Picking a school - and peanut butter. Read on.

malcivar · February 2014

Went to visit a potential school for Chris. His current pre-school is going to be recommending a 6:1:1 for him come September so we're looking at what NYC calls District 75 programs. Our social worker took us on a tour of a school that's close to us and does provide 6:1:1. There's no guarantee that he'll go here but it's a good window into what these programs and schools look like.

So, naturally, I fell in love with the place.

Until .... NO PEANUT BUTTER, PEANUTS, OR ANY FOODS CONTAINING PEANUTS.

What does that have to do with anything? Or are some of you already nodding in understanding and can guess what I'm going to say next?

Chris is a very picky eater and the ONLY sandwich he'll eat is PB&J. It's the only thing we've been able to have him take to school and actually eat for almost 2 years. His current pre-school says typically they'll try to get him to eat whatever lunch the school is offering that day but most of the time he'll refuse and so they'll give him his sandwich.

Hubby tried ham sandwich the other day - no dice.

I'm wondering if any of you have any suggestions for other types of sandwiches that we could start trying or other no-heating-required type foods we could start trying to get him to eat?

law&order · February 2014

My son is very picky and his school is also nut free. We've had great success with soy butter (Wowbutter is our favorite brand). It takes much better than Sunbutter. ds will even eat it off a spoon.

Here are other things we send (all cold)

- mini pancakes

- waffles

-bagels

- avocado sandwiches (this is a very recent like)

Does he do meat? We also send breakfast sausage, nuggets, and hotdogs (all cold).

law&order · February 2014

I forgot, I also regularly send banana bread or pumpkin bread and his "main dish" with a side of hotdog or nugget and fruit. I'm not sure if these types of breads would work for your son, but you can mask a lot of nutrition in there- grated zucchini, flax, chia seeds.

malcivar · February 2014

law&order said:

My son is very picky and his school is also nut free. We've had great success with soy butter (Wowbutter is our favorite brand). It takes much better than Sunbutter. ds will even eat it off a spoon.
Here are other things we send (all cold)
- mini pancakes
- waffles
-bagels
- avocado sandwiches (this is a very recent like)
Does he do meat? We also send breakfast sausage, nuggets, and hotdogs (all cold).

Are hotdogs cooked and then sent cold? Because I think you might have given me an idea. He does like hot dogs and waffles and banana bread - hates chicken nuggets though. I might try the Wowbutter stuff, though I read somewhere that it tastes "smoky". What's your take on that?

A2TP · February 2014

We do crackers and cheese, cottage cheese, string cheese, (cold) quesadillas, cold pasta salad - even spaghetti, yogurt for protein sources. My son is also in a nut-free classroom that doesn't re-warm lunches (I could pack a thermos of something, but never do) and I hate coming up with lunch options.

lite-bright · February 2014

Are other nut or seed butters allowed? Almond, sunflower, etc.? That's where I'd start.

I'd also say, as someone who is constantly struggling to get my DD1 to eat enough lunch and especially her sandwich, to consider ditching perceptions of what a lunch is supposed to be, versus what your kid will eat. Some days I just send slices of pepperoni and Ritz along with a fruit & veggie and I'm trying to figure out other ways to move away from sandwiches, which tend to just come home with a bite or two taken out. :P

I've kind of come to the conclusion that a snacky lunch that DD1 will eat is better than a sandwich-based lunch that she won't.

malcivar · February 2014

lite-bright said:

Are other nut or seed butters allowed? Almond, sunflower, etc.? That's where I'd start.

I'd also say, as someone who is constantly struggling to get my DD1 to eat enough lunch and especially her sandwich, to consider ditching perceptions of what a lunch is supposed to be, versus what your kid will eat. Some days I just send slices of pepperoni and Ritz along with a fruit & veggie and I'm trying to figure out other ways to move away from sandwiches, which tend to just come home with a bite or two taken out. :P

I've kind of come to the conclusion that a snacky lunch that DD1 will eat is better than a sandwich-based lunch that she won't.

I think it's just peanuts but if that is where he ends up going, we'll have to confirm.

