Any Good Lunch Ideas?

This is hilarious. I do not suggest my method for getting my girls to eat their veggies but it does work. They'll hate me when they're older. I told my girls that vegtables make their boobies grow. They are practically vegitarians now. Oh, and try crystal light to replace the soda.

One thing you might like to try is by making a snack tray for the kids that you keep on the bottom shelf of the fridge that has carrots, celery, cheese, and pickles and ranch dip in the middle that way the kids like the food and the idea of having their own shelf. Another idea is you might try biscuits wrapped around hot dogs and baked it is a quick fix for finger food. My kids love these and they are now 17, 15, and 13, and yes they still have their own shelf.:o)

How about doing some wraps for lunch. You can use whole wheat tortillas, grilled chickien or turkey, use fresh spinach instead of lettuce. Another trick it take tomatoes, red peppers, even broccoli and put it all in a chopper and mix it up with a little ranch and use that as a spread for the wraps.

As far as the Dr. Pepper just cut one drink at a time and replace that one with water for a week and the next week take away another Dr. Pepper drink awat and so one. I just have one pop drink with lunch and the other times I drink water with lemon.

I have made tuna salad and put it in an ice cream cone. My kids love that. I make up biscuit pizzas and let my 3 year old put whatever she wants on them. I make up my own "lunchables" with ritz crackers, cheese and deli meats. My kids also like the frozen burritos, chicken nuggets, fish sticks, taquitos...easy stuff to just put in the microwave or oven. I also get tortilla shells and put peanut butter on them and roll them up with bananas, or even use the shells and spread cream cheese on it and roll it up with lunch meat.

If your kids like jello, you can try to put some fruit in jellow. Celery and peanut butter is good. Have you tried trail mix and add dried fruit in it? For my kids I have never had a problem with them eating veggies (they always choose the veggies and fruit over the meats anyways). But with other kids I watch, they must eat at least 2 bites of whatever veggies or fruits I put in front of them. For toddlers they seem to go through spells and like something one day and not the other, so sometimes I find that after the 2 required bites they will eat it up because they actually do like it.

What has worked for me when I was cutting out soda, I would drink twice as much water as soda. So if I had a 20 ounce soda, I would have to drink 40 ounces of water before drinking another soda. And then I just cut down on the soda size until I didn't need any more. When I was going to camp when I was younger, the counselors made us drink water in between whatever non-water drink we had. So at meals, if we had a glass of milk, then water, then we could have whatever (juice, lemonade) and then water...and I have carried that over now with my kids and with me. That way I know I am getting enough water a day and not really have to worry about too much koolaid or suggary juices and not enough water intake.

Hi K.,

My daughter doesn't like cold food so I end up buying a small thermos so she can take real hot food for lunch. She loves it! I give her rice with a poched egg on top, mac and cheese of course and almost anything that you can fit in there. She learned to like chimichangas if you know what that is, is like a burrito but tastier (just get the one that says beef and cheese not spicy).
Can't help you much with the veggies thing, my 8 years old likes some and doesn't mind eating lettuce with ranch or baby carrots and my 2 1/2 keeps asking for lettuce, she loves it!
Dr Peeper, I don't like it but I am the same with coke or Pepsi, just switch to light caffeine free, it's not bad. see if you can limit them. It is all a matter of getting used to.
Good luck!

Mariana
www.mykidsfirst.com

Get a bunch of fresh veggies and throw them in the food processor, either grated or almost pureed, and you can add those into pasta sauce, speghetti-O's even. I do this for my son & my husband to get veggies in them - they have no clue. I also add this mixture to hamburger meat for homemade burgers, makes them juicy.

As for weaning off Dr.P - try making ice tea w/flavored herb teas; gatorade; mix 1/2 fruit juice & 1/2 club soda. Good luck!

If you get time you should check out Rachael Ray's website....she has a section that has meal ideas just for kids.

