Thursday, August 5, 2010

Lunchtime Fun & Rituals with Kids

This is a sponsored post from BlogHer and Smuckers.




This giveaway is now closed.

Camping trips, lazy days at the pool, backyard water fights, and picnics at the park - these are the activities that a good summertime story is made of. As much as my kids enjoy the carefree days of summer (they even managed to lose track of the days within the first two weeks), they are also excited to start back to school. While I relish the thought of having some time to myself again, I already feel nostalgic about the memories we create together in the summer.

Lunchtime during the summer holidays takes place according to our bodies' schedules rather than the clock's. Two little heads appear beside me as I start pulling lunch meat and slices of watermelon out of the fridge. Four willing hands start to spread mayonnaise and mustard on slices of bread and set the patio table with place mats and napkins. My 6-year old son has claimed the job of "Official Cucumber Slicer". He sits carefully on a chair, pulled up to the counter, and slowly saws away at a cucumber until we have enough slices to fill everyone's sandwiches.


With my husband and I both working from home on many days, we have ample opportunities to eat together. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I would not have it any other way. It gives us the opportunity to chat about our day so far and to enjoy each other's company. How I am going to miss our midday chats when summer is over. Lunchtime will be far too quiet.

With my boys gone all day at school in the fall, I have an overwhelming need to stay connected to them even while we are apart. When I make their lunch each morning (they will be eating corn dogs and waffles on a stick - seriously - over my dead body), I tuck a note in each of their lunches. While the notes always include some sort of motherly sentiment, I also include either a fill-in-the-blanks secret message or a joke they can share with their friends. This small gesture lets them know that I am thinking of them, even though we are not together. After school, they often can not wait to tell me that they solved the puzzle or which of their friends had a joke to tell in response.

There are only a few weeks of summer holidays left and I plan to enjoy every moment we spend preparing and eating lunch together. For more great ideas on fun ways to spend time with your kids, check out Smucker's Kidvitations.

This giveaway is now closed.

For a chance to win a $200 Visa gift card, please answer the following question in the comment section:

"What were your favorite lunchtime rituals when you were a kid?"

Please, no duplicate comments.
You may receive an additional entry by linking on twitter and leaving a link in the comments.
You may receive an additional entry by blogging about this contest and leaving a link in the comments.
This giveaway is open to US Residents aged 18 and older
Winners will be selected via random draw, and will notified by e-mail, so please be sure that you leave an email address.
You have 48 hours to get back to me, otherwise a new winner will be selected.

This giveaway will be running from August 5 to August 25, 2010.

For 9 other chances to win a $200 VIsa gift card and an opportunity to win the sweepstakes for a $400 Visa gift card, please visit the BlogHer.com Smuckers roundup page.

Please see the BlogHer.com Smuckers official rules for this giveaway.

http://www.smuckers.com/promotions/kidvitations/Default.aspx

Create a Kidvitation!

Home can be a busy place with the hustle and bustle of everyday life. That’s why it’s important to set time aside to spend with your kids. Use Smuckers® Kidvitations to invite your kids to share a moment with you over a perfect PB&J. Check it out. > http://www.smuckers.com/promotions/kidvitations/Default.aspx

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395 comments:

1 – 200 of 395   Newer›   Newest»
Mami2jcn said...

When I was a kid I liked taking the crusts off my sandwich bread.

mami2jcn at gmail dot com

meeyeehere said...

When I was little my granddad would put us in the living room with little trays and he would wait on us hand and foot and we thought we were fancy!I really miss those Sundays!
jacksoncrisman@yahoo.com

Wander said...

Ok, this will totally reveal what a germ-a-phobe I am and always have been!
When I was a kid, at school I would take my lunchroom fork to the water fountain and wash it before I would eat!

I just couldn't eat unless I knew that my fork was clean(ish)!
:)

Don't judge me.....please!?

Unknown said...

I was one of those kids who had to have the crust cut off my PB&J or sliced beef sandwiches always.

Nikki said...

I really don't remember lunch time rituals when I was little. But, I was a latch-key kid and loved when my (single) mom got home from work so we could eat dinner together and talk about our days.

allthingsnew said...

When I was a kid, I loved standing in line waiting to get my meal. It always made me feel like a grown-up for some reason :)

stephanierosenhahn at yahoo dot com

allthingsnew said...

