Tuesday, March 4, 2014

What's a Pop Tart?

"Mommy, What's a pop tart?"
Julie was curious because one of her best friends had proclaimed these frosted pastries as her breakfast of choice.

Call my kids sheltered, but pop tarts aren't the only treats that have never graced our pantry shelves.
Twinkies. Fritos. Cheetos. Little Debbie Cakes. Nutter Butters.
They have no clue.

That's not to say our kids are perfect eaters. Johnny would live on Skittles if we let him, and Julie could easily devour an entire medium pizza.

But, for the most part, they are probably the some of the healthiest eating kids we know.

Their favorite vegetables (not kidding) are artichokes and edamame. Johnny's teacher thought it was a joke when he brought a little container of edamame to school on vegetable day. The other night the kids were slurping mussels. And Julie will literally eat anything....from sushi and salmon to kale and quinoa.

We've undoubtedly made mistakes with our kids, but feeding them isn't one of them.
I know there's this whole movement for parents to not force their kids to eat. There are so many parents who cater to their kids by cooking them exactly whey want for dinner every night. To Scott and I that's absolutely absurd. Since the kids were small, they were expected to eat whatever was served for dinner....whether it was tilapia and broccoli or chicken and mashed potatoes. It really made no difference whether they liked the particular meal or whether it was kid-friendly. If they didn't eat it, tough.

And, don't think for a second that it was always easy. While Julie rarely gave us trouble when it came to eating (except for a phase where she had to plug her nose to drink milk), Johnny was a tough one. He's my little sweet tooth. Give him cake or cookies, and he'll eat until he pukes. Put a brussel sprout on his plate and he will literally puke.  Seriously. He did that just last month.

Johnny was so stubborn when it came to eating that he would just not eat. He didn't care. He would go to bed without eating a bite.

Don't worry too much about him though. He came around. And this is the same guy who gorges himself on halibut and asks for seconds on snap peas.

I really think most kids will eventually turn around. It's parents who create picky
eaters. Who buys the mac n' cheese and chicken nuggets? Not the 2 year-old? Who cooks hot dogs every night? Not the preschooler.

So, stick to your guns parents! They won't starve. I promise.

Oh, and an occasional treat also won't hurt.

4 comments:

  1. LOVE THIS!!!! Every.single.word. xxoo

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  2. YOU are living it Lindsey! I just think parents are so scared their kids will go hungry or they don't want to make them upset. But, then they end up feeding them crap!

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    1. I'm still taking it one day at a time:) When I feel like I am stinking at it, I think back to where we were a year ago and it makes me feel really good about the progress! Thanks Kristy!!! xoxo

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  3. I know. It's crazy how far you've come. You are an expert now and a way better cook than I'll ever be! Everyone can make progress. Small steps!

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