It is the question that plaques moms everywhere, “How to get their children to eat veggies and other good stuff?” I am a bit of picky eater, so when K was born I was determined to help expand her eating horizons to include a little of everything. Since her Daddy eats everything, I turn to him for samples of things to try.
At first, things were great, and I was sure I had gotten lucky with a great eater. K ate everything I put in front of her without protest. But suddenly she changed (free will set in)… she only wants to eat snacks and even turns her nose up at even her old favorites. I hit the toddler roadblock! Some meals she eats great, other meals nada… and she seems to be giving up on her favorite veggies like peas and corn.
I am a bit of a loss, to tell the truth, I find myself in a food rut begging my little one to eat the things I give to her.
So, does work for us? The best piece of advice I can offer to other moms hitting this block is try, try, try and try it some more! We have all read the articles about it taking up to 10 tries to get a baby to accept new flavors, but I know it is easier said than done. It is so frustrating when your little one screams in protest or tosses the offending food to the floor. We all dread becoming the short-order cook for our picky kids, so if you are like me you feel panic coming on with each food protest. But there is no one magic trick to get your little one to eat. The only sure fire answer is patience and keep trying. What works today might fail miserably tomorrow. So, offering the standard veggies and trying some new ones (K has discovered a new love for edamame), and most of all keep setting a good example by eating lots of healthy stuff yourself.
Recently, I learned about Little Blends by Horizon . Little Blends mix veggies into their fruit flavored yogurts to sneak some extra good stuff into your little ones yogurt. I LOVE this idea as another way to get one of the recommended veggie servings into your toddler’s diet. Since K loves her yogurt, I plan on picking up some on my next shopping trip. (Since you know I love coupons, I even found coupons on the Horizon website to save on Little Blends!)
About Little Blends: Little Blends from Horizon is an all-natural yogurt blend of fruits and vegetables that will help parents incorporate more nutrition and variety into their child’s diet. Each 4-ounce cup packs a daily value of 20 percent calcium, 25 percent protein, omega-3 DHA and probiotics. Parents will really love how Little Blends makes sneaking fruits and veggies so much easier. This new line is just one example of how Horizon continues to deliver nutritious food options that support healthier kids and a healthier planet.
My friends over at Twitter Moms have teamed up with Horizons to offer a blogging contest to win free Little Blends for bloggers and their readers. If you are a blogger, check out the contest here.
I will report back after we try the Little Blends to let you know what K thought… fingers crossed, I would love for an easy solution to sneak in an extra serving while I continue to try to get her to eat veggies out right too!