Sometimes I share stories because it’s something I want to be sure to remember, myself. Sometimes I share stories because I think they’re funny. Sometimes, there’s something that causes me to have MANY MANY FEELS and then part of the way I deal with that is by sharing (either for solidarity or because misery loves company or whatever).
And then, sometimes, I’m just here to make you feel better about your own parenting choices. Just another service I offer!
This went up at Alpha Mom yesterday, and already a couple of commenters called it an excellent “Pinterest antidote,” which made me laugh. So, if you have any sort of packed-lunch-related guilt, allow me to show you what goes into a real-life, picky teen’s lunch box.
I enjoyed reading, Mir. I haven’t packed lunches in lots of years – my older two packed their own lunches once they realized they could [no food issues, not a single one – I was lucky that way] and my youngest usually bought hot lunch, which surprised me because he could be a picky eater. I remember keeping a variety of snacks and different kinds of fruit available. Now I buy those things when they’re coming home for a visit:)
Don’t feel bad, Mir. I only ate honey-and-butter sandwiches with one baby carrot and water for my school lunches. Ever. From first grade through 12th.
And at home I only varied that diet with spaghetti, green salad, lemons (which I ate even including the peel sometimes) and hot dogs. Nothing else. And I mean nothing else.
Kids can be fussy. As long as they aren’t hugely overweight or only eating sugar and potato chips, you’re not being a bad mom to let them have their way. Doesn’t matter what their lunch quirks are as long as they are physically healthy on their doctor’s checkups:)
I make my ten year old make her own lunch. I supervise but there were too many complaints that I was doing it wrong. Now she gets to cut up her own apples and carrots and make her own sandwich or wrap. So there, I win at this, somehow.
As if there were any winning…:)
OMG! We could be packing for the same kids. One will only eat peanut butter and jelly – for over 10 years! And all three will only eat apples that are presliced – so yes I do buy those expensive presliced pouches because when I slice them they won’t eat them even if I dip them in lemon juice to make sure they don’t brown. And little cups of peanut butter – yes, spend a fortune on that too but like you any way to get protein into my stick skinny preteen I will do it. He’ll eat those in the hall in between classes (he also wonders why he doesn’t have a girlfriend – could it be the peanut butter laden fingers he walks around with all day?). If I packed those cute bento box meals two things would occur – I’d be cranky because I’d have to get up way too early to prep, and my kids would throw them out (both the food and the cute bento box – don’t even get me started on how many water bottles and lunch boxes we loose. Which is another point – one kid will only use a brown lunch bag, one child will only use a lunch box and one child only likes lunch boxes in a particular shape because it fits better in the backpack).
As a parent of a peanut allergic child I have to ask – doesn’t his school have a peanut policy?
Dude. If that’s what you consider bad parenting? Well, let’s just say I am not going to tell you how much worse the lunches that leave my house are, because you might feel compelled to report me to CPS.
My 11 y.o. daughter is very picky and one day she will love something the next day she acts as if you are poisoning her with the same thing. I try to include fresh veggies and fruit everyday. She only takes water to school since it’s a charter school. The rest of the lunch items vary from – Oh I am mom of the year to well heck as long as she eats something.
My kids are forced to eat hot lunch at school. Our rule is that they can have cold lunch once/week, but only if they remind me the night before. My daughter prefers to beg for cold lunch “today” about 3 minutes before it is time to walk out of the door to go to school. :)
I only feel superior because I Don’t pack lunches. Ain’t nobody got time for that. My two pack their own lunches-starting in Kinder for the youngest. I ask them what they pack, just to make sure. But, I figure, if they pack it, they’ll eat it! I do make mac n cheese for them once per week- I am not totally heartless. And, yes, fruit got tossed by the wayside for fruit pouches, cups, etc long ago. No muss, no fuss!
LOL at making us feel better about our parenting choices. Due to some wacky financial issues (divorced, recently graduated from nursing school, crap hiring market), my kids are on the free lunch program at their schools for this year. Luckily we live in a school district with healthy lunches so I’m okay with that.
I’m a mean and horrible mommy who will never make it in the wilds of Pinterest.
After nearly a week straight on my then 2nd grader’s lunch coming home mostly uneaten, I hit the wall and declared — “You pack it; You eat it.” And while he is basically eating exactly the same things I packed before, they never come home uneaten. Every morning he has to pack his lunch — I gave him a drawer in the fridge of “lunch stuff” and a shelf in a cabinet. Yes, I buy everything in single serve packs to make his packing easier — but I don’t care. I used to take the time to make it perfect — and it would not be eaten. So….given that I have to deal with a picky, underweight 5th grader now — eating wins hands down.
Now that’s he’s 10, I sat him down and explained — I don’t care HOW you do it, but in the course of the day you will eat 40-50 grams of protein (nearly twice what his weight requires — but we are trying to get him back on the growth chart). Some days that might mean lots of meat other days it means we are chugging protein shakes at bedtime. I stopped caring the method. I just set the one standard — and I was SHOCKED at how he accepted the rule and stopped fighting me on any food that might increase the protein amount.