Looking for Packable Lunch Ideas for Preschool

How about sliced fruit or vegetables? My granddaughter loves baby carrots, celery, green beans, califlower,and fruit in general for oranges to watermelon! You could prepare everything for the week ahead of time and seperate them into 5 baggies or reusable containers for the week. Put each days lunch in a seperate grocery bag; making lunch would be grab and go!

Lunchables a, turkey roll ups, cheese or deli meat cubes, pasta salad, sandwiches, baked chicken strips, hard boiled eggs, maybe left overs? Pita chips with hummus, ranch dressing, fat free refried beans or salsa for dip.

Pack everything in a cooler style lunch box with a refreezeable "blue ice" or freeze their drink to keep the food cold. I hope this helps!

We are in the same boat with the same parameters... I've actually started keeping a list so we can pack his lunch each day too! They are a peanut free facility, so PBJ is out for us, but:

- Egg salad sandwich
- "deli" style sandwich
- small container of ready-to-heat veggies (broccoli, green beans, cauliflower, etc)... we are planning on buying large bags of frozen and just portioning them out
- sliced fruit in a small container
- pre-cooked pasta with cut-up meatballs
- chicken nuggets
- fish sticks
- pre cooked burger (nuke it and put it on the bun)
- cheese and crackers
- yogurt
- carrots with ranch dip
- scrambled eggs (nuke for 15 seconds)

One thing I noticed anytime I helped during lunch in kindergarten was how many items were really hard for little ones, due to their motor skills, to open. So take note of that at home before sending any item. Now on to ideas:

Dehydrated yogurt bits (Happy Belly Organic or Gerber, Target) or those little drinkable yogurts (if they can open) w a straw.

Apple, pear, mango, peach, cherry, strawberry bits - chop up then freeze into ice cube trays, perfect by lunch.

Grapes cut lengthwise, blueberries.

Sandwiches cut in 4's - often 1/2 sandwich is plenty. I also prefer Pepperidge Farm Light bread, far less unneeded carbs.

Peas, broccoli or beans with grated cheese.

Baby carrots, celery, and dip.

Goldfish crackers or pretzel sticks.

Water, lowfat milk, or drinkable yogurt. I don't do juice, too many carbs again :)

A mom on here posted this website (thank you mystery mom!).http://easylunchboxes.smugmug.com/The-Best-Lunchbox-Syste... I am not interested in buying their lunch boxes (although I may in the future), but I love this link. There are some terrific lunch ideas in here!

Both of your responses so far are wonderful! My only suggestion is that if you do a sandwich, put the bread in a separate baggie or container without condiments on it. My daughter won't eat her sandwich if it's the slightest bit soggy from the meat or condiments, and she eats at 10:45! Good luck!

I too am desperate for ideas. We are now suddenly changing the kids kindergarten to a different school and full day where they'll have to bring a lunch. My kids are SUPER picky. My daughters lunch usually consists of yogurt, chicken nugget and bagel and cream cheese. And my son is usually pizza or cheese/crackers and nuggets.