The number one concern on my mind when Whit started first grade this fall was if she'd eat well at school and thus survive the day without starving. Melanie and I both felt the best way to ensure that Whitney ate well was to start packing lunches full of familiar foods Whitney enjoys at home.Silly Mom and Dad. I don't know why I thought that would work. Before we knew it, Whitney's lunches were coming home virtually untouched. She would arrive in the afternoons totally starving and nothing we did seemed to help. Our frustration and concern kept getting worse.
Then one day we got a note home from Whit's teacher that Whitney wouldn't eat her lunch again, but she got up from the table and walked to another student's school lunch and stole a tater tot to eat. Huh, well, that certainly was a surprise.
So the next day Melanie and I sent a couple dollars with Whitney to buy school lunch instead of sending a brown bag lunch from home. The results were amazing! Her teacher reported that Whitney was so excited to stand in the lunch line with the other kids. She got her own tray of sweet and sour chicken with rice which is a pretty challenging and unfamiliar food for Whit. She ate some of the chicken and all of the rice! That's way more eating than her usual couple of nibbles from her favorite sandwich and chips.
So Melanie and I don't have to pack a lunch in the mornings anymore, and Whitney eats better than ever by going through the lunch line. Some days will go better than ever, but what a relief to find the secret to making her eat at school.
Raising Whitney has filled our life with the unexpected. Just when we think we know what's best for her, she goes and does what she wants and it turns out even better.
About the picture: Whitney's 2010 school photo
3 comments:
That is awesome! She gets to eat delicious new foods (well, hopefully they're delicious), and you don't have to make lunches any more.
I really liked school lunch in elementary school. Sometimes I miss it. Like today. I wish I had some tater tots and a scoop of green beans. (And whatever main dish goes with tater tots and green beans...)
It is really nice not to have to get up and pack a big ol' lunch that Whitney doesn't eat. Wish I had more good memories of school lunch. But Whit is totally enjoying the lasagna with green beans and chicken nuggets with tater tots. She continues to eat better than ever.
I say that, the kid just want to experience something new so she did it. And it's a good thing that she is exploring. That's really a relief. But you can also ask her if she wants anything so that you can still monitor if she's eating the right meal. Why don't you try preparing some light snack or dessert such as sweets, cookies, fruits and veggies? Also, you might like to try using a stainless steel tiffin bento box as her pack lunch container. This bento box is not the same as others because it is much safer than plastic, it's more durable and reusable. =~)
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