Waa Waa Melon
I read an article about 10 mistakes parents make when feeding their kids and one caught my eye. It was something like “Don’t hide snacks from your children. Kids want what they can’t have so if you hide it then they want it more. Keep it where they can see it”. Well I noticed that I really don’t hide my kid snack foods and my 3 year old can see them and she knows what they are too. But about an hour ago she saw the watermelon we have and patted it and said “I want some.” So I cut it up for her and she ate it. Later she said “I’m hungry” and I asked her if she wanted apples and she said yes. Then she found some oranges and wanted those too. She sees the bad snacks but she isn’t asking for them at all.
I’m thinking if a parent wants their kids to have snacky foods (which I’m ok with myself) then you have to give fruit equal time. Now I can see how this wouldn’t work so easily for a child who has junk all the time and then their parents try to get healthy and the kids rebel because they don’t normally eat fruit. That I can see where it would take some time and some battles. Lord knows I’ve been there with my oldest. But, if we get our kids early and teach them that fruit can be good and make it a normal thing around the house then they are better off in the long run.
Let’s hope I can take my own observations from today and remember them not just for today but from here on out raising her. Let me remember to always have good foods around. Always. Fingers crossed!
Have a great day Buddies! Let’s karate chop some fat today! Aaaaaeeee yaaaa! (hand making stupid chopping motion)
I keep fruit and yogurt in the fridge at all times. They are the “freebies” that kids can have anytime they want. Otherwise it is one mid-afternoon snack. Kind of helps get an extra punch in for the good stuff.
I always made any food my son wanted available…and he doesn’t have a problem with food at all. I packed his lunches and they were healthy…
I noticed, that if I was getting unhealthy with my food…he would start gaining weight…and then I’d just go back to good foods…and he would follow in my footsteps.
I am sure your daughter will make great choices…just look at her mom!
good ideas, I do the same with my kids, don’t hide the junk food and try and offer more fruits/veggies. A Dr. told my mom, when my sister and I were little, (1965 and 1978) kids will eat when they are hungry, don’t try and push food on them. one day, my kids may be ravenous and can’t fill them up and a few days later they graze on little tiny portions and make me wonder “are they eating enough?”
Great blog. I don’t have kids of my own but always have some running through the house and noticed they eat alot differently here then at home, not because they aren’t comfortable but because they have choices both healthy and no so healthy.
My grandchildren, ages 4 and 5, are allowed to make their own food choices and 9 times out of 10 they choose fruit over chips. My grandson, the 5 year old, is a little salad monster, he would rather have a salad than french fries most times and when the go to places like McDonalds that usually always have milk instead of pop, their choice. When they are at my house they now there are mini rice cakes for them and we make “special” popcorn in my popcorn popper for the microwave.
I just got a watermelon on my last grocery trip. It called to me and I said, OK!
Though maybe it might be a while before I get it again. 
Yep, it works. My kids love fruit for dessert and snacks. My DD is on cloud nine when she gets popcorn and an apple. DS loves raisins and peanuts. DD loves to go to Olive Garden for the salad. Their favorite take out meal is to go to the salad bar at the grocery store and pick what they want.
i hear ya and i totally believe it! When i was a little girl my mom would hide food from me so when it came time for me to have snacks i would hide my bad snacks from her and just binge out and it just became a vicious cycle, so if she would have not hid them sure i would have had one now in then but i think this is great that they are finally figuring this out!!!
Good for you for writing this. We talk about our eating..lets not forget the kids.
My daughter is now 17, and I always ask right before paydays, do you want anything? She almost always says…yogurt and whatever fruit shes wanting then. Yay daughter!
Yeah, I have switched my thinking since hubby was diagnosed as diabetic…I have 3 nieces…5 and under with one one the way…and now my “treats” are things that are good for them…they dont care…they just love any goodies. My hubby becoming ill..makes ya realize..food/sugar needs to be watched…nothing wrong with a piece of candy now and then though lol. What’s PMS without chocolate?? lol
Anyway, good job everyone!! Go wonderwoman…always knew you were awesome!
Love Debbie
My parents locked up ALL the food in our house when I was growing up, including fruit and the healthy stuff. While it kept us at a fairly healthy weight during the time we lived with them, when we moved out (I mean ALL of us, not just me) we gained weight, because we didn’t know how to deal with food. With my parents, when they allotted us whatever, we would eat it all, because it was a treat. Now, as an adult, I have a really hard time leaving any food on my plate, or if I get a “bad” snack, like a bag of chips or something at the store, they were normally gone before the end of the day. What you’re doing is a smart way to teach her healthy habits. Good job!
Amanda
You are doing awesome. I have a cookie monster for a 4 year old and am working hard into turning her into carrot monster, it is a lot of work.
I like to keep a bowl of cut-up watermelon, cantaloupe, kiwi, strawberries… whatever… in the fridge all the time. The kids always know they can eat the fruit, the crackers, or a peanut-butter sandwich whenever. They’ve even been known to fix themselves a bowl of oatmeal as a snack.
I don’t have problems getting my 3 year old to eat fruit, she loves it but I can’t get her to eat a single vegetable.