Peanut Butter And Connections

When I first met Reyna and Travis I was astonished to find that Reyna had never had a Peanut Butter and Jelly sandwich before. Isn't that a staple meal for the American child? Come to think of it, many children can't eat peanut butter due to allergies (my deepest sympathies, you are truly missing out!), and both Reyna's father and grandfather have type 2 diabetes, so they avoided eating sandwiches and jellies. But bless her heart, she had never had the pleasure of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. 

I made it a point to make one for Reyna as soon as I was able. I started her off with the basics, Jiffy smooth with grape jelly. After trying several combinations, she informed me that she prefers wheat bread, crunchy peanut butter, and is ok with the sweeter jellies, but does not hold much interest in orange marmalade. That’s ok, more marmalade for me!

Then, PBJ took on a new twist. One night at Grandma Lulu’s (that’s her name for my Mom, Cindy), mom, Amber and I were up late working on a podcast episode for Modern Musings. On this particular weekend, Reyna accompanied me. When these recordings go in session, we tend to stay up well past our bedtimes, often resulting in a post-midnight snack. Since Reyna is well behaved, I tend to let her stay up late with us. On this particular night she texted me asking for a “Bwa-Bwa Special”. I was baffled at first but I know that Bwa-Bwa, also known as B.W, is the nickname for our beloved Shi  Tzu, Arya. But what could it mean? Of course, she was craving a peanut butter jelly sandwich! This was a proud mama moment for me - as you know, I am always trying to get Reyna to try new things. 

If you were wondering why she texted me, Reyna tends to not ask me for things directly; she will oftentimes send me a text message or ask for something in the name of the dog. For example she will tell me that “Arya is thirsty,” or that “Arya misses me”, or even that “Arya wants to watch a movie.” Although Reyna and I bonded very quickly, our relationship is very different from many other stepmom/stepdaughter’s, most likely due to Reyna losing her mother at such a young age. I will take whatever means of communication she can muster. She is still learning how to speak up on her own and directly to people in a confident way. She sometimes struggles with things that we may find easy, like saying thank you directly to someone’s face. I think that she has come a long way in the past five years and I look forward to the young woman she will grow to be. 

Do you have any funny stories about your kids and the weird nick-names that they give food or ones that you remember from growing up? I would love to hear what your favorite combinations are for peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Don’t forget to hit us up on MMC Chat on Facebook!