www.flickr.com

Tuesday, January 23, 2007

Making School Lunches Sucks



One of the things that I struggle with is making interesting school lunches for my kids. This is one of my jobs in the division of labour in our house.

Breezy Easy Articles like this make me sick or laugh uproariously. The thought of investing the time to make something like this beauty for my kids is laughable.

When I was in Primary School at New Gilston Primary School, population about 20-30, we all had a nutritious (and often revolting), steamed and overcooked lunch, served by Mrs Buchanan. At least my parents didn't have to provide lunch. I perish to think what that would have been.

Here in Australia, there is no school lunch provided and parents are forced to be creative, knowing that most of their work will be ignored or picked at. The old staple of Vegemite sandwiches has raised many generations of Aussie kids, but I do try to be a little more creative.

The only thing that you can guarantee will be eaten will be the treat. As the kids get older, there is even more pressure to provide junk food. Healthy food, described in this article and presented in the hopelessly unrealistic photograph, just does not cut it for the most part. Provide a container of chips, lemonade, biscuits, roll ups and the like and you can be sure that it will be polished off.

With the start of the school year, next week, I vow to accept my lot and not get too upset as I empty out half eaten lunch boxes in the evening.

3 comments:

Chris said...

Cricket - I know nothing.

School lunches - ALWAYS a problem for me to know what to give them 30+ years ago. Now my grandson has developed a propensity not to eat anything he's given and is giving his mother a similar problem. Serves her right.

Like your blog a lot and I'm adding it to my 'favourites' immediately.

Welshcakes Limoncello said...

Ah, don't get upset. That's just kids for you. Here, of course, at 1pm they all go home to Mamma's pasta plus main course plus fruit course and would never think of doing anything else. That doesn't stop them buying crisps and snacks beforehand, I've noticed, though! - But then, "poor Italian kids", they don't get any brekkie!

jomoore said...

Ha, ha! I am said mother from Chris's comment, and all I can say is that at least I've never given him liver sausage sandwiches!

We've settled on fruit and a treat as a daily lunch. Sometimes the treat is a flapjack, which is practically healthy, however I'm convinced that social services will be knocking on my door any minute...!