Sad confessions of a lunch packing mom

I have the lunchbox blues. Please, please help. I need you to be my Zoloft.

Let me start off with this: I have the option of paying for a catered lunch for my kids at pre-school. The lunch is from Jason's Deli, so it's quasi-healthy, but doesn't include all the things that my kids usually eat. They eat a lot.

I would probably have to pack more than just what they would get from that lunch. So, I just bite the bullet and pack their lunches every day. I won't lie and tell you that I like it either. It's about as much fun as a root canal, but I do it, danggit. I have been known to say that this was the bane of my existence. Dramatic? Maybe. Honest? Youbetcha.

Oh, and I'm cheap and don't want to pay for that lunch that I would have to supplement. Have I mentioned that I'm cheap, before? I think I might have here. Or here.

Here's the situation, though: my poor kids have a lot of the same foods over and over again. Not only because the foods are easy to pack, travel well, don't grow mold in a matter of hours, etc., but also because their mommy can't think of other things to pack!! I'm out of creative juices (or juice boxes in this situation)!
HELP!

I used to be the Queen of the Lunchbox, but I've gotten into a rut.

Here are my standard "guidelines": meat, 2 veggies, 2 fruits. (They get loads of whole grains at breakfast, so I don't feel bad about leaving those off the lunch list.)

Meats: Ham, chicken or hot dog (yes- the bad ones, they just taste better)

Veggies: Corn, Lima beans, baked beans, black eyed peas, green beans (anything in a can- I am NOT good at cooking frozen veggies. They end up burned on the edges and frozen in the middle when I cook them.) And I send fresh carrots, broccoli or celery with Ollie because he has chomping teeth (vs. his brother) and loves those. AND they give him ranch to dip them in. (Time out here to get a collective *AMEN- Hallelujah* for dipping accessories like ketchup and ranch!)

Fruits: Strawberries, blueberries, bananas, peaches in a little cup, cantaloupe, pineapple (canned), oranges (mandarin canned ones), pears, apples.

(OK, well I'm okay with fruits, thankfully because they will eat any fruit, but I need serious help in the other areas.)

Sometimes I get a little wacky and throw in a cheese (cubes or stringed) or a pasta (like the oh-so healthy Easy Mac). I feel really proud of myself on those days. Or I might send a soy nut butter (2 children in Ollie's classroom are deathly allergic to peanuts) and jelly sandwich with Ollie in lieu of a meat to spice things up a bit. Last week I was desperate and even sent Bagel Bites. I hope the teachers didn't talk about me at the microwave.


I need help!! Please click on Comments and take a few minutes to tell me your kids favorite things that you pack.

I try not to send things that they will completely hate because I want them to eat. I normally try new things at home so I can force them to try it with threats of taking away toys see if they like it before it's carted off to participate in pre-school. It might be traded for something, so it has to at least be a contender.

What? You see potato chips here? I do NOT know what you're talking about...

I also need tips on lunch box containers. I have to have a size that will fit into their lunchboxes, but I am SO tired of the cheap $1 ones I got from Target (that they don't sell anymore!!). I only have 2 lids without cracks left and I clean those and use them everyday. It would been nice if the packages told you not to dish wash the lids, but apparently the level of instruction on a $1 container isn't quite what it needs to be. Or didn't translate from Chinese. Or wasn't a concern while they were filling it with lead. Whatever.

They need to have separate areas for each food (that quirk comes to my beloved children courtesy of my husband) and preferably can be dish washed.

Go wild with your ideas and tips! You can do it!
Thanks in advance!! You're the best!