Real Solutions for Picky Eaters - Part 3

Finding that happy balance between the kids having snacks they want or love and mom feeling good about what she's serving can be like walking a tight rope. My kids' idea of a snack and my idea of a snack are sometimes farther apart than I would like to admit. I'd love to gloat and say that my kids come home from school asking for carrots and broccoli, but they don't. They generally want something sweet. Or something that is essentially all carbs. We have to meet in the middle in order to have some sanity in our house.

Last week I shared how we implemented our Healthy Fridge Snack Box and it was a huge hit!

There are so many reasons why this was the perfect move for us and we plan to keep it going. To be honest, the "snack box" really became a "snack drawer". I had to empty one of our produce drawers in the fridge to accommodate all the healthy snacks. Anyway, the kids emptied the drawer in a matter of a few days. Well, I couldn't get to the store right away to replenish everything, which means the kids had a lot of repeats of things that are easy like bananas and clementines and organic baby carrots, things we always have on hand.. Finally, I made time to go to Costco. But not before having the kids help me create the grocery list. We have found that to be very helpful in getting them to eat a variety of foods. 

Our kids know then that there is something coming home from the store that they chose. I think kids are no different than adults and like to have some feeling of control. This gives them some sense of control. Everyone gets a say in what we put in the shopping cart!

The kids specifically wanted more blueberries and more strawberries! That makes this mama very happy to oblige. Owen piped up that he wanted celery so we could make ants on a log. Easy. Done. We talked about getting green versus red apples and I said I wanted to get the organic prepackaged apples again because apples are at the top of the Dirty Dozen list, it saves me time not having to slice them and they don't turn brown. This is what we came home with from that Costco trip:

I love how many more organic items I am finding at Costco! Plus, they have made it so much easier to spot organic items by using green price labels on the warehouse shelves.
About half of what I bought this trip was organic! It makes snacking that much healthier. I've been talking to the kids about why we've been switching to organic, how it helps to reduce our chemical exposure so they can grow up healthy. When I teach my kids about their food, it seems to make a difference in their becoming conscientious about their choices. I will also teach them about blueberries being high in antioxidants, getting enough vitamin C and vitamin D to keep colds at bay and keeping a strong immune system overall with eating (or drinking!) our greens. I use the educate approach because when kids understand "WHY" we are diligent about eating our fruits and vegetables, they have a greater tendency to hop on board with picking the foods that they know these fun facts about.

Several days a week I work and don't get home until well past the time school lets out. On those days my husband, who works from home, picks the kids up from school and gets them started on their homework and oversees after school snack. While I want to be sure they are eating healthy, my husband doesn't necessarily like me to give too much direction in my absence.... so creating this Healthy Fridge Snack Box has been a great solution for us as parents in several ways.

I spent about an hour preparing the fruits and veggies for the next several days. That means washing them in a vinegar wash to remove any residue left behind, getting items into single serving containers and putting everything away to both optimize the space and still see what choices are available.

When we restocked this week, we had some duplicates from last week, but lots of new things to keep a sense of variety. This also helps the kids remember another important tip.... Eat A Rainbow! Rather than being particular about which foods they eat, I try to make the entire rainbow of fruits and vegetables available.

I find that when there's lots of color on the plate, I automatically am excited about what I'm about to eat.... and kids are no different. There's all kinds of ways you can serve up a rainbow and I love pinning anything the reminds me to put color on the plate.

When I get started preparing everything I make sure I have a bunch of clean individual size containers clean and ready to go.

Organic carrots and broccoli veggie packs are perfect for lunch boxes! To be honest, I don't know that I could get my kids to snack on broccoli.

The kids promised they would eat those veggie packs since I bought this organic ranch dip... oh my gosh, it is so good!

No one is being set up for success when parents have the "It's my way or the highway" mentality when it comes to their kids' food choices. Ultimately, our job is to provide the right balance of nutrition and the child gets to choose what they eat from those options. 

By providing a large selection of healthy snacks that are ready to go I've seen my kids reaching for more wholesome, nutrient dense foods instead of their typical snacks. I have just a couple of their favorites on hand and resisted buying more of the junk food at Costco since we're really committed to this goal of healthy eating, and the kids have really not been asking me "Where's the (fill in the blank with their favorite junk food)?" 

