Take the Stress Out of Packing School Lunches

Tyler Moore is a New York City based husband, father, and teacher. Tyler began his tidying journey when an early-30’s crisis invited him to reflect upon, challenge, and change his patterns of daily living. He quit his job as a school administrator, returned to teaching, and launched thetidydad.com. He shares tips that empower readers to tidy, simplify, and find joy in their lives. You can follow him on Instagram @tidydad.

We've loved using our Bentgo Kids Lunch Boxes for snacks, picnics, and road trips this summer.
We love the small compartments, the leak-proof lid, and the fact that we no longer use plastic baggies!

As we prepare for the start of a new school year, we have been envisioning ways to simplify our household chore routines, including meal prepping and packing lunches.

I want my daughters to have homemade lunches each day at school. I also want our packing lunch routine to be as stress-free as possible!

This year, we are excited to incorporate Bentgo Kids Compartment Trays with Covers into our meal prep and packing lunch routines. The trays each have their own locking clip lids and stack neatly in the refrigerator. In the morning we can remove the lid, put the tray inside our Bentgo Kids Lunch Boxes, and lunch is ready!

We have 4 trays for each of our daughter's Bentgo Lunch Boxes. Instead of prepping and packing a new lunch every evening, we can now prep lunches for multiple days at one time. Our plan heading into the new school year is to pack fruits, veggies, proteins, and grains into each compartment tray on Sunday nights and then stack them away in the refrigerator.

This means that we'll be getting out lunch ingredients, cutting boards, and knives only once. We'll be storing lunch items directly into compartment trays instead of temporarily in other containers. We will be able to see all the meals spread out across the week and give our daughters a different combination each day.

The beginning of the school year is the perfect time to examine the efficiency of your family's routines. It can be helpful to discuss the ways routines could be streamlined and made more efficient and enjoyable! Here are some questions to get you started:

• What was last school year's packing lunch routine? What worked well? What was stressful?
• How does your packing lunch routine fit within your overall food prep and cooking routines?
• Who plans the grocery list? Who buys the groceries?
• Who prepares food items for lunches? Who packs the lunches?
• How much choice do you give your kids around the types of foods they take in their lunches?

I hope this school year's packing lunch routine is your tidiest yet! Here's to an amazing year of learning and growing!

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