Do you make separate dinner for your kids? Or do they eat what you eat?

[Anonymous]

We don't make separate dinners in general. Maybe once a month or once every two months we will? I grew up eating a lot of Mexican food and ate it while pregnant so maybe that explains it, but they love tacos, enchiladas, burritos, burrito bowls, fajitas, quesadillas, nachos, etc. The thing that's great about food like that is that everyone can have what they want. Last night, for example, we put out rice, black beans, chicken, steak, salsa, sour cream, cheese, guacamole, and tortillas. Everyone was able to make exactly what they wanted and no one had the same thing. That stuff all reheats well, so we will pull those things out every other day to make something for lunch or dinner. We also do a lot of Asian mix ups, like fried rice, stir fry, chicken and rice, etc. That's another thing that's easy to throw together again and again with different flavors. We also do lots of pastas with different sauces and meats. And we've been practicing grilling pizza with different sauces and toppings. So while we have a pretty standard list of items we shop for, we can mix things up to make a lot of different meals. That's been helping a lot lately so that we don't feel like we're eating the same things over and over again. There are enough things that make it feel like Groundhog day without that.

[Anonymous]

And here is the crux of the failure to teach your kids to be open to eating a variety of meals. "I wouldn't imagine it would be easy to find a kid who has never been given mac and cheese, hot dogs, or chicken nuggets."
It is actually easy for parents that know how to cook to never give any of this to their kids. Sadly, often the culture here reinforces that crap eating habits, where you think not eating something like hot dogs and chicken nuggets is denying your kids some necessary dietary component. But, it is not.
The whole eating culture is messed up. One pp said it right, if I don't give my kids these foods, they won't eat them. It is true. When kids go to a party and this is offered, they will likely not eat it. Just like the kid that never ate enchiladas will likely not eat it even at a party.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:And here is the crux of the failure to teach your kids to be open to eating a variety of meals. "I wouldn't imagine it would be easy to find a kid who has never been given mac and cheese, hot dogs, or chicken nuggets."
It is actually easy for parents that know how to cook to never give any of this to their kids. Sadly, often the culture here reinforces that crap eating habits, where you think not eating something like hot dogs and chicken nuggets is denying your kids some necessary dietary component. But, it is not.
The whole eating culture is messed up. One pp said it right, if I don't give my kids these foods, they won't eat them. It is true. When kids go to a party and this is offered, they will likely not eat it. Just like the kid that never ate enchiladas will likely not eat it even at a party.

It's not as formulaic. You have to account for individual tastes and you will eventually find out they are not as moldable as you like to imagine I have three. They've all been fed the same diet. We are an immigrant household so we don't really ever stock mac and cheese or nuggets. I don't know how to make mac and cheese. So "what to offer" is not a problem. My #1 and #3 eat everything - chilis, our standard Middle East fare, meats, vegetables, flavor-heavy stuff. #2 does not like any of that stuff and eats plain chicken, plain pasta, plain vegetables and rice etc. So it's not healthy vs. unhealthy food, it's the preference for flavors, and what I've found is that your ability to shape this is limited. Children aren't robots.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:And here is the crux of the failure to teach your kids to be open to eating a variety of meals. "I wouldn't imagine it would be easy to find a kid who has never been given mac and cheese, hot dogs, or chicken nuggets."
It is actually easy for parents that know how to cook to never give any of this to their kids. Sadly, often the culture here reinforces that crap eating habits, where you think not eating something like hot dogs and chicken nuggets is denying your kids some necessary dietary component. But, it is not.
The whole eating culture is messed up. One pp said it right, if I don't give my kids these foods, they won't eat them. It is true. When kids go to a party and this is offered, they will likely not eat it. Just like the kid that never ate enchiladas will likely not eat it even at a party.

It's not as formulaic. You have to account for individual tastes and you will eventually find out they are not as moldable as you like to imagine I have three. They've all been fed the same diet. We are an immigrant household so we don't really ever stock mac and cheese or nuggets. I don't know how to make mac and cheese. So "what to offer" is not a problem. My #1 and #3 eat everything - chilis, our standard Middle East fare, meats, vegetables, flavor-heavy stuff. #2 does not like any of that stuff and eats plain chicken, plain pasta, plain vegetables and rice etc. So it's not healthy vs. unhealthy food, it's the preference for flavors, and what I've found is that your ability to shape this is limited. Children aren't robots.

