Rhia's Kitchen : Introducing Lunchbox Love Letters

Right about now—when my kids' new classroom assignments and their school supply lists pop into my inbox—the back-to-school frenzy starts to ramp up. Our mornings will soon be busier and our afternoons packed with soccer practice, piano lessons, and playdates. My kids will return to school a wee bit taller and a lot tanner after a summer full of trips to the pool.

I'll see them less, but in some ways I'll think about them more, as the lead lunch packer and chaperone for our family. Oliver needs an extra packed snack because he has a playdate after school. Remind Ethan to check lost-and-found for his water bottle, again. Pick up frozen pizzas for nights I don't have it in me to make dinner—Hugh likes pepperoni.

Likewise, Simply Recipes has back-to-school top of mind. But when our editors gathered to plan lunchbox recipes and tips, we got sappy and sentimental. The thing is, when we think of lunchboxes, we get nostalgic about the lunches our own parents packed us or the cafeteria foods we stood in line for. Some of us parents got mushy about of our own children—the little love notes we tuck into their lunchboxes, the foods we hope they don't get teased about, and the everyday ways we show them we love them.

Don't worry! We have lots of packed lunch recipes and back-to-school survival tips to share with you. And we also have stories—lunchbox love letters—that we hope will remind you to give your loved ones a hug as they walk out the door with their packed lunches.

—Myo Quinn, Senior Editor

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