Since I work full time, my daily routine includes packing a lunch. Preparing my own healthy lunches and snacks is a way better option than visiting the vending machines or going out to fast food restaurants. You might be embarrassed to carry in a “lunch box” to work, but it beats the thousands of extra calories a week from fast food and I guarantee you’re not the only one doing it.

Even in high school, I always brought my lunch in favor of buying the greasy options from our outdoor cafeteria (though I definitely didn’t use a “lunch box” after 6th grade :P )

Some people are creatures of habit and do not mind a peanut butter sandwich with the crusts cut off every day of their life. I am not. There are just too many options out there!

So what’s in my lunch pail this week?!

It’s not just lunch I pack; I got snacks on snacks on snacks! I’m gone from home for 10-11 hours and this girl likes to snack (healthfully, mostly). Since breakfast is a little early, I have an apple mid-morning to quiet my growling tummy for a couple hours. Otherwise I’d be digging in to lunch before noon and that just seems too early! (In kindergarten we had lunch at 11:00am. My mom would literally have to leave work at 10:45 to come have lunch with me. Hah!)

We bring extra fruits and veggie bags. Sometimes we have peaches, pears, and bananas. Towards the end of the week when the fruit drawer runs low, it’s a two-apples-a-day kind of variety. This family eats a lot of fruit! Veggie bags also typically include cucumber and bell pepper slices but we had those inside of the wrap so today it’s just carrots by their lonesome!

What’s in the wrap? A 100-calorie Flatout wrap is filled with two tablespoons Sabra hummus, two tablespoons spicy mustard, fresh spinach leaves, red and green bell pepper slivers, cucumber sliced, diced tomato, sprouts and avocado! Better than subway if you ask me ;)

Since most days include an after-work trip to the gym, I always have a variety of snacks. Definitely fruit. Rice Crisps or pretzels if I feel like something crunchy; yogurt if I want something cold (I pop them in the freezer) and Dove dark chocolate just because.

Ain’t nothing wrong with packing lunch! My favorite elementary school lunch box was from 1st grade, a plastic pink Barbie house:

“The sun’s in my eyes!”

 Imagine if I showed up to work with that little treasure.