I've had a few people comment on our diet and how my kids eat pretty much anything so I wanted to go a bit into that today, how we got there, what we do, etc.
Some of my kids' favorite foods are shrimp, asparagus, salads, and quiche. We can tear up a quiche and a trip to our local grocers salad bar costs us $50 because everyone wants a yummy salad. Don't get me wrong, my kids love chicken nuggets and french fries and such but my middle daughter asked for Lasagna and asparagus for her birthday dinner. Those things, chicken nuggets, spaghetti-Os, are the exception, not the rule.
I love cooking and trying new foods, I love taking the foods we'd normally eat and making them healthier. Black beans in place of pinto, Greek yogurt in place of sour cream, Mashed cauliflower instead of potatoes and most times nobody knows the difference.
We eat what I guess you could call "grown-up food" 6 nights a week probably. We don't eat a lot of boxed foods, we don't eat a lot of frozen foods. Breakfast consists of normally Oatmeal or a non-kiddy cereal. Sure there are times when I buy the Cocoa puffs and they go like Hot cakes, but I don't buy that often. The other day there was a sale on Pop-tarts plus I had a coupon so I picked some up for a treat, my middle daughter asked "mom, what are these?" I told her they were Pop-tarts. "What's a pop-tart?" "uhhmmmm.... It's like toast with jelly, only this kind has chocolate in it" CHOCOLATE!! YUMMM she yelled. They now love pop-tarts and every time we are at the store I get "Can We get pop-tarts" and I say....wait for it...wait for it... NO! Yes, they pout, Yes, they say "ahh maaaann" but I stick to my guns and in no time they have forgotten what it was that they wanted. If your kids know they can push you into something they will try. And try. and try. and try. And mine know that when I say "no" it means no and if they keep pushing there will be consequences. They don't even dare throwing a temper tantrum at the grocery store. I believe it happened once with one of our kids and the rest learned that was not a good idea. It's because I'm consistent, in all areas of our life, but especially in food and what we buy. If they have birthday money and want to spend that on Pop-tarts, they most certainly can, but most times a shiny new toy looks more appealing than Pop-tarts. "If it's not on Mommy's list, we don't buy it, because mommy has the money" is their mantra.
It comes down to the fact that if I don't buy it, they can't eat it. That's my rule with everything. If I don't want my kids eating lots of Boxed foods or sugary breakfast foods, why would I buy them? If they are hungry enough they will eat the cheerios or fruit for a snack. They wont' starve.
We have a "No thank you bite" rule in our house. If you encounter something you don't think you will like you must take a no thank you bite and 9 times out of 10 they say "Wow, that's not too bad" and then from then on out every time we have that food they must try it. That No thank you bite is not negotiable. My oldest isn't a fan of asparagus but every time we have it she must eat at least 2 pieces and she complains and I ignore her and she eats them.
I also don't usually make separate meals. There are times when Hubs and I eat later on after they are in bed so I make them canned ravioli or something but most times what we eat, they eat. If they don't eat, they will be hungry.
My kids didn't start out liking quiche or shrimp but after eating it a few times they realized it isn't that bad and now they are asking for it by name. I also don't say things like "You're a little girl! Little girls don't normally like asparagus" If I do that then they feel like they are weird. Why would I discourage them eating food that is so healthy for them?
I encourage you to try new foods, start with one a week, and start letting your kids branch out. I'm raising adults that will love trying new foods and developing their palate and who, I hope, will see how I love cooking for them and take that into their own lives as they grow up and have families.
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