Well, it finally happened—the moment I dreaded. My daughter, Lily, hopped off the school bus yesterday, grumbling about the lack of creativity in her packed lunches. My first thought was, “Oh no, has she been browsing Pinterest?” My second thought? “Time to tighten those parental controls!”
It turns out that some supermom (who undoubtedly has a Pinterest account) has been sending her kid to school with lunches that look like they belong in a theme park—think Disney-inspired meals and carrot sticks that look like they came straight out of a children’s book. And Lily has taken note. Thanks, mysterious mom. Really appreciate it.
According to Lily, her Wednesday lunch was spent watching her classmate, Mia, nibble on a “Frozen”-themed organic noodle creation, while she sat there with a zip-lock bag of pretzels and a side of despair. It was a sad sight, so I found myself, like any guilt-ridden parent, considering giving this whole Bento Box trend a shot.
I promised Lily a lunch themed around Olaf, but when I checked the first few ingredients—Japanese Nori noodles, purple seaweed, edible modeling clay—I thought, “Oh, heck no!” Packing a lunch shouldn’t require a scavenger hunt through specialty shops. I haven’t even shaved in days, and that’s a priority before I start hunting down artisanal food for a five-year-old to toss aside.
But I had made a promise, so it was time for Plan B. Unfortunately, I didn’t have one until after I downed a couple of glasses of 2009 Cabernet from Napa.
So, to all the exhausted moms out there, here’s my cheeky response to this time-consuming lunch trend: The “I don’t have time for that, here’s some lunch money” Bento Box!
Step 1:
Grab some lunch money from your purse.
Step 2:
Arrange the cash and tape it down.
Step 3:
Use a Sharpie to doodle a little something.
Forget about meticulously crafting broccoli trees with heartfelt messages carved into their stalks while juggling your blood pressure meds and figuring out your insurance’s mental health co-pay. No, thank you! My “I don’t have time for that, here’s some lunch money” Bento Boxes serve as a great canvas for real communication with your kid.
Need to talk about potty training? Offer some friendship advice? Or just call them out on something? The possibilities are endless!
I know the “I don’t have time for that, here’s some lunch money” Bento Box still requires a tad bit of effort, which I typically shy away from, but just imagine your child’s face when they discover something like this in their lunch: “Arachnophobia, cured. Thanks, Mom!”
Ladies, even if your child doesn’t actually buy lunch, I’m here, sitting on my kitchen floor, pleading with you to ditch the melon baller and embrace the glorious simplicity of a square cheese sandwich.
After all, you don’t need to earn the “MOM OF THE YEAR” title because, in your child’s eyes, you’ve already won it. For more on parenting and home insemination, check out our other blog posts at Home Insemination Kit, and if you’re looking for resources on pregnancy, Healthline has excellent information.
In summary, when it comes to lunch packing, keep it simple, keep it real, and remember that love doesn’t always need to be gourmet.