Thursday, May 19, 2011
Changes...
So you may have noticed that the blog looks different today. I have decided it's well past time for me to roll my sleeves up and redesign it a bit. Like all other projects I undertake, this will probably take a lot longer than it should. So, please bear with me as I attempt to try something new. In the meantime, please enjoy the basic template provided by Blogger since I could no longer stand to look at the blog in its previous state.
Making wishes come true
Yesterday was K's final school field trip of the year. The class went to a local family owned market. K had been doing the countdown to the day of her field trip for almost 3 weeks. She was really excited to go, mostly because she was going to finally ride on a school bus.
(Since using the school transportation system would have my kids sitting on a yellow bus for nearly 2 1/2 hours each day, a neighbor and I take turns carpooling the kids to and from school thus depriving my kids of all the joys and delights that would await them if they were allowed to ride the bus.)
Ironically the market they visited was within walking distance from our house, but I still had to drop her off at her school 6 miles away. Since I was one of the parent chaperones, I waited in the parking lot of the school for 15 minutes & then hopped on board a big yellow school bus with the kids to travel the 6 miles back home to my neighborhood market. As expected K was thrilled with the ride.
It was a fun morning, the kids got a tour of the entire place including the stock rooms, receiving docks and even the large freezer where the ice cream is kept. Each child was given a paper grocery bag when we arrived and in each department we visited they were given something. It was like a grocery store version of trick-or-treat.
They picked out an apple in the produce department, small cookies from the bakery, a string cheese stick from the dairy section, a juice box from grocery and they even got to watch as 2 pizzas were made for them in the kitchen behind the prepared foods section.
(This may have been my least favorite part of the tour since we all --including the chaperones-- had to wear hair nets. It wouldn't have been too bad except for the fact that
1. The store employees all wear hats instead of hairnets - which by the way looked much cooler
...and more importantly
2. Many, many pictures were taken once the hairnets were in place. K's teacher was almost gleeful about getting pictures of us. Pictures I may add that she made sure she took so there was no photographic evidence of her in a hairnet. I fear those hairnet pictures will be appearing on the school's website in the very near future.)
But everything on the tour paled in comparison to the item that the kids got when they visited the meat/deli department. An item that is apparently coveted by children everywhere...Lunchables.
K squealed with excitement when she discovered the prize. K like her brother before her has discovered the harsh truth that her beloved mother will not buy Lunchables. When K accompanies me to the grocery store (which thankfully isn't too often) she asks for them and I always say no.
When she starts pleading her case I tell her the same thing I told her brother when he used to ask for them, "They're really not that good for you, and even if they were... you won't like them. I know they look cool, but trust me you'd take one bite and then decide you don't want to eat them after all. And I'll end up throwing them away and making you something else." To which always replies, "Oh I would love them, Mama I know it...please, please?!"
Clearly though I am not the only mean Mom that refuses to buy them, because most of the children reacted in the same way as my own child upon receiving their Lunchable - with total joy and excitement.
At the end of our tour the kids were shown to the loft area where they could eat the pizza that was made for them and drink their juice boxes. Most kids were disappointed that they couldn't eat their Lunchables right away, but they all decided that they would be eating them for sure come lunch time (our tour ended at 10:00, so the pizza was really like a mid-morning snack).
As we boarded the bus to head back to school, K looked at me and asked if she could eat her Lunchable for lunch. When I told her she could, she hugged me and declared, "It's my dream come true. I've always wished for a Lunchable and now I finally get one!" Seriously...all this joy over a few crackers and some bologna. Who knew?
While a lot of the kids in K's class headed to an extended day program once school was over at 11:15, K came home with me -much to her dismay- so we could eat lunch together. (K is longing for next year when she will head to all day kindergarten and can at last eat lunch with her friends instead of her boring mother.)
Once she discovered I was not going to let her eat the Lunchable in the car, she spent whole trip home planning out her Lunchable eating strategy (K forumlates an eating strategy before each meal. I have no idea why she does it or what it may mean. I figure if it gets her to eat, it's fine with me.) "I think I'll eat the crackers first, and then the cheese, and then the meat and then I'll eat the cookies. Or maybe I'll eat the cheese first and then the crackers. Or maybe...." I'll spare you the rest of her strategic ponderings.
As soon as I got the car in the driveway she was out the door and in the house. She ripped open the top of the Lunchable before she even got her coat off. She ran to wash her hands (under much protest) and then ignoring all of her previously made eating strategies proceeded to make the "sandwich" shown on the outside of the package. She carefully piled her meat and cheese between the two crackers and took a big bite.
She looked a bit surprised, then turned to me and said, "Hmmm...I don't really like it. Maybe I'll eat them separately."
So she ate all her crackers and then took a tentative bite of the bologna before asking, "What is this meat? It tastes like cold hot dog." I tried to explain bologna to her as best I could, but since I'm not really sure what it is myself, I'm not sure I was doing a good job. I finally told her she was right, it's just like a cold hot dog. To which she replied, "Well, I don't really like it."
I told her to try the cheese. She took a bite of it, then looked at me and asked, "Isn't this the same as the yellow cheese it our fridge? " When I told her it was, she took another bite then looked at me and then sadly looked over at the two cookies that came with her Lunchable.
"Don't you like the cheese?" I asked.
"No. Can I just have the cookies?"
