Popsicle every day at camp before lunch

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Tea time= food in between meals.
Gaiter= food in between meals.
Snack=food in between meals.

There's no difference.

Missed the point. What PP was trying to get to above was that the first two are fixed times, or a 1x per day, food in between meal times. And, well, not everyone has tea anymore. The difference with American snacking is that it is more of a continuous grazing. We eat all day, every day. If the kid is not being fed a sugary popsicle (that is pure junk food) it's goldfish, crackers, yogurts, snack bars, or similar. Kids here never have a break to get hungry. We snack ALL DAMN DAY. That's the difference.

I have a neighbor who tells me that her kid doesn't have a big appetite. When he comes for meals, he barely eats anything. She says he just doesn't eat much. However, before lunch and right after lunch, he eats Pringles, goldfish or Rice Krispies. During the afternoon, he eats other chips and salties. I had him for a whole day, she sent a bag of snacks and that's all he ate. Yet she told me that he doesn't like to eat big meals. No, it's because he eats crap all day. Same thing here. Or with all of the country actually.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm not OP but I want to teach my kid that "desserts" and sweets are for after lunch. It sets a precedent at home for when whiny kid wants sweets before lunch and then we as moms have to always say no and explain that sweets are for after we eat. "But at camp we did blah blah blah." I wouldn't want to deal with that.

Save your eating disorder for yourself sweetie.

What is wrong with you? Do you speak to people like that in real life? Why are people so rude here!?

There is nothing wrong with not wanting popsicles before lunch! And now you are accusing me of having an eating disorder. Good grief, sometimes this forum is BAD for mental health... and people like you being so rude.

OP here. It’s not this forum, it’s like one person who has an eating disorder and was triggered by a food post. Extreme point of view.

[Anonymous]

How big is the dang popsicle?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Tea time= food in between meals.
Gaiter= food in between meals.
Snack=food in between meals.

There's no difference.

Missed the point. What PP was trying to get to above was that the first two are fixed times, or a 1x per day, food in between meal times. And, well, not everyone has tea anymore. The difference with American snacking is that it is more of a continuous grazing. We eat all day, every day. If the kid is not being fed a sugary popsicle (that is pure junk food) it's goldfish, crackers, yogurts, snack bars, or similar. Kids here never have a break to get hungry. We snack ALL DAMN DAY. That's the difference.

I have a neighbor who tells me that her kid doesn't have a big appetite. When he comes for meals, he barely eats anything. She says he just doesn't eat much. However, before lunch and right after lunch, he eats Pringles, goldfish or Rice Krispies. During the afternoon, he eats other chips and salties. I had him for a whole day, she sent a bag of snacks and that's all he ate. Yet she told me that he doesn't like to eat big meals. No, it's because he eats crap all day. Same thing here. Or with all of the country actually.

OP here. Honestly, where I come from picky eating and kids menu is not a thing. Kids eat the same thing as grown ups and it could be spicy, bitter, whatever. You learn to like different foods. Here it seems like my friends’ kids pick at their (kid-friendly) meals and run off to play, then ask for snacks half an hour later in a really bad mood. That was not the expectation for us growing up. You sit, you eat a full meal, you go off and do our thing. That’s how I raise my kids and everyone is surprised that they sit and eat a meal. I think little kids are completely capable of it if you don’t disrupt their natural hunger.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. This is totally becoming popsicle gate.

To clarify, no I am not opposed to sweets. Yes I like popsicles. During quarantine we had a teatime some days to break up the monotony and we all liked baking new treats. But eating empty calories at meal time when you’ve just had a snack 1.5 hours ago seems not to make much sense to me.

I think these responses are a bit extreme. I’m going to cause an eating disorder by not wanting them to eat snacks at mealtime? Kids cannot transition to a line without a treat? Um, ok.

I have nothing against using a treat for fun and helping the kids look forward to camp. Have a popsicle day, water balloons day, bubbles day, whatever. Every single day right when your parents are waiting outside anyway just seems unnecessary.

As for America, it’s well-established that attitudes to food are somewhat unhealthy here. Every country has their own quirks and I accept that. In the bigger picture though I do not want my kids equating food with an emotional quick fix, convenience, have whatever you want when you want it. Food is about connection to the land and the people who work to make it. You respect yourself and your community by taking time to learn about it and prepare it well. Even this young kid knows how to water the garden, harvest vegetables, cut and eat it, compost to make the soil good. I don’t think it’s healthy to grow up thinking food comes from a plastic bag and you just buy and trash it as you please. But ok, I am giving my kids an eating disorder….

