School lunch cry for help

Hey, have any of you tried the new Amazon Kindle? They keep sending me emails about it. It's a wireless device that you can load books onto and read. I have to admit that the idea of eliminating all my stacks and stacks of books (seriously--they're like wire coathangers in the way they seem to multiply) is tempting. (I wouldn't get rid of my current library--perish the thought--but would be able to avoid new acquisitions.) The $400 price point seems kind of decent. But then I just can't imagine how it would be comfortable to read from a screen, any screen. I'd love to hear from anyone who's tried it. (The Amazon.com review are predictably conflicting: "It will replace the book by next year!" "It's unconscionable!")

(Also, I don't know if I'm really supposed to release this little tidbit yet, but Mothertalk.com is going to start a book club soon. Hooray! An online book club, and I don't have to do any work on it. I'll post more info when I get it.)

Now, on to the school lunch outcry. From Lisa:

"How about a starting a discussion on school lunches?

Every mum I know has trouble thinking of healthy tasty food that doesn't go off in a hot lunch box, that their kid will actually eat!  Any change from the humble sandwich would be a treat in my house!"

I know we've talked about it before back at the beginning of the year, but here we are in the thick of things, when school lunches have gotten to be routine. Some kids like that (mine, although he allowed me to add clementines to the mix this morning), while other kids want variety.

I should report in on the results of the Laptop Lunchbox experiment: My older son decided he didn't want to use his anymore, because it wasn't a licensed character lunchbox like his best friend S. has. So much for innovation. The kid's apparently a victim of peer pressure. His little brother loves the Laptop Lunchbox, though, so he's been using it for snacks.

We'll see what happens as they get older.

Every day we need a lunch (doesn't usually get eaten, because they're too busy running around) and a snack (usually gets eaten completely). So I'm packing a small lunch (today was a half sandwich and a clementine) and a larger snack (cheese, fruit leather, crackers, cucumber).

Here's a shot of my RL friend Beth's bento boxes for her kids. Here's the Vegan Lunchbox site (want vegetables? talk to the vegetarians). More bento boxes for kids' lunches ("frozen rice"? Interesting...).

Please post your ideas or links. I'm interested to see if we get any kinds of regional foods, or if parents all over the world are packing the same things.

Comments

[SarcastiCarrie]

I take a small omelet pan and cook one egg (I scramble it) and then cut into wedges like pizza and serve with ketchup (ick, I know but seems to be a hit). It's eaten cold with a freezer pack in the box.

Cherry tomatoes and grapes are very popular.

We're no cow dairy and most of the parenting magazines and other suggestions I have seen rely heavily on dairy for the protein in snacks (like cheese or celery with cream cheese or some cottage cheese!) so any suggestions for non-dairy proteins are welcome. I love peanut butter for this reason, but it's a no-no at "school" (which is actually day care).

We were big into hummus with pita wedges and carrot stix, but then we contracted salmonella from some hummus (ugh!). So, I have a mental hummus block right now (and probably will for some time), but the kid would still eat it if I made it.

[Megan]

re: Kindle. I'm sure the content of the reviews makes it clear that a number of those "reviewers" are likely knee-jerking and have never seen a Kindle. I have seen the screen and I can truthfully say that it is nothing like any screen you are used to and is quite pleasant to read from - the key difference in the experience is that the way the screen reflects light ends up looking like the way paper reflects light.

[flea]

We have a "likes variety" child who also has some strong dislikes (no eggs) in Pre-K and the lunches are kind of a burden. I've been working off of a mental mix-and-match list that I really should write down and tack to the fridge so I have to think even less about this.

Successes: cold rotini dusted with parmesan (we have been making the Barilla plus noodles which have chick pea flour or something, so have extra protein and omega 3s), hummus, shredded cheese (but not, for some reason, slices), black beans straight out of the can, carrot sticks, celery sticks, applesauce, apple slices, grapes, strawberries, clementines, olives, crackers of almost any type, pretzels, bread and butter. I often send a disposable spoon, which usually comes home safely. She gets milk at school (we send a straw which helps her remember to ask for the milk).

