That being said, this week seems to be creeping by. I am talking "snail pace!" You know how it is when you are in the car trying to get to a fabulous destination...and time just seems to stand still? Well, that's how it has been for me this week. It is only Wednesday folks!! Come on Friday, get a move on, and just come on already!
Just like many of the other super parents I know, I began this school year on top of things, willing to help and volunteer, eager to assist in homework when needed, and gave it my all when it came to helping my kids study for tests. Each passing week that has gone by, my eagerness has declined. To be honest, the only thing getting me through this week, is the promise that Friday is indeed coming, and it will all finally come to an end.
You know that "Monday folder" that comes at the start of every week, filled with the work your wonderful child has done the previous week? You know it, it is filled with some disheveled papers, probably meticulously marked, and you have to sign it acknowledging you have checked out their work...well, I've kinda been over it for weeks now. I just sign it, take the stack, and stack them up on top of one another on the counter. This mama is running out of school fizzle. I apologize, but I just can't help it. I am sure after a Summer of recharging my batteries, I will be supermom (school version) again in the Fall.
This morning, I woke up as usual and stumbled down the stairs to wake the kids and get the morning routine going. All was going just great, until I stood at the kitchen counter and stared up at the cabinet that contains all of the lunch box making stuff. I reached for the bread, untied the wrapper, and just as I stuck my hand inside the bag to retrieve the 6 slices of bread for the sandwiches, I decided that my heart wasn't in it. After 177 days of fixing lunch boxes for 3, I am done. That's a total of about 531 lunches...and a TON of sandwiches. Sure, it would be easier if my 3 crumb snatchers liked the same kind of sandwiches, but that's not the case. You see, "Johnny Cash" prefers Miracle Whip (I know, total disappointment, and worthy of a blog post all in itself!) on his ham and cheese, with a dash of pepper...and "Olive Oil" prefers Dukes on her turkey and cheese....and "Chatty Cathy" only likes ham and cheese, crust off, with nothing else on it. That's a lot of "thinking" on my part in the morning, and I'm pretty sure my brain has just started to shut down.
So, I closed the bread back up, and announced to the crumb snatchers that today there would be NO lunch boxes...and if they were lucky, maybe I would show up at lunch time with something hot and fresh from our local grill up town. Like any good mother would, I set my alarm so I wouldn't forget to actually go to town and deliver the lunches. I am good like that....sometimes, lol.
There is nothing like showing up at the lunch room with bags of food, that suddenly makes you all kinds of popular with kids of all ages. If you haven't tried it at your own child's school, I strongly encourage you to do so. That being said, be prepared for everything your naive ears are about to hear at the table full of 4th and 6th graders. I may be 36, but I always learn something new while in the school cafeteria. Oh, the things you will overhear about who is "going out" with whom...amongst the 12 year olds. I mean, where exactly are they "going out" to?? Whatever! Then there is the whole, I "dare you" game amongst the 6th grade boys...that is a pleasure to be present to watch.
I "dare you" to mix your chocolate milk in your mashed potatoes and eat it.
I "dare you" to mix the cabbage with the BBQ sauce and lick it.
This game goes on pretty much the entire 25 minutes of lunch. I am in awe of the wasted food. It is always interesting how they totally trash their school bought meals and then go purchase a bag of chips and that's the only thing they actually eat.
Then there is that one kid, that likes to sit close to me whenever I join my own children for lunch. You know him, the one that has the IQ of a genius and the common sense of a grasshopper. Yeah, that one. You have seen him...he felt it necessary to tell me all about the layers of the atmosphere...ALL of the layers. Apparently, I can fake the "I'm really interested" face well.
Then there is the "class clown." I am sure you all know of him well, too. He's cracking jokes, he's picking on all of his "followers" that are so cleverly positioned around him at the table. Yeah, he is totally working his own little crowd at the other end of the table. He is obviously missing some much needed attention at his own home, but I guess I am glad he is getting some at school.
My son "Johnny Cash" is getting to the age where I am not so sure that he actually enjoys my company over school lunch any more. I mean, I have NO doubt that he totally enjoyed the lunch I delivered, but I sure hope my actual presence didn't embarrass him. It is hard to tell sometimes. But between the "class clown" and the "genius" entertaining us all, I didn't really have much time to talk to him. His lunch time is short, and it wasn't long before it was time to clean up their table and head back off to class. Do you know what my handsome son did??? He got up and hugged his mama and gave me a kiss on my cheek...guess I didn't embarrass him after all!
So, here's to hoping that my lunch box making skills make a drastic turn for the better tomorrow, and that I am actually capable of fixing sandwiches. Only TWO more days to go.
TWO more days...
Things I KNOW:
1. The best way to make a new friend, or keep an old one, is to bring them food, lol.2. Children are interesting, especially over lunch, and cafeteria food doesn't help.
3. Mixing foods together to make some kind of gross "soup" is just plain nasty.
4. If you haven't ever joined your child for lunch, DO IT...you will be glad you did!
5. Bringing M&M's and Hershey bars along with lunch always scores you cool mama points.
6. Time truly flies by during the school year....right up until the LAST week...then it is a race against the snail to the finish line.
In the meantime, keep your heads up...school is almost out, and we will make it to the end!!!
We have totally got this my fellow Laundry Engineers!!!
Love,
The Laundry Fairy
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