I participated in an Influencer Program on behalf of Mom Central for Revolution Foods. I received a product sample to facilitate my review and a promotional item to thank me for participating.
There’s something about lunch and summertime that just doesn’t seem to jive in our house.
During the school year, my husband takes on the lunch duties with some help from the kids (they pack their own fruit & snack each day). So sandwiches are always prepared the night before (I have a great hubby!).
Then summer hits and the idea of doing something in advance goes out the window for me 🙂
I mean, it’s summer, right?! No schedules, live-by-the-seat-of-your-pants type of days.
Easy & Healthy Summer Lunch Ideas
But alas, I still have hungry kids so feeding them is a must.
So I’ve found a few ways to make lunches easy & healthy during our summer break.
Spruce up their Water
I don’t know about you but I can never get the kids to drink enough water!
“Mom, it doesn’t taste like anything.”
It’s good for you!
“But Mom, it’s boring.”
It’s healthy.
Eye-rolling ensues…
So during the summer, we spruce up the water with fruit! Any fresh fruit will do – we’ve added strawberries, blueberries, slices of lemon or orange. Or combine a few different fruits. We haven’t yet tried pineapple but it’s on our list.
The fruit adds a little sweetness and taste to the water (and the kids think it’s great with the bright colors and floating objects).
Serve Fancy Fruits
I also like to make sure that we eat a lot of fruit during the summer so I have a few tricks for this. First, make it fancy – creating fun fruit trays with yogurt as a side dip has been really popular.
I also encourage the kids to try new fruits – visit the Farmer’s market near you to see what’s grown locally and try something new (they usually have taste samples at the booth).
No Sandwich Lunches
My kids are so done with sandwiches once summer hits. They would rather have other fun lunch items, especially ones they can put together themselves.
Enter Revolution Foods – awesome & healthy lunch kits for kids! Revolution Foods was started by two moms who wanted healthy lunch options in schools. Their goal is to serve kids all-natural meals that taste good (love that!).
The meal kits include:
- make-your-own mini Cheese Pizzas,
- Ham & Cheddar with crackers
- Turkey & Cheddar with crackers
It’s a great break from sandwiches and I LOVE that the ingredients are all natural and high quality with no artificial colors, flavors or preservatives!
And they all have at least 7 grams of whole grains too. The inside of the box also includes a fun puzzle the kids can do while they eat.
They are a healthy option when you’re on-the-go on summer days. We are always taking great day trips and I’m really bad at budgeting time.
“Oh, since we’re in the area, why don’t we stop by that great nature center we read about!”
Never mind that we’re already close to lunch time and I didn’t pack anything but fruit and granola bars.
So pull up the ‘find a store near you’ option on the Revolution Foods website, pop in your zip code and find the nearest store to grab a few kits for lunch in the car! We never eat fast food so I love this grab and go option. You can find them at Safeway Stores nationwide along with many Target and Whole Foods locations.
The meal kits also make a great option for lunches during summer camp weeks too!
Kids want to try a meal kit? Grab this great coupon on their Facebook page!
Take it Outside
There’s nothing like enjoying a meal al fresco! We love to eat lunches outside – grab the picnic blanket and set up in the backyard.
More time outdoors and some fresh air make lunch even healthier plus the kids are always more likely to run around, play tag or swing after the meal (exercise is a good thing!).
What ideas do you have for easy summer lunches?