I am getting ready to send my oldest daughter off to Kindergarten. Reading all of the blog posts floating around Facebook are making me so sad! We opted for 1/2 day which is making the transition a bit easier (for me, and I hope for her too!)

In preparation, we have gone school supply shopping and she picked out a lunch box and a backpack too.

We purchased her uniform and we have been reading lots of books about being brave, friendships, kindness, etc.

Last but not least, I read through a bunch of my pinned ideas of lunch box meals on Pinterest. While I love looking at the fancy pictures that are pinned on my Recipes Board, when the day-to-day rush of making lunches begins, I can’t imagine I will be pulling out my phone to look up adorable alternatives to a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. So, I did what I do best, I compiled the ideas I liked and thought were healthy, (with some help from my friends on a girls night out!), realistic and out of my normal box of thinking.

Feel free to download this list of lunch, snack and Thermos ideas to hang in your own kitchen! Lunch Ideas PDF

In order to prepare for the emotional send off, I went on Etsy and ordered my daughter a special bracelet that I will give her on the first day. It’s the perfect size, made just for little ones. There are a number of sweet sayings to choose from but I created my own, based off something I learned in a radio interview I did a few months ago. A dad started repeating this saying everyday his daughter went off to school from the time she was a little girl and she said it stuck with her forever! “Remember who you are and what you stand for!” Love it! The first half is engraved on the outside of the bracelet and the second half on the inside.