What do you do with their leftovers?

I know as infants and when they were eating baby food- it was like imbedded in your mind that you shouldn't keep it- to toss it. Well, what do you do now that they are older? FOr example, the other day I got a yobaby yogurt out and Syd took one bite of it. Now I pitched it because she was running a fever and I didn't need any germs multiplying faster than they were already but it got me thinking- do you keep some of your kids' leftovers that they may have touched or do you pitch it? I find myself eating some of their food (which I need not do!!! insert blimp smily here - all because I feel like it is such a waste).

 

I know as infants and when they were eating baby food- it was like imbedded in your mind that you shouldn't keep it- to toss it. Well, what do you do now that they are older? FOr example, the other day I got a yobaby yogurt out and Syd took one bite of it. Now I pitched it because she was running a fever and I didn't need any germs multiplying faster than they were already but it got me thinking- do you keep some of your kids' leftovers that they may have touched or do you pitch it? I find myself eating some of their food (which I need not do!!! insert blimp smily here - all because I feel like it is such a waste).

 

I don't usually keep their leftovers. You never can tell if something was in their mouth and like you said I don't really need extra germs around.

 

I don't keep their leftovers either. I think by the time they've stuck their hands in them or put something in their mouth it's probably pretty germy. With some things I dish a little bit out and then wait to give them more until they've eaten what I gave them.

 

I serve food onto their trays (sometimes with my own fingers , though I try to remember to use a spoon) and I try not to "contaminate" the dish I'm serving from. In those cases, I'll use something 3 or 4 times before I finally toss whatever's left.

And sometimes I do this even when they've had their own grubby little hands in it. I also keep things like yogurt or baby food when I've been feeding them directly from the container, although those I will only keep from dinnertime till the next morning. I figure that I save my own leftovers, so why not save theirs.

Part of my attitude comes from the fact that they are in daycare and I figure they've been exposed to everything anyway. But I'm still probably on the extreme end of not worrying about this, and I hope it doesn't bite me in the form of a bout of gastroenteritis or something. I am very conscientious about refrigerating, at least.

 

It kind of depends on what it is, how much, etc. I don't normally keep what I have already served to them (on their tray or bowl) because it's not that much and they have usually smeared it all over the place. If I have been feeding them a bowl of soup (one common bowl and I am spooning it) and they have a decent amount left, I'll stick a lid on it and keep it.
I am also on the far end of not being worried about germs. I'm the same mother who lets them eat Cheerios off the floor.

 

Way too often I eat their leftovers myself!

I buy the big containers of yogurt so that's not an issue. I dump out the bowl if they don't eat it. But it drove me NUTS when they would do that with the individual servings -- hence the switch. I don't buy many individual servings of anything anymore.

I only put on their plate small portions that I think they'll eat. If they want more they get another small portion, and usually there's some wastage, which either goes in the trash, to the dog, or down my gullet!

 

I'm also a non-germophobe. My boys tend to share leftovers, as in "Are you going to finish that yogurt or can I have it?" "I call Brady's french fries!!"...stuff like that. So we don't often get the chance to actually SAVE them!

They have gotten in the habit of putting their half-drank cups of milk back in the fridge. When it's time for a snack or the next meal, they just grab one, regardless of whose it was in the first place.

That's the mode of operation unless someone is sick, in which case I don't allow any sharing.

 

Milk or juice I always save until next feeding time. Yogurt or something like that I normally would split it between them when I had to feed them myself and they would always finish it. When they were able to eat themselves I put it into a bowl and when they finished that much I put more in. Most of the stuff if they didn't finish, which they most likely did finish most, I would eat after them. I normally waited until after they were done to eat my own meal so I would know how much to make myself based on what they ate or didn't eat.

 

Most of the time it goes in the fridge for another time or I eat it !!! Things like yogurt, if they don't eat it all, I put plastic wrap over it and try again later. If I've already heated it as a leftover for them (i.e. meatloaf from a previous meal) and they don't finish it, I won't give it to them again. It either goes in the trash or my stomach. They didn't finish their peaches yesterday so they will have them today. Things like chicken nuggets, I finish them or toss them if they don't -- only 'cause they don't reheat very well.

As far as germs go, the boys share spoons, cups and most everything else -- well or sick. Usually what one gets, the other one gets anyway so.... On a normal basis, I'm not sure what the big deal is about germs in food when they share the same toys which proboably are not cleaned after each use. At least not here they aren't !!! If they are sick, I do tend not to keep leftover food and I clean all the toys they've used everyday. I also change their sheets everyday when they are sick.

Mendy

 

at dinner time, I am only giving them 3-4 bites of something off my plate onto their plate. then they only get more if they ask for it and everything else is gone. like they have to eat their meat before they get more bread or beans or whatever. in this way i've reduced the amt of food that gets thrown away. it kills me to throw it away, but it grosses me out to look at a half eaten piece of bread. People eat with their eyes before they eat with their mouth. if it doesn't look good to me, then I'm not expecting the girls to think "wow that looks yummy" and scarf it on down... sometimes I will eat what they don't, and so far that's working for us.

 

Something they barely touch, that is spoon feed(such as yogurt), I'll cover and put back in the fridge. Anything else is dumped on the drop cloth and taken outside and shaken out for the birds. I don't feel too back then because it is going to feed something and not just rotting in a trash bag in a landfill.

 

This morning they wanted two hard boiled eggs each plus toast and fruit so I knew they wouldn't eat two, but I gave them each two. When they were full, they each eaten one egg and taken a little nibble out of the other one so I put them in a bowl and I figure DH can have an egg salad sandwich when he is home for lunch. Actually, not that they're older and sometimes ask for large portions which they don't eat...we usually save it and eat it ourselves or DH eats it right away once they are full.