Life with two toddlers is nonstop, and between juggling work, opening another Pilates studio in California, and keeping up with everyday chaos, dinner often sneaks up on me. By 5 p.m., my kids are starving (hello, hangries!). And I've come to accept this isn't the season of life where I have perfectly prepared dinners on the table every night. I keep reminding myself that I don’t need to do it all or overextend myself. To make life easier (and honestly, be a better parent), I’ve been relying on meal delivery services to help feed my kids at dinnertime.

Lately, I’ve been seeing tons of ads for Nurture Life. I already had a solid meal delivery service for my kids (a very popular one, in fact), but it wasn’t exactly wowing me. So, I decided to give Nurture Life a try. And since I research just about everything that comes through my door (especially for my children), I was ready to see how it measured up against the service I was already using.

TLDR: Try Nurture Life for 50% off your first order with code VEGGIES50

Tired of making two dinners? 

When it comes to a meal service for my kids, it actually has to make life easier—not just sound good in theory and then fall short. I can cook healthy meals, but that usually means modifying what my husband and I eat so much that it turns into plain pasta with sauce (again) or another round of chicken nuggets. And when that’s happening most nights of the week, it’s not exactly balanced. I was making two dinners anyway—double the effort, double the dishes, and still stuck in a rut with meals that lacked variety and nutrients. 

So for a meal service to be worth it, the meals have to be: 

• Healthy
• Something my kids will eat
• Priced right—because if I’m paying for it, I don’t want to be stuck just making something else. 

After trying Nurture Life Kids Meals, I put it head-to-head with the service we were using before, looking at what matters most to busy parents: nutrition, taste, variety, portion sizes, and cost.

Here’s my review of both services after giving them a try.

Criteria #1: Nutrition

Nurture Life Kids Meals

Fresh or frozen? 

Nurture Life Kids Meals are made fresh to order and never frozen, giving them a more homemade feel. I love that you don't have to worry about food sitting in a deep freezer for months. 

Ingredients

Nurture Life meals have less added sugar and salt than my last meal delivery service and most of the fresh produce and whole grains are organic. They are free of nitrates, high-fructose corn syrup, trans fat, artificial colors and flavors, and other additives. 

Registered dietitians design Nurture Life meals with a macronutrient balance that follows recommendations from the US Dietary Guidelines, the American Academy of Pediatrics, ASPEN Clinical Nutrition Recommendations, and USDA MyPlate.

The Other Kids Meal Delivery

Fresh or frozen?

The other kids' meals are cooked and prepared, vacuumed-sealed to preserve the shelf life without the use of preservatives, then shipped frozen. Each meal comes tightly wrapped in plastic, and the instructions recommend microwaving it with the plastic covering. I didn’t love a hot plastic wrap touching my kids' food.

Ingredients

These meals use antibiotic- and hormone-free meat and eggs, while pork meals skip added sodium nitrate and sodium nitrite. There are several meals with organic ingredients.

The TLDR Comparison	Nurture Life Kids Meals	The Other Kids Meal Delivery
Nutritional balance	– At least one whole serving of veggies per meal! – More protein and fiber	– Each meal features 2 to 4 food groups.
Added sugar	– For those with added sugar, no white sugar is used, instead only fruit purees, agave and maple syrup – 74%+ of Kids Meals contain zero added sugar	– There is a small amount of cane sugar or maple syrup in a handful of plates.
Allergy considerations	– Can filter out allergens – Options for vegetarian, gluten-free, fish-free, pork-free, milk-free. – Meals are prepared in a nut-free facility except for coconut.	– Can filter out allergens – Options for vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, allergy-friendly, and vegetarian. – No peanuts or tree nuts in meals, except for coconut.

Nutrition Winner: Nurture Life Kids Meals

Criteria #2: Taste

Nurture Life Kids Meals

Instead of oversimplifying meals with basic flavors, Nurture Life meals push the boundaries and introduce new flavors to my toddlers in an approachable way, even my picky eater likes them! (An example of two healthy options they loved are the Spaghetti & Meatballs with Super Veggie Sauce and Chicken & Mac with Hidden Squash & Peas.)

The Other Kids Meal Delivery

Meals are very kid-friendly, my two never protested them! And they have lots of hidden veggies that don’t seem to offend my picky eaters at all. (Chicken Super Nuggets and Spinach and Cheese Ravioli were both hits in our home.)