Never said you will have perfect and adventurous eater for kids. Just that the mind set that fast food is normal and essential part of kids' diets. That mind set is wrong. My kids were picky eaters for a while, that meant that plain rice or plain pasta was there, not hot dogs. You say Middle East? Koshari might be Egyptian equivalent of mac and cheese here. But I will make it myself, not buy it. You actually prove my point. Your picky eater is offered food that you make, not chicken nuggets. And it is not that hard to make breaded chicken breast, the problem is when you go and buy chicken nuggets from McD and that is what your kids ends up loving.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:And here is the crux of the failure to teach your kids to be open to eating a variety of meals. "I wouldn't imagine it would be easy to find a kid who has never been given mac and cheese, hot dogs, or chicken nuggets."
It is actually easy for parents that know how to cook to never give any of this to their kids. Sadly, often the culture here reinforces that crap eating habits, where you think not eating something like hot dogs and chicken nuggets is denying your kids some necessary dietary component. But, it is not.
The whole eating culture is messed up. One pp said it right, if I don't give my kids these foods, they won't eat them. It is true. When kids go to a party and this is offered, they will likely not eat it. Just like the kid that never ate enchiladas will likely not eat it even at a party.

It's not as formulaic. You have to account for individual tastes and you will eventually find out they are not as moldable as you like to imagine I have three. They've all been fed the same diet. We are an immigrant household so we don't really ever stock mac and cheese or nuggets. I don't know how to make mac and cheese. So "what to offer" is not a problem. My #1 and #3 eat everything - chilis, our standard Middle East fare, meats, vegetables, flavor-heavy stuff. #2 does not like any of that stuff and eats plain chicken, plain pasta, plain vegetables and rice etc. So it's not healthy vs. unhealthy food, it's the preference for flavors, and what I've found is that your ability to shape this is limited. Children aren't robots.

Never said you will have perfect and adventurous eater for kids. Just that the mind set that fast food is normal and essential part of kids' diets. That mind set is wrong. My kids were picky eaters for a while, that meant that plain rice or plain pasta was there, not hot dogs. You say Middle East? Koshari might be Egyptian equivalent of mac and cheese here. But I will make it myself, not buy it. You actually prove my point. Your picky eater is offered food that you make, not chicken nuggets. And it is not that hard to make breaded chicken breast, the problem is when you go and buy chicken nuggets from McD and that is what your kids ends up loving.

Fast food was never an option in our household. That still doesn't mean the kids ended up eating what we eat. I mean two of them did. The middle one so far isn't on board and wants her plain pasta. I mean I guess she is eating the food I made. But it's not the same food that the rest of the house eats.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:And here is the crux of the failure to teach your kids to be open to eating a variety of meals. "I wouldn't imagine it would be easy to find a kid who has never been given mac and cheese, hot dogs, or chicken nuggets."
It is actually easy for parents that know how to cook to never give any of this to their kids. Sadly, often the culture here reinforces that crap eating habits, where you think not eating something like hot dogs and chicken nuggets is denying your kids some necessary dietary component. But, it is not.
The whole eating culture is messed up. One pp said it right, if I don't give my kids these foods, they won't eat them. It is true. When kids go to a party and this is offered, they will likely not eat it. Just like the kid that never ate enchiladas will likely not eat it even at a party.

It's not as formulaic. You have to account for individual tastes and you will eventually find out they are not as moldable as you like to imagine I have three. They've all been fed the same diet. We are an immigrant household so we don't really ever stock mac and cheese or nuggets. I don't know how to make mac and cheese. So "what to offer" is not a problem. My #1 and #3 eat everything - chilis, our standard Middle East fare, meats, vegetables, flavor-heavy stuff. #2 does not like any of that stuff and eats plain chicken, plain pasta, plain vegetables and rice etc. So it's not healthy vs. unhealthy food, it's the preference for flavors, and what I've found is that your ability to shape this is limited. Children aren't robots.

