This post is inspired by the novel Julia’s Child
I don’t know how things have gone in your house when it comes to introducing your kids to new foods, but ours has gone a bit like this.
Kid #1: Grains, veggies, more veggies, fruit, more fruit, dairy… [A couple years of self-righteousness pass seeing others feeding their kids things I swear I never will.] Organic juice, organic fruit snacks, organic who-cares-what-it-is-because-it-says-organic, buckets of sugar (but most of it organic).
Kid #2: Grains, veggies, more veggies, fruit, more fruit, dairy…. [A couple weeks of exhaustion pass seeing others feeding their toddlers things and I think, “Hmm, how convenient.”] Goldfish, fruit snacks, who-cares-what-it-is-at-least-my-kid-eats-it, buckets of sugar.
Kid #3: Grains, veggies, more veggies, fruit, more fruit, dairy. Dot. Dot. Dot.
That’s right, we’re at the turning point with Pink (who just turned one). And I’m determined to do things differently. This year, I’ve been working with Cristie at Real Life Wellness to improve my own health—to be more conscious of the choices I’m making. And in doing so, I’ve made a lot of changes to the way I feed my kids. I’ve realized that, like me, they (for the most part) only eat things that I buy and keep around the house. It really is that simple.
And, in the process I refuse to resort to the overflowing section of the bookstore that covers how to “trick” your kids into eating healthy foods. Sure, I can see the short-term gain, but what is that really teaching them about eating right? Instead, I’m trying to empower my kids to make good choices. Because if you think about it, that’s where your kids started. With the good stuff. Not because one of them was cruising down the grocery aisle and saw winter squash and said, “Put down those Nilla Wafers and hand over the irresistible orange goop.” But because you were exposing him to foods that were good for him. And he even liked them. Ok, not all of them, maybe. But some. And that’s the sweet spot, I’ve found. The some.
Together, my kids and I have been taking stock of the healthy foods we enjoy and why they make us feel good. I’ve started buying their favorite veggies (peppers, snap peas, carrots, etc) and taking those with us to the park instead of a snack pack of sugary crackers. I’ve started trying new simple dinner recipes and giving each one a couple tries, adjusting as I go when things weren’t quite right the first time. And we’re making progress.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m far from perfect (in just about every way). We still enjoy comfort foods and conveniences more than we should (after all, I’m the one who writes Pizza & Wine Friday posts!). And I’m certainly not going to deprive my active, strong kids of a few treats along the way. But I am trying not to restock some of the old standbys that were weighing us down on a daily basis. And I am trying to stock up on foods with ingredients I can pronounce (even Big is getting in on this game). Believe it or not, I haven’t even gotten many complaints along the way. Which just goes to show, maybe the convenient stuff was really as much for my benefit as my kids’ appetites.
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Kudos to you, Amy, for teaching your kids about healthy eating and involving them in the kitchen. There is no reason why kids have to eat chicken nuggets! As a pediatric nutritionist, I unfortunately see childhood obesity everyday. Healthy eating habits are learned in families very early, and believe me it is well worth the extra effort! Can’t wait to read the book you highlight – thanks!
The book is a light novel, but I have a feeling it will strike a chord with you given your line of work. Thanks for looking out for kiddos everywhere!
good for you! And really though, all that healthy food-hiding take so much more work than just putting the veggies out there with some hummus and a “if you’re hungry, this is what you can eat before dinner… otherwise, just wait :)!”
Regardless, they’ll never go into the supermarket without wanting to run through the produce department to the bakery for the free cookie 😉
Oh Jodie, isn’t it true? I definitely still let them have goodies. But I sure do feel better about that cookie at the grocery store if they had carrots at home.
I’ve let my kids become more involved in picking out fresh veggies and fruits. They devour fruit and I don’t mind paying more for it. I have also stopped keeping as much junk food in our home. I still love my Slurpees and kettle chips, but it’s a back and forth balance, right?
Absolutely! There’s no giving up pizza or wine for me. (Or a few other things.) It’s just one little change at a time.
Amy, thanks for reading!
And… It’s always a work in progress, isn’t it? There are the victories, and there is backsliding.
Pizza and wine aren’t unhealthy, either!
S.P.
Thanks so much for reading my post! You’re right…everything I do seems to be a work in progress.
My babies are now 26 and 31 and I honestly wish I could start all over with them as far as teaching them to eat healthier. My daughter (31) lives on her own and has a busy career and eats fast food and restaurant food breakfast/lunch and dinner. She’s a diabetic with high blood pressure already at her young age. My son (26) eats nothing but frozen pizza, chicken strips and hamburgers plus liters of pepsi! I didn’t teach them to eat this way, but I also didn’t teach them to eat only healthy foods. Mea culpa 🙁
I’m glad you’re teaching your children to eat healthier and not by tricking them, but by teaching them. Good job!
I totally understand, there’s a convenience factor that sometimes just wins out in our busy schedules. Thanks for the encouragement and I hope your kids come around too!
I agree with you on the hiding healthy food bit. I believe in teaching my kids to eat real food. I really try to limit the junk food. Now if I could figure out how to balance that with an underweight and very picky 8 year old I would be doing great.
I hear you Charlotte. I refer to Little as a walking skeleton…sometimes just getting him to eat anything seems better than the alternative. But keeping whole milk in the mix seems to be helping a bit. He’s also outgrown his nut allergy and enjoys nuts as a snack…lots of good fat. Good luck!