Getting organised for back to school.

Here in the Southern Hemisphere we are 2 weeks away from the end of term three, and the end of our school year is almost in sight *shudder*. But I've noticed a lot of American Mum Bloggers posting about how hectic their houses are right now with the back to school rush, and since we had heat and eat lasagna for dinner tonight, I thought I'd share one thing Master Five does to help me ease the pressure of the morning school rush. He makes his own lunch.

Every day when he gets home from school, he brings his drink bottle and lunchbox into the kitchen. Then, while I give him fresh water in his drink bottle (he can't reach the sink yet), he gets himself a roll out of the freezer.

Our sandwich drawer

On a Sunday night when Coles down the super mark downs, I can get a bag of 6 rolls for 50c. Then I take them home, put stuff on them, place them in ziplock bags with sharpie names, and leave them in the freezer. The row on the far right is sweet things like honey and jam, which he is allowed to take once a week, the rest is meat or cheese etc.

Once he has his roll, he goes to the fridge and grabs a snack for recess, and his 'brain food' - a second snack his school has implemented at midday, so the children don't get all fuzzy before lunch (at 1:30pm).

The snack drawer

In there at the moment is celery sticks, carrot sticks, cherry tomatoes, a couple of mandarins and dried apricots.

Then the lot goes into the fridge, ready for him to grab in the morning and place in his school bag. He loves being able to choose his lunch, and feels very grown up for getting things ready and being "Oscar Organised" as they say it at school.

It takes me about 30 minutes every week or two, just making up rolls and chopping vegie sticks, to keep ahead of him, but it's much less time than making a lunch every day. And it's a lot healthier too!