Never said you will have perfect and adventurous eater for kids. Just that the mind set that fast food is normal and essential part of kids' diets. That mind set is wrong. My kids were picky eaters for a while, that meant that plain rice or plain pasta was there, not hot dogs. You say Middle East? Koshari might be Egyptian equivalent of mac and cheese here. But I will make it myself, not buy it. You actually prove my point. Your picky eater is offered food that you make, not chicken nuggets. And it is not that hard to make breaded chicken breast, the problem is when you go and buy chicken nuggets from McD and that is what your kids ends up loving.

Fast food was never an option in our household. That still doesn't mean the kids ended up eating what we eat. I mean two of them did. The middle one so far isn't on board and wants her plain pasta. I mean I guess she is eating the food I made. But it's not the same food that the rest of the house eats.

Do you cook with a lot of onions and peppers? And garlic? I am just going to suggest that maybe your kid has aversion to these veggies? The reason I ask, is that I have the same and we eat similar food to Middle Eastern food in my county. It took me a while to figure it out, but onions would truly make me throw up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:While I do think there are some legit picky eaters, I also think of you give your toddler Mac n cheese, hot dogs and nuggets on a regular basis that is what they are going to want....... If you don’t give them those foods they won’t eat them.

I mean, I know no one is doing play dates now (hopefully), but when your kids go to other kids' houses, they will likely be exposed to these kinds of foods. Or at school (back when we had school). I wouldn't imagine it would be easy to find a kid who has never been given mac and cheese, hot dogs, or chicken nuggets.

Yeah, that's mostly where my kid (now 7) was exposed to these things (I don't see anything wrong with homemade mac and cheese?)

And... she did try them, and she did like them, and we have them at parties, playdates, occasionally, like... at a hot dog stand at the beach or something. Which is fine with me.

But there was no way she could "demand" them for dinner every night, because we just don't regularly keep them in our house to serve.

She's been exposed to them-- of course she has. She can't "want them all the time" because 1) they're not really options here and 2) she's not a relatively rare, extreme picky eater who only eats 6 specific foods or will choose to starve.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:While I do think there are some legit picky eaters, I also think of you give your toddler Mac n cheese, hot dogs and nuggets on a regular basis that is what they are going to want....... If you don’t give them those foods they won’t eat them.

I mean, I know no one is doing play dates now (hopefully), but when your kids go to other kids' houses, they will likely be exposed to these kinds of foods. Or at school (back when we had school). I wouldn't imagine it would be easy to find a kid who has never been given mac and cheese, hot dogs, or chicken nuggets.

Yeah, that's mostly where my kid (now 7) was exposed to these things (I don't see anything wrong with homemade mac and cheese?)

And... she did try them, and she did like them, and we have them at parties, playdates, occasionally, like... at a hot dog stand at the beach or something. Which is fine with me.

But there was no way she could "demand" them for dinner every night, because we just don't regularly keep them in our house to serve.

She's been exposed to them-- of course she has. She can't "want them all the time" because 1) they're not really options here and 2) she's not a relatively rare, extreme picky eater who only eats 6 specific foods or will choose to starve.

Like, there's no "once they get a taste for Kraft Mac and Cheese on a play date, there's no going back!!!" for most kids. Or there doesn't have to be.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:While I do think there are some legit picky eaters, I also think of you give your toddler Mac n cheese, hot dogs and nuggets on a regular basis that is what they are going to want....... If you don’t give them those foods they won’t eat them.

I mean, I know no one is doing play dates now (hopefully), but when your kids go to other kids' houses, they will likely be exposed to these kinds of foods. Or at school (back when we had school). I wouldn't imagine it would be easy to find a kid who has never been given mac and cheese, hot dogs, or chicken nuggets.

Yeah, that's mostly where my kid (now 7) was exposed to these things (I don't see anything wrong with homemade mac and cheese?)

And... she did try them, and she did like them, and we have them at parties, playdates, occasionally, like... at a hot dog stand at the beach or something. Which is fine with me.

But there was no way she could "demand" them for dinner every night, because we just don't regularly keep them in our house to serve.

She's been exposed to them-- of course she has. She can't "want them all the time" because 1) they're not really options here and 2) she's not a relatively rare, extreme picky eater who only eats 6 specific foods or will choose to starve.

That's fine - I'm not saying I offer those things to my kids as dinner options. My point was that for someone to say that their kid has NEVER eaten them, I do find that hard to believe. Between play dates, sleep overs, parties, and school, I think kids are exposed to them and I do think they will eat them at some point out of the house. But if the first PP wants to keep sitting on her high horse then it's fine with me. I just think she's full of crap.

