feature story / 31 Ownership: Does your little moppet constantly complain about his lunch? Fine, he can help you pack it. Or pack it himself. Growing up, my wife’s parents gave them cash at the beginning of the week to buy lunches at school or they could make lunch at home and stuff the cash in their piggy bank. I’m pretty sure we renovated our basement with some of that money my wife hoarded away. Pinterest is your enemy: Repeat this mantra: Perfect is the enemy of good. A healthy-ish, yummy- ish lunch that my child will eat-ish is good enough for me. Sure, you can make precious heart-shaped sandwiches, complex vegetable flowers and perfect skewers of fresh fruit balls for your sweet bambino’s birthday, but that’s it. Otherwise, keep it simple and don’t make us other parents look bad. Quenching thirst: I want my kids to stay hy- drated and gulp down their drink, so we send two beverages: a water bottle in the side pocket of the backpack and a bottle of juice – cut with water for the younger kids – in the lunchbox. Replace with similar items: Try exchanging some less healthy munchies with close alternatives that still get the job done. Replace chips with air-popped popcorn, cheese balls with fresh cut cheese and fruit snacks with dried fruit. Shortcuts: Slice several days’ worth of produce in advance. Cut up cheese blocks and dish out yogurt on Sunday for the week. Keep waffles, sand- wiches, fruit and yogurt in the freezer. Anything you can assemble during downtime makes game-time a whole lot easier. The core formula: A protein or two (cheese/meat/ beans), a grain, a couple varieties of produce and a yogurt or dip. This basic bento-style lunch is both balanced and nutritious. U to Z:I just loaded you up with tons of tips in this cutesy ABC format without hav- ing to make up ridiculous stuff just to fill out the letters U to Z! Determine what’s reasonable to achieve and focus on that. Ben Salmon is a father of four, former literary agent, columnist, and owner of the award-winning Kitchen a la Mode, located in South Orange and Summit. The shop was named best kitchen store in the state by NJ Monthly three years in a row. n 973.313.2722 ■ thetenthmusegallery.com 170 Maplewood Avenue ■ Maplewood, NJ NEW SEASON, NEW ARTISTS NEW COLLECTIONS HOURS: m–w 10am-6pm th—sat 10am—8:00pm