If you’re looking for ways to save money in your household, consider packing your child’s lunch instead of sending him/her off to daycare, preschool, or regular school with lunch money for the day. Packing your child’s lunch each day is a great alternative, especially if your child is extremely picky when it comes to meals, has food allergies, or complains endlessly about the food served. Not to mention that packing his/her lunch will ensure your child gets a nutritional meal each day, in addition to saving money.

There are three basic rules to keep in mind when you’re packing your child’s lunch- tasty, healthy, and easy to pack. Consider incorporating leftovers from recent dinners into your child’s lunch bag. Soup also makes a great addition to your child’s lunch- pack it in a thermos, include a spoon, and you’re set. It’s easy to let nutrition fall to the wayside when packing an easy lunch, but there are other alternatives to the standard chips and cookies offerings. Food such as frozen grapes, apple slices with peanut butter, hard boiled eggs, cheese popcorn, and fruit dip all make good side items.

Make sure the items you pack in your child’s lunch do not require a large amount of preparation to eat, and are easily opened by your child. Check in with your child’s teacher or care provider and ask if your child is eating the majority of his home-packed lunch each day. If this is not the case, talk with your child about what he/she would like in their lunch bag.

If you do switch from served meals to packaged lunches from home, make sure you do the grocery shopping with your budget in mind. It’s easy to cut corners by purchasing pre-made meals such as Lunchables or INSERT HERE, but these items are usually much more expensive, not to mention very unhealthy. Pay attention to sales and specials offered by the grocery store each week, and stock up on items such as lunch meats and chips when the items are on sale.

Even if packing your child’s lunch doesn’t seem to be an option (based on enrollment fees, etc.), there are ways around it. Many schools or child care providers are willing to offset the cost or reduce your monthly rate if your child brings their own lunch each day. Just talk to them and explain your situation- they may be more flexible than you think. Remember, it never hurts to ask.

Posted in Home Budget

Related Articles: