Trying to organise a healthy and nutritious lunchbox for your children to take to school isn't always an easy task, and now one teacher has told parents to stop bringing one popular choice of snack.
The mum and teacher, named Kristen, said she can't stand it when parents give their children the small fruit pots that come in their own juice, which are similar to tinned fruit but in individual plastic pots.
Kristen explained the pots are a nightmare to try and open, and when she does finally pry the sealed lid away from the pot, the force used results in the fruit juice going everywhere - including on her clothes and the poor child who just wants to chow down on their lunch.
The woman is a kindergarten teacher in the US, but the pots of fruit are available in the UK too - and she's now issued a warning to all parents to stop sending their kids to school with them.
In a video posted to her @kinderwith_kristen account on TikTok, she said: "My son will never go to school with this particular snack. Teachers across [the country] know that these are not only so hard to open, but they spill juice everywhere. On you, the desk, your hand – it's impossible to open this lid without spilling juice everywhere.
"Whoever invented this lid deserves jail time. My son is getting pre-cut apple slices."
The teacher also highlighted two other things she will never do with her own son since working in a school herself, as she insisted her son will wear Velcro shoes until he's learned to tie his own laces.
She added: "[I will not send] my child with lace-up shoes if they cannot tie their own shoes. There's nothing worse than bending down to tie a child's shoes and the laces are wet … and guess where they've been – the bathroom.
"Sorry to my son, but he's team Velcro until he can tie shoes."
And Kristen's final note was a little more serious, as she urged parents not to take everything their child says as the complete truth - after one child claimed she had taken the class on an "unauthorised school trip".
She warned: "The third thing I'd never do is always believe my child's version of things that happened at school – especially if they seem out of character for the teacher or the school."
Kristen said she had to deal with "enraged" parents when a child insisted she had taken them to a park in her personal car, and had to explain she had actually just taken the class to a different playground on the grounds of their school - which they do every week as a treat.
Commenters on the post were supportive of Kristen's comments, especially those who also work in schools and could sympathise with her struggles over the fruit pots.
One person said: "THOSE DANG CUPS!"
While another added: "And [you have to] hope they didn't try to open the fruit cup with [their] mouth before they ask you."
And a third wrote: "I also teach kindergarten and LOVE these three nevers! It's the shoes for me though. I must tie 50 wet shoes a day."
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