I pack my daugther's lunch most days because she eats very little meat, most of the school lunches contain meat. Also, the school lunches are not very healthy. Some of the things I pack that she likes are:
1. Sandwiches - She likes PB&J, Cream Cheese & preserves and cheese sandwiches. I actually make a loaf worth at a time and freeze them. I take them out in the morning, put them in her bag and by lunch time they are defrosted. We use rye or whole wheat bread.
2. I have a soup thermos that I put soups and left overs from dinner in. I heat them in the morning, put them in the thermos and they are still warm at lunch time. She loves this especially in the winter.
3. She LOVES slices of cheese or peanut butter that she can put on crackers.
4. If you have an apple slicer, when you push it down, take the core out and hold the rest of the apple together as you take it out of the slicer. You will have a hole in the center you can put peanut butter in.
5. A container of yogurt with cereal to put in it or have on the side.
6. I always pack her fruit which I put in a container to keep it fresh. I have found that bananas do not keep well in a lunch box.
7. When the go-gurts are on sale, I buy several packs and freeze them. They are melted by lunchtime. My kids will even eat them frozen at home.
8. I only pack water to drink. If she spills some on herself, it doesn't really matter.
Whenever I pack something different, I ask her what she liked or didn't like so that I know if I should do it again. Also, it took a few weeks to get the amount down. She leaves whatever she doesn't eat in her bag so I know if I packed too much.
Good luck.
