It might feel like summer vacation just started, but school is just around the corner! Stores are bursting with notebooks and pencils, mailboxes are bursting with back to school sales, and parents everywhere are dreading the inevitable return to packing school lunches
Like everything else in life, school lunches can be easy if you know how to organize for them. Proper refrigerator organization can make the difference between pulling your hair out in front of your refrigerator and spending two minutes pulling out healthy foods that are readily accessible and popping them into a lunchbox in plenty of time for your little scholar to catch the bus.
Does it sound impossible? It’s not.
Organize your veggie drawers
The first step to back to school fridge organization is getting your veggie drawers under control. Keep one crisper full of veggies that are already washed, sliced, stored in baggies, and ready to go. It will take you ten extra minutes when you get home from the grocery store and will save you so much time and frustration in the morning.
Use storage bins
Storage bins help you corral small things that can easily get scattered, like yogurt cups. You don’t have to stick your head in the fridge and rummage around. All you have to do is pull out your nicely labeled storage bin and grab what you need.
Keep lunch foods all in the same place
When kids can see what foods they can choose from, they’re more likely to help pack their own lunches. Keep deli meats, cheeses, and condiments in the same drawer for easy access. Keep the bread handy so they can make their own sandwiches!
Keep breakfast foods in the same place
Breakfast on school mornings is stressful at best. Eliminate some of the stress by keeping all your breakfast foods in the same place in the refrigerator. Kids who can find the milk on their own can pour their own cereal. This also applies to your pantry – keep your breakfast foods where your kids can get to them for those mornings when they need to scarf something fast.
Ice packs are your best friend
Send your kids with ice packs in their lunch box. When they can keep their food cold till lunch, you have more options about what you can send them. Make sure to keep those ice packs in their own bin in the freezer, so they don’t get buried under the frozen peas and ice maker overflow!
School mornings are stressful, but you can make them go more smoothly just by having your refrigerator organized well. Experiment and find a system that works great for you. Make your lunch stuff handy and easy to find, and you’ll find yourself breathing a sigh of relief in the morning!