Failures: frozen peas, edamame, yogurt (too messy). We wore out the welcome on peanut butter and jelly.

[caramama]

I'm no help on the lunch front, as the Pumpkin is still too young to worry about packing lunches. But can anyone tell me when we can start giving her cheese? I feel like I should wait until 12 months, but I hear lots of other people giving it to kids before then...

My real comment is about the Kindle: I love the idea of it and really feel like it's the future (I'm thinking Star Trek: TNG). I probably really want one. But I can't help thinking: But the books! What About The Books???

This said from someone whose house is also overrun with books...

[Erin]

Another take on the sandwich is something I learned from a friend of mine. Take the Pillsbury crescent rolls and roll them around a variety of fillings then bake. They are quite handy to keep in the fridge or freezer. I have made them with tuna/cheese, ham/cheese and veggie mix with much success. My son loves them.

[Maria]

What about soy nut butter to replace peanut butter? Cubes of sauteed tofu and veggies? Diced cooked ham or chicken? Home made chicken tenders (super easy; you can bake them and still get them crispy) with dipping sauce. Shrimp. Home made fish sticks.

[emily]

Granted, my son isn't yet two, but we have been sending 3 tiny tupperwares to day care for lunch. Usually leftovers of dinner, but otherwise the fallback is: 1 of black beans (which he loves), 1 of peas or frozen veggies (they thaw by lunchtime, but he prefers them cold anyway), and one of rice or bread, or maybe another vegetable since the snacks they serve are almost always crackers. Sometimes I cut up an apple and put it in. Cottage cheese in a little container is also a big hit. I'm shocked at how much I've come to rely on cheese sticks since having a child, so I try to reserve them for snacks and car trips.

At home, cherry tomatoes and grapes (esp. purple) are huge, as are frozen (yes) peas and blueberries, roasted cauliflower, and avocado. Some of those make it into lunches as well.

Moxie, would your son perhaps be interested in putting licensed character stickers on his laptop lunchbox? Or putting the inner containers into a lunchbox of his choosing?

[emily]

reading the comments above, wanted to add: tofu is a huge success (I can't help but feel proud to have a kid who yells "more tofu!" "more cawyfower!" Please!"), edamame has recently not been, for reasons I can't guess, but olives and steamed carrots and toast are still winners.

He was getting milk at school until the diapers started exploding, so now we are back to water to drink, and milk for cereal.

[Charisse]

Clementines also being requested at our house. Asparagus, slightly undercooked so it stays green, with just a teense of olive oil. Trail mix (we get the Trader Joe's organic kind, but it's easy to make your own with or without peanuts). Pumpkin seeds. There are cute molds you can get for hardboiled eggs to make them look like a car or a character with basically no extra work. There's a big vogue for nori at Mouse's preschool at the moment.

Turkey or ham, sliced cooked chicken breast. Mouse asked me to try & put (organic) tater tots in--we'll see how that goes. We wore out the PB&J welcome too, though that was originally the only acceptable thing.

Can't do soups or messy things since they eat when they're out and about and there's not necessarily a table. I try to do high-protein, high-calorie stuff, so that if she gets distracted and just eats a few bites she'll still get something out of it.

Caramama, if the baby hasn't shown signs of a dairy issue while nursing, I think you can introduce fermented cow's milk stuff, i.e. cheese, at 8 or 9 months. Mouse ate plenty of it before turning 1 and it was one of her first words. :)

[hedra]

Saw one review on the Kindle that I trusted (source-wise), where they seemed to have actually used the thing ... they said it was pretty darn decent, but had two drawbacks - one, initial cost (expecting the price to drop over time), and two, no way to pass on 'used' electronic books. Not even discount resale.

