Lunch Boxes Galore

I forgot to take a picture of the boys' lunches today <gasp>. I know you all are shattered but I'm confident you'll be ok. I recently wrote up my ideas and reviews about different kinds of lunch box options for some friends and I'm thinking it might be good to post it here. It is by no means a comprehensive list but these are things that I've tried and I'm sure I'll add to it over time.

All of these are ones that I have personally used or a good friend has used and these are my reviews of them based on that :)

Metal options:

Planetbox. (http://www.planetbox.com/)

pros: super easy to pop into the dishwasher, tough, can swap out magnets to change the look, easy to pack a well balanced meal, comes with smaller containers that you can put dip or yogurt in (but not soup), super easy for kids to open and close.

cons: price, not leakproof (but that’s why you have the other little containers that go in it), the “main entree” section is kinda small for a full sandwich unless you cut off the crust.

Lunchbots: (http://www.lunchbots.com/)

pros: easy to open and close, easy to wash, not as expensive and you can find deals on

them. soggy if you put something moist like fruit in there.

cons: not good if you don’t like your food to touch, not leakproof, crunchy things can get

Plastic options:

Easy Lunchbox (http://www.easylunchboxes.com/)

pros: price! keeps food separate, easy to wash cons: not much flexibility

Laptop Lunches (http://www.laptoplunches.com/) pros: versatility depending upon what foods your child likes, food doesn’t touch, portion control cons: lots of pieces to wash and keep track of, higher end of the “middle” price point

Go Green Lunch Box (http://www.gogreenlunchbox.com/)

pros: food doesn’t touch, not a lot of pieces to wash or misplace, supposedly leakproof (each compartment separately), has a place for water bottle inside (where it could keep cold) 

cons: higher end of the “middle” price point

Goodbyn (http://www.goodbyn.com/) 

pros: separate compartments, deep, has waterbottle (great for freezing and using as the “ice pack), kids can decorate themselves, doesn’t require a separate bag to break or lose, washes easily. 

cons: lid might be hard to get on and off for a lot of kids. We had the original when it first came out. The lid sucked. I mentioned it on their FB page about 2 years later and they said that they’d had trouble with that but had made revisions and then sent me a free “Bynto” which is the smaller version. I actually like that for Zoe but I’m still not confident she could get the lid on properly. Maybe a 6 year old could?