Taste Winner: Tied

Criteria #3: Variety

Nurture Life Kids Meals

There are tons of meal options for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Nurture Life Kids Meals are balanced with different food groups, colors, textures, and flavors.

New meals are introduced each month to the menu so little ones don’t get bored (or too comfortable) with the same foods. I love that they include a diverse range of ingredients—20 different vegetables, plant-based proteins, whole grains, herbs, and spices.

The Other Kids Meal Delivery

There’s a good selection of plated meals for lunch and dinner, with a few breakfast options to choose from. But many of the proteins I had the option of ordering seemed quite similar, with many breaded bites and nuggets.

Variety Winner: Nurture Life Kids Meals

Criteria #4: Portion sizes

Nurture Life Kids Meals

I love that Nurture Life offers bigger portion sizes that are also based on nutritional research and tailored to the developmental needs of each age group. So, if my kids are really hungry, they get enough to feel full and satisfied. Plus, if they don’t finish it all, there are usually enough leftovers for a meal or snack the next day. You definitely get more bang for your buck than my past delivery service.

The Other Kids Meal Delivery

These meals are the right size for my 2 and 4 year old, but I definitely can see my older one quickly outgrowing the portion size or having to open a second meal to keep him satisfied. 

Portion Size Winner: Nurture Life Kids Meals

Criteria #5: Cost

Nurture Life

Nurture life offers a plan-based subscription so you can choose a certain amount of items to be delivered per week. *Reminder, items are fresh, never frozen, so you’ll receive deliveries weekly. 

You can also get 50% off your first order, which is an incredible deal when you consider how many ingredients go into each meal you’d make at home. Here’s the breakdown:

• 6 items per week: $7.49/ item OR $3.74/item with a 50% discount for your first order 
• 10 items per week: $6.99/item OR $3.49/item with a 50% discount for your first order 
• 13 items per week: $6.72/item OR $3.36/item with a 50% discount for your first order 
• 16 items per week: $6.55/item OR $3.27/item with a 50% discount for your first order 

To put it in perspective, with the smallest subscription plan of 6 items per week, you'll get 24 meals per month. The total cost is $179.76 per month, or $89.99 with a 50% discount on your first order.

I also love that there’s no weekly commitment. Once you sign up, you can skip weeks, cancel, or make changes to your account as long as it’s before the cutoff date and time. It’s super flexible for travel or when we have other plans for the kids during the week.

The Other Kids Meal Delivery

You can place a single order or sign up for a subscription plan. Items are delivered every 2 weeks (aka you are required to do a 2 week week commitment per order).

• 8 plates per 2 weeks: $7.50/plate
• 12 plates per 2 weeks: $7.08/plate
• 18 plates per 2 weeks: $6.53/plate
• 24 plates per 2 weeks: $5.83/plate

To put it in perspective, with the smallest subscription plan of 8 plates per 2 weeks (referred to as 4 plates per week on the website), you’ll get 16 plates per month, and the total cost is $120 per month.

I have to note, when checking out the subscription options are a bit confusing because they only ship twice a month. It took some time and a bit of “mom math” to figure out the pricing.

Cost Winner: Nurture Life

Nurture Life is my preferred food delivery for my kids!

While I do love cooking for my toddlers, this just isn’t the time for me to be doing it seven nights a week. Having something like Nurture Life delivered takes a huge weight off my shoulders and gives me peace of mind knowing my kids are eating well. And I’d gladly take the extra time to read one more bedtime book or have a dance party after the dishes are in the dishwasher. If you’re in the same boat and thinking about different food delivery services, here’s why we're such a fans of this brand in our home:

✅Super fresh and good quality, healthy foods 

✅Tons of variety and diverse ingredients 

✅Nutritionally balanced meals that are nutrient-dense

✅Lower in sodium and added sugars

✅Tastes incredible (I even nibble off my kids’ plates!)

✅Larger portion sizes 

✅More cost-effective 

✅Shipped to your door weekly

On packed days, the last thing I want to stress about is dinner. And if a meal service can take something off my plate (literally), I’m all for it.

Try Nurture Life for 50% off your first order with code VEGGIES50

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