My son can be a really picky eater too. But I found a fun way to get him to eat more veggies. I pick up all kinds of raw veggies. Broccoli, cauliflower,carrots, celery, cucumbers, grape tomatoes, etc. I cut each up into bite sized pieces (Iam careful to keep the broccoli and cauliflower looking like little trees ;) Then I make a variety platter. With ranch dressing or any other dipping sauces in the middle. When I have my nieces we put out many different dipping sauces. They love it!!! All the bright colors, the fun of dipping, and you know that it's healthy because raw veggies are best. I have also found this a great way to introduce new veggies they haven't tried before. I leave it on the table and we munch all afternoon. This way they don't feel pressured to eat it. They stop when they're full but because it's veggies they always have room for dinner. (I put it away about an hour before). I have even noticed that I eat a lot more veggies this way and have even lost a few pounds. We do this about two or three times a week. Just store leftovers in a covered container with a damp papertowel. Kids just like raw veggies better than cooked. If you notice she likes one or two more than the others you can add those to your meals raw or lighty steamed. I hope this works for you as well as it has for me.

You can chop up different fruits and nuts and mix it with light vanilla yogurt! MMMM it is sweet but good for you. Also lunch doesn't always have to look like lunch. It can look like healthy snacks like trail mix or something similar that is homemade. I mix fishy crackers or cheez-its with peanuts, raisins, and pretzels. All healthy and yummy, and something new I seen in a magazine, core a whole apple and cut into rings about 1/4in thick and spread with peanut butter and sprinkle with raisins. You have to get creative with the same old thing. Spaghetti? use funky shaped pasta. Try putting PB&J on crackers.. MMM, or make cracker stackers like lunchables and see who can build it the highest. I cut my carrots with a crinkle cutter. Or arrange your veggies in fun shapes. My 3 y/o eats the samething everyweek at daycare for lunch and she is never bored! So it doesn't matter what you serve, it is how you serve it!

My kids love to "dip" and it doesn't even matter what the dip is..ketchup, salad dressing, honey mustard, etc or what the "dipper" is...chicken nuggets, carrot sticks, etc. There's just something about dipping that's thrilling, I guess?! Also they love to eat apples whole but with the peeling peeled off. I started that due to the choking hazard of apple peel, and now they are always bringing apples up to me wanting me to peel one so they can eat it. Try grapes as a "side dish", too. We rarely have those go to waste in our house and they are so easy to just rinse off and cut up then put on a plate.

OHHH boy do I hear ya on the DP! But for me, it's ANY pop; I am flat out addicted to pop. The really bad part about it is that I'm pregnant and should be drinking milk, so I bought some of that Propel water to try and "wean" myself off of pop...so far it's working. I was sometimes drinking 2 or 3 cans of pop a day but now I just drink a bottle or 2 of Propel and that actually has cut out the pop craving since it's sweet (but only has 25 calories a bottle). I have not had one can of pop since I bought the Propel. Now I just have to wean myself off of Propel. ;) Good luck!!

Check out Kraft website. In the top right corner there will be a like for recipes. I love that web site. THey have all kinds of easy and good things on there. Sign up for their magizine to come in the mail. Those are the cookbooks that my family lives on.

I sometimes serve my kids veggies as an appetizer while I'm fixing their meal. I give them slices of cucumber or carrots and some ranch to dip it in--my mom was over the other night and couldn't believe my son was just eating plain vegetables! But when they're hungry you'd be surprised what they'll go ahead and eat.

I also don't fix the kids anything different or special when fixing our meals (ex: leaving veggies off their pizza), they eat what we eat and I really haven't had any problems with them not liking it so far. Of course all kids have their days and prefer not to eat what you've fixed them, but try to be firm that it's this or nothing else. If you get up and fix them another meal then you could create a habit for them to think they can get something better by refusing to eat what you've fixed.

