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As a busy mum, it can be a challenge to prepare healthy and nutritious school lunches for your kids every day, and I’m sure we all feel guilty when we see the Instagram lunchboxes of dreams; metal lunchboxes full of pretty cuts of fruit, vegetables and proteins in various themes…

But lets be real and aspire to just preparing a week’s worth of lunches in advance instead. That is plenty, that is enough, and that is going to save you so much time and hassle every day!

With a little planning and preparation, you can make sure your kids have healthy and delicious meals to take to school every day. It’s also far quicker to pack 5 lunches at once, whilst you have all of the ingredients out, than it is to do this 5 times every week… especially at 08:30 in the morning when you only have 5 minutes to leave the house to get them to school on time (please tell me this isn’t just us!).

Here are my top tips for preparing a week’s worth of school lunches at a time, to save you hassle and time in your morning routine:

1. Plan Ahead

The first step in preparing a week’s worth of school lunches is to plan ahead. Take a few minutes on the weekend to think about what your kids will eat for lunch each day of the week. This will help you create a grocery list and make sure you have all the ingredients you need.

You can pack them the same thing every day, a different lunch for every day of the week, or just have two versions of lunch that you rotate through every other day. It doesn’t matter what you decide, just choose something that works for your family and make sure you have what you need.

2. Choose a Variety of Foods

I won’t go on about the virtues of healthy eating because I’m really not the expert, but when planning your kids’ lunches, make sure to include a variety of foods.

Aim for a balance of protein, carbohydrates, and healthy fats. This will not only ensure that your kids are getting all the nutrients they need, but it will also help keep them full throughout the day.

Make sure you know your schools requirements too, as I am aware that some schools have a ban on nuts and other items due to allergies of other children, so make sure you factor this in when you are choosing what to pack.

3. Box up your weeks worth of ingredients

Now, I appreciate that making a weeks worth of salad or sandwiches in advance doesn’t really work because by the time Thursday comes around these will look pretty horrific when they come out of the fridge.

Instead, section out enough of what you need and store it separately in either the cupboard or fridge.

If you are providing a piece of fruit every day then add 5 pieces of fruit to a box. If you are making 3 sandwiches that week, then be sure to add 6 pieces of bread (properly packaged in a bread bag) to the box as well.

The same goes for ingredients that need to stay in the fridge. Put all of the fresh ingredients you need for the week into a box, or separate section of your fridge.

Make sure that everyone in the house knows that the items in these boxes in the fridge and in the cupboard are not to be eaten as they are for school lunches.

4. Prepare Lunches the Night Before

The best way to take the nightmarish stress out of preparing school lunches is to make them the night before. This will save you time in the morning and ensure that your kids have a healthy and nutritious meal to take to school, instead of a bit of stale bread with a thin slice of cheese in because this is all you had left in the fridge.

Take out your box from the fridge and cupboard with all of the ingredients in and make your kids lunch up from that. Everything you need is already within those two boxes, and you know that you have everything because you prepared for it over the weekend.

You can prep sandwiches, wraps, salads, and other lunch items and store them in the fridge until morning. Other items can go into the lunchbox, then add the fridge items in the morning and you are ready to go.

5. Invest in a Good Lunch Box

Investing in a good lunch box can make a big difference in how your kids’ lunches stay fresh throughout the day. Look for a lunch box that has good insulation and plenty of compartments to keep different foods separate. This will prevent sandwiches from getting soggy and keep fruits and veggies crisp.

Make sure it’s big enough to fit everything in too, because squashing a sandwich around an apple doesn’t look appetising to your kid at lunch time so they are more likely to waste it instead of eat it!

6. Make Use of Leftovers

Leftovers can be a lifesaver when it comes to preparing school lunches. If you cook a large dinner, save the leftovers and use them for lunch the next day. You can also use leftover roast chicken or turkey to make sandwiches, wraps, or salads.

If you are so inclined, you could make a batch of pasta with vegetables and a form of protein and split it up into 5 smaller sealed containers at the weekend.

If it is kept in a proper sealed container in the fridge, it will last just fine all week, and all you need to do is add it to the other snacks in the lunchbox and you are ready to go! For some, this could be easier than making a wrap, sandwich or salad every evening.

7. Stock Up on Healthy Snacks

Snacks are an important part of any kid’s lunch. Make sure to stock up on healthy snacks like fresh fruits and vegetables, yogurt, cheese, nuts, and seeds.

These snacks will provide your kids with energy and nutrients to help them make it through the day and are a better alternative than crisps and chocolate bars.

Top Tip: try and buy extra’s of these types of snacks because they’re good for you, too… If these kinds of snacks are easily accessible for the whole family, then you might be able to improve your diet, since we all know when we are hungry we grab what is easiest, not what is healthiest….

8. Get Your Kids Involved

Getting your kids involved in preparing their own lunches can be a fun and educational activity. Let them help choose what they want to eat, and have them help pack their lunch boxes in the morning. This will help teach them about healthy eating habits and responsibility.

There is also just no need for you to take on every single one of your kid’s responsibilities on your own. You are just one woman, you can’t be expected to do ALL OF THE THINGS forever!

The sooner you can get your kids involved in any task that is for them or involves them, the sooner they will be able to take on full responsibility for these tasks themselves.

This is how we raise independent and organised children.

This is also how we can begin to create more time for ourselves as Mothers, and more balance in our lives… and that is how we become less stressed and more cheerful when we show up for our children.

9. Use Mason Jars

Mason jars are a versatile and convenient way to pack lunches. You can use them to pack salads, fruit, yogurt, and other snacks.

They’re also great for layered meals like pasta salad. Simply layer the ingredients in the jar, and your kids can shake it up before eating. That alone adds a level of enjoyment to their lunch.

They are also cheap and easy to throw into the dishwasher, as well as not taking up huge amounts of space in the cupboard or fridge.

10. KISS- Keep it Simple, Sister!

Above all, remember to keep it simple. Preparing a week’s worth of school lunches doesn’t have to be complicated or time-consuming. Unless you own an Instagram account dedicated to elaborate and beautiful packed lunches, you don’t have to turn it into a piece of art, it just needs to be functional, nutritious and easy to make.

Stick with easy-to-prepare meals and snacks that your kids enjoy and don’t take you forever to assemble, and you’ll be freeing up time in your morning to finish that most blessed first coffee.

As always, just a tiny bit of prior planning will take SO much stress and faff out of your morning. Plan some time into your Sunday to try this out for even just a couple of weeks and see for yourself the benefit it will have on you.

If you start your day relaxed, you’re setting your kids and yourself up well for the rest of the day.

Let me know how you get on!

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