They liked the look, feel, screen readability, overall function (though the page-turning tabs were just a bit too big, causing some accidental page-flipping at times), options, price for book downloads (cheaper than hardcover, more than paperbacks), + access (easy to download from anywhere).

Wish I could remember where I saw that review (remembered that I trusted it, NO idea what site).

Lunches. DH is the lunch-maker. Leftovers are big. For fun, try leftover breakfast foods (like pancakes, not like oatmeal... :shudder: ).

[foodmomiac]

We struggle with this too. My daughter has a gross princess lunchbox, but I fill it with Lock and Lock containers, so we're both happy. My son uses a little CafeMom lunch bag that I got at a conference.
For my daughter's lunches, she usually wants PB&J, but I think she's getting sick of it. Today I gave her chicken salad, green olives, crackers and baby carrots. I put in a little cocktail spreader, so that she could spread the chicken salad on the crackers. I also give her a Sigg bottle of water every day.
My son only needs lunch 2x/week, but he also love PB&J. Other favorites are mac & cheese in a thermos, Annie's Spaghetti'O's in a thermos or turkey slices rolled up.

[hedra]

Caramama, for the dairy thing, the main reason to delay 100% to 12 months is history of allergy in the parents or other sibs. That includes respiratory allergies. If one parent has allergy of any type, the recommendation is wait to 12 months to introduce dairy as a direct food - even if child has not reacted to milk in maternal diet -- not every mom passes on loads of milk protiens through their milk, it varies (at least for lab measurable quantities). If both parents have allergies, talk to your allergist before introduction, though it is likely to still end up 12 months old for startup, they may have other recommendations about how to proceed.

We're on the cautious side, but were still comfortable with trialing milk products around 10-11 months - worked for one kid out of four. Yogurts may be an easier-to-digest starting point for the younger kids (probiotic benefits, too).

[caramama]

hedra: Both my hubby and I have/have had lactose intolerance (although mine went away during pregnancy and is still away). That's not the same as an allergy, so that wouldn't count, right? And do you mean food allergies or general allergies (like I'm allergic to cats, dust and mold)? Thanks so much!

Charisse: Thanks for your feedback! The Pumpkin is almost 9 months, so this is good to know!

Sorry to be OT!

[Jan]

Non-dairy protein: We like kidney beans from a can and nuts.

I (and unless you know me personally, you do not know how foreign this is to me) have managed to produce a child who WON'T EAT CHEESE. In any form. Which is neither her 'nor there, except it does leave out string cheese as a snack.

I like tuna salad with crackers (instead of a sandwich) and my kids have seen me eat it so many times it's almost as ubiquitous as PBJ.

I don't have to pack lunches right now (I choose to let the daycare feed them because I really want them to be introduced to more variety), but when I was, I went with one grain, one protein, one or two fruit and/or veggie. PB&J is big at my house, especially since I know they're getting variety at school and I don't have to feel guilty about serving it so much!

Grains: crackers, bread, brown rice cakes, polenta, rice, noodles, muffins (we like to bake)

Proteins: PB, cheese, kidney beans, Morningstar Chik'n Nuggets (TVP), plain yogurt (flavored is loaded with sugar), scrambled egg, hard-boiled egg

Fruits: canned pineapple, berries of any kind (fresh or frozen), clementines (Munchkin can peel one herself, which she loves), grapes, banana, pear (fresh or canned), apple slices, raisins, dried cranberries, applesauce

Veggies: V-8 juice (Munchkin's favorite -- we buy her low sodium), raw baby spinach, frozen corn, mixed veggies, beans, peas, carrot sticks, celery sticks, avocado

Some of this travels better than others, obviously.

At home I keep a running list on the fridge message board with what's available for fruits & veggies and where to find it (pineapple - can; pear - fridge; blackberries - freezer) because it's surprising how many times one of us goes to feed lunch and we think there's not much fruit so we feed them banana for the 18th day in a row while the grapes go bad on the bottom shelf of the fridge or blueberries grow ice chunks at the back of the freezer. I add to it once a week while planning meals for grocery shopping and erase as things run out.

