Alphamom
Once upon a time, it was enough to stuff a bologna sandwich into a plastic baggy, throw it into a brown paper bag with a juice box and an apple, and call the whole thing "lunch." But times have changed; packed lunches have become an art form, a chance for creative parents to come up with mesmerizing food creations with tiny plastic containers as their canvas. Get ready to be inspired — these parents have set the bar pretty high:
Peanut Butter and Jelly Sushi
Bon Appetit
It doesn't matter if your picky eater won't go near raw fish with a 10-foot pole; these adorable rolls will get them hooked on the idea of sushi.
Angry Birds Cheese
Cute Food for Kids
A bite-sized cheese snack plus a little creativity equals this awesome Angry Birds-themed protein snack.
LEGO Bento Box
Laughing Squid
Full disclosure: It may take a bit of work to craft your food into perfect block-shaped pieces, but I think you'll agree that the result is totally worth it.
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Bento Monsters
Bento Monsters
How cute are these tiny food characters? So cute. SO CUTE.
Goldfish® Crackers and Friends
Gretchen Boynton (Pinterest)
Your kids will be all smiles when they open this fun lunch! From Goldfish® Crackers to fish-shaped cucumber and cheese slices (with grapes and lasagna to boot), this will be the one time it’s okay for your kids to play with their food!
Themed Lunches
Lunchbox Dad
Take a page from this dad's book and flex your creativity every day with a different theme that your kids will love.
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Paint a picture
Sakurako Kitsa (Flickr)
Who needs art supplies when you can create a masterpiece with food?
Melon Balls
Pretty Foods
These sweet, colourful melon cups no doubt taste as lovely as they look.
Fruity Fortune Cookies
She Knows
Send your love with cute fortune cookies made with fruit roll-ups and handmade notes.
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Little Red Riding Hood
Instagram
Make your food tell a story like this talented mom did!
Elsa's enchanted forest
Samantha Lee (Instagram)
You'll be the most popular mom on the block with a "Frozen"-themed lunch creation.
Flowers
Alphamom
Even cold lunches are fun when you use your ingredients to create colourful scenes like this garden.
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Sweet Critters
Jill Mills (Instagram)
Little known fact: sweet treats taste even better when they look like adorable animals.
Super Mario
Technabob
Not going to lie, we're blown away by the attention to detail in these Super Mario-themed lunches.
Veggie Lodge
Green Giant (Pinterest)
Your kids will want to eat their veggies when they're presented in amazing 3D form like this Veggie Lodge.
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Fruit Art
Alphamom
These simple (but lovely) fruit creations prove you don't need to overcomplicate things to make an amazing lunch creation.
Edible LEGO
Cutest Food
For once, let your kids play with their food with these awesome gummy LEGO pieces.
Watermelon Cube
Babble
Indulge your inner perfectionist by creating a perfectly-formed Rubik's Cube from fruit.
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Sandwich Art
Funky Lunch
Break your bread boredom by making your sandwiches into cute creatures like Winnie the Pooh and Hello Kitty. You'll get bonus points from the kids for always cutting the crusts off.
Hot Dog Hot Dogs
Foodiggity
These hot dog hot dogs are almost too cute to eat. Almost.