Yuck, No More

At our dinner table we have Julia in one corner, afraid to try new foods. Avery sits opposite her, trying things but eating miniscule amounts. The role I've chosen involves giving them foods that I know they will eat.

Last week after "YUCK!" was uttered when I offered Julia pasta, I reached a new level of frustration surrounding feeding my children. I realized that her pickiness had paralyzed her, and in order to help her GROW into a more flexible human being I was going to have to do something major to change it up. Every night for two weeks I would make something new (to her) for dinner that she would be required to try.

We are one week into this and so far it's going pretty well. I feel victorious that the consistency of the plan has opened her mouth and her mind a bit. She has slouched and whined but several times I have watched her out of the corner of my eye slip something into her mouth in a no-nonsense way. This is HUGE! She admitted to liking halibut, another step. It's just nice to have a heck of a lot less HOOPLA surrounding eating. Avery is benefitting too because she is getting exposure to foods that she has no qualms about trying. I am empowered to live like this forever, convinced that my consistency and expectations are the agent of change needed to positively affect our situation. Julia still isn't really EATING the new foods which means that the next two week goal will about finishing something on her plate that is new. Baby steps.

My plan is that all this work will culminate in sitting down and eating Thankgiving dinner. I'll let you know how that pans out.