From the get go, I pureed my kids food. I have offered them all kinds of table food from early on. I expose them to numerous things, yet they still only like "kid" food for the most part. It is so frustrating. With bubbie, it was very definite when he quit eating whatever was put in front of him. I remember being on bed rest with Sass and he was just over two. We put his plate in front of him and he politely handed it back to us and told us "no thank you"! This was a child who ate EVERYTHING! He would eat peas and carrots by the bowl full, couldn't devour a sweet potato fast enough, loved all fruits. Sass was always picky. The girl would never eat any meat besides chicken (and that is still debatable), but still she use to eat more than she does now and I think a lot of that is because she follows Bubbie's lead.
I'm not a short order cook though. Whatever I prepare for dinner is what they are served. I do always put some sort of fruit on their plate so at least if they don't eat their dinner they will get a serving of fruit and a glass of milk in their tummies.
Tonight I made chili and baked potatoes. I put butter and cheese on their potatoes. You would think I served them a plate full of bugs. Sass would have nothing to do with any of it. She ate her peaches and that was it. Bubbie did take a few bites, though amidst a flood of tears. Who knew a cheesy potato could make someone cry?!
What are you tricks? How do you get your kids to try new things and not fear new foods? (and just for the record, dips don't work with my kids. they don't even really care for ketchup! crazy!).
I would love your feed back, your tried and true tricks!
I will leave you with a list of food that they actually will eat.
string cheese
peanut butter and honey (s will eat jelly, b won't)
waffles
grilled cheese
black bean and cheese quesadillas
pumpkin pancakes
regular pancakes
muffins ( pumpkin and blueberry are faves)
cheeseburgers (b only)
turkey and cheese (b only)
hotdogs (b only)
chicken
ravioli (s only)
mac and cheese
mandarin oranges (s only)
bananas
grapes
apple slices
peaches
pears (s only)
spaghetti
chip and cheese dip
cereal w/ milk
cheese pizza
oatmeal (s only)
baked beans
sweet potato fries (baked)
meatballs (b only)
I try to make all these things as healthy as possible such as using whole grain breads and pastas. Looking at the list I guess they eat a little more than I thought but I would still like to get them to try more. I would love to get them to try soups, more pastas, obviously more vegetables (umm.. I mean any vegetables). Mostly, I want them to not fear trying new things. I don't care if they dislike things, I just want them to not have a fear of trying new foods. Give me your feedback!