Tweeted!
link: http://twitter.com/asthepotter/status/20471752974

stephanierosenhahn at yahoo dot com

A. Smith said...

I loved making faces with my mom out of neat things from the fridge. We would use olive eyes, cheese for the mouth, celery hair and macaroni ears. It was great fun and I carry on the ritual with my daughter.
asmithonline at yahoo dot ca

wigget said...

dunking tater tots in ketchup

Denise said...

My mom babysat for her income and feeding 6 or 7 little mouths a day was the norm. I ejjoyed helping her out with the addembly line way we made all the lunches. My favorite was peanut butter and jelly. It's a simple thing I still love to this day.

Denise said...

I forgot my email: denise.h.potter@gmail.com

I will be blogging about it too though, so all is well.

http://potter-den.blogspot.com/2010/08/wow-its-friday-already.html

Andrea the Kitchen Witch said...

I loved to put fritos in my peanut butter & jelly sandwich. then slightly warm it up in the microwave. Hey, don't knock it until you've tried it :)

Unknown said...

Macaroni and Cheese with hot dog "pennies." Can't stand it now but then, it was bland bliss!

Unknown said...

Before I was in school, my mom made us lunch and we would watch tv together.
amandarwest at gmaildotcom

jakiesmom said...

i'd go through fazes..bagels and cream cheese for weeks on end..then suddenly a cheese sandwich was all i'd eat
nannypanpan at sbcglobal.net

allthingsnew said...

Blogged!
link: http://sweetsavingsincolorado.blogspot.com/2010/08/200-visa-gc-giveaways-on-different.html

stephanierosenhahn at yahoo dot com

Haley said...

I didn't have any rituals, but I loved being able to walk home for lunch to my grandma's house. She always had the best things for lunch!

Kim said...

I'm a new follower! My favorite lunch time ritual at school was sharing the deserts with my friends.
kimprine1 @yahoo.com

Angie B said...

my mom used to make us peanut butter and jelly roll ups. It was just bread rolled with a rolling pin with pb&j on it but it was one of our favorites.
angiewith3 at live dot com

Angie B said...

Tweeted about giveaway: https://twitter.com/angiewith3/status/20495344387
angiewith3 at live dot com

Anonymous said...

My mom would write notes to us on our paper napkins during the school year! tracietrump@yahoo.com

Angie B said...

Blogged about this giveaway:

http://angiewith2.blogspot.com/2010/08/win-200-visa-gc-from-points-of-review.html

angiewith3 at live dot com

Nancy said...

In the summer we would eat lunch outside on the picnic table. It was always fun to me to be eating outside.

Saving said...

When my sister and I were little we had our own mini tupperware set. We loved being able to eat off our own kid sized dishes. :o)

Thanks
jotteson@frontiernet.net

Saving said...

tweeted

http://twitter.com/Ashlesmommy07/status/20497511324

jotteson@frontiernet.net

Katie said...

I loved bringing the same thing to school every day [bologna sandwich, chips, apple]! :)

kt1969 at comcast dot net

Katie said...

Tweeted:

http://twitter.com/Skaketgirl/status/20498102855

kt1969 at comcast dot net

Frugal Family Fun said...

I remember when they first started public transit buses in our town. We never got to ride them but it was free and since we really wanted to go, my grandparents packed a lunch for us and we spent the day riding the bus, stopped to eat at the park...it was the coolest ting ever to us kids! They always did little things like that when we were kids. My grandma used to take us to the airport nd eat a snack or lunch and watch the planes land and take off (we're talking late 80's early 90's when security allowed you to sit at the tables in the terminal and hang out) and we loved watching the planes! great times!! lilcherrygirl at hotmail dot com

MoMoKG064 said...

when I was a kid I used to love packing up a big homecooked meal.. (well my dad packed it up and cooked it. lol) than all of us would take a trip to Seaside in oregon and have lunch all together and play in the water the entire day!

monika.gardiner64@gmail

Thomas Ng said...

when i was young i use to go everyday to the corner bakery and ask them to make me a french bread with bunch of italian hams in it. Then i would go home and add some eggs.

Frugal Family Fun said...

tweeted http://twitter.com/BriansWifey05/status/20499111606

Frugal Family Fun said...

blogged http://frugalfamilyfunspot.blogspot.com/2010/08/win-200-from-visa.html

Unknown said...

I loved pulling string cheese apart in the smallest possible strands. every lunchtime would be spent seeing how small i could pull apart the string cheese!

HSUper Parents said...

I used to mix ketchup and mayo to eat with my chicken and french fries!
hsuperparents[at]gmail[dot]com

Susan said...

I loved getting notes from my mom as a kid. She wrote them on my brown paper bag lunch bag and packed the bag in my backpack, so I saw them when I got my lunch out at school. THose were the days when brown paper lunch bags were commonly used!

susan (at) cravingthesavings (dot) com

Confessions From A Work-At-Home Mom said...

I am a bit OCD, so I do rituals WELL! When I was little and had a sandwich of any kind, I would always eat the crusts first-- because that was my least favorite part-- then nibble inward until I got to the very center-- my FAVORITE part! Heck, what do I mean, when I was little? I still do that now!

~Elizabeth

Confessions From A Work-At-Home Mom said...

And a tweet for you, my dear!

http://twitter.com/IAmConfessing/status/20501902484

~Elizabeth

Anonymous said...

Back in my day it was bagged lunches and sandwiches wrapped in wax paper. I used to unwrap my sandwich (always peanut butter and grape jelly) and flatten out my paper like a place mat. My pint of milk (in the old cardboard containers) in the upper right corner, then I'd unwrap desert (always 4 Oreo cookies) and place them in the left corner before eating.

Cynthia said...

One I still fall back on today. It can't be Campbell's chicken noodle soup unless it has about 10 saltine crackers smushed up in it to make a kind of noodle mush. My favorite.

Ashley said...

I loved it when my mom would make my sandwiches into heart shapes.

hewella1 at gmail dot com

Letherton said...

Wednesdays we always had tuna fish sandwiches and ants on a log. I loved helping my mom make the ants on a log.

ethertonphotography@gmail.com

Nicole Larsen said...

I loved standing in the lunch line when I was in elementary school. It made you feel so grown up and in charge :)

pittsy82@hotmail.com

Teaching Mommy said...

My mom used to make us what she called bologna pizza. It was just a slice of bologna cut like a pizza, but we loved it!

frankandkatie at gmail dot com

Nicole Larsen said...

Tweeted http://twitter.com/pittsy82/status/20508310688

pittsy82@hotmail.com

Teaching Mommy said...

tweet

http://twitter.com/frankandkatie/status/20508363774

frankandkatie at gmail dot com

malinda said...

I just like smiple things like when my mom cut my sandwich in 4's it pbJ. Just the little things..

malmort01 at optonline net

Mommy Minded said...

Fluffer Nutters! PB and marshmellow cream!

Megan
mommyminded.blogspot.com
mommyminded@gmail.com
Win a $25 Target GC!

Frugal Science Gal said...

Our school custodian used to come by and ask us if we wanted a milk shake and then he would shake our cartons of milk for us. We all loved it!!

frugalsciencegal [at] gmail [dot] com

Jenny @ Freebie Spot said...

When I was a child, I used to love making a bologna sandwich with ketchup and bacon bits! lol

jennyjoz24 (at) hotmail.com

Unknown said...

It sounds gross but I loved smashing up potato chips and putting them inside a tuna sandwich. It was my favorite lunch so I got it often.

Melissa Stuff said...

I loved the nasty little pizzas that were a part of our school lunches!

Melissa Stuff said...

http://twitter.com/jurenpamis/status/20520445825

Tweeted

Linda Kish said...

Tuna and potato chips was good but bologna and potato chips was always better.

lkish77123 at gmail dot com

Christie said...

Getting a 20oz. soda with my lunch...When I was suppose to be spending it on food!

texasmattcooper@hotmail.com

bethany said...

Picking out which milk to drink that day! It was always a race to get the coldest, best milk. Funny :) Thanks for the chance to win this!

bkost3 at hotmail dot com

bethany said...

I tweeted too!! http://twitter.com/theivytwines/statuses/20522614206

Thanks so much!!

bkost3 athotmail.com

HannahAchrissmile said...

I didnt go to public school as a kid, so my favorite lunch time rituals came from when I went to my grammas (almost every day). We would make toast with melted cheese, and jello with fresh raspberries from grampa's garden, and ice cream.
yum!

aigcanada7 at hotmail dot com

HannahAchrissmile said...

http://twitter.com/achrissmile/status/20528905046

tweeted

aigcanada7 at hotmail dot com

Beeb said...

My favorite lunchtime ritual was enjoying my little portion of potato chips! Thank you for the giveaway!

~Beeb

supercoupongirl AT gmail.com

Beeb said...

I tweeted this here:

http://twitter.com/hardertobreathe/statuses/20530672434


~Beeb

supercoupongirl AT gmail.com

Beeb said...

Blogged this here:

http://www.contest-corner.com/200-visa-gift-card-giveaway-points-review/


~Beeb

supercoupongirl AT gmail.com

Tracy R said...

It was such a big thrill when I was in high school and we had "open campus" for lunchtime. My friends and I felt like we were grownups that we could actually walk across the street at lunchtime and buy lunch at the convienence store, LOL!

Jennifer Hairstuff said...

My fav. lunch time ritual was helping my mom and my gram prepare lunch for the family! I miss those days! I miss my gram! :(
jenn14_85 at yahoo dot com

Unknown said...

My mom would pull out the bread board and push up the step stool and I would eat breakfast and lunch in the kitchen
bepoia(at)hotmail(dot)com

Kim said...

I had a weird ritual of putting chips on my sandwich. And if I had chips, I'd always lick all the salt/flavor off first.. wEIRD!!

Rachel said...

I loved to stick all the black olives on my fingers and then eat them off...ok I still do!

mrs.manley@gmail.com

Rachel said...

I tweeted.

http://twitter.com/FrugalFMF/status/20557211453

mrs.manley@gmail.com

Christy said...

I don't remember any rituals but I do remember loving it when my cousins would be there to eat Ramen noodles with us. Lunch was so much funner.

safety_chick@hotmail.com

lmurley2000 said...

my favorite lunch time was when my grandmother would make us a basket lunch and we would go to the creek and eat and then swim

lmurley2000@yahoo.com

lmurley2000 said...

tweeted

http://twitter.com/lmurley2000/status/20560373572

lmurley2000@yahoo.com

Heather R said...

My favorite lunchtime ritual was when my grandmother would pack up a picnic basket with all our favorites and we would go out to the backyard or the park to have a picnic. She would babysit us a lot since my mom was a single mom so she tried to set some time aside for us to have some outside fun. Climb trees, run, play, and just have fun!

Heather R
thransom@gmail.com

Cindi S World said...

My favorite lunchtime ritual when I was a kid was to find a new charm for by bracelet that my mom would hide in my lunchbox inside a note! itscindisworld at yahoo dot com

pat said...

"What were your favorite lunchtime rituals when you were a kid?"
When I was a kid,my favorite sandwich for lunch was Bologna and relish on Wonder bread with no crusts and cut into 4 triangles. Fig newton cookies and a thermos of ice tea, I would spread out my napkin like a place mat,arrange my things on it and enjoy my meal.

SteamyKitchen said...

So many of these comments brought back memories! I too used to stick potato chips in my sandwich!

Kerstin said...

I always loved getting notes in my lunch from my mom :)

Brittany said...

In the summer time, my mom would grill us hot dogs after swimming~

Tamara B. said...

When my mom use to give us peanut butter sandwiches with potato chips I use to take the top piece off and put my potato chips on top of my peanut butter. The funny thing is my two children will due the same when I give them peanut butter sandwiches LOL
tamben7996(at)aol(dot)com

Tee said...

When I was younger, I loved to receive little notes from my parents in my school lunch. My mother always wrote something encouraging on my sandwich and my father used to slip in little pieces of paper with sweet words that got me through the day. They sometimes even added an extra snack or candy bar if they knew I was nervous about something! These little rituals were something I looked forward to leading up to lunchtime in grade school!

Thanks so much for this chance!
-Cristina
mumzymum@gmail.com

Elaine said...

My favorite lunchtime ritual when I was a kid was to eat lunch on a tv tray while watching Creature Double Feature on Saturdays!(on a black and white television set!)

annalene said...

I used to love buying school lunches as a kid, even though in retrospect they were pretty disgusting! My friend once found mold on her school sandwich cheese, yuck!

thewideworldof (at) gmail (com) com

Unknown said...

I loved it when I found a note from Mom or Dad in my lunch.

thedealscoop @ yahoo . com

mandala said...

