Do you separate meals for your kids?
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I thought that too, then I had kids. It's harder than it looks.0
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I found this topic interesting. As a child who was not allowed to get up from the table until my plate was clean, I enjoyed all the different responses. I do not think the OP was being as critical as some thought. I truly feel that the clean plate enforcement added to my weight problem it also taught me to ignore being full. I am now trying to learn to listen to my full not full, and true hunger. I'm getting better at it.
I do, however, believe we should expose our children to new foods. One taste without drama. In other words my children where required to taste everything that was prepared. No, "ewwwwwws" or "gross" they were allowed to cover it up. My youngest put thousand island dressing on everything except salad LOL. They were not allowed to get other things at meal time and they were required to wait for at least an hour after meal time before they got a "snack".
Be patient, teen years solve the eating other things issue. One amusing meal instance ... my oldest was a teenager and my youngest was still in the picky stage. At dinner my youngest had one sprig of asparagus on his plate and he had just coated it in thousand island dressing. My oldest was in the process of scraping everything that was left on the table on to his plate. As he picked up the asparagus my youngest asked him "Do you like that?!" To which my oldest replied "No, but I'm starving!" Teenagers are bottomless pits, especially boys.0 -
The only time I make something different for my kids is when I'm making something spicy, which they can't handle, or certain soups that they can't stand. Everything else, they eat what I make, or they don't eat.0
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Yeah, sometimes. Pretty presumptuous to assume it's just crap food though OP...just because it's different than what mom and I are eating doesn't necessarily mean it's **** for food or something.
For one thing, there are certain spicy dishes that frequent our table...these foods are traditional to our area and we love them. Our 18 m.o. and 4 y.o. will likely love them someday....but at the moment, the heat makes them want to rip their tongues out of their mouths. So while we're eating a nice big bowl of green chile stew, they're maybe having some spaghetti and marinara with some grilled chicken or something.
Then we have our funky schedule. My wife and I switch off nights at the gym so when one of us is at the gym the other is at home getting the kids dinner. My youngest is in bed before she or I get home from the gym and my 4 y.o. is usually well on his way. So they eat earlier and we eat when the kids go to bed...so on those days we generally eat different foods for dinner.
We try to have "dinner party" (what my 4 y.o. calls it) on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. If we're doing a roast chicken or something...or like tonight, we're having a London Broil we all have the same thing...but again, sometimes we are having food that either my kids just won't eat or it is just not suitable food for their age.
My kids eat pretty good for the most part...not so into veg, but plenty of fruit and what not...but yeah...sometimes they have chicken nuggets too...and hotdogs, etc. They don't live off this stuff but yeah, they eat it and they like it and I don't see it as such a big deal...but it's always nice to get lectured by a non-parent about parenting. It's about as classic as it gets.
My 2yr old eats a little bit of spice- a while back, I made a chili with chipotle peppers, and she loved it! Crazy kid had tears running down her face from the heat as she was licking the bowl! But, I made a chickpea curry earlier this week, and it was too much for her, so we gave her some greek yogurt and granola. I don't think there are hard and fast rules... but I do know what the OP is talking about- I have a good friend who fits the bill. She's a foodie, but her husband is picky, and her 5yr old pretty much lives off sandwiches, pizza, hot dogs, mac n cheese, nutella and fries. And of course, anything snacky. She somewhat kids herself into thinking it's not too bad, because the snacks are "healthy" things like organic chocolate covered granola bars. They spent the night recently, and we had ordered in- me, my husband and our friend ordered chinese and some sushi; her husband ordered wings. Her son ate chocolate covered granola bars and organic cheese bunny crackers. My kid ate some sushi (veggie rolls, not real sushi yet!) and chicken teriyaki.0 -
Hi
I am a teacher (grade one) - no kids.
I am curious:
How many of you that have kids, create separate meals for you/your partner and then something different for your kids?
Some of my friends might say...." my kids won't eat what I prepare for dinner, and the only thing they'll eat is chicken nuggets and french fries...so that's what I give them."
I am under the philosophy of what I grew up with...this is what the family is eating tonight...period.
If it's 'crappy' food for you, then why the heck are parents continually feeding their precious family these things?? I don't get it... Who's is in charge here?? Kids will eat...eventually!
Heck no! If it is asparagus and Brussels sprouts day, then they eat asparagus and Brussels sprouts. My kids weren't raised on the Standard American Diet so that made a huge difference in their eating habits.0 -
My husband, son and I eat the same meal, with certain modifications made for me (preserve that calorie deficit) and my son (in a growth spurt...gimme fuel!). My son has Sensory Processing Disorder, which manifests itself at mealtime as a heightened sensitivity to spices, so my husband and I add heat at the table (good ol' Tabasco, Cholula, etc.) My son will demolish almost any fruit or vegetable you put before him, but getting him to eat meat is sometimes a challenge. We make sure his portions are kid-sized, and he tries everything on his plate, but we don't insist on a clean plate.
My son is currently a first grader.0 -
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Yes and No.