Random tip: if you're doing cheese for new finger-food eaters, use your grater to make teensy pieces on the quick.

Never heard of Kindle; my gut response is "eww". Very scientific of me, oui?

[Nutmeg]

On the diary allergy note. We are on the LESS cautious side of things... so despite both my husband and I having asthma, histories of severe eczema and food allergies, we still introduced yogurt and cheese at around 7 months. Obviously it could have gone wrong and we could have ended up with a kid with severe reactions, but we didn't. So, you could have no history of allergy and have an allergicky kid or have a huge history and have a kid who's got skin and guts of steel!

I don't currently send lunches to daycare for him, but I'm kind of tired of the food choices they offer (not particularly healthy), so I may start soon at least a couple of times a week.

RE Kindle. I have a philosophical problem with resale rights etc and the unsure future and inability to transfer the technology. I'm not an early adopter of things, really though I'm no luddite. I doubt I'd invest in the technology and risk losing the ability to browse my books in the future. Someone said the way to get people to adopt would be to sell the reader and then give away electronic copies of books people bought hard copies of. Then people might start using it.

I would do it if I could have a hard copy also!

[Cynthia]

My son is 7, in second grade. He's the type who wants the same thing everyday with little or no variation... took me quite a while to relent and just give him pb&j everyday. Now suddenly, after years of eating the same thing, he doesn't want peanut butter anymore. Eventually I discovered the cause: kids with peanut butter in their lunches have to sit at a separate table in the lunch room (presumably to keep them away from the kids w/ peanut allergies) and he didn't want to sit at that table. Also, although my son loves tuna fish at home, he won't eat it at school because it's "stinky".

I'm actually amazed at how much peer pressure, or even just casual comments from his classmates affects what he's willing (or not) to eat at school. Alot of my suggestions get veto'd because "other kids don't eat that". My other current issue is he's lost all his top front teeth to the tooth fairy, so the food he gets needs to also be fairly easy to chew.

So now he gets a cheese, bologna, or cream cheese (ick) sandwich, some fruit or other healthy snack, a juice box, and a second snack of less healthy origins. And boy do I miss the pb&j days... quick, easy, and cheap ;)

[Christiana]

I think the Kindle thing would be very helpful for my "always carry a book" philosophy, but I don't think I could give up the purchase of books for around the house, etc. I love my books - and I don't want them to go by the wayside.

[shirky]

i send these things. I *think* they get eaten.
-polenta fingers
-beans cooked with onions, garlic, chilis
-keerai kootu is recent favorite
-rice and chicken tikka
-yogurt every day
-hummus, exxxtra garlic or vegetable
-applesauce or apple slices
-dried apple rings, apricots, raisins, whatever TJ's has

he can't have eggs and wheat, and he hates bananas.

[z]

We don't have to send lunches yet but at home we often have lentils (cooked indian style) spread on toast or a pita with some tomatoes and onions soaked in vinegar.
I had a lot of that for school lunches growing up and always liked it. It seems so does my son. I think it would be a good alternative to PBJ with the same level of proteins and carbs...

[hedra]

Caramama, on the allergies: Correct, lactose intolerance is not related, though it's odd that you're not lactose intolerant post-preg, unless you've developed some new gut flora (which is entirely possible) - once the lactase production dies off, those cells go dormant for good. Huh.

For the allergies, yes, ANY allergies. Dust, mold, pollen, whatever. Granted, the odds are JUST odds, and are not 100% by any means, and are for ANY allergies not specific ones. So, if you have two parents with allergies you have, say, 75% odds of child having allergies. BUT, they could be to milk, or dog spit, or nuts, and it could be just one allergy, etc. Avoid moderate-but-common allergens (milk, eggs) to 12 months is the current thinking (we were asked to hold off on nuts to 3 YEARS, oy!) - HOWEVER, it is not the *only* thinking. Low-level introduction (that is, regular at least once-a-week consumption but not slamming them with the food) is another path with some supporters.

