If you’re like most mums, you’re probably enjoying the break from the routine of packing lunchboxes. You’re not alone if the sight of this picture – with all the different lunchboxes, drink bottles and cooler bags – makes you groan a little. Unfortunately, you know soon you’ll have to think about lunchboxes. Never fear! Over the next couple of weeks, I am going to take the hard work out of getting ready for packing school lunchboxes for you. Starting with this weeks’ post – 5 Considerations Before You Buy Lunchboxes This Year.
Do you know there’s almost 200 school days? If you have one child, that’s about 200 lunchboxes to pack this year.
If you have two children that’s about 400 lunchboxes to pack this year. I won’t even go there if you have 3 or more children. Regardless of the number of children you have to pack for, it’s a lot of lunchboxes!
How do you feel about packing lunchboxes?
But did you realise that the type of lunchbox tools you buy can have a big impact on how you and your child feel about their lunchboxes this year? And, whether you need to think about buying new ones next year?
In a minute, I’ll share with you my 5 Considerations Before You Buy Lunchboxes This Year. But first, let’s start by discussing:
If you think of lunchbox tools just in terms of the money you have to outlay, then they are an annoying expense – a necessary evil.
However, if you flip the conversation around to what these tools can do for you, then the money you spend actually becomes an investment in your sanity and your child’s health. This is because the lunchbox tools you use can:
Think of lunchbox tools as an investment. If you buy the right tools, packing lunchboxes doesn’t have to be a chore and your child’s health can benefit too.
Without a doubt, the most important lunchbox tools you can invest in are:
The container you pack your child’s food into. It needs to hold the food, protect it so it doesn’t get mangled, make your life easy to pack it, and facilitate your child wanting to eat what’s inside. It’s probably your most important purchase.
The cooler bag serves a dual purpose, to both protect the lunchbox and it’s contents, and keep the food inside safe for consumption. The cooler bag plays an important role in determining the types of food you can pack (e.g meats, cheese etc), and is even more important if you live in a hot area.
Water is the most important drink for your child to have at school. It hydrates their body without inducing any kind of sugar spike/crash they’ll get from other drinks. Choose a drink bottle which is strong, and is not going to leach toxins into the water.
There are many other tools you can include too, such as reusable zippered bags, reusable pouches, thermos, sushi making tools, cute sandwich/food cutters, etc.
OK, so we’ve gone through what the most important lunchbox tools are, as well as a key headspace-changing idea about expense vs investment, that will hopefully help you make this task of choosing lunchbox equipment more enjoyable, rather than a chore. Now, on to my 5 considerations before you buy lunchboxes and other tools this year.
Many schools require a separate container for this ‘brain break’. This will mean you will need a smaller separate container to what you pack for recess and lunch.
If not, look for a cooler bag that keeps food cold for about 6 hours (from the time you pack it in the morning until your child’s lunchtime). A drink bottle which has inbuilt insulation or an insulated sleeve may also be worth considering to keep their water cold.
Some schools allocate only 10-15 minutes for actually eating lunch. If this is your child’s school, then the lunchbox needs to facilitate eating food quickly and for it to be packed away quickly. All-in-one lunchboxes with lids attached are great for this.
For many schools, the school bag is almost considered part of the uniform and children are required to carry a school-branded bag or backpack. The lunchbox, cooler bag, and drink bottle you buy all need to fit comfortably in their school bag. You need to ensure there is still space for other things your child may need to carry – like books for homework, jumpers, pencil case, etc.
I made the mistake of not considering the size of the school bag when I first invested heavily in a large stainless steel lunchbox and cooler bag. Whilst the lunchbox was quite shallow depth-wise, the outside dimensions were quite big, and overall it took up a lot of space in the school bag. This didn’t leave much room for my daughter’s drink bottle and home reader books. Our daughter also told us her lunchbox made her bag really heavy on her back.
I should preface this by saying there is no right or wrong way for a child to be. Some children are just naturally more careful, and considered, taking more care to put possessions away. (Neither of mine are like this!) Others just love to be carefree, with play being a priority. (This is especially true for our son.)
If your child is more of the carefree nature, then minimising the number of pieces for their lunchbox, and maximising the durability of the lunchbox are really important. Tough, hard-wearing lunchboxes that come with permanently-attached lids are best for this type of child.
I learnt this lesson the hard way. In my daughter’s third year of school I invested big $ in a fantastic stainless steel lunchbox which required a special cooler bag specific for the lunchbox (even more $). She was already getting teased because she didn’t have packets in her lunchboxes (a whole other story, that led to the creation of The Mad Food Science™ Incursion.)
