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Written by fantabulous mama extraordinaire and superbo sister in law, Carly Telpner. We are so pleased to have Carly share her tips for developing healthy eating habits in kiddies!
This morning my darling two-year old daughter, sweet little Mia, ate a breakfast that consisted of almonds, strawberries, homemade pumpkin muffin and a green-berry smoothie that had strawberries, blueberries, kale, and hemp seeds in it. Sounds wonderful, right?
1. Start as you intend to continue.
2. Perseverance and Consistency
3. Lead By Example
My third lesson may seem cliché and common, but it’s something I live by and is the most important in my mind. I would never expect Mia to eat something I wouldn’t eat myself. All the same, if Mia’s not allowed to play with toys at the table all of our technology is put away and no phone calls, emails, texts or tweets are taken at the table either. As any parent knows, kids watch everything we do and take pride in mimicking the adults in their lives. If there’s no processed junk food around for my husband, Michael, and I to eat, then there’s no processed junk food around for Mia to eat.
As an everyday parent, I know it’s not always so simple or easy and following three lessons won’t solve all your parenting challenges. With a a screaming child by my side, I’ve asked myself many times ‘how did we get here?’. I am constantly reminding myself of my own three lessons while figuring out this challenging job. One thing I know for sure is that the hard work that comes with feeding my child a healthy, nourishing and ‘Meghan approved’ diet is more than worth a few tantrums and tears.
Question of the Day: What are your tips for getting your kids to eat the good stuff…and ditch the bad?
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Beyond the Tantrums and Tears: 3 Lessons For Meal Times With Little Ones: Written by fantabulous mama extraordin… http://t.co/UsAWaOTV
What a smart mama, what a lucky little girl to have parents like this. This is not just about food, but her relationship with her parents, just wait till she is a teenager, she knows where she stands with her parents. Mia will say to other , can’t do that, my parents would kill me.
One of the best peices of advice I had received when we were new parents was the following. Before you go ahead and you choose to allow your child to eat or do anything, such as eat certain unhealthy foods, tantrum in a store (which instead trying to appease, stop what you are doing and leave, to send the message this is not acceptable behavior…tough on you the first couple of times, but it works), or playing with certain items, etc., stop for a moment to ask yourself one question. The most important question is, if we do this once, am I willing to let them do this over and over and over again? It is a lot easier to not allow them to do something the first time than it is to break a bad habit. This simple question is priceless! We have five children and it has been amazing to see how it has saved us from so many tears and tantrums our friends families have gone through! Hope this helps.
Mia is such a cutie, takes after her Mom!
What a lucky little girl! I believe that, along with Carly’s wonderful guidelines, education is really important. Even when my boys were toddlers I would explain “these yummy carrots have lots of vitamins in them!”. As they get older, the “lessons” get more detailed. Perhaps when they are older they will throw it all out the door but I believe they will always have that knowledge to come back to
Beyond the Tantrums and Tears: 3 Lessons For Meal Times With Little Ones http://t.co/obZbYnU0
Great post Carly!
can you please post the recipe for your pumpkin muffins?
check our my post! “@meghantelpner: Awesome tips for instilling healthy eating habits in bebes! http://t.co/1VhutriZ #parenting”
My kids are older (almost 7 and 9) and I take time to explain t them what bad food and good food do to them. They know about good ingredients, they read labels and they ask if the fruit they are eating is organic. It’s not always and they have their sugary moments but overall they do pretty well in choosing the good stuff for them as they know they will feel better after (and stay healthy). They also saw me being very very sick with Crohn’s disease and they understand that food can make you sick. I’m not saying Crohn’s only related to food but since I’m on a gluten/sugar/dairy/yeast free diet I’m feeling so much better… and they see it. So I think teaching them the benefits of good food and the consequences of eating bad stuff (when they are old enough to understand) can help, too.
Three words: Baby. Led. Weaning.
PS – My babe has toast sometimes and I think that’s okay! She also has kale, swiss chard, kiwi, avocado, squash, zuchinni, snow peas, sugar snap peas, sweet potato and more veggies than most adults consume. But she has toast too.
PPS – Baby bok choi is the BEST baby food in the universe. Little handle. Loads of leafy green goodness.
Great little post about feeding our kids. Simple. True. I needed this today! http://t.co/GLYIOIwr via @meghantelpner
Great Post Carly! I couldn’t agree more. Your simple rules underscore what really matters when feeding kids. As the mom of 3 “grown up” kids (now in their teens and twenties) I speak from experience when I say that its what we consistently model as parents that has the greatest impact on our kids. If eating and enjoying delicious, real food together as a family is the norm for your kids, then it’s what they will continue to do. Now that they’re away at university, my two older kids often make “family dinner” for their roommates, and have introduced their friends to the farmer’s market! My best tip for getting your kids to eat the “good stuff” is simply to eat it (and enjoy it) yourself! (P.S. I’m loving watching Mia grow up -she’s beautiful!)
Parents, read on! Sweet tips for #healthy #baby bellies http://t.co/Hb2SsY8n
i can put all of those tips into use but the question remains how do i get him to actually eat the food?? My son will eat applesauce for every meal if he could but we all know that is not part of a balanced diet. I prepare the foods I know are good for him sauteed kale, brown rice, baked tofu and he will sit with it in his mouth not CHEWING!! i make smoothies and soups which he loves but they run right thru him and I am dealing with a poopy mess. i encourage him to eat it because I know it is good for him but he being 2yrs old doesn’t see it that way! I know he will eat the foods he doesn’t like with applesauce and toast but that is not setting a good example because he will learn if i dont like it mom will give me applesauce to wash it down faster. HELP
I would google “Baby-Led Weaning” for some ideas on finger foods for toddlers. There’s also “Sneaky Chef” way of doing things, but then they don’t learn to appreciate whole foods. What about trying to expand his repetoire with sweeter vegetables (squash wedges, sweet potato fries)?
Fabulous, simple tips! I am always working on getting my 3 year old daughter (also a Mia) to try new foods and to learn to love “real food”. It’s fun to explore food with her and try interesting new foods (kale chips, anyone?) and get creative with familiar foods (hard boiled eggs molded into teddy bears!). Thanks for these wonderful tips to keep it simple!
LOVE these toddler food tips from Making Love in the Kitchen: http://t.co/YbBQB7fN #toddlers #healthy #parenting
In our case, I find that my 3 yr old will more likely to eat the food I serve if I explain to her why it’s good for her. Thanks for this post and Mia is super adorable!
Cutest blog post ever? Maybe, just maybe. http://t.co/H5jQJfji #parenting #health
best three #tips for #parents who want to fill babies bellies w/ goodness http://t.co/Za2xXE7U
For me I think it started with breast feeding (when it’s possible) and baby lead weaning. And, the lead by example one is huge!