to continue giving DS what he's always had for lunch

[mylilyfire]

DS has a packed lunch (year 2.) he has a whole meal pitta bread filled with chicken salad, a hard boiled egg, an apple or pear, yoghurt and a home made flapjack.

He is apparently being bullied because of the egg? All the children have been complaining about it smelling. I hate the pressure to comform, he's 7

I don't really want the other children to know it's got to him so I've told him to tell a teacher but he's got quite upset.

WIBU to send it in anyway? To me it's a standard healthy sort of lunch item!

Does he want the egg, or not? I think that gives you your answer.

He wants it to eat but he's upset about being teased.

I don't want him to think that he can't eat something healthy he enjoys because of other kids, that's all. No need to be rude

You're sure he's being bullied rather than the children just commenting on a smelly egg!

Eggs do smell though!
Do you give him the same lunch every day?

Eggs in lunch boxes are smelly tbh. Kids will inevitably comment. I would leave it out if I were you.

Not sure I was particularly rude. If you want him to have an egg, why don't you give him one as an after school snack?

Hard to say Damn but he's upset about it and he isn't generally super sensitive. And yes he has pretty much the same lunch every day :) he enjoys it and there is a very strict lunchbox policy. In summer he sometimes has strawberries as well.

And yes eggs do smell a bit bit I doubt it's so offensive it's causing mass distress to an entire room of children.

He has an egg every day? I'd send it in less often, maybe once a week or so and not because of the comments but just for variety.

The children are being silly but if your ds doesn't want it because of it stop sending it.

My vegetarian Dneice stopped taking egg sandwiches as other children were making fun of the smell. It made things quite difficult for dsis.

I think you may need to replace the egg with a bit of cheese.

If it's upsetting him, I would stop sending it in. I doubt it will have any deeper meaning for the children, it will just divert the attention from him.

Are the other children only commenting on it at lunchtime when he's eating or just generally in lessons as well? If the latter then I'd speak to the teacher but if it's just light teasing id leave it. Sounds horrible but if the teacher talks to the other kids about not teasing him he's likely to get even more stick for it.

I thought it was a given that kids always comment on whoever has the eggy sandwich at lunchtime?

I always hated it when my dm gave me egg mayo fir lunch, largely due to the choruses of comments and nose holding. It definitely wasn't bullying, more the law of the lunch room.

Ok - disco, what I'm wondering is this. If I leave it out, do the other kids then sense they've got to DS and start giving him a hard time over something else, given he's a quiet, bookish boy, or will it be an end to it. What would other parents do, is what I'm wondering? As it's a stupid thing but I had a very upset 7 year old before and I suppose I thought it was obvious the post wasn't about the egg but the bullying. I would put dirt in his lunchbox if it made him happy, but I don't know quite how best to handle it. Astonishingly my world will keep turning if DS never eats an egg again but that's not actually the point here.

He doesn't really like cheese much Jinty :)

It can be difficult to know how best to handle these sorts of things and please don't anyone start with the "just don't send an egg in" as obviously it isn't about the egg.

In a kids mind, eggs smell like farts and they will comment.
If he is upset by this, then the egg needs to go. Can he have it as an after school snack instead? Maybe you can replace it with something else he likes.

I think you're reading too much into it, in the nicest possible way. If he doesn't want to take one any more, don't send one. The other kids will forget about it soon enough.

"just don't send an egg in" as obviously it isn't about the egg

Of course it is. What else do you think it's about?

Eating smelly food leaves you open to criticism.

And adult can tolerate it (both the smelly food and criticism) a bit better, but there are signs in various public places saying 'please don't eat smelly food etc'

My friends daughter had some garlicky salami at school and the kids commented on that too. Because it stank the place out.

Damn like I say I really am not arsed about the egg :) this isn't a weird obsession I have with them, it's wanting my DS to have the confidence to manage situations and I didn't know whether it was best to brazen it out or not.

Disco'thanks, will send him sans egg tomorrow.

Can you please describe the bullying?

He is now being generally teased for having eggs in his lunch... is that what you're saying?

Well it is about the egg because the question you actually asked as you AIBU was should you send the egg in and the majority has said no.

Sorry but an egg smell is really horrid . I think in this instance it's ok to leave it out. Is he actually being bullied or just kids reacting to it which seems to be normal.

I'm sorry but I think you are massively over thinking this!

I think as already said, anyone with egg has comments thrown at them, lets be right-they stink!!

Apologies if I've got this wrong, it seems as though if you leave the egg out they've "won" in your eyes?

Give the poor kid some more variety and save his embarrassment!

Ds2 had the same, although he doesn't have egg very often. I'd level it up to him to decide if he still wants it

My 7 year old cried when he got in today. He'd obviously been holding it back all afternoon.

So no,it isn't about the egg, it's about my child being unhappy. If I had thought 'leave egg out = happy DS" I'd have done it and wouldn't have bothered asking on here but I was worried that would actually make the situation worse, hence my post.