Back to School - How to Have a Cool Lunch

My friend Lara has spent her entire summer at the pool. When we visited her last week in Lincoln, MA, I was impressed with her routine. She managed to motivate her two boys,ages 3 and 6, out the door and into the car within five minutes. With the alacrity of a mom on a mission, she packed snacks, towels, and sunscreen for all of us. What caught my eye the most were the Fun Ice Packs she used.

"Where did you get these?" I giggled, thumbing the basketball-shaped ice pack. She couldn’t remember. She also had a smiley face one to keep the kids’ ham sandwiches cool. Shamefacedly, I thought back to the times I made my daughter lug the huge, extremely uncool cool pack in her lunch bag when she went on school excursions. You know the kind you put in your family-size cooler for those weekend outings to the beach? You can find them here.