So what do the kids eat...?

If your making the decision to eat for your health, why would you not feed your children healthy as well??? My kids eat what I eat if I eat salad so do they, they may have some snacks that I dont eat but as for their main meals we all eat the same. Why make myself a healthy meal and then make them a meal thats less healthy???

Kids are so adaptable. Feed them what you eat. Kids don't have all the preconceived ideas about what is 'good food'. They get their cues from us. When my son was little I would serve him whatever we were having, and if it was something he wasn't sure of I would give him a 'No, Thank you' helping. Just a spoonful. A lot of times he would go back for more when he realized the scary looking food was actually pretty yummy!

My son has Aspergers and is a very picky eater. single ingredient foods, no veggies, very limited. His diet consists of chicken nuggets, fries, fish sticks, vienna sausages, flour tortillas with cheese melted in them, pepperoni pizza, plain hot dogs, chips, and grapes or oranges, or watermelon. And scrambled eggs, ham and cheese , or peanut butter sandwiches. All very easy to fix meals. So yeah, most of the time I fix him a separate dinner from my husband and I. But it has been this way for most of his life, so no difference there.

We do supplement his diet with multivitamins, and he is extremely healthy.

Definitely serve the same as you - the only exceptions I make to that rule is Order out night. I and my husband get a grilled chicken salad and they get pizza..if I make pasta I use Shirataki noodles for me and the kids get real pasta (sometimes whole wheat pasta) and sometimes I will give the kids bread / butter and I will not have any.
Other than that..98% of the time..what I make for me...they all get! I run an in home daycare...and usually make extra dinner for the kid's lunches..again the DC kids get the same as well.

There maybe some things on their plate they will not eat - but that is fine as long as they try it I am happy.

I am the shopper and the cook, being a single mom, so my kids eat what I make. My oldest is very picky so sometimes it is a struggle. I make things they like (shells & cheese, hot dogs, etc.) on occasion and sometimes I pick up pizza. However, they know that when we are eating at home, they eat what they get or go hungry. I always include a veggie they will eat so they have a better chance of getting some dinner. I also make common meals healthier. Sometimes they choose to eat and sometimes they revolt and go hungry, but most of the time they will eat... It's a habit, just like most things. Once they get used to the new routine, they will adjust fine... My youngest knows what is "good, healthy food" and what is not now and will tell you quick! hahaha Best of luck!

I was kind of picky when I was a kid, but there was never a separate meal made for me. That said, I grew up in a farm community where meals were a meat, a starch, usually potatoes, a green vegetable and a yellow vegetable, and often a green salad or coleslaw. I learned to cut all the fat from meat (yuck), and take what I wanted from the rest. With our kids, I have done something similar. Of course, you will tend to make what they'll eat easily, but it doesn't mean you can't eat together. It's easier to prepare simple food anyway, and most kids who are picky prefer that.

I'm doing well with the healthy eating. Went shopping yesteday loaded up with fresh veggies, beans, quinoa. prepped a bunch of healthy recipes and then thought... And now what are the kids going to eat?! (and my husband remarked-where are the chips?) Sure they'll eat fresh veggies and fruit, but probably not Quinoa or Niciose Salad. So how do you integrate the family eating with your own?
2 seperate meals? And keep buying those snacks?

I used to fix my kid a totally different dinner than we ate because she was so damn picky. But then, when my husband and I got really serious about our eating habits, I started making her eat what we ate. I slowly worked it in with her. Instead of processed chicken nuggets, I would use fresh chicken breast cut up and coated in panko then baked. I worked in fresh veggies too. She still eats a lot of jasmine rice, but now she eats the other stuff I make as well...even if she doesn't like it. She just knows that she has to eat it. It helps when I find something that she really likes, like zucchini, then I'll find different ways to fix it for her. Her favorite way is for me to make zucchini ribbons with my veggie peeler and then saute them with a little olive oil and feta. My kid actually loves quinoa as well...as long as I use either chicken or beef broth to cook it.