I'm starting to think that an outside the box type lunch is going to be the way to go. Maybe we'll start experimenting on weekends with some other things he might like that aren't a sandwich and that would travel well. Thanks for the ideas everyone!

law&order · February 2014

malcivar said:

law&order said:

My son is very picky and his school is also nut free. We've had great success with soy butter (Wowbutter is our favorite brand). It takes much better than Sunbutter. ds will even eat it off a spoon.
Here are other things we send (all cold)
- mini pancakes
- waffles
-bagels
- avocado sandwiches (this is a very recent like)
Does he do meat? We also send breakfast sausage, nuggets, and hotdogs (all cold).

Are hotdogs cooked and then sent cold? Because I think you might have given me an idea. He does like hot dogs and waffles and banana bread - hates chicken nuggets though. I might try the Wowbutter stuff, though I read somewhere that it tastes "smoky". What's your take on that?

The night before I microwave the hotdogs (I store them frozen) and then slice and put in his container and back in the fridge for morning so they go cold.

I actually like the Wowbutter and it has a very creamy texture, similar to Jiff (but not slimy, like I find Sunbutter). I'm not a fan of Sunbutter but I think Wowbutter is a really close second to peanut butter. I used it to bake "breakfast cookies" this weekend and I think they are great and not all that different that PB.

BTW, would he do a "breakfast cookie" or bar type thing? That's another way to get some good protein in. I have a very simple recipe that I can share if you'd like. And I love doing breads/muffins. Seriously, I think DS is onto something by only accepting his veggies in the form of baked goods

My basic "rule" for packing his lunch is send 2 things I know he will eat, 1 thing he might eat, and 1 thing he probably won't eat but might be more willing to try with peer pressure or teachers encouraging. Sometimes yucky food looks better in a different environment.

I think lite-bright is right- "lunch" can be a lot of things and we've had good success by just getting away from sandwiches a bit.

ToastieSimons · February 2014

DS1's school is crazy when it comes to food. No peanut butter in the entire school. If a child is diagnosed with an allergy in the same class they send a note home and ask you not to send foods containing those to school

No Red Light Foods: Popcorn, raw fruits and veggies (bananas are okay), dried fruits, fruit snacks, hot dogs, hard cookies, potato chips

i can't even remember the rest. Thank goodness DS1 is in a 1/2 day program, I have no idea what I'm going to send when he attends full days.

MaxandRuby · February 2014

DS2 is allergic to PB so he cannot have that. I just tried WOWbutter this past weekend and was pleasantly surprised at how much it tasted like PB. Thing is though, are they going to allow alternative PB? WOWbutter looks and smells like PB so they may give you a hard time about it. As the mother of someone with a nut allergy you are putting a lot of trust that someone isn't trying to fly something by you; HOWEVER, the developmental preschool he goes to is not nut free and we have perimeters set in his IEP in regards to nut products. I always leave a sticky note stating "nut free whatever it is" if I send something that could easily be misconstrued as having nuts.

That said, I send things like hot dogs, Lunchables (he eats the crackers and meat but not the cheese), cut up red and orange peppers, the carrots that look like potato chips, "crunchy" green beans (raw), bologna (cut into pieces) and chicken nuggets. I also send fruit leather, real fruit (in pieces if necessary), fruit cups, fruit gummy snacks, little fun treats like a few MnMs, an oreo cookie, etc. Most of his stuff is sent cold, but you could always buy one of those thermos type things (Thermos brand makes a smaller thermos) that you can put warm things in and it should be lukewarm to warm depending on how long it is in there. My boys love Swirl bread. I hadn't thought of sending that but I might as a treat (DS2 doesn't eat a lot of bread but does like that).

law&order · February 2014

fredalina said:

Almonds are nuts so generally not an acceptable alternative, and sunbutter tastes nothing like PB. Soy butter (wow) does, but I worry about too much soy. As a vegetarian, we already eat a fair share (though I am careful about organic so it's non-GMO.)

Yep, most schools that are "peanut free" don't allow any tree nuts. Also, the jar of Wowbutter I bought comes with stickers (under the label) that you can stick on the bag or wrapper of the item you send that states it's 100% peanut and nut free. Convenient. DS's teacher's all know that anything I bake is nut free, but the first few times I send something, I put a note or write on the wax paper that it's nut free.

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