I don’t know if it was like this in every school, but back in my grade school days everyone was forced to take a carton of milk with every lunch. Unless you had a proven allergy, everyone had to take one and drink it – or at least open it before it got thrown away. I’m sure there was some kind of school lunch regulation that required all kids to “drink” milk with every lunch – but knowing that full cartons of milk got thrown away kills me a little inside. If your carton wasn’t open half-way into lunch, you’d get a little tap on the shoulder from the lunch lady making sure that thing was open. And don’t even think about giving it to your friend across the table. Aside from throwing food, sharing food was the greatest offense of all. It’s funny the things you remember from the childhood days, but I bet that if the milk makers changed out the carton puzzles for these “Drink Up” labels, there may have been a whole lot more milk drinking going on – and a lot less crossword puzzle solving.

Designed in two colors, these printable milk bottle labels can be printed off and stuck to any recycled jar. I took the labels off of some Starbucks Frappuccino jars and replaced them with these labels. Fill them up with different flavors of milk, or allow your guests to mix up their own. How fun would a milk bar be for a brunch party? Or better yet, a cookie bar.

After removing the original labels, you’ll probably find that the glue residue is a little tough to get off. Since I slapped the new labels right over top with the aid of some double-sided tape, the extra glue residue from the previous labels actually helped the new label stick on. But if you want to get it all off before adding the new ones, try soaking the bottles in a bath of water & dishsoap. That method usually works best for me, without having to scrape away for hours.

Materials
So tell me, what were some of the lunch room rules you still remember? Part of me thinks this was just some Iowa thing, but I’d love to know if this was actually a widespread rule. I guess I could google it, but hearing your stories sounds like more fun.
Lisa says
I just bought a small case of these bottles just because they were so cute. I love how great they look here with your labels.
Melissa says
Oh yay! I’d love to see a pic of them when you’re done!
Alexis @ Persia Lou says
Oh these are so cute! I don’t remember rules about opening your milk, but I do remember a whole lot of milk being thrown away. I’m sure much less milk would be wasted with these cute labels. If you had a second to come by and link up at The Makers link party over on my blog tomorrow. :)
Kathleen says
Our lunch ladies weren’t that on top of things but I do remember when milk was 5 cents and chocolate milk was 6 cents! I think I just aged myself
Melissa says
Lol! I think we all wish groceries were that cheap now days!