Hidden veg meals for toddlers

[GotGarlic]

As others have said, tricking kids is not a good idea. Encourage her to try foods several times and she may develop a taste for it. If her parents are concerned about her nutrition, a multivitamin for children may be appropriate.

 

[Snip 13]

I have never hidden veggies in food nor do I think it should be done. If I happen to add pureed zucchini or beans to mash or pureed veg to mac 'n cheese etc. I tell my kids it's in there. I only do it because I prefer my smooth and creamy foods to remain smooth. I would never make special foods for my kids either. I offer them what I cook and if they don't like it they can help themselves. They are both old enough to reach the bread bin and cereal lol!
I don't make a fuss, I offer new foods 10 times before giving up. They must have a taste and if they don't like it they can just eat the other foods on their plates.

If you simply allow a child to choose what they want to eat it could end up causing a lifetime of bad food choices. How many kids would happily just eat chicken nuggets or burgers if given the choice? There should be boundries and maybe that makes me a bad mom but my kids don't get to decide what gets eaten in my house.
They both love most foods now and eat them by choice so my way of doing things was clearly not that bad.
No 2 kids are the same but I think every parent knows when their child is just pushing their boundries.
If one of my kids say they don't like the way I made something they must eat it anyway since it's already been cooked but I won't give it to them again.
We don't throw food out unless it's off. I don't have the luxury of doing that, we simply can't afford to do that.

 

[PrincessFiona60]

I found out when I was little, if I said I didn't like something, I was sent to bed without dinner or washing dishes. Pretty soon I wasn't eating dinner at all. The rules changed...my parents house, they could change the rules if they wanted. If I opened my mouth after that I got two servings of what I didn't like and had to sit there until it was gone. I soon learned to keep my mouth shut and Mom would put the smallest bit of what I didn't like on my plate, I still had to eat it, but most times i could just swallow that little bit and not even notice it.

I never did learn to like some of those foods, some I can tolerate now...and I am able to keep most of my thoughts to myself or at least keep a civil tongue.

 

[Snip 13]

I found out when I was little, if I said I didn't like something, I was sent to bed without dinner or washing dishes. Pretty soon I wasn't eating dinner at all. The rules changed...my parents house, they could change the rules if they wanted. If I opened my mouth after that I got two servings of what I didn't like and had to sit there until it was gone. I soon learned to keep my mouth shut and Mom would put the smallest bit of what I didn't like on my plate, I still had to eat it, but most times i could just swallow that little bit and not even notice it.

I never did learn to like some of those foods, some I can tolerate now...and I am able to keep most of my thoughts to myself or at least keep a civil tongue.

That's more than just a little extreme. I would never send my child to bed hungry or force them. They just have to taste something before deciding they don't like it. If they are just being full of nonsense they can make a sandwich or eat some cereal etc.
Neither of my kids have ever taken me up on that offer. They always decide that dinner is not that bad and making a sandwich is too much trouble.
I was merely saying that there must be some kind of boundries and kids should not just eat anything they want.
Caitlin would eat well if given the choice but Daniel would live on meat and chocolate.
If it was my post that upset you, please feel free to tell me why.

 

[Addie]

Parents have to choose which battles are worth fighting. And the supper table should not be a war zone. Sooner or later a child's body will crave the protein or Vitamin A or B, or whatever. And when Mom goes shopping, if she doesn't buy "it", then the kids can't eat just those foods they want. A child's diet starts at the grocery store. Not at the supper table.

 

[Snip 13]

Parents have to choose which battles are worth fighting. And the supper table should not be a war zone. Sooner or later a child's body will crave the protein or Vitamin A or B, or whatever. And when Mom goes shopping, if she doesn't buy "it", then the kids can't eat just those foods they want. A child's diet starts at the grocery store. Not at the supper table.

I would never turn it into a battle. Just taste something before you decide you don't like it. I won't go and cook another meal if they don't want it either. If they want to go and make a sandwich or something else they can.
I don't buy junk so they don't have the temptation around and make reasonably good choices.

I just refuse to be the kind of mom that would allow my child to eat only a single food. Caitlin refused to eat anything but vanilla pudding and noodles for a while when she was 2. She got physically ill and if I didn't do something about it, that would make me a bad mom.
Kids are not all the same and some don't all start eating when their bodies crave nutrients.
There are no hard and fast rules. As parents we should know when to say no and when to say enough is enough.

 

[PrincessFiona60]

That's more than just a little extreme. I would never send my child to bed hungry or force them. They just have to taste something before deciding they don't like it. If they are just being full of nonsense they can make a sandwich or eat some cereal etc.
Neither of my kids have ever taken me up on that offer. They always decide that dinner is not that bad and making a sandwich is too much trouble.
I was merely saying that there must be some kind of boundries and kids should not just eat anything they want.
Caitlin would eat well if given the choice but Daniel would live on meat and chocolate.
If it was my post that upset you, please feel free to tell me why.

I was not/am not angry...just telling what I went through as a child when it came to food. It's also why I do not think it's a good idea to make such a big deal out of what foods a child will eat. My parents have 4 kids with eating disorders. We were made to sit there until our plates were clean, several times I was still there at 11 pm...