But what upset our daughter the most was the fact that her lunchbox made her feel less normal than everyone else. Her lunchbox looked so different to the other kids’ lunchboxes. She understood why we didn’t have packets, but couldn’t understand why she had to have her lunch in such a different-looking lunchbox. I had never considered that, from a child’s perspective, the way the lunchbox looked could strongly affect how they felt about their lunch!
Her view has been reinforced to me on our Australian Tour. I have learnt after talking to thousands of kids on our Australian Tour, that fitting in is important to them. Having a lunchbox that makes them fit in is important to them. How your child feels about the look of their lunchbox tools can impact their experience of eating lunch.
The bottom line? Make sure your child’s lunchbox is something they’ll love using and eating out of. Also consider whether your child is likely to prefer a separate lunchbox container for recess and lunch.
One of the biggest comments we get from teachers when we visit schools is – wait for it – just how many kids need help opening their lunchboxes, drink bottles and the packets included in them. When you buy a lunchbox, cooler bag or drink bottle, consider what stage of development your child is at, and buy tools that help them be independent.
Involve your child in the process of buying lunchbox tools. Have a look at the different lunchboxes online, narrow it down to a few, then ask your kids to choose from the options you present them.
This is super important. There is now so much research showing many materials used in making products today contain chemicals which are affecting hormones and more in our bodies. Choose only lunchbox tools which are free from BPA, PVC, phthalates and lead in their manufacturing materials.
Your lunchbox tools should be durable enough to last at the very minimum one year, but preferably longer to give you better value for money.
Having a leak-proof and air-tight lunchbox expands the variety of foods you can pack successfully, and also cuts down on waste. With a leak-proof, air-tight lunchbox, it’s possible to pack a thick yoghurt or dip, plus a sandwich, plus some fruit, without any cling wrap. Everything will stay fresh, there will be no waste, and most importantly each ingredient will stay separate from the others! (No soggy yoghurt-filled sandwiches!) And it goes without saying, a leak proof water bottle is also pretty important.
I’d like to encourage you to think about the impacts your purchases have on the environment and world our children are growing up in. Think about:
Are you able to reuse the lunchbox tools you have from last year? Even if it’s only for a term, then you can invest in something better when they are needed. An added benefit of this is you can save some $ now which is always good because going back to school costs start to mount.
If you do buy new equipment, buy tools which let you pack no-packet or “nude” lunches, and make sure the tools will last more than just this year. Yes, these tools may cost you more this year, but you won’t have to buy them next year and this year’s lunchbox tools won’t end up in landfill next year either.
You’re going to be packing around 200 lunchboxes this year, so ideally you want a lunchbox that makes packing easier for you. For instance, if your child predominantly eats sandwiches, you want to ensure the lunchbox has a compartment which allows you to fit a sandwich easily. You don’t want to have to do lots of little cuts in the sandwich to ‘fit it’ into the lunchbox.
If you’ve got a really well organised plastics drawer, then locating the correct lunchbox lids might not be a problem. For you, lunchboxes with separate lids may work well. If you’re more like me, and your plastics drawer or cupboard explodes whenever you open it (much to my husband’s dismay!), then lunchboxes with attached lids are a better option. They’re also faster to find and pack each morning.
You can even get lunchboxes with graphics or little compartments to jog your memory of what to include in the lunchbox.
For many parents, being able to throw the lunchbox in the dishwasher every day is important. If that’s you, then look for one that is dishwasher safe – be wary many are only safe on the top shelf. If you don’t have a dishwasher, it needs to be easy to wash by hand. For the cooler bag, look out for one which is easily wiped down or can even be popped into the washing machine.
Now that you know my top 5 considerations before you buy lunchbox tools, the only question remaining is:
Here is a rough idea of what you can expect to pay for the 3 most important lunchbox tools. Remember to think of these tools as an investment. The prices below are for quality lunchbox tools.
If you invest wisely, you shouldn’t have to buy again next year.
The most expensive option is around $140 per child, or about 70 cents per school day if everything lasts just one year. If you buy well, and the tools last 2 years, it works out at 35 cents per school day. I realise this is on top of all the other back to school expenses you have, but…
These lunchbox tools safely carry and store the food and drink which nourishes your child’s body and brain whilst at school. That’s pretty important, don’t you think?
Personally, I always find shopping online saves me time and money, plus I don’t fall for buying any of the latest fads at the supermarket. Buying as much equipment from one store usually also saves you on shipping.
With this in mind, be sure to look out for next weeks post where I share the 5 Tips for The Best Lunchbox As Voted By Mums. At the end of last year we asked mum’s a series of questions about the tools they used last year, including whether they would recommend them. In this upcoming post I will be sharing the collated results. The post will only be available to people on our Packed With Heart email newsletter list, so be sure to sign up here. When you sign up, you’ll also get my free eBook – The Just Get Started Guide.
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