It’s September and we’re talking back to school lunches. Each week this month I’ll be sharing ideas for easy to fix, kid friendly, and inexpensive kid lunches. Last week I shared ideas on The Basics.
Today, I’m going to talk about repackaging to save money. I’d like to believe that I could send great healthy meals to school with my kids and they would love them. But that doesn’t always happen. We’re not above sending chips, Teddy Grahams, Goldfish, juice, etc. But we can save money by buying a large box or bag and repackaging them into single serving sizes. Now, to save money you don’t have to buy a 5# bag of pretzels from Costco. Just buy a “regular” sized box or bag from your local grocery store (it’s on sale, and you used a coupon, right?). When it’s time to pack lunch, put a handful into a plastic baggie, or a reusable container. I like to put crackers and chips into containers because they are less likely to get all smashed. And my kids don’t like to eat smashed food. It seems to take the fun out of Teddy Grahams or Goldfish.
When you repackage you need to think about portion size. Here’s some of what we use:
- Goldfish – bought in a 6oz bag, repackaged in a small Tupperware container
- Teddy Grahams – bought in a 10-16oz box and repackaged in a small Tupperware, Rubbermaid or snack size Ziploc bag
- Club Crackers — bought in a 16oz box repackaged in a small rectangular butter container
- Cashews — bought in a 10-16oz can and repackaged in a tiny 2 ounce Tupperware container or these
- Chips — bought in a 10-20oz bag, repackaged in a plastic baggie
- Juice/milk — Rubbermaid makes a great container for storing drinks. Seen locally at Meijer, Target, and Kroger
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