Trouble on dining table
Kids are unpredictable, they like one thing today and they wont even look at that thing the next day. One morning these little heads will be craving for rice cakes and the next day they would want to enjoy ice cream. You can never be too sure what they will eat. Some kids eat everything given to them while others will throw fit. So it doesn’t really maters if you are a chef extraordinaire or an amateur cook, children will be fuzzy eaters.
But fuzzy eaters end up developing sense of taste and texture and of smell and aroma a lot quickly. So all is good. But still handling fuzzy eaters can test your temper at time.
So how can you work your way with fuzzy eaters. Sometimes we need to change our self. We need to be little playful and tat more witty. How ..? Here’s how..
- Try not to worry about spilled drinks or food on the floor.
- Starts by asking your child to lick a piece of food, and work up to trying a mouthful.
- And praise your child for these small attempts.
- Never force your child to try a food. They’ll have lots of other opportunities to try new foods.
- Giving fussy eating lots of attention can sometimes encourage children to keep behaving this way.
- Make healthy foods fun – for example, cut roti into interesting shapes, or let your child help prepare a meal
- Set a time limit for every meals. Anything that goes on too long isn’t fun. If your child hasn’t eaten the food in this time, take it away and don’t offer your child more food until the next planned meal or snack time.
Sometimes toddlers are too distracted to sit at the family table for a meal. If this sounds like your child, try having quiet time before meals so they can calm down before eating.
Should you punish or bribe fuzzy eaters? No. You should not do that . If your child refuses to eat a dish then take it away. Do not offer them any other option and ignore them when they make a request to eat something else. Do not bribe them by saying“ if you eat your vegetables you can have a chocolate” this will make eating healthy food seem like a task.
Teach kids that they must finish whatever healthy meal is given to them or else they will not get anything else till the next meal time.
Giving choices to fuzzy eaters can improve their behaviour. But the trick is to trick them in to selecting the healthy food. But how?
Its simple, let them know the power of choice lies in their hand. Give them healthy options and let them make their choices. Ask them if they want have a banana or mashed potato. No matter the option they end up with , it will be a healthy item. The idea is to give them the freedom of choices.
Parents everywhere understand that bringing up a child requires a lot of effort and patience. As kids reach the age where they can make choice, it becomes a lot tricky to handle them. And as parents we are concerned with what goes in their little tummy. It has to be healthy. But as kids they do not understand our intentions. They end up making a fuzz. So why not apply they mentioned ideas and turn the eating woes to fun games.
All these tips will help you but they key to success with kids is always patience and love. Show them when you are happy and proud . Show them that you care. That’s all it take to keep those little heads happy.
