Being a working mom certainly has its pros and cons, just as being a stay at home mom does. I know that it’s the right thing for our family and definitely the right fit for me personally, but there are times when the balancing act can be more taxing than others. Last year when Andrew started kindergarten I had more than a little on my plate. I was finishing residency, starting fellowship, and studying every free moment to prepare for taking the mother of all exams, my residency boards. I hated that I was so preoccupied during my little buddy’s first few weeks of kindergarten. It especially upset me that I didn’t have time to pack his lunch, or that when I did, it was far from creative.
Eventually after things had settled down at work and I started to come out of my post-exam fog, I got into a better routine and was able to start making lunches. I even branched out beyond the two sandwiches we had been alternating between all year until that point. One thing I made often was veggie wraps – just random veggies from the fridge, some cheese, and a spinach wrap to pull it all together. I loved them because they were so easy and Andrew just loved them, period. However, one glance at the ingredient list was enough to stop me from buying the wraps again. Andrew kept asking for “the green wraps” so I knew I needed to find a homemade alternative.
I haven’t bought tortillas in ages since learning to make those so I figured a few tweaks could make some passable spinach wraps. As it turns out, this worked amazingly well. A whole grain, non-processed version with only six ingredients is definitely something I can get on board with. Andrew is happy to have his fave green wraps back and I’m happy knowing they aren’t full of junk. Just as with nearly every homemade bread that I make, I keep a stash of these in the freezer so that we have them around whenever we need them.
I’m happy that this year we are into a great routine and I’m enjoying making school lunches every day. Just a reminder – I am doing a lunch-a-day feature on Instagram throughout the month of August, sharing school lunch ideas most days as well as some work lunches scattered in. If you’re looking to get out of a lunch rut, especially where school lunches are concerned, this might help provide some inspiration. I hope you’ll follow along!
(*The lunchbox pictured above is this one from Pottery Barn Kids. I can’t say enough good things about it! After wrangling endless reusable snack bags, storage containers and lids all through last school year, this has made packing lunches infinitely easier.)