The answer to that was no, so I ended up making her a peanut butter sandwich which she ate with zeal so that she could finally get to those cookies.
When I commented that I the whole reason I didn't buy Lunchables in the first place was because I didn't think she'd like them, she just replied, "Well I did like the crackers and the cookies. Maybe next time I'll have to try another flavor."
Hope springs eternal...
(Since using the school transportation system would have my kids sitting on a yellow bus for nearly 2 1/2 hours each day, a neighbor and I take turns carpooling the kids to and from school thus depriving my kids of all the joys and delights that would await them if they were allowed to ride the bus.)
Ironically the market they visited was within walking distance from our house, but I still had to drop her off at her school 6 miles away. Since I was one of the parent chaperones, I waited in the parking lot of the school for 15 minutes & then hopped on board a big yellow school bus with the kids to travel the 6 miles back home to my neighborhood market. As expected K was thrilled with the ride.
It was a fun morning, the kids got a tour of the entire place including the stock rooms, receiving docks and even the large freezer where the ice cream is kept. Each child was given a paper grocery bag when we arrived and in each department we visited they were given something. It was like a grocery store version of trick-or-treat.
They picked out an apple in the produce department, small cookies from the bakery, a string cheese stick from the dairy section, a juice box from grocery and they even got to watch as 2 pizzas were made for them in the kitchen behind the prepared foods section.
(This may have been my least favorite part of the tour since we all --including the chaperones-- had to wear hair nets. It wouldn't have been too bad except for the fact that
1. The store employees all wear hats instead of hairnets - which by the way looked much cooler
...and more importantly
2. Many, many pictures were taken once the hairnets were in place. K's teacher was almost gleeful about getting pictures of us. Pictures I may add that she made sure she took so there was no photographic evidence of her in a hairnet. I fear those hairnet pictures will be appearing on the school's website in the very near future.)
But everything on the tour paled in comparison to the item that the kids got when they visited the meat/deli department. An item that is apparently coveted by children everywhere...Lunchables.
K squealed with excitement when she discovered the prize. K like her brother before her has discovered the harsh truth that her beloved mother will not buy Lunchables. When K accompanies me to the grocery store (which thankfully isn't too often) she asks for them and I always say no.
When she starts pleading her case I tell her the same thing I told her brother when he used to ask for them, "They're really not that good for you, and even if they were... you won't like them. I know they look cool, but trust me you'd take one bite and then decide you don't want to eat them after all. And I'll end up throwing them away and making you something else." To which always replies, "Oh I would love them, Mama I know it...please, please?!"
Clearly though I am not the only mean Mom that refuses to buy them, because most of the children reacted in the same way as my own child upon receiving their Lunchable - with total joy and excitement.
At the end of our tour the kids were shown to the loft area where they could eat the pizza that was made for them and drink their juice boxes. Most kids were disappointed that they couldn't eat their Lunchables right away, but they all decided that they would be eating them for sure come lunch time (our tour ended at 10:00, so the pizza was really like a mid-morning snack).
As we boarded the bus to head back to school, K looked at me and asked if she could eat her Lunchable for lunch. When I told her she could, she hugged me and declared, "It's my dream come true. I've always wished for a Lunchable and now I finally get one!" Seriously...all this joy over a few crackers and some bologna. Who knew?
While a lot of the kids in K's class headed to an extended day program once school was over at 11:15, K came home with me -much to her dismay- so we could eat lunch together. (K is longing for next year when she will head to all day kindergarten and can at last eat lunch with her friends instead of her boring mother.)
Once she discovered I was not going to let her eat the Lunchable in the car, she spent whole trip home planning out her Lunchable eating strategy (K forumlates an eating strategy before each meal. I have no idea why she does it or what it may mean. I figure if it gets her to eat, it's fine with me.) "I think I'll eat the crackers first, and then the cheese, and then the meat and then I'll eat the cookies. Or maybe I'll eat the cheese first and then the crackers. Or maybe...." I'll spare you the rest of her strategic ponderings.
As soon as I got the car in the driveway she was out the door and in the house. She ripped open the top of the Lunchable before she even got her coat off. She ran to wash her hands (under much protest) and then ignoring all of her previously made eating strategies proceeded to make the "sandwich" shown on the outside of the package. She carefully piled her meat and cheese between the two crackers and took a big bite.
She looked a bit surprised, then turned to me and said, "Hmmm...I don't really like it. Maybe I'll eat them separately."
So she ate all her crackers and then took a tentative bite of the bologna before asking, "What is this meat? It tastes like cold hot dog." I tried to explain bologna to her as best I could, but since I'm not really sure what it is myself, I'm not sure I was doing a good job. I finally told her she was right, it's just like a cold hot dog. To which she replied, "Well, I don't really like it."
I told her to try the cheese. She took a bite of it, then looked at me and asked, "Isn't this the same as the yellow cheese it our fridge? " When I told her it was, she took another bite then looked at me and then sadly looked over at the two cookies that came with her Lunchable.
"Don't you like the cheese?" I asked.
"No. Can I just have the cookies?"
The answer to that was no, so I ended up making her a peanut butter sandwich which she ate with zeal so that she could finally get to those cookies.
When I commented that I the whole reason I didn't buy Lunchables in the first place was because I didn't think she'd like them, she just replied, "Well I did like the crackers and the cookies. Maybe next time I'll have to try another flavor."
Hope springs eternal...
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