My three year old daughter is a recovering fuss pot. She used to live off of macaroni and cheese, chicken nuggets, and apples. It was an almost impossible feat to get her to try new foods. I tried begging, yelling, and most memorably, bribery. Those techniques were unsuccessful, and left me with a room full of stuffed animals, and a headache. Her horrible eating habits were a nightmare, until I had a revelation. One that was so simple, yet perfect. This first idea lead to another and another, until one day, she was eating anything I put on her plate. Read on, and you’ll just kick yourself because you didn’t think of it first.
That first morning, without fail, my daughter woke up hungry. Normally, I would have gone with my natural mommy instincts and ran to the fridge. This day was going to be different. The start of a new trend, one that would introduce the most two most beautiful words in the English language into my daughter’s vocabulary: patience and wait. Most mothers will tell you that patience is not a virtue their children possess, and mine was no different. She threw a fit because I would not hand over her usual breakfast of sugar covered junk food. I made her wait until she was so hungry it was eat whatever I gave her or suffer the consequences of a belly ache.
That glorious Tuesday morning, my beautiful daughter ate plain oatmeal for the first time. Not because she enjoyed it, but because she had no choice. That is another key word, choice. I took her options away. She had to eat what I gave her, or go hungry. You may think this sounds dreadful, and maybe it is, but you are there to teach your child healthy eating habits. You are the parent, not children’s friend. Parenthood is not a popularity contest, it is a military campaign. The mission: teach your children how to properly take care of their bodies, minds, and hearts, before you lose your influence.
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Now that breakfast was conquered, it was time to move onto the next battle, lunch. My daughter is stubborn. I knew that she was not going to make this easy for me, but I was not prepared to let her win. Noon rolled around, and she asked for chicken nuggets and french fries. I presented her with a plate of steamed vegetables and baked chicken. She made the most unholy, twisted, astonished face I had ever seen. Tears rolled out of her eyes, chairs were knocked over, and doors were slammed. She threw the fit of the century, and I calmly stood by the dinner table. This time, she was the one doing the begging, yelling, and she even managed to throw a couple of hugs in there in an attempt to bribe me. I simply thanked her for the affection, and pointed to her dinner plate. She eventually gave in, once again due to hunger, and ate her well balanced, healthy meal.
Just because this worked for my kid doesn’t mean yours will give in on that first day. Stick to your guns. Remember your mission, and keep a large bottle of aspirin close by, because headaches are even harder to get rid of than your child’s nasty eating habits.