Hi everyone. My name is Sara Bradford and people USED TO call me the Lunchbox Ninja. For realz. I would be walking down the street and someone would yell out “lunchbox ninja” from their car. I would be in a shop in another city and people would approach me and ask if I was the lunchbox ninja. Hahaha. That feels like a hundred years ago already.

Yes, I used to really, REALLY be into creating healthy and fun lunches that my kids and I would both get excited about. As a (now-retired) registered holistic nutritionist and a recipe developer, I saw the whole thing as an exciting challenge. And so I began blogging about it. And then I hosted a Rogers TV Series. Then I wrote a book. And I was a guest on countless blogs and radio programs and podcasts. I kinda loved it. 

Until I didn’t. Until my kids stopped being excited about it and began making their own. (They’re teenagers now.) Until I became less passionate about taking photos of and creating my own recipes… and developed a passion for doing it for other food/bevy/restaurant businesses (that’s what I do now). Until I gave away all my lunchbox paraphernalia. 

Well…funny enough…suddenly all the “lunch box desperation” is coming out of everywhere — and I’m being asked to interview on TV and radio again. And I’m being asked (in all seriousness) if I will make lunches FOR people. (The answer is ‘no’ by the way…haha.)

This leads me to tips. So many tips. I guess I have MANY. TOO many. Can I write them all in one blog post? Likely not. 

But here are my TOP TEN TIPS (from an old expert):

  1. Master List: Write down every single item your kid(s) will possibly eat. This may include things you’ve never considered “lunchbox food”. (Popcorn, oatmeal, pickles, leftover pancakes.) This list will help you always and forever. Keep it on the fridge. Let them add to it. Seriously. Refer to it when you’re making your plan, or in emergencies, or even coming up with something quick on the way to an activity. 
  2. Plan ahead (in your brain, or on paper). This makes things less stressful, but also saves money and time.
  3. Prep ahead (thaw soup, hard boil eggs, make muffins) — even if this just means remembering to wash the lunchbox and leave it in the drying rack.
  4. Don’t be a jerk — go litter-free. (A no-brainer, in my opinion.)
  5. Empower them — let them help decide the “plan”. Better yet, let them choose the vegetable(s). 
  6. Chill the fuck out. I’m serious. There are about a million more important things to worry about in the world. If they don’t eat their lunch they won’t die. They will eat breakfast and after school snacks and dinner. And drive you crazy for a midnight snack. But six hours away from you… they won’t starve. Also: don’t get angry if they don’t eat everything. There could be a million reasons they didn’t. Stress, distraction, not enough time, can’t get things open, embarrassment (my poor son wouldn’t eat apple sauce for year because someone told him it was baby food. Kids!). Or… they just don’t like sandwiches — sorry!!
  7. Use a “bento style” lunchbox. It’s easier for them to choose their spread, open in general — and easier for you to clean.
  8. Build a rainbow to appeal to their eyeballs — and for nutrient variety.
  9. Use leftovers (roast chicken on a Sunday — and turn it into everything). You can always reserve something from dinner, unless my son lives with you because he will eat it all. 
  10. Send a thermos with hot stuff (or cold smoothies) and switch things up. This is also a wonderful thing when it’s super cold out, giving them a chance to warm up with soup — or super hot out, giving them a chance to drink a cold smoothie instead of a soggy hot sandwich.

A few more things (because I could go on forever about the subject):

Pack seasonal food. A body in rhythm with the seasons is a happy, healthy one.

Pack REAL food. Pre-packaged, preservative filled items are obviously not ideal. If you must… look for items with the fewest ingredients possible, ingredients you understand, and where SUGAR isn’t the first one listed.

Pack simply. We are way too busy to spend so much time obsessing on this. And kids actually like it simple.

One more thing: If you have a “picky eater” please change your language. They aren’t “picky”. They are “simple” eaters. Focus on what they DO EAT. Not on what they don’t eat. Period. And I guarantee you they eat about 50 things that are JUST FINE. Refer to your Master List (#1 tip forever and ever).

Good luck! Have fun! Build your lunches with love and intention (and without resentment). Trust you are doing great (because you are). 

Thank you, Sara!

Sara Bradford has wanted to be around food for as long as she can remember. Trudging through the garden, chasing chickens, a bajillion years working in restaurants, food blogging, studying nutrition and developing online nutrition programs… It is who she is. It is her life. 

But now she wants to shelve creating written and visual content for herself as she begins to do it for others.