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Non-Picky Eaters
Jun. 29th, 2006 12:43 amIn response to my posting about the cherry tomatoes and their tutus, several people have expressed surprise that my children willingly eat cucumbers and cherry tomatoes. I find this kind of funny, for several reasons. First, Molly and Kiera don't just willingly eat cucumbers, they hog the cucumbers so thoroughly that we've started buying two for every salad, so that Ed and I will get some cucumber, too. But also, they're very fond of an awful lot of foods that are not generally considered child-friendly.
In terms of just eating stuff, they will eat almost anything. Molly dislikes onions, asparagus, and broccoli. There are other foods that she'll occasionally complain about eating, and her preferences change without notice: one day she'll eat all the marble jack cheese she can get her hands on, and the next day she'll say she doesn't like it anymore and only want sharp cheddar. They will seriously try practically anything. I bought some soft-shelled crabs a few weeks ago (from Coastal Seafoods, the best place in the Cities to get fish) and pan-fried them for dinner. Both girls tried it, and Molly ate all of hers.
As far as things they really like -- both girls will beg for parmesan cheese (sliced off a wedge, to be consumed straight) and sharp cheddar. We had some Dubliner cheese around for a while, and they liked that. Both girls love salmon and tuna. Molly begs for "bone-out rainbow trout," something else we can get from Coastal; she likes them because they have their heads still attached. Kiera also likes the bone-out rainbow trout but prefers that we leave the head off her plate. They will also beg for shrimp, and Molly has started lobbying us to get her a lobster sometime ("How am I ever going to learn to get the shell off a lobster if you won't get me one to practice on?") They love raw baby carrots. Kiera liked jicama (Molly, not so much), and will stand around trying to filch sliced bell pepper whenever I have to cut it up for a dish. Molly loves egg rolls. They both love sushi.
Molly is kind of funny about sauces; sometimes she'll emphatically insist that the sauce be served next to her pasta and then try to eat just the pasta. Kiera often prefers to eat her sauces as dip, but she really, really likes many "dips" that we've put on her plate.
Both girls love mashed potatoes, which I think of as a bit more of a normal kid thing to like. Molly doesn't care for French fries, though. (Go figure.) They will also eat cartloads of fruit, though Kiera does not like plums (Molly loves plums) and Molly only wants green pears. Nice green pears. Oh, and Molly hates bananas. Though she likes banana bread just fine.
They also eat some totally bizarre concoctions -- Molly requested a cheese and ketchup sandwich for snack last week, and Kiera immediately demanded one, too. For lunch one day last week, Molly decided she wanted to make a "mixture," and with some assistance made herself a bowl of half-thawed frozen corn, grated cheddar cheese, Cheerios, and golden raisins. And ate it all, except for small portions which she demanded that Kiera and I try because it was so good she wanted to share. (Bleah.) Molly has also eaten peanut butter and jelly sandwiches made with mint jelly (you know, like you'd put on lamb chops).
Their one major limitation is spiciness: neither girl will eat spicy food. This is pretty understandable, as spicy food really hurts if you're not used to it.
*
There are a lot of highly judgmental people out there who think that pickiness is the result of overly accomodating parents.
I don't think this assumption is always unwarranted. In Lunds one day last year, they were giving out samples of salmon. I was really pleased to see this, as the girls LOVE salmon, so I happily snagged three little samples and presented one to each girl as a fabulous and unexpected treat. Which it was, for us.
The lady handing out the samples said that it was so nice to see a parent encouraging her children to like fish. I laughed and said that plenty of kids just have an aversion to fish, and it isn't anything the parents did. She sighed and said sadly that many of the children walking past had asked their parents if they could have a sample, and the parents had said, "Oh, that's fish. You wouldn't like it." And kept walking.
So yeah, there are a few parents who raise their children to be picky and limited eaters. On the other hand, there are also parents who bend over backwards to expose their children to new foods, only to be shot down by kids who will not try it in the rain, in the dark, on a train, in a boat, with a goat, etc., etc., etc. There are kids with sensory issues, an overabundance of taste buds, or a supersensitive gag reflex; all of these problems tend to fade with age, so it's easy for adults to forget that they were not just being picky and defiant when they refused to eat something on the grounds that it might make them throw up. You can't make a kid eat. With some kids, it's a battle you can pick and win without too much trouble: my kids have to eat a reasonable amount of dinner in order to get dessert, and that's an actual motivator for them. For other kids, the dessert is just one more stressor: I remember a childhood friend who gagged on apple pie and started sobbing that she didn't want it. (This was, I think, after a two-family trip to Red Lobster, where according to the story, I waved my crab legs at her saying, "These are SO GOOD, are you sure you don't want to try them?" as she turned green and looked like she wanted to crawl under the table. She and her brother ordered hamburgers.) Other kids have physical intolerances to certain foods, and learn early to be extremely wary of new things because so many new foods make them feel sick later.
