Back to School Lunch Ideas (VIDEO)
*Congrats to our giveaway winner –
Entry #788 – Kelly D.
Just after 8:30am on Monday morning this week, there was a sudden calm in my house. As if time stood still and I could hear every tiny sound in my home. The air-conditioner suddenly sounded louder. The clicking of my computer keyboard was more evident. I could even hear the refrigerator run from time to time. Yes, it was THAT quiet.
These were sounds I hadn’t really heard since the end of May and I’m sitting here at my desk still basking in the delightful silence.
That’s right, it is BACK-TO-SCHOOL time this week!
WoooHoooo!
Giddy like a kid on Christmas, I packed up my three bundles of energy with their new backpacks and lunch bags and sent them on their way to school. Sure, I’ll miss them during the day but it was time for them to go back to school. They needed it. I needed it.
Since I know the kids may not be as excited as I am about back-to-school time, I want to do my part to make their day a little special. Since the same old, boring, packed lunch is nothing to get excited about, I decided to make an effort to switch up things in the lunch boxes. Just trying to do my part since I do feel a little bad about how excited I actually am about them going back!
So, in today’s Baby Gizmo Video I am sharing a few back-to-school lunch ideas from PB&J Sushi to Homemade Trail Mix Granola Bars to help you keep things exciting during school lunch.
*Please note that even though I am a paid spokesperson for Voots® Veggie-Fruit Tarts, all thoughts, opinions and comments are my own.
UPDATE:
We know that back-to-school expenses can be high so we are giving away a $50 Target Gift Card and a Voots® Brand Prize Pack to one lucky winner! I know we can all think of things to get at Target with that gift card, right?!? 🙂
WHAT IS UP FOR GRABS:
$50 Target Gift Card
Voots® Brand Prize Pack
HOW TO ENTER:
Rafflecopter is back for this one!
A blog comment is the only mandatory entry! Baby Gizmo friends don’t just stick with “mandatory” though, right? We are overachievers! So, there are additional (optional) entries you can get. But let us warn you – make sure you actually do the entries! If you click on “leave a blog comment” on the Rafflecopter widget – make sure you actually leave a blog comment. We check! If you don’t do the actual entry – it doesn’t count! You won’t win. We’ll both be sad.
* Giveaway STARTS now and ends at 11:59pm EST Friday, August 30, 2013. (US residents only on this one, folks!)
Entry form should be below. If it doesn’t load right away – just wait longer. *In my best Jim Carrey voice from Pet Detective.* 
*NOTE: By entering this giveaway, you will be automatically be signing up for Baby Gizmo’s newsletter.
More Back-to-School Tips:
Top Back-to-School Lunch Bags for 2013
Top Back-to-School Backpacks for 2013
I like the rollups!
I love the granola bar idea
awake give away!
I love the sandwich sushi idea
Digging the foods in the thermos idea! Soups, pastas, etc.
I love the sandwich sushi! I hope I win!
Homemade granola bars is the best idea I saw. 😀
I love the granola bar idea!!
PB and j sushi!!
granola, homemade!
The pb and j sushi looks awesome. Maybe with sunflower butter since so many schools dont allow peanut butter anymore.
roll ups! such an awesome idea!
Love Target!
Sushi and roll-ups will be a hit here
All great ideas! I have a 6 yr old who’s wanting to take his lunch. I don’t want to pack him junk so this all is so very helpful! Warm thermos check! Freeze the yogurt check! Roll ups check! I can’t pick one! Thanks so much for this video!
pb&j sushi is agreat idea!
Yay!!!! I love the thermos (I had one as a kid) and what a better way to enjoy it with a target gift card to buy food for lunches!!!
I grew up with soup in a thermos, so loved the reminder to do that for my own kid!
My picky eater would love the granola bars
Definitely the roll-ups!
The granola bars.
I like the idea of using the thermos for pasta salad or macn’cheese, my kids loves these foods.
Fingers crossed
Love the sushi idea
I like the roll ups. Super easy and fun!