Isn't it fun making the call based on conflicting evidence and recommendations? Whee! Parenthood...

The one thing we were told was that no matter WHEN it is introduced, even if accidental and early, if there was no reaction, keep exposing them to that food. Some of the worst reactions are from one early exposure followed by ABSOLUTE AVOIDANCE for a few years. Once again, moderation and balance generally work.

And dairy allergy is rarely life threatening. Just really freakin' ANNOYING.

[Caroline]

We also have a non-cow dairy kid, and I'm fine with the soy cheese/rice cheese alternatives - most have some casein (milk protein) but some don't. For us it's a nasal congestion issue, not an allergy, so a wee bit won't hurt, I figure. And she LOVES sheep's milk cheeses. Right now, the only sandwich she'll eat is faux cheese and avocado. It's the only thing that doesn't come back home, ever. Fine by me.

Our other favorite protein is baked tofu. The kind that's all marinated and baked, you just cut it up. I've found it to be a pretty universal hit in the preschooler crowd (well, the San Francisco preschooler crowd, at least)

We do the laptop lunch box, so most days I send her with a half sandwich, lots of fruit in the other bigger box, veggies in one of the smaller box (80% of the time they all come home) and something snacky in the other small box. Raisins, nuts, cheese & crackers, cubed tofu.

I also bake a big batch of healthy mini muffins and keep them in the freezer, so it's easy to pull one out the night before to pack in her lunch. One of our favorite recipes is a carrot applesauce muffin - google "whole foods carrot muffin" if you're interested. Also works beautifully with spelt flour for the non-wheat kids.

I've also discovered that canned mandarins are a great thing to have in the pantry. My daughter is a bit texture sensitive, and hates citrus membrane, so she loves the mandarins. And it's great to know you always have some fruit around in a bind.

[Lisa V]

I've always looked at the bento boxes at vegan lunchbox longingly. It would be like a sign of being a really good mother that I could make these beautiful and interesting boxes for my children everyday. When the truth is that if I ordered these lunches they would right into the museum of good intentions with my exercise bike and New York Review of Books subscription.I'm living in the dream world of the Lisa I want to be instead of the Lisa I am. That Lisa would run marathons and quilt too.

They eat hot lunch three days a week and pack their own two days a week- even the kindergartener.They mostly take pb&j, turkey sandwiches, applesauce, crudite vegtables. Sometimes crackers and hummus. Once in awhile they take leftovers.

I've found when they pack it, they eat it.

[O]

Wow, never once worried about salmonella from hummus. Yikes. My 2 year old lives on it.

Re: Kindle. The Princeton NJ public library had electronic readers like this that one of my friends adored. She could load up to five books at a time on it and carry them all on a trip for the weight-price of one. She loves her paper but is also comfortable with electronic media and thought it was a spiffy solution.

My fear with buying one would be that I would end up buying paper versions again for access later. But I haven't read the specs yet so I might be wrong. But I agree, while I can't part with many of the books I have currently, it's appealing to think of not bringing any new ones home.

And thanks for the great lunch ideas, all!

[Elizabeth]

Re. introduction of cheese and yogurt to babies:

Just wanted to mention that here in the UK it is common for babies to be given yogurt and cheese from 7 months (even 6 months actually) - and this is according to official health guidelines...not just a few wacky parents.

As Hedra said, there are so many views on weaning and when to introduce what that it makes it confusing.

My 7.5 month old son loves yogurt (organic, full fat, plain - no sugar) and cheese (even mature, aged cheddar)!

[Heather]

WHERE can I get the thing that makes eggs into cars? Please share links!

Second the soy butter as a substitute--for adults, too. I'm not the type to say, "Oh, it's so great, it's just like real bacon!" Except that it's just about true for soy butter.