[Anonymous]

Kids eat what the adults eat, unless its something that they truly don't like, like brussel sprouts. So, my kids eat basic salad, lamb, shepherds pie, cabbage and noodles, crab, broccoli, salmon, etc. We are constantly having them try new things.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:While I do think there are some legit picky eaters, I also think of you give your toddler Mac n cheese, hot dogs and nuggets on a regular basis that is what they are going to want....... If you don’t give them those foods they won’t eat them.

I mean, I know no one is doing play dates now (hopefully), but when your kids go to other kids' houses, they will likely be exposed to these kinds of foods. Or at school (back when we had school). I wouldn't imagine it would be easy to find a kid who has never been given mac and cheese, hot dogs, or chicken nuggets.

Yeah, that's mostly where my kid (now 7) was exposed to these things (I don't see anything wrong with homemade mac and cheese?)

And... she did try them, and she did like them, and we have them at parties, playdates, occasionally, like... at a hot dog stand at the beach or something. Which is fine with me.

But there was no way she could "demand" them for dinner every night, because we just don't regularly keep them in our house to serve.

She's been exposed to them-- of course she has. She can't "want them all the time" because 1) they're not really options here and 2) she's not a relatively rare, extreme picky eater who only eats 6 specific foods or will choose to starve.

That's fine - I'm not saying I offer those things to my kids as dinner options. My point was that for someone to say that their kid has NEVER eaten them, I do find that hard to believe. Between play dates, sleep overs, parties, and school, I think kids are exposed to them and I do think they will eat them at some point out of the house. But if the first PP wants to keep sitting on her high horse then it's fine with me. I just think she's full of crap.

I mean, they never said "never" or even said their particular toddler had never eaten them. I think the statement they did make-- "If you don’t give them those foods they won’t eat them"-- can also be reasonably interpreted to mean "in your own home" or "on a regular basis." Especially since the preceding sentence referenced "on a regular basis."

I also think it's very easy to believe a toddler, in particular, had never eaten X, Y or Z. That's easy. Even up to like 5 or 6, it wouldn't be all that hard IMO.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Kids eat what the adults eat, unless its something that they truly don't like, like brussel sprouts. So, my kids eat basic salad, lamb, shepherds pie, cabbage and noodles, crab, broccoli, salmon, etc. We are constantly having them try new things.

+1. DS is 5 and eats what we eat. If he doesn’t like something new, no worries but at least he is open to trying it. My favorite food is sushi which DS likes a lot too. One day out of the blue, he surprised me by saying he wanted sushi.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:And here is the crux of the failure to teach your kids to be open to eating a variety of meals. "I wouldn't imagine it would be easy to find a kid who has never been given mac and cheese, hot dogs, or chicken nuggets."
It is actually easy for parents that know how to cook to never give any of this to their kids. Sadly, often the culture here reinforces that crap eating habits, where you think not eating something like hot dogs and chicken nuggets is denying your kids some necessary dietary component. But, it is not.
The whole eating culture is messed up. One pp said it right, if I don't give my kids these foods, they won't eat them. It is true. When kids go to a party and this is offered, they will likely not eat it. Just like the kid that never ate enchiladas will likely not eat it even at a party.

I Agree with you. My 7yo has never eaten a hot dog. She didn’t have chicken nuggets or Mac n cheese til after she was 2 and we had established good eating habits.

[Anonymous]

There is nothing wrong with hot dogs, nuggets and macaroni and cheese. Your kids aren't great eaters if they don't eat those things. Good eaters are those that can enjoy all kinds of foods in a healthy balance without overindulging.

Everything in moderation - works for kids and adults.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There is nothing wrong with hot dogs, nuggets and macaroni and cheese. Your kids aren't great eaters if they don't eat those things. Good eaters are those that can enjoy all kinds of foods in a healthy balance without overindulging.

Everything in moderation - works for kids and adults.

Love this. DH and I eat Oreos and McDonald's and kale, everything in moderation. We're both thin and healthy and successful. My 15 month old loves French fries so she gets to eat them. The biggest thing I want to teach her about food is that it's all good and we shouldn't spend time obsessing about it.