Those with kids, how to keep from eating their leftovers?

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  • Scarlett_S
    Scarlett_S Posts: 467 Member
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    Toss it! It took me forever to get past the "clean your plate" and "waste not, want not" lessons of my youth, but truthfully, that stuff is better in the garbage than in my body. THROW IT OUT.
  • bonkers1224
    bonkers1224 Posts: 80 Member
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    Oh man I've done that many times and I had twins so double picking at both plates:) then the pepper shaker was my new tool to destroy those leftovers. Soap works also, I know cause I had a lick of some funky thing with soap on! Made me think twice about that choice!!
  • LosingMyMarbles
    LosingMyMarbles Posts: 168 Member
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    I don't see where the original poster said she was feeding her kids junk? Just that they aren't eating it all and she doesn't want it to go to waste... doesn't mean it's unhealthy...

    Whatever my 3 1/2 yr old does not eat goes to the chickens. They eat anything and everything.
  • MaraDiaz
    MaraDiaz Posts: 4,604 Member
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    you can either eat it and it can go into the toilet (eventually) and your hips or you can just put it in the trash. It is just as wasteful to eat something you don't need than it is to throw it away. It's not like you can really give it to a starving child, believe I wish we could. Toss it and let it go, it really is okay (and learn to make less - that's what I had to do, it's taken four years to learn how to make less for less waste)

    Great thinking. I'm going to add this to my list of mottos, right after the one that goes, "Don't reward yourself with food, you are not a dog." I am going to add, "You are not a human garbage disposal."
  • bonkers1224
    bonkers1224 Posts: 80 Member
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    Toss it! It took me forever to get past the "clean your plate" and "waste not, want not" lessons of my youth, but truthfully, that stuff is better in the garbage than in my body. THROW IT OUT.
  • LosingMyMarbles
    LosingMyMarbles Posts: 168 Member
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    A fun trick to get young kids to eat healthier foods is to serve colorful fruits and veggies in plastic ice cube trays. Fill the cups the trays with whole grain crackers, fresh cut fruits and veggies and bite sized pieces of lean meat.

    When they are a bit older, graduate to muffin tins. Google it, there are TONS of healthy ideas out there for muffin tin meals!
  • Alex_is_Hawks
    Alex_is_Hawks Posts: 3,499 Member
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    I hope this doesn't sound super rude, because that is not my intent, but don't feed your kids junk. My husband and I at least did right by our children and only allow them to have cereal, cereal bars, cheese, yogurt, etc. We saved the super crappy junk food until after bedtime.. My three year old will clean his bowl every single time I give him a salad. Also, portion sizes are key with little ones, try to start small and increase if they eat all of it. At least then you aren't wasting much.

    OP never said she fed them junk.

    she said "the food I feed them doesn't keep well, so I either eat it or throw it out. I feel bad throwing it out" at NO point did she say the food was not good for the children or junk.

    That was a bit of a rude assumption.

    OP - if it's not food for you, throw it out. It was for them, they did the best they could. The rest, if it won't keep, is best meant for the trashcan. If they are consistently eating much less than you are feeding them, then start making smaller portions.
  • CynthiaCollin
    CynthiaCollin Posts: 406 Member
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    Just don't. Just step away from the leftovers!

    I give the kids smaller portions. If they ask for more they get some. Whatever is not eaten is frozen for a meal at a later date....no waste....no extra calories and saving time making dinner at a later date.
  • MyOwnSunshine
    MyOwnSunshine Posts: 1,312 Member
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    You can waste it in the trash can, or you can waste it by consuming more than your energy requirements and carry it around in the fat cells on your *kitten* forever. Personally, I'd rather throw it in the trash.
  • Lifetimegoals
    Lifetimegoals Posts: 29 Member
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    Paula I love that! I've never thought of it that way.

    It's so hard for me to throw out food. But I think "do I want this?" Or "is it worth the calories?" If the answer is no it is tossed.

    :) Glad you liked it! :) It really works for me.

    I also ask myself "is it worth the calories?" (most of the time), lol
  • Jimaudit
    Jimaudit Posts: 275
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    We put a lunch container on the table and pack her lunch for the next day at daycare as soon as she finishes. This way it goes in the fridge and we are not tempted.

