My daughter asks her 4-year old daughter why she is not eating her lunch at preschool… The reason shared is that “ALL the other kids” (specifically one special girlfriend) bring their lunch in a “plastic bag” — not in storage containers that are washed and refilled on the next school day. Hmmm….. Interesting. Is this peer pressure in the world of preschoolers?
Mother goes into an explanation of her logic in not using plastic bags and throwing them away. She believes in recycling and not wasting resources. (Yeah! I taught her well!) Child, on the other hand, does not see the value to recycling as her mother does. All she knows is that she wants to be like her friend(s) and do as they do. Exasperated mother asks what it would take for her daughter to enjoy and eat her lunch at preschool!
Daughter replies — “put my lunch in a plastic bag.” (She does have a lunch box that is carried in her backpack. We conclude she has issues with the food storage containers.)
Mother suddenly has an idea. She goes to the pantry and reaches to a top shelf and pulls down a plastic bag — a very large plastic trash bag. You know, the kind we all have tucked in various places all over the place, just in case… Mother presents this plastic bag to her daughter and says “Will this work for your lunch?”
My granddaughter’s reaction was priceless…! (Where is that cell phone camera when you really need it?!) Her eyes got wide and she was momentarily speechless, clearly stunned at how her mother could even imaging putting a lunch in that very LARGE plastic bag! But, she SAID that a plastic bag was what she wanted….
Daughter replies (after collecting herself, and with humor) —” M-o-m, that bag is TOO big!”
Mother — “You said you wanted a plastic bag for your lunch.” (Both mother and daughter are laughing at the humor in this exchange at this point.)
Daughter — “But it is TOO big, Mom!”
Mother — “What would you suggest, dear?” (Both hysterically laughing.)
Daughter — “A little bag! From up there.“(She points to another cabinet where the Ziploc bags are stored.
Mother gets out a Ziploc sandwich bag and holds it up in front of her daughter. “Is this what you want your lunch in?”
Daughter — “Yes!”
Mother — “What should I put in this bag for your lunch?”
Daughter — “Ham.”
Mother — “No bread? No cheese? Anything else?”
Daughter — “Nope. Only ham.”
My daughter looks at me in dismay. “I worked hard to make sure she had nice reusable containers labeled with her name so that we would not waste plastic… That she would have a nice balanced lunch… And all she wants is a slice of deli ham in a Ziploc bag….“:(
Seems that the favorite little friend brings a slice of ham in a Ziploc bag each day for lunch… I wonder how mother and daughter resolved their differences on this lunch issue…
Kids wanting to “fit in” and “belong” to their peer group starts awfully young these days.