Every weekend there is this pressure to get to the grocery store, so I have the food for lunches.  Dinner and breakfast we can wing, but lunches are essential.  I always say that buying school lunch would cost us a fortune at almost $3 a child times two times five, but it would probably save us in the end.  I pack fifteen lunches a week and it doesn’t take long, but I hate it.

So today I spent $164 on groceries and while that will cover us for lunch, snacks, dinner and breakfast, a lot went to lunches…

Here is the breakdown for Cole’s lunch:

Juice box – 40 cents (they don’t drink it daily)

Sandwich- honey ham with mustard  on Italian bread$1.25

Popcorn-20 cents

Oreos- 20 cents

Blueberries-60 cents

Noosa Salted Caramel Yoghurt $1.25

Grand total:  $3.90 a day

My daughter will not eat any sandwich which is a pain, so its hot lunch daily.

Soup- $1.50  I buy the store made soups unless I have time to make it myself at home.  No canned soups for her.

Flips Smores Yogurt- $1.20

Blueberries- 60 cents

Juice Box- 40 cents

popcorn- 20cents

Grand Total- $3.90

So they end up even at just under $4 a day times five is about $19 a week each (since they only drink juice maybe twice).  So the kids alone cost $38 in lunch foods a week.  Then there is what I pack. I know I could completely cut this down if we needed to save, but for now my time is precious and I want them to enjoy the lunches. So it is one stop shopping! So how much are you spending to pack lunches?