I only cook one meal, but I'll sometimes cook it two ways.....if we're having teriyaki chicken that I know my kids won't eat, I'll leave some chicken out and cook it with just salt and pepper. Actually, that's pretty much true for all meats. My younger two do not like sauces, and I have no issue cooking their meat plain for them.
The only time I cook the kids a totally different meal is if we're having stew, they really hate it. On stew night I cook them something first and we eat later. But I refuse to make them nuggets just because they demand it. Ever.0 -
Never have and never would - meal planning is pretty simple in my house - I cook like my mother - mostly meat and potato meals with a side of veg or salad - also a lot of homemade stews and soups and usually once a week pasta - funny thing my son will eat salad plain with no dressing (I always have dressing on my salad) He doesn't like salads with a mayo based dressing like potato salads or pasta salads he would eat the protein and opt to have some other veggie. He was a healthier eater than I was just due to his own preferences.
He will eat or at least try anything and takes what he likes and leaves the rest.0 -
Never have and never will cook separate meals for the kids.0
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I am under the philosophy of what I grew up with...this is what the family is eating tonight...period.
This is my philosophy as well, and reading 'French Kids Eat Everything' pretty much cemented it for me. If a whole country of wee ones can eat whatever is set before them without fanfare, so can children of other countries.
Not read the book, but have au paired for a french family...nope.0 -
I don't cook specific separate meals, but my 13yo daughter hates mushrooms...so I'll scoop her out a serving of veggies before adding the mushrooms to the pan. She also doesn't like cooked broccoli, so I take out a serving raw and then cook ours. Really, accommodating her few requests doesn't take much time on my part, and I am not into forcing people to eat things they don't like, she's close to being an adult. I'd be pretty pissed if the waiter stood next to my table and told me to drink this glass of milk they served me. She's a teenager, and in sports, so she pretty much shovels down whatever I make for dinner even if she is "meh" about it. She has surprised me on more than one occasion with the things she likes...like roasted napa cabbage.
We have a try a bite rule. My daughter was a pretty picky eater through the elementary school ages, but I found what helped was having her cook with me. I know some parents don't have the time to do that, I was lucky in that regard. The things she cooked with me she was much more willing to eat, or at least try.
After she turned 6 we had the sandwich agreement. I would make whatever I was making for dinner. If she felt she didn't want that, she could make herself a turkey sandwich and join us at the table. She only did it twice.0 -
Well my oldest who is 3.5 has been picky since she hit a year old , or as long as I can remember and for awhile it was affecting her weight , so the doctor said give her whatever she will eat so I did , she is doing well I don't care to much if she eats fries, nuggets pizza really , she also eats certain fruits and does not like sauce of any kind no dipping ever which is great since ketchup mayo so on isn't the best , anyways , my youngest turning 2 tommorow eats anything not nailed down her weight is fine she is slender does not seem to make any difference in her size , two completely different kids lol anyways yes I make different meals if I ate what my husband and daughters did I weigh like 200 lbs , my husband is 13 inches taller than me and weighs much more than me , Im 4ft 10 so his calories needs are much higher than mine , in fact most days he eats 3,500 calories or so , he works 3rd 12 hr shifts attends college so he needs to keep it up otherwise he loses weight , I say do what works for your family , I know one day my oldest may not be so picky but it will be on her terms not mine I'm not going to force my children to eat something if they do not want to .0
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Hell no! I spend a lot of time cooking dinners, if they don't want to eat it they can go to bed hungry. If they were really starving, they would eat it.0
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I am under the philosophy of what I grew up with...this is what the family is eating tonight...period.
Love it...I so agree:)) Kids need some culinary exposure - maybe they'll like it, maybe they won't, but at least they tried it:)
This is my philosophy as well, and reading 'French Kids Eat Everything' pretty much cemented it for me. If a whole country of wee ones can eat whatever is set before them without fanfare, so can children of other countries.0 -
Myself my youngest child has peanut fish allergies so the only time he has separate foods is when I make seafood other than that he eats the same foods as everyone else does0
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I don't have kids, but when I was a kid, me and my siblings ate everything my mom and dad cooked for us. My sister had a weird "I don't like chicken on the bone" phase... but that was about it.
Oh, and when my brother started working part time at age 13-14 he started buying McDonalds for himself allllll the time.
But when we were really little kids, we definitely just ate what our parents gave us, which was healthy "adult" food like grilled salmon and asparagus & lentils and rice etc...0 -
I think it's pretty funny when someone who doesn't have kids judges us that do and our parenting techniques.
I have 4 kids. Most of the time I make something for dinner we all will enjoy. However, now that I am watching my calories, I usually make some type of low calorie dish for me and then something else for my husband and kids. Usually one or two kids will cry and whine that they don't like what we're having and the fight starts in. It's miserable, usually end up in them in the corner crying and me stressed out. If I am making something that I know darn well my child refused to eat, sure sometimes I give in and give them chicken nuggets or a hot dog. Not always, but when I do, people without kids shouldn't be there to judge!0 -
This is what I can say to someone who has not had children, and I say this with NO snarkiness: You just DON'T know what it is like to have children, until you have them. It's good to have high standards, but don't judge other parents.Hi
I am a teacher (grade one) - no kids.
I am curious:
How many of you that have kids, create separate meals for you/your partner and then something different for your kids?
Some of my friends might say...." my kids won't eat what I prepare for dinner, and the only thing they'll eat is chicken nuggets and french fries...so that's what I give them."
I am under the philosophy of what I grew up with...this is what the family is eating tonight...period.
If it's 'crappy' food for you, then why the heck are parents continually feeding their precious family these things?? I don't get it... Who's is in charge here?? Kids will eat...eventually!
Having said that, I really try to have us all eat the same things. I do accommodate varied tastes a little, but basic food is acceptable to everyone (which is what I usually fix). We have at LEAST one meal together. Often 2 or 3.
Feeding a family is an ART FORM. You'll have to develop your own style, and work through your own dynamics and challenges in your own family.....when you have one.0 -
When I grew up, my sisters and I ate whatmy mother cooked. If we didn't like it, she allowed us to make ourselves a sandwich or something simple. It worked for us, so I've employed this strategy with my own children. I have 2 picky eaters and 2 everything eaters. With my oldest, it isn't just a matter of him not liking certain things. A lot of things will actually have him throwing up when he tries to swallow it. Call me a pushover if you want, but I do make sure they eat at least one good meal a day.0
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I am guilty of this. My disclaimer is that, like some of the other posters here, my son has Autism, and texture can be a problem for him.0
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My son has some food allergies so I occasionally make him something different. I try to adapt recipes so I can take out a portion forhim prior to adding the ingrediants he is allergic to.. I do the best I can to have him eat what everyone else eats0
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I didn't make separate meals for my kids when they were younger. They ate what I ate. I have a friend at work who might make four different variations of a meal or something altogether different for her children or husband. I don't judge her. She likes to, she's proud if herself, and really, in the big scheme of things the only way these children will be effected is by remembering what an awesome mom they had:)0
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Nope!
My kids are ages 2 & 5. I will say that I try to cook things that everyone in my house enjoys, but I do not cater to any one person. I also give my kids days where they get to choose the menu - the only rule is that it must have healthy components. Rarely my older son totally hates something that I make. When this happens, he has to make his own food... and no, it's not too much for a five year old. He's quite capable of making himself a sandwich!
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My kids are 16 months and 2.5 so we probably haven't gotten to the fussy stage yet... But, they both just eat what we eat for dinner.
We eat as a family as much as possible and we try to eat as well as possible. If someone doesn't like something then they don't have to eat it, no big deal. I do ask that my 2.5 year old tries at least everything on her plate but honestly she is a garbage guts and will eat everything. The only thing she is not too keen on is celery. The 16 month old has been eating the same meals as us since before 12 months, sometimes I used to have to modify things a little bit like he prefers to eat tomatoes whole instead of cut up but I am fine with that at this stage.
Although they both love veggies anyway (seriously my two year old begs for frozen peas as a treat?!) they are both even more excited by them now that we have been growing a lot of our own and letting them help with the watering and harvesting etc. I don't know that many toddlers that will pick raw broccoli and cauliflower out of the garden to nibble on.0 -
WE HAVE THE ONE BITE RULE. YOU HAVE TO TRY AT LEAST ONE BITE OF EVERYTHING. iF YOU TRUELY DONT LIKE IT YOU DON'T HAVE TO EAT IT. BUT I TRY TO KEEP IN MIND WHAT THEY LIKE AND SERVE A VARIETY OF FOODS. EVEN IF THEY KNOW THEY DONT LIKE IT THEY STILL HAVE TO HAVE ONE BITE. OVER TIME THEY GET USED TO CERTAIN FOODS AND RESPOND BETTER BECAUSE THEY KNOW WHAT TO EXPECT.
IF I WANT TO TRY SOMETHING NEW OR VERY EXPENSIVE OR GROWN UP FOR MY HUSBAND AND I, I WILL LET THEM HAVE SOMETHING DIFFERENT BUT THAT IS A SPECIAL OCCASSION.
(SORRY ABOUT CAPS LOCK, AT WORK)0 -
Yeah, if I'm making something with mince for everyone else I make myself something different, or if I'm making something spicy I'll make the kids something different.0
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I do.0
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I sometimes do and sometimes don't, it all depends on what we are having. I typically like to have a salad or green beans/asparagus/brocolli with lean meat for dinner, I have a 1 year old and a 2 year old and I don't expect them to enjoy the same things that I do. Sometimes I will make them homemade chicken fingers rather than plain baked chicken, or homemade yam or potato fries rather than a baked sweet potato which makes my son gag. My youngest will eat anything, my oldest has texture issues which he has had since he started eating, I'm not going to force him to eat something he can't get down his throat. I also enjoy making them fun things like cauliflower pizza bites, or sammies cut into different shapes.
I request that my kids try new things, at least a few bites and if it doesn't go well, they'll get a healthy snack later to make sure they've eaten enough.
I pick my battles with my kids, I don't mind doing it this way, in fact I enjoy making fun kid food. Right now my diet is plain and kind of boring, hell, i turn my own nose down on it sometimes. But frankly, it doesn't bother me, so it really shouldn't bother anyone else.0
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