When Emily was in Kindergarten, these parents saw me stand in line with a 4 pound premature baby and Ben dressed in a costume. They all thought Ben was a riot and loved watching Noah grow up throughout the year. It's just 10 minutes a day, but over a year, a bond is formed with these kinder parents.
The other day we were talking about the school lunches. One Mom just finished her student teaching at the school and said how gross most of it is. The salad bar is good, but most kids don't go for the salad bar when they can get pizza every day. I'd be totally excited if my kids would eat school lunch, but they won't touch it. And why would they when I pack their lunch every day.
It takes a good 20 minutes. Of course, I'm telling them to get dressed and making them breakfast while making their lunches. They are very different, so they get different things.
Ben - peanut butter and jelly with the crust cut off, crackers or chips, fruit and some little treat, a Hershey's Kiss or this week it's a Reese's peanut butter cup. Ben's favorite. The only other thing Ben will have is Salami, Boars Head Genoa Salami sliced thin fresh from the deli. Ben gets a juice box instead of Capri Sun as he can't stick the straw in the pouch yet on his own. The box is easier to put the straw in. Ben is predictable and easy.
Emily - she's all over the place. These week, she is loving ham sandwiches with extra mustard. She eats her crust. She also loves soup, which I heat and put in a thermos. She also gets crackers or chips, fruit and a little treat. Emily is actually easier because she doesn't care what I pack. But, I can guarantee she's the only second grader who gets excited when I pack her pea soup.
Then, I write a note on their napkin. Something simple, but just so they know I love them.
My earliest memories of eating lunch at school was in high school. I have a bad memory though. But chances are my kids will never remember that I cut off their crust and wrote them a love note every day. But, I don't do it so that they will remember the gesture 20 years from now.
I do it because I imagine they look around the table and see their friends eating "chicken" with "potatoes" and "gravy" from the school cafeteria. No special treats. No love notes. And I hope they enjoy their extra dose of love in their lunch box.
3 comments:
They don't do that here for kindergarten (sign out) - just pick up outside the school. The only bus service there is here in this town is children of special needs and the country kids. Otherwise, even though the schools can be located a few miles from one's house, you still have to drive and pick them up (or they walk - I've even seen little Kindergarteners walking home by themselves). Because of this (no bus service) that's why I still have special work hours in order to pick up Sarah from school (and Jim or my Dad takes her). Of course, next year, provided we have an additional car, she could drive herself. ;)
Anyway - you know how much I love the lunch notes and that I did this for Sarah as well, including little drawings, and I kept them all in a scrapbook which we have.
Sarah stopped cold lunch though somewhere around Junior High and has done hot lunch ever since. Makes it easy for me, since I never pack lunches. But she has been saying lately that she's thinking about bringing some cup-a-soups, fruits,etc., so she can eat that for lunch instead of the still-often-yucky school hot lunch.
No open campus at the high school here (we never had that either), so they stay in for lunch.
Snow here today and I'm home because after my morning appt., the roads were already getting bad and I returned home. Looking forward to getting out there doing more photography art this afternoon. :)
Love, Linda
My 1st grader goes to a charter school and most of the time the school lunch is things we would have here at home. The days that they have "junk" food, like corn dogs, he asks to bring a packed lunch LOL He reminds me every week that we need to read over the menu to see if he needs to pack any days :)
I tried leaving Josh a note in his box years ago and he was mortified and told me never to do it again. Turkey! So I've never even tried with Alanah but now that she read your blog she says she wants notes too.
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