Lunch Made Easy: HUNDREDS of School Lunch Ideas All in 1 Post!

I can't believe it's back to school time already! Time to gather up those school supplies, make sure clothing still fits, and dust off those lunch bags and lunch boxes that have been sitting in the back of the cabinet or pantry for the summer.

I've put together a BUNCH of my round-up posts all in one place. Just bookmark or PIN this post and you'll have HUNDREDS of lunch ideas right at your fingertips!

Sandwich Thins Recipe {Gluten & Top 8 Allergen Free}

Over the years I have followed amazing gluten free and food allergy free-from blogs. Some of the authors have even become personal friends. 
I look at their recipes. I drool. I want to make them. But I don't. And it's meant to no offense to them. 
Sometimes they contain a nut based flour. Or sometimes a flour that can't be purchased locally. Or more often than not, it's a flour blend where I have to literally go out and buy six bags of different flours just to create a special blend they want for the recipe.
I understand that it's what makes it "just perfect". But, for me, it's just not happening. 
If I can't make it with an all-purpose flour, then I'm not going to bother. I just don't have the money or pantry space to invest in the others. It's also sometimes difficult to find top 8 free alternative flours that are needed for those special blends. Many contain CC warnings. 
Thus why I started testing this Sandwich Thin recipe to begin with. I wanted it to be easy. I wanted it to use a gluten free AP flour, I wanted it to be top 8 allergen free, and I wanted it to be something geared towards my readers - something you could use in the lunch box, of course! 

Leftovers for Lunch: Ways to Use Chicken Leftovers!

When I am meal planning for the week, I purposely buy chicken and have it once a week just so I can have the leftovers for lunches. The fella actually teases me about my love of chicken leftovers.
It's my favorite! So versatile and so many ways to incorporate it into different meals.
I figured it would be a great idea to put some of those into one post so the next time you have a leftover chicken breast or two in the fridge, or a container of leftover chicken from a fryer or roaster, you'd be inspired to make some fantastic lunches from the leftovers!

Lunch Made Easy: Back to School Ideas!

For a family with food allergies or dietary restrictions, packing food never stops. It becomes second nature to always BYOF (Bring Your Own Food) wherever you go.

The same goes for school lunches. We pack, every day. And always have. 

You'll find me sharing what Little Miss is having over on our Facebook and Instagram pages, daily. Make sure to follow us there to not miss out on the daily fun!

I've put together a fun round-up of our favorite lunches we've packed for school so far (she started back in mid-July) to help give you inspiration for when your family heads back:

Lunch Made Easy: Sports Themed Ideas

We are a sports loving family. Football, hockey, cycling, soccer, tennis, and more! All year, you'll find us at live events or glued to the television seeing our favorite teams in action.
I know I'm always looking for fun ideas and ways to incorporate our favorite sports into a creative themed lunch box idea for Little Miss to take to school.
So, why not do a large round-up of ideas from our site and some from our friends!? Sounds good to me! 

Lunch Made Easy: St. Patrick's Day Ideas!

St. Patrick's Day is always a fun time of year around our house! 1)  The 15th is my folks anniversary, 2) the 16th is my birthday, and 3) the 17th is a fun day to celebrate the fact we are Irish! You don't get a name like Keeley McGuire, otherwise - to be exact... I'm actually half Irish, half Scottish. 
Growing up, my grandfather spent many years traveling to Ireland studying our ancestry and I'm so lucky I had to opportunity to visit the beautiful homeland back in 2009 with some coworkers.
Now, I make sure to celebrate the day and our family heritage with Little Miss who proudly call this "our day". That means lots of fun lunches and snacks to go with. Erin go Bragh! 

Nut Free {No Bake} SunButter Energy Bites

There are a number of recipes I've made so frequently over the years that I no longer measure them. Just get out the bowl and start eyeballing the ingredients needed. 
Our Allergy Friendly {No Bake} SunButter Energy Ball Bites are one of those recipes.
Each time I share about them or pack them in a lunch I post on Facebook or Instagram, I get messages or comments asking for the recipe. And each time I tell myself, "Next time I'll measure!" ... but I never do. 
WELL, I FINALLY DID! While Snapchatting last night about dinner and knowing I needed to make more of these bites, I made sure to measure so I could *finally* share them here. 
They're gluten free and top 8 allergen free (that means they're nut free and great for school snacks)! 

#SweetFreely Giveaway from @EnjoyLifeFoods & Keeley McGuire!

Double the fun, y'all! I have some sweet news for you!
Right now, Enjoy Life Foods is hosting a giveaway on Instagram & Twitter for a #SweetFreely Valentine's Box. Not only that, I'm giving one away right here on Keeley McGuire Blog! That gives you TWO sweet chances to WIN! Woo!
And you know I couldn't let a special day like Valentine's go by without sharing some deliciously fun ideas for you & your family:

20+ Easy Lunch Ideas for Work or School

When your child has food allergies and/or dietary restrictions, you pack lunch. Daily. It's just part of the normal routine. 
Some days, we get creative and make (what I call) "silly sandwiches" or sometimes the lunches are completely sandwich free. They don't have to be complicated or artistic, but it is fun to mix it up from the usual.
Lately, life has been busy. I've been traveling a lot for work and due to my health issues I require a lot more sleep than I use to. That's why having an arsenal of easy and quick fix lunch ideas are a necessity. I still want my daughter to be excited for her school lunches, and not feel left out, but keep my sanity intact. I'm sure many of you feel the exact same way!
Here are 20+ inspiring ideas for work or school lunch:

Halloween Lunch Box Ideas using #UdisGlutenFree!