My favorite lunch ritual as a kid was getting special lunch treats every Friday (yang chow fried rice, dimsum etc). I normally bring food for lunch but Friday, I could go buy food in the school and they had this special Asian meals every end of the week.

mandalarctic at gmail dot com

Tee said...

i tweeted this giveaway: http://twitter.com/mumzymum/status/20589337122

thanks so much for this chance!
mumzymum@gmail.com

Emily N. said...

pizza day at school.

denise said...

In the summer, I would help my mother cook and chop vegetables. we had a great time cooking together!
qwaszx024 at gmail dot com

Rusthawk said...

Candy corn. Takes me all the way back to my childhood.

Unknown said...

I remember eating lunch in the cafeteria at school and that I always brought my lunch. I enjoyed the raisin cookies that my Mom packed for me. I also remember that they served french fries every single day in the cafeteria!
jedoggett@embarqmail.com

Unknown said...

tweeted http://twitter.com/annedoggett/status/20596913195
jedoggett@embarqmail.com

Andrea Hatfield said...

My favorite ritual when I was in school was to visit the lunch ladies in the lunchroom. My grandma was a lunch lady and I was close with all of her co-workers.

Flowerg said...

When I was a kid, my mom always made my lunches homemade for school. She liked to keep us healthy. She also wrote nice notes inside my lunch box.

Flowerg said...

Tweeted http://twitter.com/romapr09/status/20601256637

Joanna (joanna.price(at)live(dot)com) said...

I liked eating outside in the summer!

Ninja Panda said...

My parent's were all about packing a "healthy" lunch. I would get SO excited when my friends would give me their leftover goodies - fruit roll ups etc. haha

ninjapandawedding(at)gmail(dot)com

Mom Caboodle said...

My mother babysat my cousin and everyday we loved to eat scrambled eggs with Ketchup!

Mom Caboodle said...

Tweet:
http://twitter.com/MomCaboodle/status/20617396673


Shanna at mom caboodle dot com

Michelle {Fun On a Dime} said...

My favorite ritual at lunch when I was a kid, were the notes my dad added to my lunch if he made it before school and my mom would try to be sneaky and add little unexpected surprises!

Just call me "B" said...

I don't know if I had a favorite ritual, but I always loved it if my mom put a surprise in my lunchbox!

~dab said...

My favorite lunchtime ritual was having a bologna and mustard sandwich on rye bread, and putting potato chips on the sandwich right before eating it :) Those were the BEST.

~dab said...

I tweeted (via the RT button) http://twitter.com/simplydab/status/20643494625

~dab said...

I blogged http://simplydab.blogspot.com/2010/08/bloghercom-smuckers-kidvitations.html

Anonymous said...

I loved looking for the note my mom put in my lunchbox! scg00387 at yahoo dot com

Anonymous said...

http://twitter.com/DesMoinesDealin/status/20645555034 scg00387 at yahoo dot com

Anonymous said...

my favorite ritual was the actual packing of the lunch--we brown bagged it so I made sure to put my two capri suns, snack cake, chips, and sandwich in there every day!

Anonymous said...

tweeted http://twitter.com/MamaBiehl/statuses/20661978104

Joanna (joanna.price(at)live(dot)com) said...

Tweet- https://twitter.com/FeedingPrices/status/20662067130

AStarrA said...

Seeing what my mom would come up with for me, I always wanted a sandwich but didn't like bread haha (It was a pain I'm sure)
disintegratingstarr@hotmail.com

Unknown said...

i read interesting books while eating lunch
ann.altima at gmail dot com

denise said...

my grandmother used to make me fried potatoes on my 1/2 days from school. it was our special thing together.

Anonymous said...

My favorite lunchtime ritual would be coming home from school and having my grandma prepare a delicious steak sandwich on Cuban bread

Carmen
nemesis_33012 at yahoo dot com

The Prickly Pinecone said...

My childhood lunchtime rituals consisted of lots and lots of fruit and a pot of chocolate sauce for dipping. But that also meant lots of friends to share it all with.

thepricklypinecone(at)hotmail.com

sohamolina said...

My lunch ritual was to take a cookie with me everyday. That was my treat. One cookie.

sohamolina said...

http://twitter.com/sohamolina/status/20683016608

Angel Jacklyn said...

MY FAN LUNCH TIME RITUAL INVOLVED GOING SWIMMING AT THE BEACH AND THEN RIGHT AFTER INVOLVED EATING A TOASTED PEANUT BUTTER AND JELLO SANDWICH AT MY DADS! IT WAS "THE THING" kytah00@yahoo.com

Angel Jacklyn said...

