Getting your children ready for school can be a difficult task. Between making sure they get up on time, and getting them to school on time, there are a lot of steps. While most of these steps can’t be missed (they have to find SOMETHING to wear!), there are some tasks that you can make easier on yourself. This is particularly true for school lunches.
However, the best part of planning school lunches in advance is you can save money at the same time.
Pack in Advance
One of the best ways you can save time and money is to pack lunches ahead of time. This means preparing as much of the lunch you can at the beginning of the week or on the weekend so you just have to assemble the lunches in the morning.
Buy in Bulk
Here’s a rule of thumb: the more packaging there is on a food item, the higher the price will be. So, instead of purchasing individually wrapped chips, veggies or fruit, buy them in bulk and break them down yourself into smaller bags.
Make Extra Food at Dinner
If you are going to be cooking dinner, double the recipe so you have leftovers for the next day. It’s not that much extra work to make additional food when you are already making food to begin with.
Get Your Children Involved
Depending on their age, have your children help you with portions or packing, or have them make lunch themselves. This will save you time and will help them be more self-sufficient.
Involve Other Families
Do you have a neighbor or friend your family is close to that has children your age? See if they would be willing to trade off days in making each others lunches. Similar to carpooling, this can take the burden off of you for a day or two each week.
Following these steps will help you save time and money when packing your children’s lunch each morning, allowing you to focus on more pressing matters – like whether your children have their shoes on the correct feet!