Lisa, it’s funny how little things hit you, isn’t it? Our eldest, 11, came home from his first week away at Boy Scout camp brimming with self-confidence and two maturity steps forward. It was wonderful to see, and at the same time I recognized it as the beginning of a long good-bye.

How about your 3-year old telling you, “Mommy go away, I’ll do it myself.”

Debbie, I’m so glad to hear that someone else’s 3 year old said that too!!  My 16 year old is still saying it!!

Rebecca, it’s funny how much they can grow up in a week at camp, isn’t it??!

Oh boy, Lisa!  I’ve recently been thanking God that I’m pregnant and have the promise of another sweet innocent little baby in a few months, because Camilla (not yet two) is growing away from me so fast!  She says “do dit self” (do it myself) dozens of times a day.  I just can’t wait to see where the coming years will take us!

He used to be so proud and excited that I volunteered at his school.

Now, as a sixth grader entering middle school, he is absolutely mortified that I am thinking I might chaperone one of his school dances.

I always write them little notes on their lunch napkins. I will be broken hearted when they tell me it’s too embarassing to have a note from Mom. At the last school, we started a trend, where all the other kids wanted notes in their lunches, too.

As far as the food choices go: good luck with that.

The same thing happened to me in junior high!  I started taking a lunch bag because everyone else did too.  But when I got to high school (all girls), the trend went to mini ice chests.  I even decorated mine with a paint pen.  Who knows, Lisa, maybe the tried and true insulated lunch bag will return.

What a great reflection, Lisa!  Watching our kids grow up is the best of times and the worst of times.  I remember when my daughter (our only girl with many brothers) decided she would do her hair all by herself.  And I recall my oldest child going out for his first driving lesson.  And then when the first child actually moved out on his own.  As hard as it is to get up in the middle of the night, there is a part of me that is now SO thankful when one of my kids wakes me up at 2 a.m. with “Mom, I had a bad dream.  Can you sit with me for awhile?” Aboslutely I can...because pretty soon, no one will need me to do that anymore.

My older son is 5-yr and he was always saying things older than his age.  I have a 3-yr-old who is developmentally delayed in many ways.  He talks like a 18 month old, and because of that I still think of him as a baby.  Next week he starts school, and it will be sad. It will be a full day in a special education class, and so I will have to pack a lunch for him.

He gets a bright green one made by allergykid.com

http://www.allergykids.com/product.php?proid=9⊂_catid=

I made that switch from monogrammed lunch kit to paper bag (mom always double bagged and froze my water bottle to keep things cool) until she packed it in a small gift bag one day. That was the coolest in high school and my friends started bringing theirs in recycled gift sacks. When they start to wear out, throw them away but not nearly as often as the paper sacks.

gosh all of your stories/comments are making me tear up! I have two daughters. One is 3 and the other is almost 3 months. My 3 yo does insist on getting dressed by herself and brushing her hair, etc. But she still requests me to put her to bed, so that makes me feel better =) The only thing that really bothers me is how she is insisting on “going to class.” I don’t think I will do too well when she heads off to kindergarten…

My oldest ,who happens to be my only daughter, never really went through the lunch box / bag transitions like my boys( She marches to the beat of a different drum ) . She is now eighteen and still carries her Monkey ( the flap is the face, the bag part the body and it has arms and legs attached )insulated lunch bag to work and Nursing school with her.My boys however , started going with the trend of paper bags when they started fifth grade ( Middle school here) This was a big transition year for both boys also in school supplies, clothing, and so on. We had to get either plain folders and notebooks or something pertaining to “real” karate ( no more animated) Nike, or another “ cool” name. Clothing was even worse. Again no cartoony shirts but brand name shirts ( Nike, Adidas, A&F;, Polo ) were a must . The oldest one also pushes for shirts with” funny” sayings though many of these are parentally vetoed around here.  As for the lunch ideas for in paper bags, my kids don’t eat PB&J;so they take lunch meat sandwiches ,(or prepackages Lunchables from time to time) a cut up apple with caramel dip or small bag of carrots with ranch or blue cheese dip, fruit roll ups or a pudding cup, and a frozen plastic bottle of juice or a couple frozen juice boxes. I put the frozen bottle or boxes into a Ziploc bag so that it’s “sweat” doesn’t cause the paper bag to weaken. The drink is either slushy or just cold come lunch time ( depending on the season )and the lunch meat sandwich is kept cool to prevent spoiling.

It’s funny how parents are so excited for their kids to grow, only to have heartaches when they actually do grow up. Personally, I’d rather keep them in their small size forever!