The Battle to Get Them Eating (Healthy)

Meals in my house are always a challenge. My 5 year old is a string bean and getting him to eat is like pulling teeth. He will love something today and hate it tomorrow. Now if it is breakfast food or junk food we have no problem getting him to eat but when it comes to eating something with substance and nutritional value, it is a lost cause.

Last night I was making him sit at the table until he finished his food, I came to realize “I have turned into my parents”. Oh no…. I can not be doing the same thing to my kids that my parents did to me. When I was a kid we would spend hours sitting at the table because we wouldn’t eat. I said I would never do this to my child and look at what I am doing. Was I really this difficult as a kid when it came to eating? Surely I am not as bad as my parents. They made me eat stuff I didn’t like and I know Luke likes spaghetti so he is going to sit their. This had me thinking, did I use to sit and cry about having to eat spaghetti? Oh no… I am in big trouble if my child is going to act the way I did as a kid. I use to sit there for hours just so I wouldn’t have to eat what was in front of me. My dad was so stubborn and would not budge on the eating thing and I am acting just like him.

Here is the kicker in all this, I talked with my dad on the phone and was telling him about Luke sitting at the table until he finishes his food. Then my dad says to me “He will eat when he is hungry, no need to force him”. OK, stop right now, who is this masked man on the other end of the phone. It can’t be my father. No way would he say something like this. Seriously, after all those meals and hours lost sitting at the table and he says this. He has turned soft over the years.

Now I want to make sure I am clear about this, I am not over loading my sons plate with lots of food. I give him very little and expect him to eat it all. My parents always fed us like we were adults and it was way more food than any kid should have to eat. My 5 year has as much food on his plate as my 10 month old and the 10 month old eats it all. So I am not asking much. Luke will just sit all through diner and have one bite. It drives me crazy!

Sometimes I get frustrated with him sitting at the table so I put his plate in the microwave and when he says he is hungry out it comes. This hasn’t been real effective because it ends up getting thrown out the next day. I just want him to eat healthy and eat when it is time.
I want to know, do your kids fight with you at meal time? How do you get them to eat?