School lunches

A lot of the posts I have here are about my boy. Truth be told, he's turning into a man p.d.q. It is hard to refer to him as "the boy" when he towers over me at 5'11" and his voice is doing that Peter Brady "pork chops and apple sauce" thing. (Thank God for Nick @ Nite for the Brady Bunch reference still being relevant.) He's really turning into a responsible guy.

I haven't had to wrestle him to do his homework. Last year he brought home nearly straight A's. He managed to get all his requirements to earn his Scout 2nd Class. The biggest challenge with that was remembering to have his book with him at events and meetings. With Water Polo, he's been really responsible and only grouses slightly when he has to wake up before the sun to get into the pool for practice. After 2 short seasons in the pool, he's being groomed for the center forward position, earning his new moniker:  Striker. He's also been nominated to go to a training camp with the US Olympic team.

Wow, I get why parents brag about their kids' athletic & academic exploits. This is fun! What a rush!

But this morning we had a conversation about the kid he used to be and not the kid he is today. See, some logical consequences have long term pay offs.

My kids have been enjoying having soup for lunch. I will make a crock pot of soup before bedtime and pack it up in the morning for lunch in their thermoses. My boy has never been very good about remembering to bring his thermos back home after school. When he was in elementary school and intermediate school, he went through at least 4 thermoses. He still complains about the intermediate school's lunch policy of putting the classes' lunches in a basket to be delivered to the cafeteria. Then each child was to REMEMBER to get their lunches before they went home. He lost 2 thermoses that way.

When we went shopping for the thermoses, my daughter and he would select their favorite design. His would be understandably boyish or plain. My daughter would select pink & purple flowers and Barbies. After the years of lost thermoses, all we have left are the pink & purple flowers and Barbies. Striker, my mini-man has a grown man's apetite. One small thermos of soup will not carry him through the day. So, this morning I packed him his 2 thermos lunch in the pink & purple flowers and Barbie thermoses.

Yay for him being confident enough in himself to be okay with bringing his lunch to school in these ridiculous thermoses. Boo for his exasperation with me for even buying these girly thermoses in the first place. I reminded him about all the lost thermoses that he got to pick out. The black and silver one, the one with Hot Wheels on it, the plain green one, the blue one... all lost by a younger version of himself that couldn't remember to bring home his thermos.

Now before I get comments that I should get the boy a proper non-girly thermos, you should know that I'm already planning to do so. No worries, okay? In fact, we have been trying out a set I got from Costco and it looks like a winner. It is dark blue with not a flower or Barbie in sight.