Wednesday, October 1, 2008

Question

For dinner tonight I made one of my favorite dishes.  I call it cheesy chicken skillet.  It has potatoes, broccoli, chicken, and a cheese sauce - all cooked in a skillet.  Bryn use to like this dish when she was younger.  She use to eat broccoli a lot.  But lately, she acts like she's dying if I make her eat it.  So, for dinner I dished some up for her; leaving out the broccoli.  But then I thought she should really have at least one piece.  She hardly ever eats veggies, so I thought this was a great time for her to have some.  So I put one piece of broccoli on her dish.  She wasn't too happy about it, but she was brave and said she'd eat it.  You would have thought someone was choking her!  She put it in her mouth and then proceeded to gag and cough.  I know she was trying, but there were a few times she really looked like she was going to throw up!  Is it bad to force your kids to eat foods they don't like?  Will it ruin their eating habits later in life?

9 comments:

Our Little Corner said...

Oh man, if I had a nickle for every time I've had this same thought, I don't know if I'd be rich, but I'd have a lot of nickles.
I hate the topic of children and the food they eat. Natalee also used to be quite fond of broccoli, but now won't eat it. I think, and this is just my thought, that it's more detrimental to make them eat something than to just let them eat what they like. Hence, I have grapes in my fridge at all times. Natalee really likes grapes, bananas, applesauce, mandarin oranges, cauliflower and green beans. She also likes potatoes, but those really aren't a veggie. If properly motivated (and that means she won't get her bedtime cookie) she will eat broccoli or corn. She doesn't eat any veggie raw and she won't eat squash at all. She will only eat carrots if they are in something, like a soup.
I'm writing all this to make you feel better. Everyone's kids do this (although not to that extent perhaps) and I think it's part phase and part development. My pediatrician told me that your taste buds evolve with you, so something you could like as a baby, you won't like as a child, but then will like as an adult. He's a doctor, so he knows, right? With Natalee I know it's 90% textures of food. She doesn't like things that she has to chew a lot, which is why I think she won't eat the raw, hard stuff.
Ok, this is long. I'd try to find what Bryn does like. Maybe have a veggie test night where you have lots of them out. Then if there is something she likes, just offer her that as an alternative after she tries the other stuff. Just an idea, who knows. I'm the bad mother who witnessed a fake marriage between two plastic pandas outside the temple. :)

Julie said...

Hahahaha! Bad Mommy! You crack me up.

I like your idea about a veggie test night. We tried cauliflower one night and she had the same reaction to that as she did to the broccoli. :-(

I remember gagging down food as a child. It was awful! I just don't want to damage her.

Our Little Corner said...

If food is the only way we damage these children, I think we're probably pretty lucky. :)

deborah said...

julie, i think you have already damaged her...:)

Julie said...

To all of you reading this, you'll have to excuse Deborah. She doesn't mean to be a bitch, she's really a great person. It's just the addiction talking :-(

deborah said...

oh my gosh, i am laughing so hard... alice keeps asking me what is so funny.

Our Little Corner said...

Go ask Alice....?
I don't even know the joke, but I couldn't resist.
By the way....I AM COMING TO ARIZONA!!!! If you are good and penitant I might even tell you when. Hmmmmm

Larri said...

Oh, oh, oh, now I am laughing. That was way funny between you and Deborah. Thanks I needed that little funny.
By the way, Elijah can just about beat anyone in the picky eater catagory but then looking at my kids, I'm sure not going to go giving advice (but if I make him eat something I make sure it is a super small portion, seriously he has cried for an hour over 2, count them 2 peas. NOT worth my time, there are vitamins in cold cereal right?)

Jessica said...

NAH! Keep giving it to her, she'll eventually give in a love it!!! Boy, I'm so not an expert and you shouldn't listen to me!!