Brown Bagging it...

My boyfriend both bring out lunches to work and we both use innsulated lunch bags. He most often bring sandwiches and soem fruit. But if there are leftovers he sometimes takes some of those. Often they can be eaten cold and still be ok....things like pasta or chicken. I usually avoid sandwiches, one, because I fing them boring (I'm just not a good sandwich maker), and two, I try to avoid too much bread. I tent to bring leftovers as well, but also like soups and salads. For soup I have a gladwear container where the top screws on. I throw some udon noodle, steamed veggies, and miso soup mix into the container. When lunch time rolls around all I have to do is add hot water, stir and eat. It's like a healthier version of cup-a-noodle :-)

We pack most times in an empty plastic bag from grocery shopping! That's because both hubby and I have a refridge where we work. We pack leftovers from the evening before, yogurt, sandwiches, cans of soup, cans of ravioli..just whatever we have on hand!

I bring my lunch to work everyday as well. I work in a factory and we only get 23 minutes (paid, mind you) for lunch. I could go buy my lunch from the lunch cart everyday, but it gets expensive and takes precious minutes from my lunch. I usually bring a frozen meal like Lean Cuisine ($2.99 each on sale) and a diet coke. That way I'm watching my calories and fat and my wallet, but it's still convenient. I usually throw it in the microwave during my washroom break before lunch. That way it's ready to eat by the time the assembly line stops and I don't have to waste any of my precious 23 minutes heating it up and I beat the line up for the microwave.

I bring my lunch as often as I can for many reasons. First of all, bringing your lunch saves a lot of money. And secondly, bringing your own lunch allows you to control what you are eating. Rather than go into a long medical history, I will just say that I have to watch what I eat. Sadly, I am not always the best behaved when it comes down to it. When I pack my lunch I try really hard to make sure that my meal is both appealing and good for me. This means that I know that I packed things that I like to eat and I don't have to worry about things being fried, fatty, or just filled with sodium. Most of the time I will bring a plastic japanese styled bento box. Typical things I will pack are salads, cold noodle dishes, leftovers from dinner, steamed veggies with dipping sauce, and then fruit and nuts for dessert. Oh, and in case you are curious about what a bento box is, check out this website - www.cookingcute.com This site also has a lot of great lunch ideas and recipes to keep you from getting too bored with your boxed lunches.

I always take a pack up to work for lunch, becuase i can't afford to buy food from the sandwich shop every day on my wage! The ister makes it for me, along with his own. I sually have sandwiches, a packet of crisps, an apple and a wafer. Sometimes i'll have quiche or a pasta salad instead, and sometimes i like him to add a scotch egg or sausage roll as a snack.