Packing Lunch :: Simple, Nutritious & Cost Effective {And a KROGER Gift Card Giveaway CLOSED}

Each year I put together some sort of lunch packing post at the start of the school year to share my ideas about  lunch-packing.  You can check out my favorite posts here and here.  This year my back to school lunch packing post is sponsored by Kroger.  Even though it's a sponsored post I'd like to point out that all of the thoughts & opinions are my own.  I am excited to be partnering with Kroger for their Back to School Lunch Campaign, and they are also hosting a Pinterest contest in which I'm taking part where they are looking for the most Trade-Worthy School Lunch.  I'd love it if you'd re-pin my post!  I'm up for a chance to win $250!  That's a lot of school lunch supplies and food right there!  I hope this post helps give you some ideas for lunch packing! 

First, a few comments about the way I pack lunches.  My kids tend to eat more of their lunch when I present it as finger foods.  I like to spruce up their lunches just a bit with cupcake toppers, food picks, cloth napkins, plastic cupcake liners, and the like.  I don't go all out for their lunches (ahem, I'm packing four lunches at a time!), but I do like to try to make them fun & cute.  The kids really get excited about that, and I hope that when they are excited about it that they are more apt to eat a good lunch!  I should also point out that my kids are picky.  I work around it and do my best to get them to try new foods, but the fact of the matter is they are PICKY!  Also, as you'll notice in these pictures, I tend to use the same fruits and veggies several days in a row to make sure we use them all up before they go bad.  A bag of carrots or a box of strawberries can go a long way when chopped up for little fingers and added to a school lunch!  I focused this post on school lunches, since school starts next week...but I'd like to point out that packing lunch isn't just for kids!  My husband often takes a packed lunch to work, and when I was working I loved to pack as well, so even though I designed these lunches for my picky little ones, you might like what you see and want to pack yourself a snacky sort of lunch!

Here's what I purchased at Kroger for the Back to School Lunch Campaign post:

Crackers $1.39 ~ Peanut Butter $2.79 ~ Sliced Cheese $1.88 ~ Cream Cheese $2.39 ~ Garbanzo Beans (for Hummus) $1.00 ~ String Cheese $4.69 ~ Salami $2.99 ~ Simple Truth Sweet & Salty Mix $3.99 ~ Blueberries $1.67 ~ Strawberries $2.99 ~ Grapes $3.31 ~ Basil $1.99 ~ Carrots $.69 ~ Pita $.99 ~ Wheat Bread $2.99 ~ Pretzels $1.64 ~ Go Go Squeez $2.49 

GRAND TOTAL :: $39.88  

$40 might seem like a lot for lunches for three days, but keep in mind, the Back to School Lunch Campaign entails me coming up with three lunches to share with you guys, but as you know, I'm packing for four kids.  I'd also like to point out that I had plenty of leftovers from these groceries to add to a few more days of lunches!  There was plenty of string cheese, berries, grapes, carrots, hummus & pita, peanut butter and crackers to go into other lunches, so I feel like this was a great deal!  And had I been a better coupon clipper, and bought a few more Kroger brand items I would have saved even more!  I am better at concentrating on finding deals when I'm not shopping with four kids, so hopefully once school starts I'll be better at hunting down the deals!  Thankfully they have all of their coupons online at this site, so that's helpful!  I get so much bang for my buck at Kroger!

Here are my lunches:

  Hummus with Pretzels, Carrots & Pita for dipping, mini Fruit Kabobs, Sweet & Salty Trail Mix, Cheese Stick and water to drink.  

Peanut Butter "Star" Sandwich, Pretzel Twists (Sam LOVES the Kroger Honey Pretzel Twists!), Trail Mix, Carrot Sticks, Cheese Stick and Berry/Grape Mix with water to drink (always water).

Salami Rolls with Cream Cheese, Colby Cheese stars, Crackers, GoGo Squeez, Fruit Medley and Carrot Sticks with water to drink.



Lunch packing supplies ::  I use Easy Lunchboxes for all lunch-packing, including my husband's.  They are GREAT.  And I always pack a cloth napkin in the lunches.  You can find my EASY cloth napkin tutorial here.  I have a million water bottles around here, but we've found that the Thermos bottles work best for the boys, Ella likes the metal bottles. Another lunch packing tip is to get the kids involved.  Have them make sandwiches, wash fruit, fill water bottles and other jobs to make your task of lunch-packing easier!


*** GIVEAWAY ***
This giveaway is now CLOSED :: Congrats to

Veronica Cain, who said...

I am the lunch packer in our house. The little one doesn't do lunches yet but Brendan and I do! I love using the divided easy lunchboxes! They are awesome. I am not very creative with packing lunches but I really like the idea of the cupcake liners for little snacks! I also love hummus on our sandwiches in place of other unhealthy condiments.

Veronica, you won the Kroger gift card!  Be sure to email me within 24 hours to claim your prize or another name will be drawn!  Katie(at)Cards-by-Katie.com

To get you even more excited about shopping at Kroger for all of your lunch-packing needs, they are giving a $25 Kroger Gift Card to one lucky reader!

One winner will be drawn on Friday, August 16 at 2pm using Random.org.  The winner will be announced here on the blog and on The Little Things facebook page.  If you leave an email address I will attempt to contact you.  The winner has 24 hours to respond or another name will be drawn.  Winner must be at least 18 years of age and live in the United States.  Best of luck!  You only need to complete the Mandatory Entry to be entered into the contest, but feel free to enter a few more times using the bonus entries.  LEAVE A SEPARATE COMMENT FOR EACH ENTRY!

  

MANDATORY ENTRY ::

1.  Leave a comment below telling me about lunch-packing at your house...share a recipe, tell me who packs in your family,

BONUS ENTRIES ::

2.  RE-PIN this post, using this link to the Trade-Worthy Lunch Board on Pinterest.  Look for the Little Things!

3.  Share this contest and then leave a comment telling me how you spread the word.  If you share via Twitter, please be sure to use @LittleThingsMom.  And if you share via Facebook please tag the little things blog.

4.  Check out "the little things blog" on Facebook, and if you are already a fan of that page, check out my other page to support my arts...the Cards by Katie facebook page.  If you like what you see on these pages feel free to spread the word about them by sharing with your friends. Leave a comment below telling me you did so.  

5.  Follow me on Pinterest and leave a comment below telling me you did so.

Disclaimer :: In exchange for hosting this giveaway I was given a $100 gift card to Kroger, which I can't wait to use to stock up for school lunches!  All opinions above are my own.