5 Things you would not have experienced without being a parent

Being a parent is one of the most difficult things in life!

Who knew that the older you get, the less you think you know anything about this parenting journey? I even have a claim on a child we successfully managed to raise, but that doesn't guarantee anything! (You would think that I would have the know-how! Not so!)

Raising the Little M has made me realize that each of them comes with a different manual. Some of the manuals are definitely more easier to understand!

As a mom I am always thinking about what I could have done better, or different.

I wanted to compile a random list of some of the parenting woes that comes with being a parent. Who think of this when they start with their parenting journey?


5 Things you did not think about before becoming a parent

- You have to attend school meetings, revues, concerts, parenting evenings as well as hang around the school endlessly waiting for activities to end. Who knew you would go back to school?


- You not only have to get yourself out of the door in the mornings, but the little ones as well. Each successful drop-off at school with children fully clothed, with a packed school bag and a lunch box should get a medal. (How do parents with multiple children manage?) It is an accomplishment, and we should praise ourselves more for just doing this!

- You worry constantly about your child when they have no friends, and also when they have friends. What can you do to help them in getting friends? What can you do when the girl politics are making her miserable?

- You are always searching for misplaced stuff that's not yours! In the house. Going back to places. At school. Maybe life is preparing us for our own later years?

- How many times have you longed for that lunch box that got sent to school that comes back intact? Those times that you have emptied your purse at the last minute and you did not make your own lunch? Too many times!


Do you have any other points I can add to this list?

Would I change any of this?
No! But it helps to get it out of the system!

KEEP CALM

Filed for future reference: The Lunch Box

The daily lunch box

We have to put in a lunch box for 10 am each day at the school.
We are not allowed by the school to put in any sweets. (Which we totally agree with, of course! But it makes it even more difficult to come up with new treats.)

We have a weekly outing to the shops to search for a variety of healthy snacks to put in the lunch box. I also have to be very creative in the way I present it in the lunch box. It sometimes does not even get opened.

And what gets eaten one week does not get eaten the next...

I was told to put in carrots one day, and for all the the other days it was not even touched again.
Apples and bananas rarely gets a bite, and yesterday we were told that she does not like biltong.
(There is only one expletive that works here! WTF!!)

With a different picture each day

The lunch box on top has the following:

- Beef biltong slices
- Two small tomatoes
- Heart sandwich with biltong and butter spread
- Dried fruit strips
- One rusk
- Salt biscuits
- 2 Digestive biscuits with chocolate coating on one side (a bit of a sweet)
- Slice of cheese

I also do a daily different picture on the lunch box with a permanent marker which can be washed off each day.

For future reference: Little Missy, I hope you read/see this one day!
We did put in a lot of effort.

A Freshline voucher up for grabs

I have noticed Freshline products before in Spar, but I was not aware of how many products there are or what it is about.

This is what they have to say about their Freshline range:

"All Freshline products can be traced from soil to store, ensuring you cook and serve with confidence!
This peace of mind promise is backed by our commitment to sustainable farming practices and the fact that all our suppliers are audited in accordance with international food safety standards.
Food quality, traceability and safety are our highest priority!"

The fact that they are "committed to green farming practices", makes it an easy choice for me!

Disclosure: I got a R 200.00 gift voucher to try the Freshline products that are available in Spar.

The basket with Freshline goodies, which I spent on vegetables and fruit

Gooseberries, an imported product which I could not resist

The blueberries are imported as well
(Both berries are great in lunch boxes)

Freshness

The best, the good people of Freshline have supplied me with a R 300.00 gift voucher that I can give away on this blog!

To win, please comment below and tell me just one fresh vegetable or fruit that you love to put in your little one's lunch box!
It is always a head-scratch to find something that you know is healthy, but will also appeal to the changing taste buds of our little ones.

I will do the draw next Friday, the 20th September, at 9 am.

(Unfortunately only for people in South Africa.)


Happy weekend!