It's not just lunch...it's love!

I saw this saying on the website for Goodbyn lunch boxes and it really stuck in my head.  "It's not just lunch...it's love"!  One evening this week I was packing Love Bug's lunch for the next day.  My husband came in the room and saw me working, then he went on with his business.  He came back a few minutes later and said, "You're still working on that?"  I told him I was packing some love into her lunch.  Then I got to wondering why do I pack a lunch everyday when she can buy a lunch at school?  Here's what I've come up with:

• I've seen school lunches.  I hope they have improved since I was in school, but I'm not sure.  I had the pleasure of eating with Love Bug today and was not too impressed with what the kids were eating from school.  They had the option of a chicken sandwich which looked to actually be a chicken breast and not some processed chicken pattie (the two kids I saw that had this, only ate part of the chicken and could have cared less about the bun) or fish shapes (which most of the kids that I saw ate), and they had different fruit options and some sort of slushie type thing.  I didn't see 1 vegetable on any of the kindergarteners plates...not 1 (that doesn't mean they weren't offered veggies, I just didn't see any)!  Now, I'm not saying that my Love Bug eats all of her veggies, but she is offered them during lunch and sometimes even eats them.  She's exposed to them, and for that I'm happy.
• I enjoy packing my Love Bug's lunch everyday.  It's fun to use some of my creative juices on creating happy healthy lunches for my girl.  I love surfing the net for new ideas.  I'm sure my "creative" lunches make my girl happy and for that I'm happy!
• I like inspiring you all!  I recently had someone tell me  "I feel a sense of accomplishment when I pack L's lunch."  I want to inspire you all to pack happy healthy lunches for all of your munchkins.  I want to help you all create balanced lunches for your kids and make them happy at lunch time too, and for that I'm happy.
• I tell myself that I'm saving money by packing her lunches.  Sometime I plan to do a breakdown of how much her lunch costs, but for now, I would hope that it's less than $2.30 which is what a school lunch costs at our school.  For now, I'll tell myself we're saving money, and for that I'm happy.
• Sure it takes a bit of time.  It takes a bit of planning in the beginning of the week.  But it's worth it.  I know what she's getting to eat everyday.  I know where her food comes from.  I know that most of what she eats is free of chemicals and GMO's.  I know she's getting the nutrients that she needs to grow and achieve great things in school.  I know for the most part, she's happy taking her lunch, and for that I'm happy. 

What is the main reason you pack a lunch for your child?  

I like packing a little bit of LOVE into each lunch!