I like the DIY lunchables.
Definitely the hot soup idea was the best! i never even tough about soup in thermos! kids needs liquids too!
The rollups are my fave!
Definitely the soup idea! I recently purchased lunchbots insulated container, and it’s perfect for that!!
The homemade granola bars!
I love the Roll Ups idea. I think my son would too! 🙂
Love the homemade granola bars idea! I need to make some now.
Love all of your tips and tricks:)
Could really use this with daughter stared kindergarten 🙁
I had never thought of the sushi idea! I’ll have to use it with me kids!
Love the Mac and cheese in a thermos. My mom would send me to school with spaghetti o’s in a thermos and those were the best lunch days!
Loved soup in a thermos when I was in school. Extra special when I got to use Daddys big thermos!
Loved the sushi rolls! My girls would also love Mac & cheese & maybe a chicken salad! Thanks for the chance to win!
Wonderful! Thank you for sharing!
Wonderful thank you for sharing!!!
Love the using a thermos for hot foods/soup.
the finger food ideas for my babies at school 🙂
I love the homemade granola bars, star cutouts in the cheese, and the divided containers.
Love all the great ideas! Finger foods and roll ups are kid favorites.
I loved the Granola Bar idea & recipe! Thanks so much for the ideas & the chance!
What great ideas! I love the sushi idea!
great tips i would love to win
My kids would love the pb&j sushi!
Soup in a thermos
Roll-ups idea — so easy and a nice change from typical sandwich.
I like the sunshine peanut butter and the star shapes; very fun!
My daughter isn’t old enough but I could use these lunch ideas for myself. I like the homemade granola
Mmmm… this video made me hungry (but then again, I’m pregnant, so I want to eat everything I see!). I love the roll-up and the sushi ideas. I don’t have school lunches to pack just yet, but I could use some of these ideas for lunches at home, too!
I really liked the granola bars idea
I like the homemade granola bars idea. I have been making them for a few months now, but I am always looking for new ways to switch up the recipe.
the roll up idea
The roll up idea was awesome!
roll-ups always great.
I love the idea of freezing the gogurts!
Love the cheese and crackers idea, easy, fun, and allergy free
I loved the thermo idea, my kid eats warm lunches every day so this is a life saver
Love the homemade granola bars and the sneaking of the flax seed 😉 I sneak flax into quite few things for my kiddos, too, hahaha.
Always love your blog thanks for all the reviews you have made. Hoping to Win something one of these times.
Love the granola bars
Im a fan of the roll-ups idea
I l like the homemade granola bars and the freezing the yogurt.
The sandwich sushi is so fun!
Love the ideas I put pasta with meat sauce in those thermos containers love all your ideas.
Great lunch ideas I will
Use with my 3 year old when we go out on our field trips to the park and zoo.
The roll-up idea was fantastic. Can’t wait to do it!
I love the pb&J sushi! I have to try that, they kids will think it’s so neat! 🙂
yeah, for going back to school and give a ways. 🙂
The homemade granola bars was my favorite idea. I need something need that she can help me make and be excited about the next day
I think my daughter would like the soup in a thermos idea
The roll ups.
Lots of great idea thanks
Roll ups
I love sushi so I would say the sandwich sushi idea.
Love the homemade granola bars and all of the different containers. I use Funbites to make shapes from their foods.
Love Target!
I love back to school time, so much fun!
PB & J sushi! Love it! New twist on a classic!
The PB&J sushi, but I would leave out the jelly since my DD doesn’t like it. I want to make the granola bars too!
After trying homemade granola bars, who can bear to eat processed ones anymore? :). Yum!
We love to make our own lunchables. Healthier for you too!
love the homemade lunchable
This would help out.tons for.my niece! =)
Sandwich sushi!!!
Sandwich sushi!!
Thanks for the great giveaways!
homemade lunchable…I need to find a cheese my daughter will enjoy with crackers.
Roll-ups and granola bars were super cute! My son would love those.
pb&j sushi! And, I think I’ll go check out the gogurts.