Anyway. I don't think I did anything that caused my kids to be open-minded eaters -- I think I birthed two open-minded eaters, and managed to not screw that up (so far). It's lovely to be able to try out a new dish and be confident that they'll willingly try it and possibly like it -- this makes me very happy. But I consider this a stroke of good fortune, not evidence of my superior parenting skill.
In terms of just eating stuff, they will eat almost anything. Molly dislikes onions, asparagus, and broccoli. There are other foods that she'll occasionally complain about eating, and her preferences change without notice: one day she'll eat all the marble jack cheese she can get her hands on, and the next day she'll say she doesn't like it anymore and only want sharp cheddar. They will seriously try practically anything. I bought some soft-shelled crabs a few weeks ago (from Coastal Seafoods, the best place in the Cities to get fish) and pan-fried them for dinner. Both girls tried it, and Molly ate all of hers.
As far as things they really like -- both girls will beg for parmesan cheese (sliced off a wedge, to be consumed straight) and sharp cheddar. We had some Dubliner cheese around for a while, and they liked that. Both girls love salmon and tuna. Molly begs for "bone-out rainbow trout," something else we can get from Coastal; she likes them because they have their heads still attached. Kiera also likes the bone-out rainbow trout but prefers that we leave the head off her plate. They will also beg for shrimp, and Molly has started lobbying us to get her a lobster sometime ("How am I ever going to learn to get the shell off a lobster if you won't get me one to practice on?") They love raw baby carrots. Kiera liked jicama (Molly, not so much), and will stand around trying to filch sliced bell pepper whenever I have to cut it up for a dish. Molly loves egg rolls. They both love sushi.
Molly is kind of funny about sauces; sometimes she'll emphatically insist that the sauce be served next to her pasta and then try to eat just the pasta. Kiera often prefers to eat her sauces as dip, but she really, really likes many "dips" that we've put on her plate.
Both girls love mashed potatoes, which I think of as a bit more of a normal kid thing to like. Molly doesn't care for French fries, though. (Go figure.) They will also eat cartloads of fruit, though Kiera does not like plums (Molly loves plums) and Molly only wants green pears. Nice green pears. Oh, and Molly hates bananas. Though she likes banana bread just fine.
They also eat some totally bizarre concoctions -- Molly requested a cheese and ketchup sandwich for snack last week, and Kiera immediately demanded one, too. For lunch one day last week, Molly decided she wanted to make a "mixture," and with some assistance made herself a bowl of half-thawed frozen corn, grated cheddar cheese, Cheerios, and golden raisins. And ate it all, except for small portions which she demanded that Kiera and I try because it was so good she wanted to share. (Bleah.) Molly has also eaten peanut butter and jelly sandwiches made with mint jelly (you know, like you'd put on lamb chops).
Their one major limitation is spiciness: neither girl will eat spicy food. This is pretty understandable, as spicy food really hurts if you're not used to it.
*
There are a lot of highly judgmental people out there who think that pickiness is the result of overly accomodating parents.
I don't think this assumption is always unwarranted. In Lunds one day last year, they were giving out samples of salmon. I was really pleased to see this, as the girls LOVE salmon, so I happily snagged three little samples and presented one to each girl as a fabulous and unexpected treat. Which it was, for us.
The lady handing out the samples said that it was so nice to see a parent encouraging her children to like fish. I laughed and said that plenty of kids just have an aversion to fish, and it isn't anything the parents did. She sighed and said sadly that many of the children walking past had asked their parents if they could have a sample, and the parents had said, "Oh, that's fish. You wouldn't like it." And kept walking.
So yeah, there are a few parents who raise their children to be picky and limited eaters. On the other hand, there are also parents who bend over backwards to expose their children to new foods, only to be shot down by kids who will not try it in the rain, in the dark, on a train, in a boat, with a goat, etc., etc., etc. There are kids with sensory issues, an overabundance of taste buds, or a supersensitive gag reflex; all of these problems tend to fade with age, so it's easy for adults to forget that they were not just being picky and defiant when they refused to eat something on the grounds that it might make them throw up. You can't make a kid eat. With some kids, it's a battle you can pick and win without too much trouble: my kids have to eat a reasonable amount of dinner in order to get dessert, and that's an actual motivator for them. For other kids, the dessert is just one more stressor: I remember a childhood friend who gagged on apple pie and started sobbing that she didn't want it. (This was, I think, after a two-family trip to Red Lobster, where according to the story, I waved my crab legs at her saying, "These are SO GOOD, are you sure you don't want to try them?" as she turned green and looked like she wanted to crawl under the table. She and her brother ordered hamburgers.) Other kids have physical intolerances to certain foods, and learn early to be extremely wary of new things because so many new foods make them feel sick later.
Anyway. I don't think I did anything that caused my kids to be open-minded eaters -- I think I birthed two open-minded eaters, and managed to not screw that up (so far). It's lovely to be able to try out a new dish and be confident that they'll willingly try it and possibly like it -- this makes me very happy. But I consider this a stroke of good fortune, not evidence of my superior parenting skill.
