Lunch Share Party :: New ideas for kid food!

One of my kids will eat anything.  I mean, ANYTHING!  She literally just ate onions and zucchini out of the salad I was eating.  But the other one?  Well, she is VERY picky.  I am always looking for new foods and new ways to sneak healthy items into her diet, but it is quite the struggle.  {Speaking of which, have you seen Amy’s post on toddler nutrition?  It’s full of great ideas!}

With back to school upon us, I knew that I needed some new “go to” lunch items – but I didn’t want to spend a fortune stocking up on items when I didn’t know whether my picky eater would even like them or not.  So I decided it was the perfect time to have a “Lunch Share Party!”  Here’s the idea :: You get a bunch of moms and their kiddos together, everyone brings a new recipe or two, and the kids get to try new types of food to see if they like them.  It is SO easy and such a fun excuse to get everyone together!

Of course, everyone’s party will look different, but here is what worked for us…

A few weeks before the event, I created a Facebook group to invite everyone to the party. Here people were able to post recipes they were bringing and share other ideas too. {If you don’t like the idea of a Facebook group, you could just ask everyone to bring copies of the recipes they made though.}

As the host, I tried to have a rough idea of what everyone was bringing on the day of the event.  I made name cards for each food item and had them ready to go when the guests arrived. Also, I had a few blank ones handy to fill out on the spot too.

Now comes the fun part – EATING! You will be surprised at what kids will eat when they see their friends eating it too. Then, they might try something they LIKE!  Our foods that day included…

Veggie Ranch Pizza ::  Don’t think your kids will eat broccoli?  You might be surprised when it’s on this awesome pizza!

Quinoa Cookies :: These are packed with protein, and so, so good!!!

Flaxseed PB&J :: Just add milled flaxseed to your regular old peanut butter!

Fresh Fruit :: My girls never realized they liked blueberries until this day. Also, those small seedless oranges are now a new favorite in our house. {My 4 year old loves to peel them!}

We moms made sure all the kids got a good sampling of the food and tried it all out.  And we also used our party as a time to collect school supplies for kids in need for the YMCA’s Operation Backpack. The drive is now over, but schools are ALWAYS in need of extra school supplies – or you could also use this as a way to collect items for a local pantry, children’s shelter, or even diapers for a friend who is having a baby!

I am always having conversations with my mom friends about what to feed the kids. Now that we have a Facebook group started for the party, we are keeping it up and sharing ideas as we head back to school. The recipes and comments are all in one place so we can easily access it whenever we need to.  It couldn’t be easier!  And overall, the whole concept of a Lunch Share Party was such a success!

What do you think? Would you host a lunch share party too?