Give the Kids a Portable Breakfast in the Morning
My son has a big appetite and he is almost always ready for the next food intake, so in my house battle for breakfast, tend to focus more on what is, and not on whether there is. But over the years, I’ve watched several of my friends fight over and over again over the ” please, just eat ANYTHING ” battle.
A friend once told me that she felt like she had been chasing her son around the house with a spoon in her hand for most of the morning. In the end, she gave up and let him take breakfast with him to the car on his way to kindergarten.
“He’s just not hungry in the morning,” she told me. “But he also cannot live the whole morning without something, otherwise he will melt.”
If food battles are interrupting your morning routine and if you get to kindergarten or school for more than a minute or two, consider letting the kids take their breakfast to go. I did a little crowdsourcing with our parent Facebook group Offspring as well as my own friends to put together this list of car-friendly products.
(Disclaimer: I’m not saying that some of them can’t create clutter; clutter should just be kept to a minimum and that the benefit of eating something outweighs the annoyance of a dirty backseat. But proceed at your own risk .)
Egg muffins
Prepare a batch of egg mini-muffins in advance, wrap in plastic and freeze. You can microwave (or even roast them) as needed right before leaving the door. I love this simple three-ingredient recipe that is versatile and can be modified to include (i.e. sneak around) a few chopped vegetables. You can also make them in regular cupcake tins, which I often do, but mini tins are great for small pens.
Go bento
Take inspiration from the Japanese and make a Bento breakfast for your trip to school. A friend of mine does this regularly and says that using a box with at least several compartments ( like this one ) is key. You can close the lid while you get everyone in the car so your child can hold it in their lap. Fill the compartments with fruit, cheese, bread, crackers, or nuts.
Waffles
Waffles – Syrup Free – This is an easy breakfast option in the car. Toast them, you can spread them with butter, cut into quarters and toss them in a small snack bowl or plastic sandwich bag. For older kids who can be trusted a little more, try the peanut butter and waffle jelly sandwich.
Fold it
If you want to eat lots of fruits, vegetables, or yogurt in the morning, stock up on pomace packs, which are ideal for toddlers and preschoolers. They are produced by different brands in all sorts of flavor combinations (blueberry-banana-flax-oats, anyone?). Or, to make the yogurt less messy, freeze a few tubes of yogurt (like Go-Gurt), cut off the top and forward.
Superfast options
There’s no shame in last-minute access to what’s on hand and easily conveyed when you walk out the door. If they ate something, and this is not a full-fledged dessert, let’s call it a victory. You may already have several options:
- Dry groats
- Breakfast bars
- Granola
- Breakfast crackers ( such as BelVita )
- Cheese sticks