TWEETED GIVEAWAY AS WELL @ http://twitter.com/kytah00/status/20683594924 kytah00@yahoo.com

Carolyn - What Life Dishes Out said...

We lived close enough to school for my brother and I to be able to walk home for lunch. My most memorable lunches were actually when my Dad was laid off from work, so he would be there waiting to make us soup and sandwiches. He'd also have a ready made sundae waiting in the freezer for dessert; usually a scoop of vanilla ice cream with chocolate sauce and coconut on top. Why did it seem the lunches he made for us were so much better than any others???

Linda Stewart said...

My favorite lunchtime ritual was mixing together peanut butter and grape jelly together and putting it on toast with cheese. It was and EVERYDAY meal!

Jen @ Happy Little Homemaker said...

Mine was having mom come to the thanksgiving lunch in elementary school and making fun of the food.

Brandi Lee said...

I used to love it when my mom would make grilled peanut butter and banana sandwiches! I haven't had one in years now, but thinking about them is making my mouth water!
iamlipbalmqueen at hotmail dot com

Henry said...

My mother made "fairy sandwiches", which was butter and sugar on white bread. I thought I was quite the princess, but I later learned we didn't have anything else to eat. What could have been a depressing fact was turned into a happy, special tradition thanks to my mother's creativity!
quitecontrary1977@hotmail.com

Charity S said...

I loved making banana & mayo sandwiches as a kid.



charisscharity at yahoo dot com

Karina said...

Watching LambChop while eating lunch

karinaroselee(at)gmail.com

Sara said...

My folks always had all the best sandwich fixings...and chips... and soda, so it was like having a deli lunch at home... with the best company.

peg42 said...

When I was a kid, my Mom & Grandma would make us wonderful lunches. Usually a small sandwich with the crust cut off and a small bowl of homemade soup. My Grandma always gave us soup at lunchtime, even during the summer. I really got to love it.
Thanks so much.
rickpeggysmith(at)aol(dot)com

mar said...

My favorite lunchtime ritual when I was a kid was to put my spagetti-o's on bread!

LWons@HotMail.com

agordon10 said...

I always ate with my stuffed seal animal.

Unknown said...

Coming home at lunch time to make fried bologna sandwiches-I wouldn't eat that now, but I loved it as a kid.

souldolphindream said...

my favorite when I was a kid was grandma using a heart cookie cutter to make my pb&j sandwich into this adorable heart

souldolphindream@aol.com

Janice said...

My grandmother always made lunch for us in the summer. She would let us "have a picnic" on the front porch

Nita said...

My dad put peanut butter and mayo on his bologna sandwiches, so of course we wanted them that way too. It makes me cringe to think of it now, but I don't remember it as tasting bad at all.

Nita said...

I tweeted http://twitter.com/nitabr/status/20824884070

nanbaya said...

when I was a kid, we lived on a farm and during the summertime we would pack a picnic lunch and take it off into our woods for a secret picnic
nancymn2003@yahoo.com

Jerry Segovia said...

I used to press the sandwich in between my hands until it was very very thin.

Unknown said...

My wonderful cook mother always made home made desserts with every meal which made it all perfect!

MOMFOREVERANDEVER said...

making sandwiches for all meals and there were 7 to make sandwiches for

Denise S. said...

My favorite was going to a fast food restaurant once a week after doing errands.

Unknown said...

When I was younger my mom would make sandwiches for us and we would toast our sandwiches before eating them. lol

shopgurl101@gmail.com

Unknown said...

tweeted: http://twitter.com/shopgurl/status/20832743653

shopgurl101@gmail.com

Unknown said...

Blogged: http://sweetqt.wordpress.com/2010/08/10/blogher-smuckers-giveaways/

shopgurl101 at gmail dot com

anny32 said...

we didnt have a ritual, there was no normalcy here. if there was something to eat it was sparse.

BrendaLea, the Prpldy said...

One of the rituals as a kid was helping my Mom put our lunches together in the morning. She would slice the hard salami, and I would put the ketchup on the bread. Sure do miss her, Thanks for the chance to win the Visa GC.

BrendaLea
prpldy (at) comcast dot net

elizabeth p said...

