What exactly do you think your kid should eat?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A cream cheese sandwich? I disagree with everyone saying that's a good lunch, especially if she's eating that everyday, all year.

DP. What’s wrong with a cream cheese sandwich? Just like peanut butter or ham sandwiches, it has fat, protein, fiber, and also has some calcium.

Cream cheese doesn’t have any significant amount of calcium (0%) and 2gm protein for an ounce which is probably more than what is on her daughter’s half sandwich. So really it isn’t a good source of anything other than some fat. I would do a regular cheese sandwich or PB (the natural kind)

Not OP. My kid won't eat regular cheese sandwiches and we aren't allowed to send PB to school. We do cream cheese on protein enriched bread sometimes. Dave's Killer Bread makes bagels that have 11gm of protein plus they don't use high fructose corn syrup in their breads. It's a decent substitute for a PB sandwich when my kid gets sick of other nut butter substitutes like sunbutter or wow butter.

We also use cream cheese to make veggies more palatable on sandwiches. Cream cheese with shredded carrot, squash, or cucumber, for instance, is a great way to get a serving of veggies into a lunch for kids who won't eat them on their own.

I mean, whatever they will eat is good.

My middle schooler takes an everything bagel, blueberries, chips, dried strawberries, and some sort of candy or trailmix or sugary treat. And a sparkling water.

Occasionally the bagel turns into a deli chicken sandwich, which is a real lunch.

It's fine.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A cream cheese sandwich? I disagree with everyone saying that's a good lunch, especially if she's eating that everyday, all year.

DP. What’s wrong with a cream cheese sandwich? Just like peanut butter or ham sandwiches, it has fat, protein, fiber, and also has some calcium.

Cream cheese doesn’t have any significant amount of calcium (0%) and 2gm protein for an ounce which is probably more than what is on her daughter’s half sandwich. So really it isn’t a good source of anything other than some fat. I would do a regular cheese sandwich or PB (the natural kind)

Anonymous wrote:A cream cheese sandwich? I disagree with everyone saying that's a good lunch, especially if she's eating that everyday, all year.

DP. What’s wrong with a cream cheese sandwich? Just like peanut butter or ham sandwiches, it has fat, protein, fiber, and also has some calcium.

Is that enough food for her? Half a sandwich seems kind of small for an 8 yr old. I know she’s getting snacks too but they don’t seem particularly filling.

my kid eats a jelly sandwich on white bread (ok I buy that fancy one with fiber) every day and a nut-free cereal snack bar. oh well.

A cream cheese sandwich? I disagree with everyone saying that's a good lunch, especially if she's eating that everyday, all year.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:5 or 6 Fruit Loops? The fact that you posted this at all makes me thing you’re overly rigid about what she eats.

When I read that I was like FOOD CONTROL ISSUES HERE WE GO AGAIN

Wow you guys are triggered.

Anonymous wrote:Haha re: the fruit loops. I see how that sounds insane. She just has one of those bento boxes and didn’t know what to put in the little container that’s for dips. She asked for fruit loops, and she gets a kick out of the fact that they are the exact right size. That’s what she wants for her “dessert” at lunch. I recently found tiny Oreos that also fit in the container but she likes the cereal better. I’m not super controlling about food—she has dessert after dinner every night, and we all love treats. I was just wondering whether the fact that she has the exact thing everyday was unusual, weird or unhealthy or just simply not enough food! She only wants a half sandwich, the small handful of nuts, etc. if I try to put more in, she asks me to take it out.

Nope, this is normal. When I send cold lunch, my kids have a variation of that - a ham or pb&j sandwich, carrot chips, fruit, and a cheese stick. They are in middle school - cold lunch for them has not changed much in years, I just send a little more food. We don't use the dip well anymore, but used to put chocolate chips, m&ms, or maybe a fun sized candy bar.

Anonymous wrote:Haha re: the fruit loops. I see how that sounds insane. She just has one of those bento boxes and didn’t know what to put in the little container that’s for dips. She asked for fruit loops, and she gets a kick out of the fact that they are the exact right size. That’s what she wants for her “dessert” at lunch. I recently found tiny Oreos that also fit in the container but she likes the cereal better. I’m not super controlling about food—she has dessert after dinner every night, and we all love treats. I was just wondering whether the fact that she has the exact thing everyday was unusual, weird or unhealthy or just simply not enough food! She only wants a half sandwich, the small handful of nuts, etc. if I try to put more in, she asks me to take it out.

Not that you had to explain. But thanks for explaining because it makes a lot more sense. I can envision the Bento boxes. Overall, the lunch is fine.

Anonymous wrote:Haha re: the fruit loops. I see how that sounds insane. She just has one of those bento boxes and didn’t know what to put in the little container that’s for dips. She asked for fruit loops, and she gets a kick out of the fact that they are the exact right size. That’s what she wants for her “dessert” at lunch. I recently found tiny Oreos that also fit in the container but she likes the cereal better. I’m not super controlling about food—she has dessert after dinner every night, and we all love treats. I was just wondering whether the fact that she has the exact thing everyday was unusual, weird or unhealthy or just simply not enough food! She only wants a half sandwich, the small handful of nuts, etc. if I try to put more in, she asks me to take it out.

I honestly don’t understand why you might think her lunch is an issue if she eats a variety of nutritious snacks and dinners and isn’t otherwise picky.

My 12yo eats the same 2-3 things for lunch every day. He just likes the same things. It's boring for me but he seems ok with it. My other one will eat anything so I get creative with him.

Haha re: the fruit loops. I see how that sounds insane. She just has one of those bento boxes and didn’t know what to put in the little container that’s for dips. She asked for fruit loops, and she gets a kick out of the fact that they are the exact right size. That’s what she wants for her “dessert” at lunch. I recently found tiny Oreos that also fit in the container but she likes the cereal better. I’m not super controlling about food—she has dessert after dinner every night, and we all love treats. I was just wondering whether the fact that she has the exact thing everyday was unusual, weird or unhealthy or just simply not enough food! She only wants a half sandwich, the small handful of nuts, etc. if I try to put more in, she asks me to take it out.

Stop making a big thing out of the 5-6 fruit loops folks. It's because the dip container in the lunch box is small and there's nowhere else to put a treat/dessert if you want to do a standard lunch of sandwich, 2 fruits/veggies, and some kind of nuts or grains. We probably have the same lunch box. My kid's treat is usually something like 3-4 mini marshmallows or a couple very small cookies (Trader Joe's has seasonal mint chocolate star cookies right now that will fit in there).

Also, my kid's school gives candy and other treats as rewards all the time so I'm not super worried that she doesn't get enough sweets during the day. I don't see "food issues" in OP's post -- she's just curious about what others do and whether the lack of variety is a big deal. In my experience, a consistent lunch works really well for kids at school, especially in ECE or early elementary. It's one less thing for them to worry about or have to adjust to. As long as it's a balanced meal, I see nothing wrong with sending them in with the same lunch every day. You can incorporate variety in other meals and on the weekends.