Some kids really don't mind repeats. I've been wondering lately if it's not something biological, to help us cope with having, say, figs in season for five weeks and then, bam, gone for a year. So if your child is happy and it's basically healthy, don't feel you need to wrestle to come up with lots of variations.

Re cold: lots of children don't mind having cool or room temperature lunch. I kind of suspect that even a lot of cafeteria food ends up that way by the time children eat it...

We splurged on the laptop system for me, son, and husband, and love it. It's great for special efforts but it's also amazing and wonderful for leftovers--makes them feel special to be served in the cute little boxes. Say you have tacos for dinner--set aside a scoop of beans, some cheese, some meat or peppers, and a tortilla, and there's lunch, put together faster than a sandwich even.

Here's my working list for our kosher (dairy) lunches:

fruits and vegetables
strawberry and kiwi chunks
edamame pods
plum and pluot slices
watermelon
blackberries
squash bites
corn wheels
nectarine slices
green beans
plums
avocado and orange slices
cherry tomatoes
melon chunks
grapes
apple slices
broccoli
peas
persimmon and pomegranate seeds
carrot coins/flowers
grapefruit segments
jicama slices
mango slices

protein/dairy
falafel and dip
salmon bites (teriyaki, lemon, BBQ…)
meatless meatballs fast-sauteed in teriyaki sauce
chickenless nuggets with ketchup
French toast bites with maple syrup
meatless sausage with ketchup/maple syrup
black beans with lemon juice, olive oil, garlic
red beans with corn, lime, garlic
tofu cubes
fried tofu cubes/shapes
hardboiled eggs
lox
hummus, pita triangles, and carrots
fried chickpeas with garlic and rosemary
soy nuts
ants on a log
string cheese
cheese shapes

starch
potato salad
challah slices
sushi
wild rice salad
plain white rice
pizza bites
cheese tamale
vegetarian potstickers with soy sauce
kugel
bean dip and corn chips or tortilla triangles
quesadilla triangles
polenta slices, with pasta sauce to dip

brunch for lunch
cereal and milk
mini muffins
yogurt with frozen berries, granola
waffles
frittata slices
silver dollar pancakes with sauce/syrup

pasta
spaghetti with meatless meatball sauce
pasta salad
mac and cheese
spaghetti with butter, parmesan
pesto tortellini

sandwiches
soy butter and jelly
cream cheese and honey
pesto and mozzerella
lox and cream cheese
butter and marmalade
egg salad
tuna salad
hummus
lemon-mashed avocado

Note; to keep fruit from browning, toss with mix of 1/3 c water, teaspoon lemon juice, and (optional) teaspoon maple syrup.

[Charisse]

@Heather, search "egg mold" on eBay--and check in the Bento Obento, The Bento Store, and Tokyo Gift shops in particular --I even found one that's Hello K*tty's head.

@Caroline, I know what you mean about the SF preschooler crowd--which reminds me, I'm supposed to email the mom of Mouse's friend S because Mouse keeps coveting the "gum letters that S has with her seaweed in her lunch" and I don't know what the heck she could be talking about

[Meika]

No help based on my own pre-pre-pre-preschooler, but I ate parmesean cheese and butter sandwiches through most of elementary school. Yummm! :)

[Lucky]

Almost no one's kid gets lunch at school?! I packed a lunch on the first day of kindergarten (I was giddy with the thought of how easy it would be now - we weren't allowed to send ANY nuts to preschool and PB is allowed at kindergarten - allergics sit at a different table). Oh well! My DD came home and informed me that she had used her PIN to buy her lunch and would do so every day. (A PIN! She's 5!) I have actually been impressed by our district's hot lunch program. I know! The menu has icons to indicate locally-sourced items. (Mostly just apples, carrot and fish now in the fall.) Overall there is a pretty good variety - veggie burgers, burritos and turkey corndogs are popular. Veggies include jicama, carrots, coleslaw, broccoli, cauliflower. Milk is hormone-free and local. The kids MUST pick a main dish item and a fruit and or veg. The best part for me (besides having to just make sure there is $ in her account - NO PACKING A LUNCH!) is that she has control over her food choices 5 X / week so there are fewer power struggles over food at home. She now tries everything and hardley ever argues about what I serve. And I am always amazed when she comes home and I know that, say, a quesadilla, was a choice that day and I ask her what she ate for lunch and she tells me something I would never have expected her to pick, like a chicken ceaser salad.

