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Updated on December 23, 2008
L.G. asks from Converse, TX
10 answers

How do i tell my children that there will not be any christmas this year without breaking there spirit.

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S.O.

answers from San Antonio on

Most are. My doctor gave me good advice. Only offer good food. Keep offering a variety. But, if she only wants one thing, and it is good for her, that's ok. Just keep offering and letting her taste other things. She will grow out of it. If she's only wanting junk. Then, don't allow it. Only offer her good food and let her skip a meal or two if you have to. A child who is offered food will not starve. They will eventually eat. You choose the quality of food to offer. But, don't worry so much about the variety. You can also start giving her vitamins at this age. A rule at my table - they have to eat # of bites of each food offered as their age. That way I know they are getting a little of protein, veggies, etc. So, a two year old would have to eat 2 bites of everything before she could eat just what she wanted.

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A.J.

answers from Killeen on

just keep trying =) it can take up to 30 times of trying a food to know if you like it. I have always just made meals for the whole family and cut it up for my kids and if they don't like it, I make them take a certain number of bites and then if they are still hungry, after I am done eating, I will make them a PB&J or whatever. Don't make it too big of a struggle or she will resist more. Also, try having her help you make dinner. Let her stand on a step stool and if she wants to, she can try veggies as you are cutting them up, and help you stir or whatever. My kids always seem more eager to eat a meal if they have helped make it. You can also try making something you know she likes (say, chicken nuggets) and adding one side you want her to try (green beans). Don't even tell her anything, just put it on her plate and she may surprise you =) Oh, and dipping sauces help kids want to eat different things too! Veges with ranch, nuggets with BBQ sauce, eggs with ketchup, etc. Even if she asks for something that sounds odd, just give her a small amount and see what happens!

1 mom found this helpful
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C.B.

answers from Houston on

My child eats liver, calamari, veggies and anything else he actually doesn't have to chase down. I gave him veggies first, then fruits. Remember, our kids are living organisms that NEED to eat. He never had an option, they are to young to know what is best for them. What this boils down to is a battle of wills... and you must win this battle to win the war. Make the food fun, funny faces, hide it with sauces she may like, let her get a bit hungry so that when she sits down to eat, she will eat whatever is in front of her. When I was growing up my mom would hold out our lunch, when she thought there would be an issue with the meal, until later so by the time we sat down we were starving and would eat whatever was in front of us. Good Luck... hold your ground, as she holds her.

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K.A.

answers from Austin on

I'm just going to tell you some of the things that my daughters love and maybe yours will too.

My oldest is more picky than my youngest, but when she was little I would make her Asian noodles with cut up bits of tofu and broccoli. I would chop the broccoli up so she couldn't pick it out. But she used to ask for it over and over.

Last night I made Mac and Cheese. I used whole wheat noodles, and added a butternut squash puree. It made it kinda sweet but the girls both loved it. I have also used a cauliflower puree. They don't even know its in there.

My youngest really likes it when I make bran muffins and add apples or mashed up bananas.

My oldest loves it when I make chicken tenders. I just take each tender and roll it in bread crumbs, salt and pepper and then throw it in the broiler for a little bit. Easy as can be and only takes a few minutes to cook up(but keep your eye on them so they don't burn.)

Both my girls love cheese and yogurt so some times I take stuff that they might not eat and use the cheese and yogurt as a cover up.

Good luck!

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M.J.

answers from Houston on

My son isn't eating solids yet, but my friends have had some picky eaters and this is what I've seen them do. You may want to consider offering her finger foods in fun kids shapes (example: use a cookie cutter to cut sandwiches into fun shapes). Also let her make choices of what to eat. Offer her 2 or 3 things so that she feels like she's in control of what she's eating. Hope this is at least a little helpful!

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K.B.

answers from Austin on

try making her fruit smoothies w/plain yogurt and juice

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L.B.

answers from Corpus Christi on

You did not say what her favorite foods were, But the first thing that I might look into would be menu's on line that have these things in them. It might be worth a try. Good luck.

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A.B.

answers from Houston on

My almost 17-month-old is picky too, and would much rather play than eat. I offer her three meals and at least one snack a day. Usually she just picks at her food, so I fill in the gaps with Pediasure shakes, smoothies, or drinkable yogurt. She usually only ends up drinking about 1 a day. Here are some things she will sometimes eat:

Breakfast:
-Rice krispies, cheerios (regular or multigrain), corn chex with milk - I let her use a spoon to feed herself
-Fresh pears, strawberries or bananas, or Gerber Graduates dried apples.
-Yo-baby yogurt
-Earth's Best Sunny Days bars (apple or strawberry)

Lunch:
-shredded up turkey or ham lunchmeat
-shredded cheddar cheese
-Ramen or the Yakisoba teriyaki flavor noodles
-bread
-avocado

Dinner:
I offer small portions of whatever we are having and then give her some avocado to finish. Some things she actually eats at times are:
-Turkey sausauge or chicken in tiny pieces
-black beans
-white rice
-fried rice
-corn
-peas

I always giver a spoon and fork and let her feed herself, though she almost always ends up using her hands and making a mess!

Just keep trying to offer her foods and always just have the backup there of what she likes, which in my daughter's case is avocado, noodles, and strawberries. Good luck!!!

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S.M.

answers from Austin on

Hmm, your question and the answers below don't seem to be on the same topic. But I'm going to answer the 'no Christmas topic'.

I want to thank you for posting this question. Thinking about my answer has really caused me to think about how I'm doing Christmas with my very young children. And my husband and I have really talked about what we want to do in coming years with our girls (now 3 1/2 and 1 1/2).

And I think this situation gives you the opportunity to really think about what Christmas is supposed to mean if you take away presents and commercialism.

I think your best option is to be honest with your kids about what is going on with presents. It's a hard year this year, and you can't afford to give them the kind of presents/Christmas that you would like. And many of their friends are probably going through the same thing -- so it won't be as weird as it could be.

Then, replace the gifts with time and attention. Really spend time together making and doing things about Christmas that are free to very inexpensive. Here are a few suggestions:

- Make gifts together. Take old newspapers and cut them into paper chains to decorate the house.
- String together popcorn into old-fashioned popcorn chains.
- Sing Christmas carols and drink hot chocolate.
- Read the Christmas Carol aloud.
- Go for walks and look at Christmas lights.
- Go to church for a special kid-oriented service.
- Do something for them with photos. Take a good family photo and frame it.
- Paint together.

But you know, all of these are just suggestions. You'll have your own things that you do together. But, I think the important thing is to replace presents and the expensive things with time, attention and creativity. Teenagers may think it's lame (at first) but it could really be a good opportunity for you (and them) to have fun together.

And you have inspired me to start some traditions with my girls (we made muffins and Christmas cookies to give to friends and neighbors) that help me to have Christmas = family as much as Christmas = stuff.

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M.S.

answers from Houston on

Just some suggestions on things to try:

Banana circles with peanut butter on them (if she is okay to have PB)

quesadilla made with a whole wheat tortilla and cheese cut up into bite size pieces. You could even sneak some ham or turkey in there.

any kind of fruit that she could dip in yogurt (may be messy though)

mashed potatoes and mix in some mashed carrots and butter

homemade pizza made with pita bread~very easy! Pizza quick sauce and mozzerella cheese and pop in the toaster oven. Much healthier than that frozen stuff.

Mac & cheese made with whole wheat elbows and some Velvetta melted into it. A quick and easy version!

I hope you have some luck with some of the suggestions you've received. I know how frustrating it can be!
Good luck!

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