Lunch is Cool

Here on the Washington Coast, I don't usually have any trouble keeping the sproutlets' school lunches cool; it doesn't usually get anything close to hot until well after school is out... but they do take part in day camps over the summer, and I pack lunches for those. For some lunches, an ice pack in the lunch tote is enough, but Bella and Beanstalk like their string cheese cold. They don't like their sandwiches & crackers cold though...

No worries,  I've found a way to keep some portions of their lunch as cold as they like without making the entire lunch icy or soggy - I add frozen water-filled reusable ice cubes - miniature ice packs!

In today's lunch Bella has grapes, string cheese, ham, carrot chips, Kashi crackers, and spiced almonds:

A few reusable ice cube cold boosters (these ones are shaped like little apples) help keep her meat & cheese chilled until lunchtime. With ice in her water bottle and the whole lot packed in an insulated lunch tote, her lunch stays just as cold as she likes it.

Yesterday's lunch was one very easy lunch box - I didn't even bother arranging the crackers neatly! Those Kashi Fire Roasted Vegetable crackers have a bit of a kick - my girl likes things hot :) 

I cooled things down in the large section with fresh juicy grapes, crunchy carrot sticks, and a mozzarella string cheese - kept refreshingly chilled with the reusable ice cubes.

These bright blue, orange, and green cube shaped ones were a dollar store find that matches my EasyLunchboxes perfectly! Vibrant colours make me happy, even happier when they all coordinate :

They're a perfect fit in Beanstalk's PlanetBox too:

He has a very plain lunch as usual, but I guess it's fairly well-rounded... he has whole grain goldfish crackers (grain), ham on swords (protein), NatureBox dried cherries & an apple cut in quarters (fruit/veg) and a mozzarella string cheese (dairy), kept extra cool by the colourful ice cubes.

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[update 7.3.13]  Kelly of EasyLunchboxes made this cool Pinterest-friendly graphic and shared it on the EasyLunchboxes Facebook page, should you want to pin this idea :) Thanks Kelly!

Some cool lunch stuff: