I need help from all of you

Rebirth08

Question to all: beside logging your foods everyday, do you all pre-plan your meals?

Another question: for those of you with children who you have to cook for, how do you plan healthy meals when your kiddos don't eat like you do? How do you make it work for your household and maintain your goals at the same time?

Another question? For those of you with school age children, how do you make sure they eat healthy when not at home (i.e., at school). Do you fix school lunches? If so, what do you prepare?

Any and all answers are appreciated!

LittleMissDover

1. Yes I pre-plan my meals, helps me shop and helps me stay on track.

2. My kids eat the same meals I do.

3. They have school dinners which have to follow certain nutritional standards (in the UK) and I don't stress when they're at friends/ on outings etc if they eat junk, the majority of their diet is healthy.

AmyRhubarb

The family eats what I eat - no special anything.

I pack my daughter's lunch for school - usually a sandwich (unless we have left over pizza or something similar that's easy to pack & eat), sliced apples, cherry tomatoes, pistachios, beef jerky, small dark chocolate candy bar or chocolate cookies, cheese stick, gold fish crackers or pretzel sticks, etc. She usually eats it all. Sometimes I still buy chips or other treats, and she enjoys those when she's got them, but does fine with all the healthier choices too.

MelisaBegins

Hi there!

1. Yes, I pre-plan EVERYTHING for the entire family (myself, hub and 6yo daughter). I plan our entire week on Sunday mornings, including all meals and snacks. I have our family calendar in front of me so I can factor in social activities, sports, etc (for example, if we need to eat dinner in a hurry on Tuesday, I'll make sure our Monday meal allows for left-overs). It takes a bit of time, but I've been doing it this way for years and it saves money and time in the long run (and it reduces the chance to make bad calorie choices because I am prepared!)

2. We started out when our daughter was a baby having her eat what we eat. That helps a lot. However, I will say that for dinners, I might not be doing rice or pasta with a meal, but the hub and daughter are, so we'll make a bit for them. It's easy to "supplement" their meals w/ different things, but we're all basically eating the same.

3. We pack her school lunch every day - she is allowed to buy lunch at school 1 day/week as a treat, but she must choose a veggie and fruit to go with it. For her packed lunches, she has a PB and honey sandwich on sprouted whole grain bread, sweet orange pepper slices, apple slices and either yogurt or milk. She gets a few dark chocolate covered almonds as her dessert.

Good luck!

Rebirth08

Hi there!

1. Yes, I pre-plan EVERYTHING for the entire family (myself, hub and 6yo daughter). I plan our entire week on Sunday mornings, including all meals and snacks. I have our family calendar in front of me so I can factor in social activities, sports, etc (for example, if we need to eat dinner in a hurry on Tuesday, I'll make sure our Monday meal allows for left-overs). It takes a bit of time, but I've been doing it this way for years and it saves money and time in the long run (and it reduces the chance to make bad calorie choices because I am prepared!)

2. We started out when our daughter was a baby having her eat what we eat. That helps a lot. However, I will say that for dinners, I might not be doing rice or pasta with a meal, but the hub and daughter are, so we'll make a bit for them. It's easy to "supplement" their meals w/ different things, but we're all basically eating the same.

3. We pack her school lunch every day - she is allowed to buy lunch at school 1 day/week as a treat, but she must choose a veggie and fruit to go with it. For her packed lunches, she has a PB and honey sandwich on sprouted whole grain bread, sweet orange pepper slices, apple slices and either yogurt or milk. She gets a few dark chocolate covered almonds as her dessert.

Good luck!

This helped a lot because I've been thinking the only way I am going to get a handle on consistency is to preplan on Sunday. Then I thought - OMG, I do NOT want to be doing this on a Sunday; but from your post, I see it is worth it. I find that my son and I will do so good for about, a week, then it's chaotic. We'll go for days or more w/o me cooking a homecooked meal b/c I am burned out b/c there was no planning. And after getting home from 9+ hrs of working a day, I am not in no mood to cook a meal - so here comes Pizza Hut/Wendy's etc.
So awesome and a blessing that you got your daughter to eat well from birth. That is where I wish I could have went back and re-done with my son. Health was no something I was at all focused on when he was a baby/toddler, and now at the age of 12, he eats healthier, but he does consume a LOT of sugar and over the last year, it has really begun to bother me because I know diabetes is real.
So, I am going to pre-plan. And I am going to have to be patient because I know he will sneak an ice cream or a bag of chips when I am not looking. So I will do my part at home and trust God with the things I cannot control :-). And also be understanding that it's going to take my son some time to eat like I do, or even healthier - see, i can eat some sliced red peppers for lunch or a spinach salad; and I've been eating raw veggies since I was his current age or younger. My son on the other hand, if he eats veggies, they must be cooked, and no can do from a packed school lunch b/c they will be cold. Anyway, I can go on and on with the scenarios. I think I have a better idea on what to do now - time to put it into action!
Thanks again!

Rebirth08

3. They have school dinners which have to follow certain nutritional standards (in the UK) and I don't stress when they're at friends/ on outings etc if they eat junk, the majority of their diet is healthy.

Good point - I do get concerned the way he may be eating at grandparents' house (especially them because they will feed him whatever his little heart desires and I find it nervewrecking to even try to argue with them). But I know if I am taking care of my house, then what he does there should not affect him greatly, I hope.