And yes, I’m more passionate about food than most, but it’s such a basic part of life! Camp is temporary so I am obviously not going to say anything. Just not thrilled at the attitude of who cares.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:As someone with an actual eating disorder, this forum makes me sad how messed up their food issues are. People dont get how it can seriously mess up their kids. I may have issues with food, but I work really hard to make sure my kid has a healthy relationship with it.

Gosh… really, there not going to have a healthy relationship with food because they had lunch at lunch time instead of sugar water?

Yes. Freaking out over a popsicle a day is not normal. It's a popsicle.

Was someone freaking out?

Yeah OP. Posting here is a freak out. Have fun with your eating disorder. Try not to eff your kids up too much.

Just because you have an eating disorder doesn’t mean everyone does. My family loves food, just not in an American way. The kids eat everything and help with growing and cooking food. This is not really a habit that seems all that healthy and would never happen abroad, tbh. And since you have an eating disorder you should know that it’s the Westernization of media etc that is responsible for the rise of eating disorders in other countries.

Whatever. "Abroad" is a big world, and I guarantee that kids around the world eat popsicles, or chocolate, or candy, or juice, more often than UMC DCUM posters think is acceptable.

Sure. I just got a popsicle recipe book from another country and the kids are excited about it. We don’t have them at lunch time though because that’s a time for eating lunch. I teach my kids, as most other cultures around the world do, that food is for health and pleasure and we eat a balanced diet of everything in moderation. Snacks are great but filling up on them instead of regular food is not great for your body, especially when you’re growing.

My French teacher told us about her childhood -- when kids got home from school, they ate a chocolate bar stuck in a baguette.

If you think everyone around the world has the same attitude towards food and eating that you do, you're not as cultured and superior as you think.

Omg. I read that book French Kids Eat Everything. The author had this premise that FRENCH KIDS DO NOT SNACK and that's why they aren't picky. However, she also talked repeatedly about the daily "gouter" which is chocolate in warm bread. It's called Le Gouter. She gave it to her kids every day after school. But again, FRENCH KIDS DO NOT SNACK.

So it seems some folks are absolutely delusional.

I agree that book is simpleminded. But I think she means there is a difference between snacking at a given time during the day (like tea time in England) and walking around with containers of goldfish and crackers, squeeze pouches instead of actually eating meals, etc. and then wondering why your kid is chronically constipated and won’t eat any regular food.

Seems to me that the popsicle that so perturbs OP falls squarely into the bolded category.

Except a popsicle is not a snack. It's water and sugar. It's candy. That's the issue. The kid has daily candy time at school - every day - and OP doesn't like the frequency. She's not against an occasional popsicle (or candy) but the continuous popsicle/candy feed. This is not a mini cucumber sandwich.

And, once again, the oh so superior Europeans referred to in France are feeding their kids chocolate inside bread (nothing but sugar and carbs), but apparently that’s OK, because it’s before dinner and not before lunch.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. This is totally becoming popsicle gate.

To clarify, no I am not opposed to sweets. Yes I like popsicles. During quarantine we had a teatime some days to break up the monotony and we all liked baking new treats. But eating empty calories at meal time when you’ve just had a snack 1.5 hours ago seems not to make much sense to me.

I think these responses are a bit extreme. I’m going to cause an eating disorder by not wanting them to eat snacks at mealtime? Kids cannot transition to a line without a treat? Um, ok.

I have nothing against using a treat for fun and helping the kids look forward to camp. Have a popsicle day, water balloons day, bubbles day, whatever. Every single day right when your parents are waiting outside anyway just seems unnecessary.

As for America, it’s well-established that attitudes to food are somewhat unhealthy here. Every country has their own quirks and I accept that. In the bigger picture though I do not want my kids equating food with an emotional quick fix, convenience, have whatever you want when you want it. Food is about connection to the land and the people who work to make it. You respect yourself and your community by taking time to learn about it and prepare it well. Even this young kid knows how to water the garden, harvest vegetables, cut and eat it, compost to make the soil good. I don’t think it’s healthy to grow up thinking food comes from a plastic bag and you just buy and trash it as you please. But ok, I am giving my kids an eating disorder….

Please look up how many calories are in one single popsicle then just stop.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. This is totally becoming popsicle gate.

To clarify, no I am not opposed to sweets. Yes I like popsicles. During quarantine we had a teatime some days to break up the monotony and we all liked baking new treats. But eating empty calories at meal time when you’ve just had a snack 1.5 hours ago seems not to make much sense to me.

I think these responses are a bit extreme. I’m going to cause an eating disorder by not wanting them to eat snacks at mealtime? Kids cannot transition to a line without a treat? Um, ok.