Pasta is great (and pretty easy!) and you can put pretty much whatever veggies/meat/sauce you want to make it a million different ways. Also, tuna sandwiches or grilled cheese. I make our grilled cheese with ham or turkey and slices of tomato or roasted red pepper so it is more well balanced. And my kids love cottage cheese and yogurt as sides. They also like the mandarin oranges we get with their Wendy's kids meals, and I've found them at the grocery store too with all the other canned fruit. And now that summer is in season we've been eating lots of fresh berries too.

Sorry but I don't have any advice for the DR. Pepper thing, although it's good that you are wanting to cut back. Good luck with it!

Hi K.,
My daughter who will be 3 this weekend likes it if I take deli turkey or ham and roll it up like a log, I usually give her 3 of them then she likes mayo on her plate so she can dip her meat in it. My kids are a little weird on how they eat. My kids also like cucumbers sliced and peeled with ranch. They also like green beans and carrots but like to dip them in ketchup, I told yah they are weird, I figure whatever way it gets to their bellies. Also my kids like it if I take tortillas and put chicekn in them and then shredd monterray jack cheese inside and make it a quesidilla, grilled cheeses are easy and you could even make one for your 10 month old. Also if your kids like soup like the dora ones that campbells makes. I watch a little girl that will be 2 and on a normal day a lunch for them might be 3 pieces of ham or turkey rolled up into a log, 6 little cheese blocks, 4 crackers, or cucumbers and ranch, applesauce, cottage cheese, pudding, sliced apples, gogurt, I only give them 3 things or so but 2 of them will be a meat and a cheese and then something else. These are just some ideas for you, maybe some of them might work. Also we take hamburger buns and put pizza sauce on them and then put pepperoni on them or whatever else toppings we want, we call it the Po'mans pizza, lol. Hope you get some ideas W. mom of 4.

Buy the cookbooks, "First Meals" by Annabel Karmel and "Kid Shape Cafe" by Naomi Neufeld, MD, FACE. First Meals has some really good ideas for your baby and toddlers, (cutesy type stuff) but also good enough for you to eat as well. If you could only buy one, I'd suggest the KidShape one though, everything is simple and easy to make and tastes delicious, plus has the nutrition value of everything. I bought it through Target.com

We like cheesy quesadillas and if you want your daughter to eat veggies, sneak a few in there as well!

Hamburger Helper now makes single serving packs, my 14mo old loves them! Also, try the Sams Club flavored water, it's carbonated, and there are lots of fruit flavors, and taste just like soda! Also try, Crystal Light, it's a good way to drink water, but have flavor! Also Gatorade is good too! Good Luck!

Hear ya on the Dr. Pepper!!! Holy Cow I am addicted!!! Totally worse than quitting smoking. I get sick and migraines. If you figure something out let me know.

Sorry no advice...just to let ya know you're not alone!!

I know drinking water is better for you and I really don't do it enough....the Dr. Pepper just burns so good! heehee

Hello,
I don't have any lunch ideas. I do know the best way to get off the soda. You will need to go to the store and buy a box of green tea, take it home make a pitcher. Drink that in the place of soda. Green tea has the boost of energy that your body needs. See when we drink the soda if gives our bodys a rush the green tea stays with up all day. If you don't like the green tea by it's self you can add honey. Honey is an natural sweetner. Well I hope it helps you. I stoped drink soda this way. Good luck and god bless.

I can't help much with the lunch idea (I put down a veggie tray with ranch dressing to dip and my 8 yr old is in heaven! ; ) )

The Dr. Pepper on the other hand,,, I had the same problem with Mountain Dew. A friend suggested adding a little 7Up with every glass,,, dew LOTS of caffeine, 7 no caffeine. I slowly increased the 7Up and decreased the Dew. I went slow (caffeine headaches are the worst!), but after 2 weeks, I was drinking only the 7Up.

Whether you use this idea or another, Good Luck!!

i have a famous pepporoni chese samwhich that is awsome! take bread then sprinkle chese on it the put pepperonis on it then put it in the michorwhave and enjoy!