I never would have expected to be singing the praises of a hot lunch program - one of the surprises of parenthood I guess!

[Caroline]

Yeah, Charisse, never thought I'd hear a three year old say "More nori! More goji berries!" but that's SF for you.

Totally OT, but how crazy does it make you when you have NO IDEA what your own kid is trying to tell you!? Gum letters? Last week my daughter came home from preschool saying that at the playground her friend M had asked her for roach clips. I swear, that's what came out of her mouth. Took 24 hours or so to figure out that it was "wood chips". Makes a lot more sense. But nowhere near as funny.

[Susannah]

@Moxie, so wierd you ask about the kindle today. I just tried it last night at my dad's house. It is simple and fun to read, easier than reading laptop text, and has a bit of the feel of paper. It is easy to turn pages, and you can adjust the font size so my 43-year-old eyes don't need glasses. I kept wanting to increase the contrast- the background is a bit greyish, so, although the letters are deep black, the whole thing seems a bit dim, kind of like an etch-a-sketch. But if you just hold it in good lighting like you would a book you're fine.

All-in-all, I'd say it was a pleasant reading experience, even for a semi-luddite like myself. I was just playing, but I can imagine that I could easily get lost in a good book and forget I was using a Kindle. But I have to say, it doesn't have the whole sensory experience of a book. It doesn't smell right, and the feeling just isn't a book. What a thrill I had the first time little B turned the pages of a board-book we were reading together! I would miss than if he just had to "press the bar".

[Lisa]

we're mostly looking for protein delivery systems, as T seems to be heading toward near-vegetarianism at an early age; "Mommy? People eat that? That? That?" I usually answer: "Some people do" for stuff we don't eat but many others do - cow/beef, etc. - and "we do" for stuff DH and I eat. So far he has no interest in chicken or beef, a teeny bit in fish and tofu - pretty much replicating my diet when he was in utero.

so... some recent discoveries:

another PB alternative: sesame butter (avail. at Trader Joe's) - helps alleviate PB burnout.

brown rice-quinoa blend (praise TJ's)

seaweed in many forms

no-meat nuggety things dipped in ketchup or bbq sauce

edamame, white bean, or chickpea puree

Indian dried lentil snacks (salty, but protein-y, so occasionally ok)
---

any other suggestions?

and ooh - what are goji berries?

[nik]

Don't we read blogs online all day? I wonder what is the difference. Perhaps, the adjustment will not be so major.

[Amy]

What great timing! We are in a lunch slump as well. And glad to get the report on the laptop lunch, Moxie. I'm thinking of getting both big kids and myself one (well, three--it would be hard for us all to share ONE!) as I've been packing bentos in lock and lock boxes and my husband is tired of all the plastic c-r-a-p it generates. I'm hoping the laptop lunch box will streamline things.

My lunch suggestion is mini veggie corn dogs. I bake them in the morning, then wrap them in a paper towel and then in foil. They are not hot at lunch, but they aren't soggy either. Toss in some fruit, pirates' booty, etc. and voila! An interesting lunch that always gets eaten.

[Jennifer]

Re: the Kindle--haven't tried it, but have tried the Sony E-Book Reader and the technology for the display is the same, I think. As others have said, it's not like reading a backlit computer screen--the letters kind of "float" on the surface so it's more like paper (but I do find that the contrast isn't as bright as black ink on white paper). I work with e-books and e-journals for a living but, even so, I'm not giving up on buying paper books. That said, I would love a Kindle for business traveling or just toting back and forth from work.