I have nothing against using a treat for fun and helping the kids look forward to camp. Have a popsicle day, water balloons day, bubbles day, whatever. Every single day right when your parents are waiting outside anyway just seems unnecessary.

As for America, it’s well-established that attitudes to food are somewhat unhealthy here. Every country has their own quirks and I accept that. In the bigger picture though I do not want my kids equating food with an emotional quick fix, convenience, have whatever you want when you want it. Food is about connection to the land and the people who work to make it. You respect yourself and your community by taking time to learn about it and prepare it well. Even this young kid knows how to water the garden, harvest vegetables, cut and eat it, compost to make the soil good. I don’t think it’s healthy to grow up thinking food comes from a plastic bag and you just buy and trash it as you please. But ok, I am giving my kids an eating disorder….

Please look up how many calories are in one single popsicle then just stop.

I never count calories. It’s irrelevant if you eat healthy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As someone with an actual eating disorder, this forum makes me sad how messed up their food issues are. People dont get how it can seriously mess up their kids. I may have issues with food, but I work really hard to make sure my kid has a healthy relationship with it.

Gosh… really, there not going to have a healthy relationship with food because they had lunch at lunch time instead of sugar water?

Yes. Freaking out over a popsicle a day is not normal. It's a popsicle.

Was someone freaking out?

Yeah OP. Posting here is a freak out. Have fun with your eating disorder. Try not to eff your kids up too much.

Just because you have an eating disorder doesn’t mean everyone does. My family loves food, just not in an American way. The kids eat everything and help with growing and cooking food. This is not really a habit that seems all that healthy and would never happen abroad, tbh. And since you have an eating disorder you should know that it’s the Westernization of media etc that is responsible for the rise of eating disorders in other countries.

Whatever. "Abroad" is a big world, and I guarantee that kids around the world eat popsicles, or chocolate, or candy, or juice, more often than UMC DCUM posters think is acceptable.

Sure. I just got a popsicle recipe book from another country and the kids are excited about it. We don’t have them at lunch time though because that’s a time for eating lunch. I teach my kids, as most other cultures around the world do, that food is for health and pleasure and we eat a balanced diet of everything in moderation. Snacks are great but filling up on them instead of regular food is not great for your body, especially when you’re growing.

My French teacher told us about her childhood -- when kids got home from school, they ate a chocolate bar stuck in a baguette.

If you think everyone around the world has the same attitude towards food and eating that you do, you're not as cultured and superior as you think.

Omg. I read that book French Kids Eat Everything. The author had this premise that FRENCH KIDS DO NOT SNACK and that's why they aren't picky. However, she also talked repeatedly about the daily "gouter" which is chocolate in warm bread. It's called Le Gouter. She gave it to her kids every day after school. But again, FRENCH KIDS DO NOT SNACK.

So it seems some folks are absolutely delusional.

I agree that book is simpleminded. But I think she means there is a difference between snacking at a given time during the day (like tea time in England) and walking around with containers of goldfish and crackers, squeeze pouches instead of actually eating meals, etc. and then wondering why your kid is chronically constipated and won’t eat any regular food.

Seems to me that the popsicle that so perturbs OP falls squarely into the bolded category.

Except a popsicle is not a snack. It's water and sugar. It's candy. That's the issue. The kid has daily candy time at school - every day - and OP doesn't like the frequency. She's not against an occasional popsicle (or candy) but the continuous popsicle/candy feed. This is not a mini cucumber sandwich.

And, once again, the oh so superior Europeans referred to in France are feeding their kids chocolate inside bread (nothing but sugar and carbs), but apparently that’s OK, because it’s before dinner and not before lunch.

Are they eating it at dinner time?

[Anonymous]

Honestly, this is the kind of complaint I would have jeered at before, but now that I have an older child (9) raised in the current food environment, I understand a lot better. Still, I don’t think there’s all that much one can do to resist the dominant culture. Just try to counterbalance the popsicle with the rest of the day, and set a good example.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Tea time= food in between meals.
Gaiter= food in between meals.
Snack=food in between meals.

There's no difference.

Missed the point. What PP was trying to get to above was that the first two are fixed times, or a 1x per day, food in between meal times. And, well, not everyone has tea anymore. The difference with American snacking is that it is more of a continuous grazing. We eat all day, every day. If the kid is not being fed a sugary popsicle (that is pure junk food) it's goldfish, crackers, yogurts, snack bars, or similar. Kids here never have a break to get hungry. We snack ALL DAMN DAY. That's the difference.