Mine didn't like it at first, but we had to explain a few things to her. She's 7 and in an advanced gymnastics class. She has two classes a week for a total of 6 hours. In order for her to build the muscle that she needs for class, she has to eat what we eat. That got through to her more than anything else. And if I do say so, her body has completely changed since changing her eating habits. She's total muscle now for which I am completely jealous.

are you a short-order cook?

if not, feed the kids what you eat...they might surprise you...

my kids love everything that I cook and its all healthy, wholesome food...

in the beginning I had a rule that they had to have three bites of anything that was new and they could make the decision from there but they also knew that dinner was on their plates and if they didn't eat it they wouldn't be getting anything else...

they might find something they don't really like but I still serve it and they still have to try it...sometimes it takes up to 10 times of serving up something before they like the taste...

who has time to make two meals? I know I don't!

Ha...we do the bites thing too. She'll ask how much she HAS to eat. If she likes it, she'll eat what's there and ask for more, if not, at least she ate some of it.

We all eat the same thing. There's no way I'm cooking two meals.

Sometimes there's just stuff I wouldn't want my kids eating. I like a lot of spicy food and I wouldn't make them eat with me if I'm cooking something with a lot of spices. If I can serve some up before I put the spices in, I'll generally do that.

I pick apart parts of my meals and make something for the kids. With a new diet my trainer wants me to try, I've taken the parts I know they will eat and made little meals on my shopping list specifically for the kids. So whereas I might be having a stew which they wouldn't like, they'd be having leftovers from the previous day of turkey burgers with dipping sauce and vegetables, etc.

My son has Aspergers and is a very picky eater. single ingredient foods, no veggies, very limited. His diet consists of chicken nuggets, fries, fish sticks, vienna sausages, flour tortillas with cheese melted in them, pepperoni pizza, plain hot dogs, chips, and grapes or oranges, or watermelon. And scrambled eggs, ham and cheese , or peanut butter sandwiches. All very easy to fix meals. So yeah, most of the time I fix him a separate dinner from my husband and I. But it has been this way for most of his life, so no difference there.

We do supplement his diet with multivitamins, and he is extremely healthy.

Just had to share ... my brother has Aspergers too and is also a picky eater. My mom would blend up vegetables into his mac & cheese, or sneak them in wherever she could. My absolute favorite - she told him banana's were just white hot dogs! He loved them after that

Why would you choose healthy food for yourself and then feed your kids something different? How many people are here because of poor eating habits they developed as children? Feed your kids healthy, nutritious food and give them the gift of a lifetime of health.

Generally, they eat the same thing that we eat. Last night we had chicken and vegetables. My DD (9) ate chicken and carrots. My DS ate chicken but wouldn't eat the vegetables, so he had some yogurt with his chicken.

We do make some allowances for things that they don't like (and we do the same for us). Last night, I didn't eat the vegetables that everyone else had. I had a sweet potato instead. The kids don't like my husband's spicy tomato sauce because it's too spicy for them, so they get plain marinara sauce. We generally ask them to at least try something new before they stop, but I'm not going to force them to eat. They can always have a peanut butter sandwich if they don't want to eat dinner (natural peanut butter and whole grain bread).

My son has Aspergers and is a very picky eater. single ingredient foods, no veggies, very limited. His diet consists of chicken nuggets, fries, fish sticks, vienna sausages, flour tortillas with cheese melted in them, pepperoni pizza, plain hot dogs, chips, and grapes or oranges, or watermelon. And scrambled eggs, ham and cheese , or peanut butter sandwiches. All very easy to fix meals. So yeah, most of the time I fix him a separate dinner from my husband and I. But it has been this way for most of his life, so no difference there.

We do supplement his diet with multivitamins, and he is extremely healthy.

My son has Autism as well and his diet consists of these things as well.

Why would your kids not eat quinoa? Do they eat rice? It's somewhat similar.. If they don't like they name you can at least tell them it's like rice or noodles.. What kid doesn't eat noodles.. Also, it's better for their health if they are starting to eat healthy now rather than when they hit their 20's or 30's.

Anyway, when I was growing up, if you didn't eat what was made for dinner you didn't eat. Who has time to cook separate meals? When I have kids, they will eat what is made. And for parents who say "that's what you say now" I know it works because it worked for my parents with three kids.