Fill the Backpack with Healthy Lunches

“Mommy, I like the lunches that you and Daddy make. Those school lunches look yucky.”

I can understand Little Miss Techie’s avoidance of school lunches despite movements by the First Lady and celebrity chef Jamie Oliver’s attempts to make them healthier but sometimes it can be a challenge to figure out what to include in the lunch box that will provided needed nutrition to hard working growing brains and bodies.

Since our kids aren’t big sandwich eaters, I always look for new ways to include protein in their diets. Meat rollups, hummus, and yogurt are lunchbox staples in our house.

I love that Stonyfield Organic is one of the companies that is providing items for our Fill the Backpack giveaway. We have been longtime fans of Stonyfield Yogurt. We’ve been to their factory in New Hampshire, I was an instant fan of their Oikos Greek Yogurt upon first bite, and our non-milk drinking Captain Computer practically lives on the 32 ounce containers of strawberry yogurt. We also love their Smoothies that provide very portable protein in a refreshing drinkable format that is perfect for lunch boxes for grownups and kids alike.

New treats that we have recently gotten to try thanks to Fill the Backpack include PopChips. These crunchy snacks are baked, not fried, so they deliver a much healthier crunch factor. While the individual sizes are easy to throw in a lunch box, I prefer to buy the big bags and pack them in appropriately sized reusable bag or Ziplocs (my kids bring them home for reuse!) to cut down on waste and to ensure that the kids get the right portion.

To round out the lunch, throw in some SunMaid raisins with your Stonyfield Smoothie and PopChips to sneak in a serving of fruit and pack everything into a cute reusable lunch bag like the adorable dog one from Peek Kids.

Did you know I’m giving away one of 16 backpacks overflowing with great gifts like from companies like LeapFrog, SunMaid and Carolina Pad?

Enter to win my Fill the Backpack giveaway through my Ziploc Magnificent Mom Moment post. For an extra entry, FIRST enter on my Ziploc post and then come back here to share a list of your kids’ must-have lunch box items. Be sure to include your email address or Twitter handle!

Visit the other participating bloggers in the Fill the Backpack campaign and to increase your odds of winning by entering their giveaways!

This post is part of the Fill the Backpack program and is sponsored by Ziploc and 20th Century Fox. Fill the Backpack is hosted by Volunteer Spot. All participating companies provided product samples.