More Little G

Now that I've had a couple of questions regarding how I get Little G to eat veggies and try new foods I'll work on adding that info to the blog.

She doesn't always eat what I want her to, in fact it goes in spurts. One week she willingly eats everything I give her, then the next week she doesn't want anything to do with food. I've picked up a few tricks over the past year which I use all the time.

Here are 10 tricks I use.

1. Add a tsp of butter and a pinch of salt to veggies. Would you want to eat peas without seasoning? Plus everything tastes better with butter.

2. One of my newest tricks is offering a dip. She'll eat almost anything right now if she can dip it in ketchup. So I squirt a bit on her plate and she dips away. Sour cream is another dip she enjoys.

3. Add peanut butter. Plain oatmeal with 1/2 a Tbs of peanut butter is one of her favorite breakfasts. For a snack, a slice of whole wheat bread with peanut butter - another favorite.

4. Put it in pasta. Little G really likes pasta (angel hair cut in half) so I'll make her a bowl and add a tsp of butter and a variation of peas, carrots, chicken, pork, broccoli, and olives.

5. Eat dinner together. We always eat dinner together as a family at the table (she's in a high chair pulled up to the table). I've found that if she watched us eat, she'll likely try anything. I usually give her a portion of the protein I make for dinner along with a veggie/fruit. For example, if I'm making Chicken Marsala for dinner, I'll make a portion for her with a little seasoning and set it aside and also give her some mashed potatoes and mushrooms to try.

6. Wait it out. If I put something new in front of her she'll yell, "Don't like it, Mom!" But if she sits there long enough she'll eventually give in and eat. It's not easy when she's throwing a fit. It usually takes a good 10-15 minutes. I also sing "Try it, you'll like it!" from Yo Gabba Gabba.

7. Offer the veggies/fruit first and nothing else. For dinner, I sometimes give her the veggies first if she's in "one of those moods."

8. Rice. Little G is crazy about rice. All kinds of rice - white, brown, spanish, fried. She loves it all. I chop up chicken and veggies and add it to the rice for dinner or lunch.

9. Steam-In-The-Bag veggies are so easy and cheap. Right now I have 7 bags of veggies in the freezer ready to microwave. I get them at WalMart for $1.00 each.

10. Make grocery shopping fun - my mom taught me this. When Little G and I go grocery shopping I let her hold the fruits and veggies and teach her the name of them. We smell them together and feel their texture. It's really fun. I once had a woman come up to me and say she wishes she would have done that with her children. Make every experience a learning one.