I loved when my maw maw made her fruit salad! It was cool and wonderful and she added something special to each plate. I got nuts, one sister got chocolate chips, another got cherries. I am queenesperfect at yahoo.com

Stephanie said...

reading my mom's notes in our lunchbox
tvollowitz at aol dot com

Lori Sifuentes said...

We use to eat lunch outside by the pool. It was so relaxing.

Thanks
surveys4lori@rocketmail.com

Christine said...

I don't remember having any particular rituals. Our house was pretty chaotic growing up though.

I like to include knock knock jokes and riddles in with lunches.

Christine
dazed1821@aol.com

Jennifer Neal said...

I'd always help my mom when she did something easy like pb&j :) Loved that!

monkey-shines said...

My dad and I used to share a can of sardines together while waiting in the car while my mom shopped. It was very special--those times and waiting was a breeze.

catmom1010 at gmail dot com

buzzd said...

We only had wheat bread (I wanted white) so I would always take the crust off the bread as it was too dark..lol

lsfish said...

I don't remember anything special except that I didn't like chocolate milk and always had to have white milk

Cindy said...

Tuesday nights was Pot Pie night. I would scrape all the fillings off the crust and then eat the crust and leave the rest.

shelley said...

I wanted to live on Kraft Mac N Cheese when I was a kid. I still like it a lot.

Anonymous said...

we would have leftover french toast....delicious although it may not sound like it! :-)

~eunice b
tigergal01 @gmail .com

Anonymous said...

http://twitter.com/tigergal01/status/20893600994

tweet

~tigergal01
tigergal01 @gmail .com

Betty N said...

I packed my lunch at home so I always had things that I really liked for lunch

hale2005 said...

Try to make the milk last.

hellrzr(at)juno(dot)com

aajacques said...

My lunchtime routine would be at noon my mom would always make me either a tuna sandwich or a grilled cheese, the only two things I would eat for lunch.

allysona said...

i loved it when my mom would surprise me with a avacado sandwich....they were expensive back then and we didn;t have much money

Chelsea said...

For some weird reason I liked to buy my lunch in the cafeteria. I have no clue what was wrong with me... So my mom got off easy!

chelsea at rootsandrings dot com

mogrill said...

We had a weekly treat surprise. We never knew which day we would open our lunch and our fave candy bar or pastry would be in there! it was so fun.
Thanks for the chance.
mogrill@comcast.net

Alex K. said...

I used to play around in the dirt and try to make dirtballs (like snowballs) and throw them at trees. Now I wouldn't dare dig my fingers into the dirt.

Jenny B said...

I loved it that my mom didn't think it was weird that I liked dipping my beloved grilled cheese in ketchup. I still do it to this day:)

Jenny B

jennyhasquads at yahoodotcom

Black Sheep Broad said...

I ate hot lunch at school..and HATED it. The food was so sub-par. I drank the milk and waited to get home to have Mom's good food. She fed us a great breakfast, and told us to eat the food at school but how anyone could eat that after eating her great food was beyond me.

llinda29 said...

favorite lunchtime rituals when I was a kid was chocolate milk

Stephen Saunders said...

I don't recall any particular lunchtime rituals... I just remember I loved lunch.

mickeyfan said...

My ritual was to make sure that none of my food touched any of the other food...and then usually eating each item one at a time. When someone would say "well it all goes the same place in the end" I'd reply "yeah, but it doesn't have to all taste the same getting there!"

LAMusing said...

Mom let me "help" - the most fun was when we made my favorite flying saucer grilled cheese :)

Norma said...

no special rituals - but summertime was fun - making homemade ice cream in an old fashioned barrel

Super Frugalette said...

My favorite lunch time routine was finding a peanut butter and jelly sandwich in my lunch bag and .40 cents to get an ice cream treat.

Super Frugalette said...

http://twitter.com/Superfrugalette/status/20945551832 I left a link on twitter!

JC said...

I must have PB&J no matter what when I was kid.

JC said...

http://twitter.com/tcarolinep/status/20951589466

JC said...

blogged.http://tcarolinep.blogspot.com/2010/08/giveaway-points-of-review_11.html

smilekisses said...

My most memorable ritual was to keep my bowl of cereal tilted so that the cereal wouldn't get soggy in the milk. I still do this.
dolniaks[at]consolidated[dot]net

April said...

Peanut butter and jelly with the crusts cut off.

teenytig@sbcglobal.net

Marsha said...

