This morning, I was present at a very interesting MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) meeting and I thought I'd share some of it with you.
I like food. I mean, I really like food. I am picky about what I eat, and I have some of the strangest eating habits ever, but when I eat, I thoroughly enjoy what I'm eating. In fact, I'm devouring a tasty salad as I write this post. I took just as much pleasure in making it as I am in eating it. Cooking, baking, making food look pretty, watching Food Network, finding new recipes - it's all a Mardi Gras for me.
So, naturally, I've taken an interest in Madeline's eating habits and wonder what David's will be. When I learned that our MOPS speaker for today would be discussing food and nutrition, I was eager to get there.
She spent a lot of time discussing picky eaters. I know all about that one. Not only am I a picky eater, I am the spawn of two people for whom "picky" is not an ample description. My mother's restaurant orders take roughly ten minutes to complete once she has finished removing the 7 items on the sandwich/in the soup/topping the pasta/filling the taco that she absolutely cannot have in her presence, and replacing them with the 2 she likes. My dad just eliminates the entire restaurant if he doesn't like the first thing he tries on their menu. But, I digress.
I thought Madeline was picky, but I learned today that all of her food issues are pretty common in toddlers and she'll probably get over them soon. Most toddlers refuse some vegetables and meats because they're very tactile creatures and the textures give them the heebeejeebees. I can relate! I just didn't realize I had a toddler's palate. Most of my food dislikes are texture-related.
Speaking of that, the nutritionist said that it's very important to respect severe dislikes. (Do you hear that people?? Stop trying to make me eat potato salad!! And baked beans, and cole slaw, and pretty much all other foods associated with the 4th of July.) So, how do you know when it's a severe dislike? It turns out that a kid has to watch you eat something 10 times and try it 5 times before it's considered a severe dislike. Who knew?
I also learned that nutrition should be a weekly goal for the kids, not a daily one. So, if Madeline doesn't get all her green veggies in one day, it's OK. She can make up for it later in the week.
To be honest, though, her eating habits intrigue me. I have a feeling she might be a chef one day. The kid won't eat cheddar or American cheese. Nope. Feta. Broccoli with cheese sauce? Uh-uh. Try raw spinach with garlic peppercorn salad dressing. She also pretends to make coffee, but I think she's just imitaitng something she sees happening all throughout the day.
Why the heck am I sharing this with you? Well, for one thing, I found it fascinating and I wanted to pass it along. For another thing, I want to hear about your experiences. Are you a picky eater? Are your kids? How do you handle it? What are some creative ways you've found to work healthy stuff into kid food?
More importantly, does anyone have any toddler-friendly dinner recipes you'd like to share? I'm getting tired of making the same old stuff.
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