I have a neighbor who tells me that her kid doesn't have a big appetite. When he comes for meals, he barely eats anything. She says he just doesn't eat much. However, before lunch and right after lunch, he eats Pringles, goldfish or Rice Krispies. During the afternoon, he eats other chips and salties. I had him for a whole day, she sent a bag of snacks and that's all he ate. Yet she told me that he doesn't like to eat big meals. No, it's because he eats crap all day. Same thing here. Or with all of the country actually.

OP is complaining about a snack that is given at the same time every day. She is not complaining about someone grazing. If OP's kid is grazing all damn day, then that's on OP, since it appears that her kid is not at camp for 21 out of 24 hours.

The snack is water and a little sugar. It's got the number one most important nutrient for a kid playing outside in the sun, which is water, so it's definitely not pure junk food. It's also the same, nutritionally, as a British cup of tea, minus the milk. If you want to argue that the British only ever drink tea one time a day that is scheduled, well, I'm going to argue that you've never been to Britain.

[Anonymous]

How many weeks is camp?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Tea time= food in between meals.
Gaiter= food in between meals.
Snack=food in between meals.

There's no difference.

Missed the point. What PP was trying to get to above was that the first two are fixed times, or a 1x per day, food in between meal times. And, well, not everyone has tea anymore. The difference with American snacking is that it is more of a continuous grazing. We eat all day, every day. If the kid is not being fed a sugary popsicle (that is pure junk food) it's goldfish, crackers, yogurts, snack bars, or similar. Kids here never have a break to get hungry. We snack ALL DAMN DAY. That's the difference.

I have a neighbor who tells me that her kid doesn't have a big appetite. When he comes for meals, he barely eats anything. She says he just doesn't eat much. However, before lunch and right after lunch, he eats Pringles, goldfish or Rice Krispies. During the afternoon, he eats other chips and salties. I had him for a whole day, she sent a bag of snacks and that's all he ate. Yet she told me that he doesn't like to eat big meals. No, it's because he eats crap all day. Same thing here. Or with all of the country actually.

OP is complaining about a snack that is given at the same time every day. She is not complaining about someone grazing. If OP's kid is grazing all damn day, then that's on OP, since it appears that her kid is not at camp for 21 out of 24 hours.

The snack is water and a little sugar. It's got the number one most important nutrient for a kid playing outside in the sun, which is water, so it's definitely not pure junk food. It's also the same, nutritionally, as a British cup of tea, minus the milk. If you want to argue that the British only ever drink tea one time a day that is scheduled, well, I'm going to argue that you've never been to Britain.

LOL. You clearly do not understand what tea time is. Have you been to the UK for tea? This is an honest question and I"m not trying to be rude. I am explaining politely. It's not just tea; it's tea served with an array of sandwiches, scones, and jam. It can be as much or as little of these items as you like, though if you go out for tea it's a whole freaking meal. We're not talking about just drinking a cup of tea during the day. I believe PPs are talking about the actual designated meal/snack that is "tea time" that occurs after lunch and before supper.

[Anonymous]

Elevenses. That's a thing in other countries. People eating something midmorning.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Tea time= food in between meals.
Gaiter= food in between meals.
Snack=food in between meals.

There's no difference.

Missed the point. What PP was trying to get to above was that the first two are fixed times, or a 1x per day, food in between meal times. And, well, not everyone has tea anymore. The difference with American snacking is that it is more of a continuous grazing. We eat all day, every day. If the kid is not being fed a sugary popsicle (that is pure junk food) it's goldfish, crackers, yogurts, snack bars, or similar. Kids here never have a break to get hungry. We snack ALL DAMN DAY. That's the difference.

I have a neighbor who tells me that her kid doesn't have a big appetite. When he comes for meals, he barely eats anything. She says he just doesn't eat much. However, before lunch and right after lunch, he eats Pringles, goldfish or Rice Krispies. During the afternoon, he eats other chips and salties. I had him for a whole day, she sent a bag of snacks and that's all he ate. Yet she told me that he doesn't like to eat big meals. No, it's because he eats crap all day. Same thing here. Or with all of the country actually.

+1

And I agree with OP - this would bother me too. Breakfast, a 10:30 snack, a popsicle at noon, then lunch? That’s absurd, and definitely counts as constant grazing. My kid wouldn’t eat lunch after that either. The cult of snacks is crazy and unhealthy.

Everyone on this board is always talking about Ellyn Satter, but she talks about how parents control the what, where and when of food, and a popsicle because otherwise you might have to entertain yourself waiting for your parent to pick you up at noon is for sure not what I would choose!

I probably wouldn’t say anything, but it’d bug me for sure.