When I was a kid I invited friends over to lunch, or I was invited to "eat over" at a friend's house, frequently. Since this was in the eighties, my mom wouldn't know until I showed up with a friend in tow, or until I phoned from that friend's house. My kids don't have this kind of experience: for one thing, I pick them up for their 55 minute lunch hour, and for another, there are very, very few other children who go home for lunch.
But the other day my friend - whose daughters do come home for lunch - was running a tight schedule, and it was pouring rain, and so I picked up her girls and took them home for lunch. It was a festive occasion, so I broke the kids' sandwich-and-bagel rut and made pancakes. It was, for everyone, so much fun. The novelty of having friends over for lunch, not to mention having chocolate chip pancakes, was great. Add to that an episode of Phineas and Ferb and being able to eat lunch while watching meant through-the-roof excitement.
It's funny, after-school play and lunch dates seem to be largely a thing of the past. Our school day goes until 3:40, most kids have activities or schedules that don't allow for playtime after this. It's fine, but until we have friends over I forget how much fun the kids all have. Well, there are only three and a half weeks left of school - after that the whole summer is free for unscheduled playtime, and who knows? Maybe even a few lunch dates too.
I want to come to lunch at your house.
ReplyDeleteMy kids almost never have friends over, although in our case it's because we've got extra kids all week, so on the weekend they treasure having it be just the family for a couple of days. I find it so strange... I used to visit back and forth with my friends all the time.
I know most kids eat lunch at school these days. Even those who's parents are home. And I get that, it is easy and the kids get to hang with their friends. But I do wonder about the break. How your kids sometimes feel more rejuvenated on returning from school after that wee break with you. It might be a good thing. A good thing I can't do because I work :)
ReplyDeleteI used to just show up with friends, too. Nobody seemed to mind as long as parents were called and informed.
ReplyDeleteMy kids still hang out with friends lots after school and such, since our extra-curricular is mostly in the evenings or on weekends. But lunch is an at-school thing. It's the balanced-day-nutrition-break thing: there just isn't really time to come home for lunch any more.
Like Janet, I am no stranger to kids in the house--not at lunch, but definitely after school. M has a friend over at least once a week, often twice and there's usually a play date here or there on the weekends too. I'm really looking forward to summer in the 'hood for her. Her BFF has a tree house and now M has a trampoline. We've entered the Golden Age.
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