'You want me to eat this?'

With the new school year, mornings become hectic as bleary-eyed parents stumble into the kitchen and, with five minutes till the bus shows up, try to answer their kids' most important question of the day: "What's for lunch?"

And by this, your little darlings mean, "What do we have that I'll actually eat and not throw away or trade for processed-food products or cavity-causing snacks?"

While about half of all students in some metro Richmond school systems bought their lunches in 2009-10, school officials said it's a safe bet to assume that many of the remaining students ate lunches packed from home. That means tens of thousands of PB&Js and juice boxes and carrot sticks and cookies.

Or banana slices topped with a dollop of peanut butter and sprinkles or a single chocolate chip, which Glen Allen resident Cathy Buckenmaier packs for her youngest son, a student at Hanover County's Laurel Meadow Elementary School. Cutting his sandwiches into fun shapes with cookie cutters is also among her lunch-bag tricks.

"More fun to eat than a plain, square sandwich, and no crusts," she said by e-mail last week.

Parents want their children to eat healthy lunches and preparing one can be challenging when pressed for time. Pre-packaged foods are tempting but typically unhealthy.

With a little planning, though, kids' lunches can be something they'll look forward to, said Kendall Brooks, obesity-prevention dietician for Virginia's CHAMPION program, the Commonwealth's Healthy Approach and Mobilization Plan for Inactivity, Obesity and Nutrition.

Brooks said one of the best ways to ensure that kids will eat the lunches you pack is to get them involved in what's going into their lunchboxes. The first step is taking them food shopping.

"Kids are more likely to eat something they've picked out themselves," she said, so let them pick out their favorite flavor of sugar-free pudding cups or low-fat granola bars.

From there, give them a chance to make their lunches or help make a dish that can last all week. Make a large bowl of fruit salad on Sunday, Brooks said, and let the kids pick out the fruits and even (if they're old enough) help cut or slice the fruit.

"Give them a little ownership, and they're more likely to eat the foods," she said.

When it comes to the construction of your kids' lunch, ready-to-eat foods work best, Brooks said. A lot of kids don't have much time for lunch and many spend their lunchtime socializing "and then they end up not eating enough," she said.

Peel and segment an orange rather than putting the whole orange in the bag. Same with apples and other foods that take some work.

Getting kids to eat veggies means that sometimes you have to be a little sneaky.

Brooks suggested incorporating vegetables into dishes that kids already love, such as adding broccoli or spinach to macaroni and cheese or add thinly-sliced cucumbers to turkey and cheese sandwiches. Provide small containers of low-fat dips or hummus with bite-size veggies, or yogurt for dipping strawberries or apples.

Never, Brooks said, go for processed foods, no matter how convenient. Cheeses and meats "shouldn't be totally eliminated from the diet, just get the nonprocessed options," she said. Look for natural cheeses and low-fat string cheese, as well as meats at the deli counter that are leaner or lower in sodium. Go for breads with whole grains and wheat, or try pitas or flatbread wraps for something a little different.

Laura Girard, a Henrico County resident and parent of three Shady Grove Elementary students, said that school is among the many that allow parents to dictate when their children can have extra snacks, such as chips or ice cream. Hers, she said, are allowed these treats only on Fridays.

She also said eating lunch with her kids is a great way to see what they're eating.

"This way, you meet their friends and see how they interact at school," she said by email last week. "You also get ideas for lunches and see what works and doesn't work."