Thanks to everyone for great lunch suggestions!

[lynn]

I am very impressed with the lunches described here. Wow. Edamame, tofu, nori, wow. Usually my 7 yr. old wants school lunch. I am not happy with his school lunches. I think the school could do a better job. The school lunch is typically pizza, chicken nuggets, or a hamburger (always with white bread and pizza crusts) with a canned fruit and vegetable, and fries or baked potato chips. Some days the kids can choose pop tarts for lunch! It infuriates me pop tarts are a choice for lunch. I am considering purchasing a laptop lunchbox, but have been hestitant due to the price, and the high likelihood it will be lost before the year is over. And when my son does want to take his lunch, he requests pb&j, and we add baby carrots (never eaten but I remain hopeful) a banana, and goldfish crackers, sometimes yogurt or a pudding cup. I might try some of the ideas here. Those egg molds are intriguing.

[Charisse]

btw on the egg molds--most of the directions are in Japanese, so here's how you use them:

boil the egg
peel while still fairly hot & enclose in mold
toss in fridge
unmold in a few hours

I usually boil eggs at night and then there they are next morning (and the one after and the one after...)

[Lisa C.]

I've taken the bento idea and applied my low rent standards to it. :) I pack the same menu every week (turkey sandwich, PB&J, leftover pancakes, chicken sandwich, and one repeat - this week it will be pancakes) plus two sides. I chose a bento-sized tupperware container that I already owned, and I use muffin cup liners to segregate the sides.

For example, today I packed silver dollar pancakes, a swiss cheese wedge, raspberries, and blueberries. Tomorrow I will pack a turkey sandwich with cheese, cut in half and placed on either side of the tupperware container, with the sides (probably clementine wedges and pretzel sticks) in the muffin liners in the middle.

I can't really think of any cons of this method. The lunch takes between 5 and 10 minutes to pack, he adores them - I almost never get anything back in the lunch pack, and they LOOK impressive, even though they are ridiculously simple. The teacher even commented on how cute his lunches were.

[Heather]

Moxie, Have you read this Kindle article??

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/business/silverman/5349391.html

[Caroline]

Goji berries are dried berries that have been eaten in Asia for ages, they're like a tart, bright red, slightly odd raisin. Apparently ridiculously high in antioxidants.

I use them sparingly - The Wiki article freaked me out a bit about potential pesticides, even though they're marketed as organic. And a Chinese Grandma who was at our old co-op said that they're traditionally not eaten by the handful - more like a few in a pot of soup.

[Melissa]

OMG how do you people get your kids to eat veggies?!

My little Bean is only 16 months old but she will! not! touch! vegetables!

Even when I dice them (think broccoli crumbs) and mix them in sauces she still find them and spits them out or eats around them. While its somewhat humorous to watch her scrape bits off her tongue like its poison and throw it on the floor I do worry about her health sometimes.

I don't want to have to go the Deceptively Delicious route but I'm certainly looking for hints and tips (but not tricks) to get her to eat them. Of course, it doesn't help that stay-at-home hubby is mostly in charge of dinners and doesn't think to push them at her. :-(

[allison]

Melissa, when our 26 month old was 16 months, she wouldn't eat vegetables either. Not one bite. Now she eats 'em right up. Repetition worked, as did peer pressure (we know two other little ones who are *big* eaters). We know now that our daughter prefers her veggies to be crunchy/raw rather than braised/stewed. While we were waiting for her to jump on the veggie bandwagon, we could always count on her eating roasted winter squash mixed with applesauce, oven-roasted kale (crunchy like chips!), or zucchini/carrot muffins. Deceptive, yes... but we were still offering undisguised veggies alongside the hidden ones.

These are great lunch ideas, everyone. Super useful - thanks for sharing them.

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My son only needs lunch 2x/week, but he also love PB&J. Other favorites are mac & cheese in a thermos, Annie's Spaghetti'O's in a thermos or turkey slices rolled up.

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