Cherries! The kids would finish the whole Costco package in one sitting if we let them. They didn't ask for cherries, but I knew putting them in the cart would be a hit. They did ask for grapes, so I grabbed those too, but I sure wish Costco had organic grapes since they rank on the Environmental Working Group's Dirty Dozen list.

 

The kids specifically wanted applesauce in the drawer so I made a special stop to buy this and was impressed I could buy organic applesauce and put it into reusable containers for pretty much what I would pay for the prepackaged indv. disposable cups that have extra sugar. 

Attending the Children's Physicians Medical Group picky eaters discussion was beyond valuable even for just the idea that Jaimi at The Stay-at-Home-Mom Survival Guide brought up.... having a healthy snack box in the fridge. Going off of that one idea has helped us in so many ways! I hope some of the other pointers above will provide you with real solutions to help your picky eater. I know these have helped us! What are your tips on helping your picky eater expand their palate? I'd love to hear in the comments below as I am looking to share more ideas in the next post in this series.

Did you miss part one? Read it here.

Did you miss part two? Read it here.

#Gratitude365 Day 32

#Gratitude365 January 19 2014

Mostly I am grateful for a day that I didn't get out of my pajamas. We need those days from time to time and that was this day.

I got up with the kids and made them pancakes. It's nice to do something for the kids that they enjoy. And we had both chocolate chips and blueberries on hand so everyone was happy - including me! Grateful for pancake breakfasts on Sundays ; )

Because I got up with the kids on the day that I normally sleep in as a favor to my husband I got to pull in a favor too - Costco shopping. He's so fast and doesn't lolly gag looking at stuff like I do. Plus, he had showered and I was having a pajama day. It worked out. He got us fully restocked on everything and made an extra stop at the grocery store too.

Oh, we had family movie night. My husband picked something quite random.... Princess Bride. I can't recall the last time I saw it, but I think I was in high school. I so enjoy seeing the kids get their special plush chairs and pillows and blankets to lay on the floor in the living room for family movie night. I don't really remember having a special tradition like that growing up and I love that we've created this.

Cuddling and laughing on the couch with my husband. I think laughing with your partner is the best aphrodisiac - or maybe it is the other way around. Either way it makes me happy.

#Graditude365 Day 19

#Gratitude365 January 6 2014

 I actually got up when my alarm went off this morning, which after a 2 week break of sleeping in is pretty worthy of gratitude... especially since I had to be in class at 9am this morning.

Speaking of class - I had such an amazing interaction and witness to another breakthrough for a family this morning - and I shared it here on the Sign4Baby Blog.

We got the very LAST spot in the preschool down the street from us for Owen. I waited til after winter break to go and pick up a registration packet and my heart almost sank when the administrator behind the desk frowned at me with that telling look that says "we're full."

But, then she thought for a moment and said "Let me check something before I give you the final answer."

For his age group there was ONE spot available so I filled out the registration form and nabbed it up!

We've had Owen out of preschool for the last few months since he had some issues that I won't get into here. We had a goal all along to get him enrolled in a new preschool after the winter break and I am so grateful that there was one remaining spot. I think the schedule is going to be much better for him here and I'm glad it's a lot closer to home and know he is eager to make some new friends. It can be pretty lonely for a 4 year old when your brother and sister go to school every day and you're stuck at home with mom and dad mostly working.

Sometimes I think the stars align just right - but keeping you on the edge of your seat - to make sure you're able to more appreciate what you're about to receive. At least that is what it felt like today when I walked out of that preschool office. Thankful to the stars lining up in this case!

Random, but I was totally happy to have such an easy time at Costco today.

We tend to go to Costco when it is overly busy, with all 3 kids in tow - which can stretch all of our patience to a point that it completely evaporates. Yes, sometimes we are those parents yelling at the kids in the parking lot. I'm not proud of it, but I think being honest is better than putting on a facade. Not today though. I went alone and it was so easy to get in and out of there. If I don't want shopping to be stressful I need to work it into my calendar and go when hardly anyone is there (like on a Monday night!). And get it done without a whole family trip. Scheduling these odds and ends is one of my big confronting challenges. I know it is there and that is the way to make it better, but I'm a horse drawn to water. Just drink the damn water, Joann!

AND one more thing! I have been doing great drinking 8 glasses of water everyday. Something I've been working on and it is happening. I'm trying to think whether I wait til it has been successful for 30 full days before I add in any new health/nutrition goal. What do you think?