The sandwich sushi idea is great!
I like that you can add things like flax seeds into the granola bars and other baked goods! Brilliant!
Homemade granola bars! YUM!
I love giveaways !
I love so many of the ideas its hard to pick one!
Pasta salad and the sandwich sushi was too cute
fingers crossed!
I like the sushi PB&J! That’s neat! 🙂
Never thought of putting pasta salad for lunch but great idea my kids love it and I can add a ton of veggies and they still love it. Perfect lunch.
Love the homemade granola bars idea. I hate that the ones my husband buys are covered in chocolate. If I put in a few m-n-ms then my kids will love them.
My mom was a genius. She’d boil up some hot dogs and put the hot water and a dog or two in a thermos. Some bread and a packet of ketchup, and I had a dream lunch ( for an 8 year old).
the sushi idea!! brilliant
I love the pb&j sushi! I want to start doing that for my children at home!
I absolutely loved all of your ideas! My son is starting pre-school next week, so I’ve been worried about how I’d mix it up. Your yogurt idea is genius! I was trying to figure out how I’d pack that for him, so I’ll be buying one of those thermos containers. Roll-ups are awesome, too. Thanks for all the fun ideas!
i like the sushi sandwich idea
the roll ups and the sushi would be great for my daughter
I think my boys would love homemade granola bars. Knowing exactly what is in them is priceless.
Love all your ideas…nice ideas to change things up, especially loving the sushi idea!
I LOVE the sandwich sushi idea!
I love the idea of the sushi PB&J. How cool is that?
I love putting sushi in my daughter’s lunch box, so that was my fave part.
I’d love to do hot soup or mac and cheese in my kids lunch, but the thermos that I tried was not able to keep it warm–would a new one help? Would love to try making granola bars!
Woohoo
I love the soup idea! Great change up!
Sandwich sushi!
Def the Roll-ups!
Great ideas! Love the granola bars 🙂
Homemade granola bars. My daughter has a peanut allergy & this way, I know exactly what goes in there!
Homemade granola bars!
The Granola Bars Idea was my favorite
excited about granola!
Love your ideas!
My son loves pbj so the rolls are a great idea to do.
the homemade granolas!
I know I am not doing this right….I like the hot foods putting Mac and Cheese in the thermos!
I love Target. I’m there at least once a week!
I think the homemade granola bar is an excellent idea. my kids would love this
This would be fantastic!
The roll-ups, both pbj and turkey.
I love the granola bars one! Can’t wait to try!
What about making frozen fruit kabobs, or frozen bananas dipped in chocolate. Can’t wait to try making the granola bars.
I would have to go with the granola bar idea. It’s something I haven’t tried before.
These ideas are amazing my daughter starts kindergarten soon and I have been racking my brain on what to pack her, now I have great ideas, thanks.
I love the idea of using a thermos to send hot foods to school.
Who doesn’t love granola bars, right?! 🙂
The roll-ups!
the roll-up idea 🙂
Great ideas! The granola bars look yummy.
I want those granola bars in my own lunch!
Granola bar idea for sure!
I like the granola bars idea.
The granola bars! Very smart!
My favorite is the peanut butter and jelly sushi. I think my daughter will love it.
My son loves granola bars for a quick breakfast or a snack. It would be great to make them at home.
Roll-ups!
I really like the hot lunch idea.
I totally NEEDED some NEW ideas! Now that I have two in school at the same time! AND snack! Phew…LOVE the roll ups bc now I can ROLL UP almost anything..LOL THANKS!!
great ideas
The star cutouts were awfully cute.
Great ideas!
Great ideas! Will be using some! 🙂
I love the sandwich sushi idea.
Love the home made granola bar idea! Hoping to win the target gift card! Fingers crossed.
Would love to win the giveaway!!
I love the roll-up idea.
My baby just turned one and I feel her going to school is gonna come out of nowhere!
Soup in a thermos!
Looking forward to a year a fun finger food for my little one!
Very cool video! thanks for the chance!