Whenever I would get to take my lunch to school (my Mom felt a hot school lunch was more nutritious than a bagged lunch), it was always a pimento cheese sandwich. I thought I was the luckiest girl on Earth with that sandwich.

Leslie said...

My favorite lunchtime ritual was sneaking out of the cafeteria to eat by myself in the classroom so I could read a book

Melinda said...

we make animal shapes out of their sandwiches

Anonymous said...

squirt the jelly in a heard shape on the bread in pb&j, so when they pull the sandwich apart, they see the heart mom left for them :)

shoppingchic at gmail dot com

sean said...

making salad dressing - shake up the oil and vinegar and spices

seanm1999 (at) hotmail (dot) com

Anonymous said...

When I was a kid, my favorite lunch time rituals involved everyone sitting together at the table. That stuff just doesn't ever happen anymore =( gmissycat@yahoo.com

Anonymous said...

I tweeted as well! http://twitter.com/gmissycat/status/21013490915 gmissycat@yahoo.com

Ellie Wright said...

When I was little my dad and I would eat lunch on TV trays and watch The Beverly Hillbillies or Gomer Pyle together.
eswright18 at gmail.com

Unknown said...

i guess it's a lunchtime ritual that I ate the same thing in every school lunch - a peanut butter and jelly sandwich

MK said...

I would have to say it was always opening my lunchbox slowly in anticipation of what was in there. My mom always packed a great lunch with lots of surprizes.
mmk101(at)att(dot)net

Unknown said...

swapping stuff in my lunch with other kids

autumn398 @ yahoo.com

Anonymous said...

Heh, when I was a kid, my ma would always pack along at least one item I didn't like, like pudding or a piece of fruit, and pretty much EVERY lunch period, I would go around to the various tables and try to pawn it off for something else I did like :P Mixed success.

Anonymous said...

I just tweeted this giveaway here :D

http://twitter.com/TimboSquad/status/21042132538

brandysart said...

I have three younger sisters and one older. During the summer when our parents were working my older sister and I had the job of watching our younger sisters. We used to love to turn lunchtime into a tea party or a picnic or something else fun. I miss those tea parties. :)

White Toast with Butter said...

We didn't take lunch to school.

Anonymous said...

Growing up in Ukraine we didn't really have lunch but an early dinner at 2:30pm right after school. We always ate together with my mom and I told her every detail of my day at school, that was always fun :)

Cristie said...

When I was about 10 years old my mother taught a bunch of neighbor kids a 4-H cooking class and one of the lessons was on healthy lunches. I still make that lunch today, only sometimes it's for dinner :)

christine said...

I used to take my chocolate chip cookie and put it into my pbj sandwich and smash it flat. Then it would be ready to eat. Not sure why I did it, but it had to be done that way up to 5th grade.

Patrice said...

My childhood lunch ritual was making a cheese sandwich. I would cut the crust off the bread and put slices of cheese between two pieces. I don't remember much more than that about lunch times.

patrice@everydayruralty.com

Kelsey said...

Definitely what i ate. I haae fond memories of certain foods, like pb&j sandwiches, and to this day, when I eat them, I think about my childhood. My son's favorite ritual is making his own sandwich. He always feels like such a big boy when he does.
Kelsey
micahandkelsey1(at)cox(dot)net

Literary Winner said...

I guess my ritual was eating peanut butter sandwiches. No jelly because I hated (and hate!) when the jelly soaks into the bread.
Maggie at tethered mommy dot com

Chip said...

My mom would pack me a pb&j, some fruit and a Little Debbie treat in my lunch every day except for pizza day.
chipdip2010(at)hotmail(dot)com

Rose Shepherd said...

I don't remember any lunch-time rituals. I was a picky eater when I was younger, so my parents would pay me a dollar each time I made a "happy plate".

sassy2 said...

we usually fended for ourselves, but I loved a banana wrapped in a piece of bread.

JudyR said...

I loved being able to buy lunch at school - it was a very special treat.

Anonymous said...

Aww so cute! She looks so much like you. I remember always getting notes on my lunch bag from mom and also her surprising me with little treats in my lunch bag at school, like my favorite back then, Little Debbie Oatmeal Pie!

shevilkenevil1 at aol dot com

Anonymous said...

I tweeted:
http://twitter.com/lipstickncandy/status/21161545115

shevilkenevil1 at aol dot com

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