Emma is my snack eater. If she could go from snack to snack she will. Last year I had to cut out her after school snack because she wouldn't eat dinner. Last night I asked her if she was eating lunch. She gave me that look which told me she is not. Then she said that she eats some of it. She is eating breakfast at 7am, having a snack in the morning and then lunch at 11:25. However, she isn't eating that lunch because she really isn't hungry enough to eat anything nutritious. She then gets home from school starving and wanting a snack. She walks in the door asking about it. Then she only eats a few bites at dinner.
How to end this cycle? I would like to take out the snack so she could eat lunch and not be quite so starving when she walks in the door. That will not happen. I asked the kids what would happen if they didn't bring a snack and was told that the teacher has snacks for them.
I have made a decision on extra purchases at lunch, I allow them to get two extra items a week. If they abuse that I will contact the school and they will not get any. Naturally this requires me to check weekly because I have kids who will try and bend the rules. So far so good. Thy may just be learning that mom means what she says....and has a way to check. I showed them how I knew that they were buying the extra stuff. Spending more for snacks and water than what lunch costs is crazy. That the schools allow that is crazier.
At home I have been making a lot more effort to have the kids in the kitchen. They have been learning about: kitchen safety, hand washing, cross-contamination, how to handle meats, cutting, following a recipe, how to cook on the stove (except for Emma, she isn't ready for that), about crock pots cooking, microwaves, meal planning, timing, how much to cook for a big family, how to shop for the items and clean-up.
(Please ignore the messy counter tops and tables! If I had one wish for my house it would be a bigger kitchen.)
Anthony picked Mexican food.....
Michelle did Chicken Fried Rice........
Emma chose pulled port BBQ sandwiches (which surprised me!).....
Larissa chose a chicken recipe we got off of facebook, chicken dipped in crackers and cheese......
Our meals require a lot of plates.
Our family tries to eat dinner together at the table every night. There are some nights that this is not possible because of activities but not too many. The kids drink milk or water with their meals. The only exception is when we get pizza, on those nights I will pick up soda when I get the pizza.
How do you do dinner?
I would share that same dilemma with the teacher and see if she can come up with some solutions before asking if she would allow you to cut back the snacks. If it is the teacher's idea to cut out the snack then it's a win-win.
ReplyDeleteLooks like fun in the kitchen. You are doing some GOOD teaching.
Just read the book: Cleaning House by Kay Wyma. She did that with her kids , too. I think would enjoy the book.
We love the chicken Larissa did.
ReplyDeleteCan't you have the cafeteria block extra purchase? There's a note on my kids' account that says lunch only. We are reduced lunch and I only send enough money on Mondays for five lunches.
Jasmine may be the worst offender on this but she takes her allowance for snocones and such. They may use their allowances however they want if they don't owe it to someone for stealing something.
The snack thing is annoying. My kids eat around 11:05. They eat at 5:30 a.m. so they may need a morning snack. But last year one of them had a ridiculously early lunch at 10:30 and I tried to convince the teacher to do snack in the afternoon but it didn't happen. So they had snack at 9:30 and lunch at 10:30.
That's great what you are doing in the kitchen with the kids!
ReplyDeleteI don't really have ideas about the snack thing... I think that the problem is that American culture is so much about snacks.. Hard not to do it when everyone else does. I live in France and kids here don't snack. There is one afternoon snack called "gouter" and that's it. It is breakfast (around 7 am), lunch (around 11-12), gouter (3-4pm) and dinner. Did you read "French Children Don't Throw Food" by Pamela Druckerman? It is a light read about how an American journalist living in Paris views French parenting. She talks about American constant snacking too and how it is annoying!
As a teacher, I only did snack one year in the morning, and that was because for some reason they had us going to lunch at 12:50. The kids started school at 8, so they probably ate at around 7-7:30, and it really was too long. Every other year, they could bring in an afternoon snack, but it was never requested, just an option. I need to get my son into the kitchen more. He's capable of running some things (he'll make quesadillas on the griddle, sandwiches, etc.), but mostly he just helps me bake. He doesn't get home until almost 5 though, so it's hard to have him help, when I need dinner already going before he gets home. We do try to eat together every night, but there are a couple nights a week that activities get in the way.
ReplyDeleteHere's our version of the chicken:
ReplyDeletehttp://casselcrew.blogspot.com/2013/05/whats-cooking.html
just found out my kids have been throwing out their fresh fruit in their lunches claiming no time to eat it. Today they got that half of their lunch. YES I am annoyed at snacking!!! We don't do it at home, it is not necessary and makes them throw half their lunch away. what is the point of that!!
ReplyDeleteI would ditch the granola bar for snack and give her something that's less likely to swell up and sit in her stomach - maybe a small handful of grapes or cherries, mini-tomato, celery sticks?
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