I've been meaning to write about this for a while, but I keep waiting for the shoe to drop. Most great ideas that I get as a mother fall by the wayside as I lose interest. I swear I have the attention span of a fruit fly. Like, have you noticed there haven't been any craft pictures in a few months. Yea, that's because there have been no real crafts to speak of. You can take away my gold star now.
I've mentioned many times how Lily doesn't eat. There are very few foods that she consistently enjoys, and she just doesn't seem to need very many calories a day. I do not stress over her lack of eating. She is my healthiest child to date and seems to be growing and developing just fine. In order to not stress, I've always just stuck to a few hard and fast rules: 1) She must eat something healthy before getting a cup of milk 2) She can only have peanut butter as the main ingredient once a day 3) Snacks must have some hidden redeeming quality...for the most part.
Okay, but dinner has always been a time of stress and screaming and ridiculous disrespect to my cooking skills. For a long time, we've tried to stick to the policy that the children must try one bite of the dinner I fix. If they eat a bite, then they can have a peanut butter sandwich instead. If it is leftover night, then I will fix them a separate meal of nuggets, Spaghettios, etc. Leftover night was always the favorite around here. Lily often would choose to not eat rather than try one bite. She would run around and play and hassle us and get Andrew up out of his chair, because she wasn't eating. Most of the time, I'd just serve them first, and by the time Jeff and I got our plates, they'd already rejected the food and were up and playing. And by "playing" I mean running laps around our first floor screaming and tackling and fighting. Very peaceful dinnertime. Jeff and I would wolf down our food, taking turns getting up and fixing the kids issues.
So before the holidays, I decided we needed to civilize these children. We were looking at many many family dinners ahead of us, and it was important to me that our kids know how to sit still and enjoy other's company at meal time. So one night, I told Lily that she could either sit with us at the table or go to time out on the step. Eating was not a requirement, but sitting at the table and talking with us was. She screamed on the step. The next night...same options. She screamed on the step. The third night...she started out screaming on the step, but then came in and asked to sit with us. She requested a story be told as we sat there together.
And a new tradition has been born. We all happily sit down to eat together and Lily barks orders at us to tell her stories through the meal. Sometimes we manage to talk about our days...but let's be honest. Our days aren't real exciting. The truly amazing thing is? Jeff thought of the brilliant idea of making Lily take a bite of food to get us to tell a story. She has eaten Chicken tetraziini, a bowl of corn, Italian sausage, beans, and one night an entire piece of lasagna (we had friends over that night...the stories were worth it). It is amazing and shocking and so pleasant. We all enjoy dinnertime so much more, and it is something the kids look forward to...and we do to. And Lily has actually been TRYING NEW FOODS. Amazing. And they both ask to be excused when they are finished. It's like they're almost civilized for a few minutes a day.
In case you are picturing us reciting the Grimm brothers fairy tales or waxing famous poems at the table, here is a sample story at our nightly dinners:
Once upon a time there was a beautiful princess Lily. She loved colorful things, so she collected flowers and butterflies. One day she decided to go live in a rainbow so she could always be around colors. The End.
And that suffices for a story. Then it's Jeff's turn and Lily has to take another bite. And then Andrew's turn and she has to take another bite. And then it's Lily's turn and she makes US take a bite. And it's been working for over a month now. Phew. Now if I can just get them to stop pooping together, they might be ready for public exposure...
6 comments:
That's great! My kids are lousy at dinner time and eat very little. I usually put the veggies on the table first and they all kind of wander over, pick at them , and leave. At least they eat some of them! They are usually done eating by the time I sit down and they play quietly during dinner so I can't complain. Rob and I get dinner together alone several nights a week :)
Oh dinner. Dinner, dinner, dinner. WHY DO YOU TORMENT US SO.
That is a good idea, glad it is working for everyone. We have some picky eaters too, but I don't offer the option of something else after they try whatever is served. They eat what I made or they don't eat. I am mean like that I guess.
I've been thinking about a dinner post, mostly because G won't eat anything. I might steal this idea for N, though, because she wants to get up and fidget around, and then 30 minutes after the rest of us are done, she is still putzing around at the table.
Oooo that's a great idea. I'm always looking for ways to get my kids to try new foods or actually sit down and eat.
Well done!
Dinner struggles are never fun! It is so hit or miss at our house but I like these ideas. I just started using a story telling type thing before nap/bedtime and it seems to at least help settle them.
It's nice when these ideas work!
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