New foods

My twinkies will not try new foods. I'll try it for a few days in a row. And I do get a little frustrated... I know they say it can take 15-20 times for them to like it. So do I just continue to waste food? We will have a little bit of success (with "snack" foods) when we go to my in-laws. But I'll put the new foods on their plate, they'll sit and stare at it for 20 minutes and throw it on the floor. And then I give in and give their usual meal. To get this process going... should I "toughlove" it out and if they don't eat what I put then they don't eat (but maybe include "one" of their usuals)????? Any suggestions would be appreciated.

 

I usually include at least something I know they will eat, even if it's just bread or applesauce. That way, they don't go totally hungry and they were still introduced to the food. I also don't give them a big portion, just a small amount, that way I don't feel so bad wasting food.

 

I have a really big problem with Lorien being SO unbelievably picky that she will often turn her head with foods that I know she likes. I think she just forgets or doesn't recoginze the food so she automatically rejects it. Sometimes I literally have to just take a piece of it and shove it in her mouth for her to realize "Oh, ok. I like this." Sometimes she will spit it right out but once the actual taste of the food gets in her mouth, she often realizes that she likes it and will take the next bite willingly and eat the rest of it. If she spits it out a second time then I KNOW it's a no go. Honestly, it's the only way I have had success in getting her to eat anything besides fruit :wacko:

 

I would make sure they have atleast one thing on their plate that you know they like and a smaller portion of the new food you want them to try. But I wouldn't go making them another meal after they reject it since I feel they will get used to that and expect it all the time so then you will be making two meals instead of just one for the whole family. Something that also works for us is putting it on my dh's plate. My sons sits at the table next to him and is always going after his plate and will take food off of his plate (or my dh will see him going for it and give it to him to try) if he likes it he will get a small portion on his plate. For some reason though that only works for my dh, because if he sits next to me he usually leaves my plate alone.

 

I put it on my plate first too. My twinkies truly will eat anything that comes off my plate or they think I'm eating too. I eat a bite and they are like little birds with their mouths open, waiting. Now, to get to this point with them, I have had to give them some super yummy things from my plate too like ice cream and generally any sweets...now they come running to see what I have and are very willing to try whatever it is.

 

QUOTE(double-or-nothing @ Jan 6 2008, 01:45 PM) [snapback]559815[/snapback]
Sometimes I literally have to just take a piece of it and shove it in her mouth for her to realize "Oh, ok. I like this."

:rotflmbo: I do the SAME THING with Emma!!

For us, it's a lot of food wasting. I give them little bites here and there of whatever I want to try. More often than not, I'm, not successful and either end up eating it myself or tossing it.

 

Suggestion I've read (mind you, never done this, but it sounds good on paper ):
Give them no more than 1 tablespoon of everything you're serving. Once they eat all of that, they can have more of whatever they want. Only one of the things should be brand new, but they all also shouldn't be favorites.

Another suggestion is to feed them from things like colorful ice cube trays. Put finger foods in the compartments and just let them play and eat.

My girls would try new things if they could dip it in something: ketchup, vanilla yogurt, ranch dressing are all possibilites.

Let them "help" fix a plate. My girls would feed their dishes to me and I'd feed them in return.

Make sure ALL their snacks are healthy, because picky eaters need to squeeze in all the nutrition they can!

We have one who will try anything and likes almost everything. Some surprising favorites are tomatoes, cottage cheese (I never ate this until I was over 30 y/o), cole slaw, spinach, almost any kind of fish. She's eaten all of those since before she was 2. In the last couple of years, sushi has become one of her favorites.

Her sister seems picky by comparison, but when I think about other kids their age (5), I realize she's not that bad. We always have let them taste whatever we're eating. We give them new foods to try whenever possible -- they don't have to eat it all or like it, but they have to try it. If we're away from home and have something not usual to us, we get them to try it, too. Keep making different things available and keep it positive.

 

I am a total offender of wasting food because of this and therefore, I don't try as hard anymore because of it!!

I'm glad you asked!!!

 

I have a very picky eater and a somewhat picky eater, so it's always fun at mealtimes here. I just fix them a meal that I know they will eat and then throw in a small serving of one new thing. They almost never like something right away, so I offer that new thing several days in a row and then again a week or two later. It is time consuming, and things sometimes have to be frozen, but I am determined to get them to eat more than 8 things! Good luck!