There is no reason to make it a war. Me, being a stubborn kid, would say I didn't like something to get out of washing dishes... What do you do with a kid who would be happy to go hungry to get out of a chore? Took my Mom time to figure out what was MY incentive and how I would react to different things. And she had 4 kids to figure out...I am the only one who had a definite dislike of veggies.

 

[Snip 13]

I was not/am not angry...just telling what I went through as a child when it came to food. It's also why I do not think it's a good idea to make such a big deal out of what foods a child will eat. My parents have 4 kids with eating disorders. We were made to sit there until our plates were clean, several times I was still there at 11 pm...

There is no reason to make it a war. Me, being a stubborn kid, would say I didn't like something to get out of washing dishes... What do you do with a kid who would be happy to go hungry to get out of a chore? Took my Mom time to figure out what was MY incentive and how I would react to different things. And she had 4 kids to figure out...I am the only one who had a definite dislike of veggies.

It must have been tough. I would never force feed my kids but I will encourage healthy eating. They love food and I'm lucky that they eat almost everything.

It's the parents that just give in completely that drive me nuts. My best friend allows her 13 yr old to live on junk and because of it she's clinically obese and her kidneys are shot.

I don't want to see that happen to my beautiful and healthy children. I am strict but in a gentle way.

I admit I thought your post was aimed at me, that's why I asked. Better to ask that to wonder
Glad to know it wasn't

 

[PrincessFiona60]

It must have been tough. I would never force feed my kids but I will encourage healthy eating. They love food and I'm lucky that they eat almost everything.

It's the parents that just give in completely that drive me nuts. My best friend allows her 13 yr old to live on junk and because of it she's clinically obese and her kidneys are shot.

I don't want to see that happen to my beautiful and healthy children. I am strict but in a gentle way.

I admit I thought your post was aimed at me, that's why I asked. Better to ask that to wonder
Glad to know it wasn't

No problem...and I really don't blame my parents, they grew up in a different time and in different circumstances than we did. Dad went to bed hungry because there wasn't enough food...is it any wonder that he thought his children should eat everything they were given? My parents did an amazing job with their kids...different raising styles, sure. Strict? very...but they are the reason I am the person I am today and I turned out mostly all right.

 

[CWS4322]

I like Chief's approach <g>. Make mealtime fun! Get the kids involved. I remember the first time I got to heat up the canned corn...the only canned vegetable I remember eating as a child.

 

[Snip 13]

No problem...and I really don't blame my parents, they grew up in a different time and in different circumstances than we did. Dad went to bed hungry because there wasn't enough food...is it any wonder that he thought his children should eat everything they were given? My parents did an amazing job with their kids...different raising styles, sure. Strict? very...but they are the reason I am the person I am today and I turned out mostly all right.

Most parents do the best they know how. My parents put me off all the foods I don't eat today but I know they meant well
We also grew up without much so there wasn't always other food to offer.

 

[Boog0515]

Wow thank you all for the feedback! She will appreciate this all. The little girl does eat a little bit at dinner time but her parents just want her to eat healthier too. Thanks again!!

 

[taxlady]

A friend of mine asks kids, "Are you old enough to like this yet?"

 

[PrincessFiona60]

Clever...

 

[taxlady]

Clever...

Well, at least they are willing to try and they usually try really hard, but sometimes they still don't like it.

 

[buckytom]

A friend of mine asks kids, "Are you old enough to like this yet?"

that's unfortunate for the kids. most kids want to please their parents, and also want to be more grown up. asking them such a question is a passive way of forcing them to do either or both.

not good. let children be children, and teach them by example. if you act like you enjoy something, they will as well. to a limit. their own for their personality, and their experience.

if you let them be free but guide them with positive experiences without judgement, they'll find a larger perspective that will please you both.

 

[taxlady]

that's unfortunate for the kids. most kids want to please their parents, and also want to be more grown up. asking them such a question is a passive way of forcing them to do either or both.

not good. let children be children, and teach them by example. if you act like you enjoy something, they will as well. to a limit. their own for their personality, and their experience.

if you let them be free but guide them with positive experiences without judgement, they'll find a larger perspective that will please you both.

I think it's a reasonable way to get a child to taste the food. I didn't bother writing that she also used to say, "I just want you to try it. You don't have to eat it if you don't like it."

I think that is much better than telling kids that something is good for them, every time they say they don't like something.

 

[Addie]

Spike was here tonight and we got to talking about when he was a kid. For some reason all my kids were anemic. And so am I. Have been since childhood. Spike takes an iron pill every day, and has a great appetite. He gets plenty of meat and iron rich foods almost every day. Yet his test results still come back that he is anemic. So sometimes when you tell kids the food is good for them and they need to eat it, doesn't always solve the problem. Even if they eat it just to please you.

 

[dragnlaw]

You also might be surprised how much better a child's appetite might be if a lot of "snacks" were cut out.

 

[Addie]

You also might be surprised how much better a child's appetite might be if a lot of "snacks" were cut out.

When my kids were growing up, they always played outside regardless of the weather. And they played hard. So by keeping healthy snacks such as fresh fruits, carrot and celery sticks always available, I wasn't worried about their appetite.