunting, time-consuming and messy. Here are some hacks to help you with that.
Create a lunch packing station. With a meal cart, the children and even your spouse can help in the process and make their own selections.
Use an over the door shoe holder to group non-perishables. Others can grab, throw and go leaving you only to worry about the actual food.
Create daily bins. This works best when done on the weekend. Other’s simply go to the day of the week and grab all that’s in the bin and your job is done.
Pick one! This is great for pre-cooked and pre-packaged items. Have labeled bins with numbers so others can exercise portion control and know how much to take of each.
These suggestions and hacks can be applied to the whole family. What tips or hacks do you have that you think our audience may find useful? Place them in the comments for a chance to be reposted.
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