    But honestly my 3.5yo eats everything we do....fish, salad, chicken, turkey and fish tacos, whatever we make.
  • darisey
    darisey Posts: 228 Member
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    I can't afford to throw food away. I throw leftovers into a casserole, soup, omelets, stir fry. I guess it depends on what you are feeding them.
  • barbaramitchell101
    barbaramitchell101 Posts: 360 Member
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    Well I grew up with the mother's orders..."Clean your plate"...so when I had my kids, it was the same....if they didn't finish, I ate it...always...now I weigh a ton...when I make my own plate, I usually fill it up, and it is hard NOT to eat it all...kids are grown, so that is no longer an issue, but it is still difficult to NOT clean my plate....so now, at least I don't get seconds, and try not to fill it up as high...but I still CLEAN MY PLATE...

    so do the best you can...from experience, it is best to just throw it out.....
  • AnnaMarieDinVa
    AnnaMarieDinVa Posts: 162 Member
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    Get a dog. They'll eat anything.
    Any vet will tell you that "people food" is not good for a dog. Just throw their leftovers away. As others have said, it's not any more wasteful in you (and on your hips) than in the trashcan. One thing that always motivates me is something I learned a long time ago from Weight Watchers, "your body is not a trashcan, so don't put trash in it." For some reason, that was "permission" I needed to throw away food. Hope that helps. :)
  • anifani4
    anifani4 Posts: 457 Member
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    If your kids don't want the food you don't force them to eat it.

    If YOU don't want the food, don't force yourself to eat it.

    You deserve the same parenting as your children. Only your parenting comes from inside your head. Change the message to give yourself.

    OR this: By the power vested in me for having reached the advanced age of (almost) 70, and having raised 3 children, I hereby give you permission to throw away food that you and your kids do not want.
  • hippietofugirl
    hippietofugirl Posts: 430
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    Get a dog. They'll eat anything.
    Any vet will tell you that "people food" is not good for a dog. Just throw their leftovers away. As others have said, it's not any more wasteful in you (and on your hips) than in the trashcan. One thing that always motivates me is something I learned a long time ago from Weight Watchers, "your body is not a trashcan, so don't put trash in it." For some reason, that was "permission" I needed to throw away food. Hope that helps. :)

    Lol...I'm a vet tech and from experience can tell you feeding left overs to your dog is a no-no. It can cause obesity, pancreatitis, diabetes, allergic reactions, deficiencies, heart disease...etc. All too common
  • hdlb
    hdlb Posts: 333 Member
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    The food our kids don't eat, goes in the garbage. Once in awhile my husband will eat the kids leftovers, but we usually just toss it. We always start by dishing them out small portions, so that even if they eat nothing we're not throwing much out. The untouched leftovers that weren't dished out to anyone can go in the fridge if no one wants them. I also don't feed my kids anything that I wouldn't feed myself, so its not a big deal if I do pick off the kids plates. Eating a few bites of their grilled chicken and salad really isn't a huge deal calorie wise.
  • msafunk
    msafunk Posts: 163 Member
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    I'm going to echo the people who say that eating it yourself is wasteful also. You're either throwing it into the trash, or throwing it into your body fat. One is more beneficial to your personal health.
  • tajmel
    tajmel Posts: 401 Member
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    First, don't feel so bad about throwing small amounts of food out - in fact, I encourage people who feel very guilty about this to try deliberately leaving a bite behind at every meal, just to break this fear.

    Second, serve kids very small portions. We don't force our kids to eat everything either. I don't think it's healthy. They are, however, banned from having anything extra until the next meal if they don't finish.

    Feed your children well. If you're deliberately feeding them unhealthy "kid food" (I have no idea if this is the case, to be clear), don't. Basically, if you feel uncomfortable eating their food while on your diet, they shouldn't be eating it. Kids will learn to appreciate any taste if it's part of the food they come up on. My kids eat salad, curry, sushi... basically anything.
  • suegmune
    suegmune Posts: 81
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    Toss it...kids are going to be kids. I've seen my niece down a ton of pancakes at age 5 in one meal and the next day refuse to eat anything but something the size of a Susan b Anthony dollar coin. They are either hungry or not hungry. At that point, no unhealthy snacks if they refuse to eat. The reality is kids are testing foods at this point and are wishy washy about stuff. One day, they only eat hot dogs...the next....they loved this dish...the next day...they hate it....

    Monica

    P.S. My sister stopped doing that because she discovered it's an easy way to spread viruses among family members...that unseen disease that suddenly pops up.

    Agreed on both counts!!! My kids can eat like HORSES one day, and nothing the next. I let them do what they choose, and do not force them to eat things. And, dessert only comes once in a while, and only people who finish their good stuff and/or all their food get dessert. I'm pretty happy how well they eat most days, and the girls love their veggies, and the boy loves his protein. :)

    And, as far as eating leftovers DON'T. We have been SO SICK because of this. Or sharing drinks or anything. I'm still sick after about 6 weeks, I'm sure from someone sharing even something like a straw or munching on a carrot left on someones' plate.

    Oh, and our dog doesn't get the leftovers (who wants a farting dog? lol).

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