Think back to that first day of kindergarten. Your child pressed in close against your side, shy and a little uncertain about all the newness ahead. One little hand was clutching yours. The other was holding the handle of a lunchbox. Inside, there was a peanut butter and jelly sandwich (yes, peanut butter—this was before the banned-due-to-nut-allergies era). It was trimmed of crust and stamped by a cookie cutter into the shape of a heart, then slipped into a plastic baggie decorated with three words written in Sharpie: “I love you.” You held it together through the drop-off line, but gave into the tears and the sobs and the where did time go? reminiscing as soon as your hands hit the steering wheel.
Your baby was growing up. Mid-afternoon naps had been replaced by reading lessons and playground games away from home. When you finally pulled out of the parking lot, though, you comforted yourself with this thought: at lunchtime, thanks to a note written on a sandwich bag, your child would be reminded that they were loved. [Click to Tweet] They would still know that mommy cared, even if she wasn’t sitting at the lunch table. So you made the drive home…and the next morning, you woke up to a high school senior running out the door while shouting about off-campus lunch at Chick-fil-A, soccer practice after school, and a have-to-have-it homecoming dress you’re guessing is at least three inches too short and a hundred dollars too expensive.
This is senior year. This is the crème-de-la-craziness of life. This is “busy schedule” personified for both you and your child. In the midst of all that, I’d like to encourage you to make time for lunchbox moments. Actually, I’d like to take it a step further than that—I dare you to love your child like you did when they were in kindergarten. [Click to Tweet] To put a sticky note on his backpack. To tape a love letter to her mirror. To make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich with the crust cut off that’s stamped into the shape of a heart, with the words “I love you” written in Sharpie on a plastic baggie. To encourage, to build up, and to equip them for that moment in college when they’re sitting in the middle of a crowded cafeteria and feeling totally alone…yet totally sure that they have a rock-solid support system back home.
The lunchbox letter dare is a challenge to maximize moments. It’s a reminder that senior year isn’t over yet, and you still have a fabulous opportunity to impact your child’s life on a regular basis. [Click to Tweet] How can you show some good, old-fashioned mom love today?
Taking the dare? Share tips and ideas with other moms on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook by using the hashtags #LMPlovedare and #lunchboxletters.
