School Lunches Made Easy
by Pat Baker
Good Nutrition should be a key factor when deciding what to put in your child's lunch box. It does not, however, have to be a source of stress for parents. It does require that we get organized and creative. To keep it simple we have created a few handy tips that hopefully will make this easier for you. Plan lunches before your weekly grocery shop. Make out a list of what you will prepare for lunches in the up and coming week. Organization goes a long way in making your life easier. Freeze it or dump it! I don't know about you but I do not always make the best of my left over's. It is understandable that your children don't want to eat the same thing day after day. But you can cook a bit more of what you are preparing and freeze it in small containers that will fit in your kids lunch boxes. Then you can rotate what you are giving them to keep it healthy and interesting, while simplifying things for yourself. Capitalise while preparing dinner by incorporating tomorrow's lunch. While in the kitchen preparing your family's dinner, use the time to get tomorrows lunch underway. Make a double batch of meals that taste just as good "the morning after," like; pasta, fried chicken or quiche. Plenty of kids like cold chicken. You can peel carrots and cut them up and leave them in water over night to keep them fresh. There are a number of easy meal plans that you can find for free on the internet, Watch this space and we will advise you. Chicken Soup for the soul There is nothing nicer then feeling a tummy with nice warm soup from a thermos on a cold day. You can make minestrone, vegetable or chicken soup. Again when you prepare soup make extra and freeze it. Then defrost the night before, heat in the morning and wa-lah! Let the kids participate in preparing their lunches. It goes a long way when you can teach your child a life skill to be self sufficient while making your life easier and less stressful. Don't you agree? Your children can prepare their own lunch or help you prepare by putting things in their lunch box, the evening, before that do not require refrigeration. They can also choose their own snacks. This will also teach your children about making healthy choices for themselves. Fast Food It can be tempting to buy your kids fast food and once in a while it is okay if it gets you out of a bind. Surely they will consider it a nice treat. For the most part it is usually fattening and unhealthy. The amount of sodium, fat and preservatives used to keep down the price and guarantee and long shelf life is not what you want your children eating when you can avoid it. Pat is the creator of the 'I Can Do It' family planner. She is a mother of four. The program/planner is a fun and interactive family & school management solution which uses tried and trusted practical strategies and tools to teach your children life-skills, as well as social values. I Can Do It! is the only practical, flexible and diverse program that infuses self esteem in your children while teaching responsibility and self-sufficiency on a daily basis .To receive a FREE copy of The 9 Tough Parenting Problems & How To Solve Them report go to http://icandoitlifeskills.com/100.html
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