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Udi's Gluten Free. The opinions and text are all mine.

Halloween has to be one of my most favorite times of year, especially when it comes to creating fun lunches!
The fall, crisp air... lots of baking, yummy smells, hooded sweatshirts, football, and decorating (even in the lunch box). 
I'm going to show you eight easy lunch box ideas using Udi's Gluten Free products that can bring your kiddos both a laugh and a full belly!

Lunch Made Easy: Cupcake Surprise! {Happy Birthday Little Miss}

I can't believe my baby girl is ten years old today.
People have said since the day she was born, cherish each moment... they go by quick! Man, they weren't kidding. How did ten years happen so fast?
I remember her learning to crawl, learning to spell her name, mispronouncing words, her first day of school, her first lost tooth... and now she's ten?! 

Excuse me while I curl up at my desk and cry.

When Little Miss' birthday falls during the school week, I always try to make her a special breakfast and/or lunch to celebrate. Today, I packed her a fun cupcake surprise! 

Happy Birthday to my baby girl!

#UdisBacktoSchool Lunch Ideas & Giveaway!

We started using Udi's Gluten Free products over three years ago when we had to remove gluten from Little Miss' diet. 
Since then, we've been packing their delicious goods in our work and school lunches and sharing those ideas here on the blog and through social media. 
We want your family to be able to pack great lunches too. That's why Udi's has partnered with us to bring you an amazing back-to-school lunch giveaway! 

{New Product} @Planetbox JetPack Backpacks!

One of the questions I'm asked most frequently is how we store our lunches flat - either care wise or lunch bag recommendations.
Not every lunch is intricate, but when I take the time to make Little Miss something extra creative we typically send a lunch bag to keep it "neat" and organized. Thankfully Little Miss is quite accustomed to this, and bless her heart she loves showing off her Mama's creations, so she does a great job to not swing her bag all around or throw it in her locker. 
One of the reasons she loves using her Planetbox lunch containers is because of their sleek look and how they nicely keep her foods organized and divided. 
So, when our friends at Planetbox contacted us about their latest product - the New JetPack Backpacks - Little Miss was happy to test it out!

Lunch Made Easy: Healthy & Fun School Ideas

As many of you know, I don't blog every lunch from every school day... but, I do share them daily on our Facebook and Instagram pages. 
So, I try to put together "round-up" posts every so often for the blog where you can get a bunch of healthy school lunch ideas in one spot!
As always, all our lunches are completely nut free (no peanuts, no tree nuts). They're also all gluten free and many are dairy free or top 8 allergen free. Perfect for your food allergy family or if your child attends a school that has a "free from" classroom. 
Here's what we've been packing:

{Fancy Nancy} Book Character Dress-Up Day + Paris Theme Lunch!

For quite a few many years now, Little Miss has loved all things French and Paris themed.
It all started thanks to Fancy Nancy.  She has almost the entire book series + now all the Nancy Clancy chapter books. Plus a couple Nancy dolls and board games. She loves her!
For her 8th Birthday she had a Fancy Nancy themed cupcake party. Then, this past Christmas, she got all new bedding and decor items for her room to create a Paris "Fancy" French theme in lieu of toys.
So, of course, when Book Character Dress-Up Day at school showed up on the calendar again, she knew exactly who she wanted to be! FANCY NANCY. And I absolutely had to make a fun themed school lunch to go with it!

{Christmas Countdown} Advent Lunches 2014: Week 3

Twas' the week before Christmas and all through the days, everyone was preparing for next weeks craze.
Wrapping had started - gifts under the tree, And lunches were made with festive glee!
Friday marks only six days left on our countdown until Christmas. This week was also special because Hannukah began! Did you know there are 17 different ways to spell Hannukah? More on that below... 

{Christmas Countdown} Advent Lunches 2014: Week 2

Welcome to Week 2 of our Advent Lunches, Christmas Countdown, Round-up!
This week we did simple but festively fun themed lunches. They're all gluten free, peanut free, tree nut free, and more! Making them not only adorable, but allergy friendly. ;)

Lunch Made Easy: Halloween Ideas for Kids

'Twas the week of Halloween, as the children prepared.  Costumes and buckets and goodies to share.  There were scary ghoblins and spooky ghosts,  but the tiny princesses were eager most. Going door to door, teal pumpkins in sight. Clinching each other hands, in fear of a fright!

Lunch Made Easy: BUNCHES of {Nut Free, Gluten Free, & Allergy Friendly} Lunches!

The school year has kicked off with a bang! It's been busy between work, travel, all the homework, and tests that have already begun.
All our lunches are *always* Nut Free (my daughter is allergic). They're also Gluten Free & often Top 8 Allergen Free. So, if you're looking for ideas if your child is in a peanut free classroom or you're new to food allergies, you've come to the right place. Welcome!
What have we been packing? Let's check it out!

Lunch Made Easy: @Planetbox for Track & Field Day #LBLmoms

Today is Little Miss' Track & Field Day at school for the third and fourth grade classes, which means they'll also be picnicing outside on the grass around the track for lunch.
To let her know I was thinking about her and how proud I am for doing her best, I made her this fun lunch filled with stars and encouraging words packed in our Planetbox Rover: