My children are 7, 5 and 3. They eat about 5 things, it seems to me!! ARGH!!!

What they eat is healthy. When they have a sandwich, it's whole wheat bread. 2 of my 3 children drink one cup of juice a day, the other only drinks milk and water. My oldest will ask for a banana for a snack instead of a cookie. So the food the are eating is healthy stuff.

The problem is, if they aren't already eating it, it's not making it onto the list anymore! My kids won't even eat a grilled cheese. My oldest won't touch a chicken nugget. They won't eat a hamburger!

I know they say a child has to be exposed to a new food at least 15 (or 70 depending on who you listen to) times before they will add it to the repertoire.

So what do I do? Make 3 grilled cheese sandwiches for them to look at, and then throw them out and make a PBJ? 15 days in a row?

My oldest will now take one bite of a new food, and chew it. But he hasn't liked anything new!!!!


Sigh....

Make just enough for each of them to have a couple bites. Make the grilled cheese sandwiches and cut it into three strips. Each one can have a strip which is enough for a couple bites. Food wasted=one sandwich.

My mom used to make one "weird" food for dinner and I had to take three bites before dinner was over. We normally got a treat those nights. I still don't like some things, but its not for lack of trying.

My house growing up was strict. There was one thing and if you did not like it too bad. You would not eat. Finally my brother and I would eat just out of shear hunger.
It really was a phase and we grew out of it. Just be patient and don't push yourself to far they will grow out of it.

In my own time, I had very little choice as my Mom made sure we kids knew the options to not eating was zero. With my own kids I try to take a medium line, gentle coercion but don't push my patience for too long. I ask them to try and them let me know what could be done to make it more appetizing to them.

Thanks for the ideas...I think I will pick one thing (that I like too, LOL!) like a grilled cheese sandwich on whole wheat, and make one every saingle day and cut it into 3 pieces and serve it before their regular lunch and keep asking them to try one bite. It will be repetitive and if they don't eat it all (or anything) I will be able to finish it without feeling like I wasted food - or like I'm eating too much of their leftovers!