Kids need nourishment.
This week as many head back to school, they will be giving it their all, inside under fluorescent lighting for at least 5 hours a day, with hundreds of other students wiping their snotty, golden rod allergy noses on their arms. Ay, why again is this the most wonderful time of the year?? Oh yes……for the education, brain stimulation, socializing and the routine.
I am going to tell you a secret. A huge, big fat, weight off your shoulder secret:
School lunches are not that big a deal.
They just aren’t. They are simply a midday refuel. Most of a child’s nourishment should come from breakfast and supper .I also know some children get their only meal of the day at school-that is a whole other post, my dear friends, about a very broken society.
But for the most part, the biggest gift I gave myself was one day putting my kids lunches in perspective. They need a healthy lunch consisting of good protein, and whole foods but not the Pinterest-bento box-crazy lunch. I did those. They involved a lot of food waste, comparisons and battles of them bringing things home everyday they simply did not have time to eat. Also if your child has behavior problems, look at the additives and the food dyes they are eating. This is common sense. Food is medicine.
And let’s not get started on the microwaves in the cafeterias. Just don’t send that stuff. (Teachers everywhere cheer)
My kids favorite lunches were hard cheese, diced meat and crackers, dried fruit, and a chocolate milk. That’s it. I changed it up with grilled cheese sandwiches, one went through a phase of jam sandwiches, and my oldest loved chicken Caesar salads. They would happily take those lunches everyday.
Besides I knew they were getting a nourishing breakfast and after school snack and supper. They weren’t going to die in between those.
Focus on breakfast and supper.
Ditch the boneless skinless (and I would like to add tasteless) chicken breast this week. Add in immune, gut and brain boosting foods :
bone broths (which can be store bought or homemade)
scrambled eggs
Shepards pie (use up extra mash potatoes from Sunday dinner)
sourdough breads and pastas
make or bring home a roast chicken one day and use the leftovers for a homemade soup the next.
Simmer the bones for a stock on the weekend to serve the following week with ramen, or make corn chowder and bacon sandwiches
fish chowder
stew meat with the bone in, slow cooked for hours
And loads of fresh vegetables from the garden or a farm near you.
You got this. Don’t get lost in the yogurt tubes.
Love Jenn xx
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