While I have been busy enjoying to finish projects for the home my husband and I were also equally busy dealing with our princess' eating habits. For the last couple of months we have noticed that eating times have become our battlefield in the dining room. It gets frustrating to see that after all the preparations for the meal, she still wouldn't eat them. And of course this is a 15-20 min process of arguing, bargaining and even bribing just to have her sat on the chair and eat dinner. This is not, by the way, just a struggle during nights but during breakfast and lunch too. She just has a difficult appetite.
The challenge to creatively put any food on the table that will surely be an enticing recipe has always been a tough everyday planning for our growing princess. She doesn't like almost any kind of a normal food served on a regular meal. So it has been our goal to offer her something unique and unusual to capture that very elusive taste buds.
It's a hit and miss effort. There were days when she would not eat anything but small bites of sandwich and milk or juice. But there were moments that she would finish everything on her plate and would ask for more. The more puzzling part is how to maintain consistency on her habit of eating healthy meals all the time.
We've learned 3 top must-remember to deal with this food challenge for our little princess.
1. We DO NOT force her. We notice that at her age now she still is discovering her tastes and enjoying each type so let her. Her mind is developing and she will in time realize that taste doesn't usually equal good. ;-)
2. We reward as needed. Healthy food should not be equated as a task or an activity. We don't treat veggies and fruits as points of interest but rather an important thing that her body ought to have. We instill in her that eating them will make her more energetic and smart. So a few rewards help but it's not the goal.
Lastly,
3. We eat healthy too! That's the perk of having a kid in the house. Adults are obliged to eat healthier, which for the most part is hitting two birds with one stone. It's just amazing to see that while we nurture our child to love fruits and veggies, we are at the same time becoming healthy individuals too. (This is our own journey too as adults). What she sees is a potential register in her mind and will eventually cause her to do the same.
But of course, as any other household we couldn't promise consistency. We'd fail every once in a while; junking on chips, chocolates and all the other bad stuff our pantry could offer at times. The good thing is, we get a taste of everything. That isn't too bad for vanity I guess.
Today, our princess still finds it hard to eat veggies and some fruits but we try and try and try. It'll be an endless journey until she hits that age where she'll accustom the good taste of these. And I must admit that my husband and I are still winning this challenge every single day.
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