I don't have kids but I remember when I was younger, it was either eat what's on your plate or don't eat at all. My sister was super picky, but she ended up liking a wide range of foods because she would leave the table intent on not eating the "yucky" stuff, only to return because she was hungry. Now she loves almost anything. There's also a really cute book called Eat Like a Dinosaur that teaches kids about paleo and includes fun recipes for them.

My husband is skeptical about the whole paleo thing, so I use that same childhood rule: if you don't wanna eat what I cook, cook it yourself. Hubs is a horrible cook so usually he just eats it. What guy doesn't like meat lol? My husband is a big fast food eater... Or actually I should say WAS. The more he eats paleo, the less he eats crap. He still eats the occasional chip or pretzel, but they're actually going stale in the pantry because he's eating them less and less. You might find the same thing happening -- the more your family eats paleo, the less they'll want junk

(disclaimer - I don't have kids).
But I was one once
I have friends that always cook 2 dinners.

"Oh, he only likes mac-n-cheese". Wow, from a nutritional standpoint - you are setting that child up for massive failure.

We were also raised, this is what is for dinner. eat or don't eat.

I am coming across more people that "don't eat meat". its a shame that all the bad info about meat causes people to really think they don't like the taste.
Any processed meat (sticks, cubes, nuggets) isn't really meat anyway - it is extra parts from the animal after the meat has been taken off. That creeps me out more than eating meat.

A good ground beef is ultimately versatile. Good for meatloaf, burgers, great with eggs, meatballs, a garnish .

One thing to keep in mind is that children's protein requirements are different from ours. They do need lots of good fats to foster brain development, but they don't always need a lot of protein. I don't know a single kid who hasn't gone through an anti-meat phase -- it's just normal, because at certain stages children just don't need that much protein. But if you keep offering it, they'll come around when their bodies start needing it again. Just ask my steak-loving daughter, who barely ate any meat for over 2 years. She just didn't need it then, and now she does.

If you're already making the chicken nuggets and such at home, try what I suggested earlier to have them help you make them. Put the chunks in a bag and have them shake the seasoning and crumbs onto them. Do it several times, and then try making the nuggets without the bread crumbs, but with all the other ingredients. Sometimes kids get this thing in their head that if it looks different, it IS different, and so chicken without breading looks like a whole new food from breaded chicken chunks. If they can see that process of putting the unbreaded chicken into the bag, and then eventually you take the bread crumbs out of the equation, maybe they'll be more likely to give it a chance.

And I think your idea of a two-bite rule for the protein could be good. It certainly couldn't hurt.

I don't think it's a *bad* thing to let them have yogurt after trying everything at the table. There are lots worse things than yogurt! But if you're trying to get them to eat what you give them, and making sure they're eating enough protein, that might be something that I would scale back on if I were in your shoes. That's why we have the rule we have, about how you may have as much as you want of anything on the table, but nothing else. Because my kids (and I really think most kids) LIVE for snacks. Even healthy ones. Anything that can be construed as a "snack" like yogurt, fruit, etc. is what they want. So honestly, I let them have snacks during the day when they're hungry, but dinnertime through bedtime the only options are what we had on the dinner table (with occasional exceptions, of course). I never force my children to go to bed hungry. I will let them eat as much as they want to in the evening. But if it's something that I know is palatable (like chicken breast) and they're refusing to eat it, I don't cave. It's easy to see when a child truly hates a food and when he just doesn't want to eat it. So if it's the latter, I just calmly remind them that we have lots of food at the table, and they can have some of that. My daughter never goes to bed hungry, because she'll just go eat what's there. My son has on rare occasion, but he also has a major stubborn streak. And I know that he's not going to starve to death just because he refused to eat one meal.

My fiance and I use the "If you don't eat what I cook, you don't eat" policy.

Lucky for me he's pretty easy going. He even plans on trying liver with me!

Try paleoparents.com for recipes and ideas. They have some amazing recipes and their recipes in their book are really good.

First of all, I'm so envious of you for going paleo while your kids are still so young! And I think your chicken nuggets sound good!

My personal opinion is not to use food (ANY FOOD or drink, for that matter) as a reward or punishment for anything. Even if it's healthy. And conversely, not to use any other kind of incentive or punishment for eating what you're served.

I couldn't agree more! My daughter is 2 and not always thrilled when she doesn't get her way, but it is always eat what I give you or don't eat. We praise her for trying new things but don't threaten or reward. We especially don't have the clean your plate rule! If you are full, don't eat it!

That being said, I have quite a few kid friendly recipes that I'd be happy to share more like transition foods! They look and taste similar to popular kid food, but are paleo/primal friendly....
I also post lots of my food pictured and recipes on FB at: www.facebook.com/margie.ward1st

Feel free to add or message me