A New Level of Motherhood

I've been making obentos since before J was born. But it's only been since he was born -- since he started school, actually -- that I've had this sort of competition going. When he comes home he gets the third degree, What did everyone else's obentos look like? Was there anything that looked really delicious in your friend's lunch? Did anyone comment on your obento?

But he's a dude and really doesn't pay that much attention to what his friends are eating or what they are saying about his lunch. Information has been scarce.

Japanese moms have this special innate power where they can in a heartbeat whip up the most breathtaking lunches. Me, I ate peanut butter and jelly sandwiches with the occasional Little Debbie snack cake for all six years of elementary school. Mostly I don't want to embarrass my son with a lame lunch. Kids who aren't 100% Japanese have a hard enough time of it as it is.

Yesterday was his junior high school's field day and an obento was called for. It wasn't even my best work, but I got the crowning achievement of obento making. Some of his friends snagged some of his food...*sniff, sniff* because it looked so good.

The top part wasn't anything special: sweet boiled pumpkin and chicken and green beans with a sweet and sour sauce.

The bottom was something new I tried. These are actually rice balls but I wrapped them in super thinly sliced beef, secured them with a strip of seaweed, and sauteed them in a sweetish garlic and soy sauce. After they cooled I sprinkled them with sesame seeds. Two of these were begged off him by friends.

J is very wise to my constant joking and tricks. I made pot stickers/gyoza (usually stuffed with pork and veggies) and instead stuffed them with chocolate (and sprinkled them with sugar). I didn't have time to take a picture but this is what they looked like.

My idea was just to freak him out. Thinking they were meat and really they were chocolate. Ha! But he said he suspected something because they were in a different container. When he announced what they were all his buddies asked if they could have one.

I teared up when I heard that. I've reached a level of motherhood I thought impossible. His friends think...I'm (just a little bit) cool.

I'll leave you with this image. I walked in and found J and Cha walking around like this. They both looked so comfortable. (It was a bad hair day for J. He's since discovered a brush.)

Oh, and also, we got to see Baron the dog today. His owner's son had him out. He made this sling like thing so he could lift his hind legs while Baron could walk on his front. They didn't walk long because he's a huge boxer, heavy. But I sketched out some little contraptions on wheels that I think I may take over tomorrow.