Eat it or starve? WWYD?

Its eat or starve here...No exceptions-thankfully I have pretty good eaters...Connor will throw some tabasco sauce on almost anything and think its good-Zak will literally eat ANYTHING. Landen is a wee bit picky because we raised him completly organic and vegan for the first two years of his life, so the introduction of meat was hard for him-but he is doing well. Some stuff he refuses to eat but I know before hand he will and compensate with a side dish he likes.
 
Wow!! I am loving reading what you all have to say about this!! It's so hard to have picky little eaters, that's for sure!!
 
I have 2 pretty good eaters, and 1 ok eater and one seriously picky eater (and a baby LOL) I cook one meal (I try to make sure that everyone like some part of it) but if they don't like it, I tell them they have to "x" amounts of bites. Usually then they'll finish up their required bites without complaining too much and are done. That way I at least know they've had something.

My seriously picky girl will not eat anything potatoes except fries. She gags on any other kind. I think it's textural. But she likes rice, cous cous and stuffing and those are easy things to make to go along with a meal if we're having potatoes.
 
I just have to add that my mother forced me to eat tater tots when I was little...despite my telling her that I didn't like them...and I threw up all over the place. She didn't force the issue much after that. :)

And on the extreme side of crazy mothering...it drove me nuts when my kids were smaller and my inlaws would try to get them to eat new foods by saying, "look, grandma and aunt Dee are eating it"...how much closer can you get to wanting kids to cave in to peer pressure?! Please don't teach my kids to try something just because everybody else is doing it!
 
no 2 meals here either...especially with DH and I both working full time and having kids that range from 15-1 yr:p now if they are old enough and don;t want to eat then they have the choice of fixing it themselves or starve...luckily my 2 little ones {who can't fend for themselves} will eat just about ANYTHING!!!!! little DD and DS even like plain cuccumbers! we had sloppy joes tonight and only a couple of them ate, so they won;t get anything else until they finish their sloppy joes...'cause I'm mean like that!!!
 
We don't have issues so much with the actual eating as the SITTING to eat a meal. My three year old is very active, and getting her to sit still long enough to put a reasonable number of bites in her mouth is a challenge most of the time. Any suggestions for that???
 
Robin, my DD is like that too...she eats slowly and wants to move around (and also is picky, lmao) and talks incessantly. DH and I just stay on top of her and are always tell her to sit down and eat...or if she's talking or playing instead of eating, it's just eat, lol. It does get better as time progresses, as long as you stay on top of it!
 
We have a "two-bite" rule in our house. Basically, the boys must try two bites of the main dish (not necessarily the sides) every night. If they decide they don't like it, they're allowed to have either chicken nuggets (homemade, not storebought), a sandwich, or nothing. Most nights, JP eats the main meal. Devin rarely does, but he's got some major sensory issues with food. He's quite articulate about what he thinks of foods too. I made mac & cheese from scratch last week, and when he tried it, he said, "Mommy, I like how this tastes, it's very yummy. It feels yucky to my mouth though. May I have a sandwich, please?" So, now I know the flavor he likes...I just need to work on texture. :thumbup:
 
I don't eat a lot of things. My mom always knew in advance what I didn't like, so she would make me a portion while cooking with the stuff I don't like left out (like the meat). Simple and she wasn't cooking 2 meals. For me, she's jealous, thus far, my child eats everything.
 
It's usually eat this or nothing, but they have to sit there the whole meal and they usually do end up eating because its more of an issue of wanting to go play and not take time to eat. I have been known to make them pancakes or something I know they love when were having something they don't like. WHen they were smaller they didn't eat taco's so i always made them pancakes when we had those. Also if they don't eat there supper and do sit at the table until supper is over i usually let them have a bowl of cereal before bed because I would hate for them to go to bed hungry.
 
One meal, they eat or don't eat up to them! I do allow them fruit or carrot sticks before bed if they are hungry though!
 
cheltzey said:
I don't want them to connect eating a ton with getting a reward of more food.
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really great point! i really want to give my kiddos good eating habits too. i try to time their snacks out according to meals as often as possible and i always give them an amount i know they can finish easily without having to say, "mom...i'm full"! i think often parents give the kids too much to eat and it looks soooo overwhelming. also letting the kids plate up their own food in a fun and differnet way can help. ie. let them put their side dishes in little random bowls, i am a firm believer that if the child thinks it was his/her idea they are almost always open to it!
 
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It's eat or starve here and you have to take a bite of everything on your plate (even if we all know you hate peas. research has proved that if you eat a food often enough, even a small amount, you get over hating it).

However, I do plan my meals with their likes & dislikes in mind. The boys are not wild about grilled steak, so if we have that one night, the next night I'll make spinach & tomato pizza, which they love. I also try to have at least one thing on the plate everynight that will eat, even if it's just a side of rice or pasta.

DH insists on them taking the one bite of everything before they leave the table. He'll sit there reading a book until bedtime waiting for them to eat that bite. No talking allowed. Fortunately those occasions are few and far between & usually revolve around new foods like braised endive.
 
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