Comments on: One Thing on the Menu

By: ISO(In)sanity

ISO(In)sanity — Sat, 02 Apr 2011 04:34:38 +0000

Do it. It will make you soooo happy. Peanut took to her range from eating everything...to like 5 things and fruit. And that was it. I did it to myself. It took me months to undo the damage. Two year oldish kids are notoriously picky.

First I tackled the picky, cause we eat a lot of spicy, ethnic foods here in the house (and the kid wouldn't eat noodles OR rice). So we had a two week learning curve on carrot sticks and then went food by food. Now she'll try 8 out of 10 things when I show it to her, and that's all I ask.

Now the flip side of it is that once a week or so she will get a kid-meal - fried shrimp or something, and we don't eat as much of the funky stuff that we used to, so she gets a comfort meal every so often, and we're not making Moroccan Beef so much, but for the lessening of angst over dinner, it's worth it.

A wise person once told me: Once you pick a battle, you can't give in. So if you pick it, you'll probably have a rough few nights, but it did work here. And my Peanut is iron willed.

Also, my girls know they get yogurt before bed, so they won't be hungry at night no matter.

By: Jennifer

Jennifer — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 15:47:47 +0000

I also cook one meal for everyone. All 6 of them (ages 6-22) are expected to eat what's in front of them. It works here…no one has starved, everyone is healthy and growing, and most of them will eat just about anything. No other choice–mom is NOT a short order cook. Life's too short for that! 🙂

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 02:38:49 +0000

I cook one meal for everyone. My 4 year old has food allergies so that makes it a bit of a challenge, but it works. She now understands that what is on her plate is what she is getting at that meal. When it is something that I know she doesn't like, such as fish, I give her a very small portion (2 or 3 bites) and make sure the other parts of the meal are things that she likes. I never make the kids clean their plates, but they have to try everything on their plate, even if they are sure they don't like it. Some meals go better than others, but they are both growing and healthy so I think they are doing okay.

By: The Jiu Jiu

The Jiu Jiu — Tue, 29 Mar 2011 09:20:04 +0000

Mom has been known to cook for the entire 101st Airborne Division when it's only the immediate family eating, but we all tend to get the same thing and that's worked pretty well since I can remember. (I also remember the occasional miserable meal where I didn't want what was on my plate and HAD to finish it, but Mom & Dad probably felt just as miserable about it as I did.) Right now the Pipsqueak is still about 1/2 toddler food and 1/2 real food, but there's no problem because she prefers to grab (literally!) whatever's on our plates. No need to make special dishes — but for once all that extra food's coming in handy!

By: Sandy K

Sandy K — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 14:41:27 +0000

How funny, I am currently on the frontlines of the One Family, One Meal War. Going well so far with Big Girl (4.5), Little One (3) is much more stubborn. I always save her plate and when she asks for a banana before bed, I give her the dinner she left behind. Seems to be working. I WILL BREAK HER!!

By: Heather Thompson

Heather Thompson — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 13:16:26 +0000

I have never cooked a special meal for my kids (probably bc my sister did this for YEARS with my niece and I didn't want to deal with what she had on her hands;p) but will say it helps to have one item in the meal that you KNOW they'll eat. We always insist on a "no thank-you" bite (or two) and don't ever force items that I wouldn't want to eat at their age;) Strangely my 5 y/o swears her favorite food is broccoli with cheese?! i do try to keep things fun by offering things they can add to soups (sprinkle shredded cheese, scoop of sour cream, tortilla chips, etc) which makes it more fun. They also like to dip (bbq sauce, ketchup, soup, etc). have fun and good luck!

By: sara

sara — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 12:04:11 +0000

so funny!! I do the same thing, make something different for everyone, so silly. I think my mom made one thing for everyone, and some nights I would take the mystery meat, make into little tiny balls and swallow like pills, then we got a dog.

By: Rachel

Rachel — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 12:02:43 +0000

I do this most of the time and it does work. Some nights my kids may jot eat much, But if they're hungry they'll eat.

I tell them that they don't have to eat their dinner, but they don't get dessert unless they eat what I consider enight if their dinner. My kids are VERY dessert motivated. Those 2 Oreos or small scoop of ice cream does wonders!

Rachel
(Lily's mom)

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 11:54:26 +0000

love this because i am constantly making more than one meal and i'm tired! i like the idea a lot and im going to try it. ellen has a great point about at least having one thing that you know the kid will like. thank you both!

By: ellen

ellen — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 11:38:14 +0000

we only have one kid so one fussy palate but we do make just one meal and it works, mostly. i do make sure there is at least one thing on the plate that i know she will eat, which helps. she starts on that and then might work her way over to the rest. or vice versa, i put down just the veg and make her wait for the pasta or rice. out of sheer hunger, she will start with the veg (sometimes). i can't say it always works but if she complains, we often just ignore it and say "sorry dear but this is what's for dinner." she will indeed eventually cave. or i will. well yes one of us caves but it's not *always* me. give it a shot. just make sure you've got some plain pasta on back-up in case it gets ugly.