Picky kids coming to visit - now I've seen it all

[Anonymous]

One of my biggest pet peeves is kids who come to our house and refuse to eat anything we serve. When we first moved here from Europe, we would serve our kids' friends (ranging in age from 8 to 12) whatever we were eating - pasta bolognese, roasted chicken and potatoes with herbs, salad. We soon realized that our kids friends' -- at least the ones who'd grown up in the US -- wouldn't touch any of it. So we started simplifying their meals, only serving plain pasta, hamburgers, pizza, hot dogs. That works most of the time. (Well, except for the kid who scrapes all the toppings off a plain pizza and cuts off the crust, in the end only eating 40% of each slice and throwing the rest away.) Anyway... today we had some more kids over and I made hot dogs and oven french fries. Sure winner, right? Nope. One of the kids, upon seeing the food, immediately declares: I don't like french fries. The only french fries I like are the home made ones.

Please, can someone unroll my eyes out of the back of my head?

[Anonymous]

This post sounds awfully familiar...only it was a European step-grandparent (IIRC) complaining about what the American kids would eat.

Who are these kids you’re constantly feeding full meals? Was today a school holiday?

[Anonymous]

I'm with you. But don't think this is a Europe vs American thing.

The struggle is real. DH and I are the most adventurous eaters ever. And our kids like plain food. We've never made them separate meals and they must sit at the table while we're eating. 99% of the time they pick through our meals, don't eat or scrape things off our food. We do try to feed them one thing a night we know they love and that doesn't even always work. DH and I have a joy of cooking and eating and aren't sure where our kids came from.

[Anonymous]

Why not ask the kids what they will eat before making it?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This post sounds awfully familiar...only it was a European step-grandparent (IIRC) complaining about what the American kids would eat.

Who are these kids you’re constantly feeding full meals? Was today a school holiday?

Yes, we've seen this post before ...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why not ask the kids what they will eat before making it?

I agree with this. If you're going out of your way to cook foods that the kids will like, might as well ask first.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why not ask the kids what they will eat before making it?

I've done that. The kid who scraped the toppings off her pizza had specifically asked for pizza before coming to our house. In fact, I shelved the original dinner plan so I could accommodate her pickiness.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This post sounds awfully familiar...only it was a European step-grandparent (IIRC) complaining about what the American kids would eat.

Who are these kids you’re constantly feeding full meals? Was today a school holiday?

Yes today was a half day in MoCo.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm with you. But don't think this is a Europe vs American thing.

The struggle is real. DH and I are the most adventurous eaters ever. And our kids like plain food. We've never made them separate meals and they must sit at the table while we're eating. 99% of the time they pick through our meals, don't eat or scrape things off our food. We do try to feed them one thing a night we know they love and that doesn't even always work. DH and I have a joy of cooking and eating and aren't sure where our kids came from.

Did your kids grow up here? I think it's the general culture out there, as parents you have little control even if you model healthy habits.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This post sounds awfully familiar...only it was a European step-grandparent (IIRC) complaining about what the American kids would eat.

Yes, we've seen this post before ...

This one?

Hosting step-grandson for two weeks- how to deal with food fussiness
http://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/740836.page

[Anonymous]

Oven fries ARE gross. Just slice up some potatoes.

[Anonymous]

"Oh. Tough luck then. I hope you're not going to be TOO hungry".

[Anonymous]

I think you are on the right track when serving simple, plain food. Hotdog, bun ,French fries and some fruit. Let kids pick and choose the foods they prefer. Larlo doesn't like fries? Have another hotdog. Perhaps the child speaking their preferences out loud is the problem. Teach your children to not comment on the menu and to say thank you!

[Anonymous]

My kid is a picky eater, and on our cruise this summer tried some more we’ve turius meals. We actually make him feel bad saying he cannot d left to eat off the adult menu if he only like “kiddie” meals. Like plain pizza, chicken fingers, plain burgers, etc. He has recently added more combinations - steak and cheese sub, Buritto with chicken and rice, and recently went out to dinner with some friends, and came back complaining “you all think I am a picky eater, some of these kids don’t like dairy or cheese or ketchup up or their food touching.”

[Anonymous]

I would not have given the comment a second thought. The kid can have hot dogs and no fries. Maybe he was more honest than an adult would be but who cares if the kid was not going to eat your fries. If I were joining you for lunch I may have turned down the fries because I watch my calories.

Now if he had said Bleck..those fries are very gross..I only eat potatoes baked. Can I have a baked potato instead? I would have had a problem.

I have a picky child and my only requirement is that she is polite and does not make requests for alternate food. She does not have to eat something she does not like.