Sunday, July 6, 2008

Queen Of The Last Minute

It's 11:33pm, the night before our town's Summer Playgrounds program begins and I've got the paperwork spread out before me, reading about how unprepared we are. We've got sunblock, water bottles, and closed-toe shoes covered. We can easily send the kids in without toys or games from home. After that, it kind of disintegrates.

There's a no peanut-butter-at-all mandate this year (last year, it was peanut-free zones), so lunches tomorrow will be yogurt, plums, and Doritoes. Ross will not eat the yogurt. Lars will not eat the plum. Chris is downstairs checking if we've got any crackers (we're leaving town for two weeks on Wednesday, so I've been letting the stores drop pretty radically).

The site for Ross' program has changed because the school we signed him up for is having some sort of renovation and I'm not sure where the new school is. Hello, Google Maps!

The schedule sent for Lars' program shows the location for LUNCH as BATHROOM/PLAYGROUND. Typo? Precaution? The only time the children will be allowed to wee? Chris and I decide that, for six hours of free care, we are willing to send Lars in to find out firsthand.

I have the feeling I should have read this stuff a week ago or something. If I leap into the car RIGHT NOW, I can make it to Wegmans before it closes and secure better lunch stuff. I'd get funny looks and possibly a citation for my clearance rack satin sleeping shorts with the hideous clown stripes and vertical runs from having a clawed kitten. We won't even discuss the clashing tank top I'm wearing (I'm saving my good PJ's for later in the week, when we'll have and/or be overnight guests). This is me, not leaping for the car.

So...Lars will eat his so-called lunch in the bathroom, while wearing sneakers and sunblock. Ross may or may not have anyone to play with, depending on if I can find the right school to drop him off. At least if he can have PB for lunch if he winds up back at home.

6 comments:

Chaotic Joy said...

Everything about this post is totally me. But I think we are skimming of the most important part here. 6 hours a day kid free! Bliss.

Round the Bend said...

Thanks for the heads up...

I need to find the forms for CleverMonkey's daycamp in a couple weeks. Then I *won't* be scrambling at 11:30 the night before, and can instead be online reading blogs and chatting.

Unknown said...

well, there's always coffee and cat food?! btw, i thought the peanut butter thing was old school by now...

*pal said...

so, let me get this straight: the no-peanut-anything-no way-no how-never continues after children have successfully demonstrated no allergies to peanuts within their first year of life?

Chaotic Joy said...

Paige-Once your doctor gives the OK on PB (which I think is technically at 2 years now, although I always offer it to my kids after their first birthday) your kid can eat it whenever they want. But so many kids now have severe peanut allergies they sometimes forbid it completely at schools/camps etc. Some kids are so allergic that even the PB on another kids breath can cause a reaction. The reason they recommend you wait until age two to try nuts is because it is supposed to decrease your chances of being allergic.

The reason I let me kids try it at one is because we have no history of allergies and by the time your kid is two it can be really hard to get them to try new things. Also because I am a WME.

The policies at my kid's schools are much more relaxed. The PB kids have to sit at one side of the table so they are away from any kids with allergies. Their school even offers PBJs on the menu. Just depends where you are.

Does that help?

Lady Epiphany said...

Karen's school system seems to trend toward the extreme. They serve pb&j every day at Lauren's school which is a mere 10 miles to the south. As far as I know, you can send your kid in with anything, it's the paraprofessional's job to sort out where the kid with allergies sits. If your kid is allergic (or doesn't eat something for religious reasons, which is more often the case here), you are required to provide a substitute for your kid.