 

QUOTE(double-or-nothing @ Jan 6 2008, 01:45 PM) [snapback]559815[/snapback]
I have a really big problem with Lorien being SO unbelievably picky that she will often turn her head with foods that I know she likes. I think she just forgets or doesn't recoginze the food so she automatically rejects it. Sometimes I literally have to just take a piece of it and shove it in her mouth for her to realize "Oh, ok. I like this." Sometimes she will spit it right out but once the actual taste of the food gets in her mouth, she often realizes that she likes it and will take the next bite willingly and eat the rest of it. If she spits it out a second time then I KNOW it's a no go. Honestly, it's the only way I have had success in getting her to eat anything besides fruit :wacko:


This is what I have to do with my ds to get him to try anything.

 

Try the new foods at the best times of the day - for instance, mine are always picky food wasters at lunch. Their just not as hungry. So lunch is the junk food meal. But when they have breakfast, they are STARVING - so have green beans for breakfast, and then try again at dinner, at they will remember they ate them before and that they werent so bad. I also find that with veggies, sometimes they want them just frozen - like little snacks in the day. But if they are just being bratty about it, then make them wait a few. We have a dinner rule that we all eat the same meal...no matter what. And they know this so they are pretty good about it. We remember those days of waiting for dinner and eating whats on the plate dont we? Good luck with the negotiations though

 

I tell them it's Pap Paps... then they'll eat it.

 

I feed mine twins "courses" -- first one includes something new or something one does not particularly like with something they do like. I have one that will eat anything as long as she can dip it in yogurt. Yesterday, she ate spoonfulls of yogurt topped topped with a piece of chicken [which she does not like] and a cheerio on top. Definitely her own creation. It also helps sometimes if I put it in a "special" bowl -- sometimes I just use a lid that they don't typically eat out of.

Good luck!

 

Do you eat what you're offering them. Mine are usually only picky at dinner time because there's more "grown up food". I have found that trying to get them to eat it always backfires. I simply serve the new food with other foods I know they usually eat. DH and I make a big fuss about how good our food is, but we try to never say "try some,you'll like it". More often than not they will have tried at least one piece by the end of the meal (after they eat every thing else and have no choice).

I always used to sit at the dinner table and try so hard to get them to eat that I never enjoyed my meal and they hardly ate anything anyway. Now, I pay more attention to my own food and very little attention to what they're eating. I find that I enjoy dinner time so much more and they always end up eating more than I expected them to.

Good luck

 

I got mine to eat something new on Sunday night by feeding off my plate... But only after coaxing them to lick it. Here's how it happened.

Me: eat some of this.
A & R: No. it's not my favorite. no thank you.
me: you can't say that if you havent tried it. try it. just try it.
a: no.
meeating some, responding dramatically) yum. mmm. this is so so good. You want some.
a: No.
me: here.
a: (mouth shut tight, but laughing)
me: lick it.
a: (licks it, and realizes she's not going to die)
me: mmmm. mmm... wasnt' that good. Here. Eat it.
A: (she eats it.)
me: here drink something to wash it down. Eat a 2-3 more bites and you can have some more (fruit or candy). {whatever I feel like bribing them with}. (number of bites is determined by age at our house)

Then I turn to Rachel and she's not going to let Alexis do something that she won't do as well. for better or worse. So she eats it and on the last bite, poor thing, I noticed she shuddered... That's when I don't offer it again as leftovers. . . . I won't try anything new again for a couple of weeks.

It was taco burrito thing, covered in sour cream. They don't always like ground beef. Keep in mind it depends on what you call things. They won't eat tacos but they will eat quesadilla. anything in a flour tortilla is a "quesadilla" at my house.

i agree it's better to give 3 green beans on the plate and give more later than to waste a 1/2 cup that is untouched. Less may end up being more in the long run.

 

oh another thing we do is eat like certain animals.
frogs (lick and see if it sticks to the tongue), hippos (open with a big mouth and put the food in quick)

We try to avoid eating like dogs or barbarians. LOL, but the Hippo frequents our mealtime efforts.