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I'm not ashamed to admit that for several years I've been making two separate dinners: one for my daughters, one for Hubby and me. They were so picky that making one meal for all six of us was a huge waste of food. Dinner with four is so hectic that it becomes easier for us to eat later. Most of the time we're so busy handling refills, etc. that we don't get to enjoy our meal. Lately, though, I've been trying to encourage my daughters to try new foods... meaning the same things we will be eating later. It's so much easier to pop in a casserole or a crockpot meal that will feed everyone, rather than try to figure out two different meals.
It's been an interesting experiment. They're not excited by acorn squash, but they devour spaghetti squash. Three of them like my white chicken chili and all of them ate pot roast and some asked for seconds. Hubby and I are glad they're trying new things, but it means we no longer have the luxury of taking leftovers for lunch the next day. Hubby was really trying to ration his pot roast serving so he would have something left for lunch. I think we had a small container of chili leftover, compared to the huge bowl of leftovers when just Hubby and I ate it.
So what does this mean? I'm going to have to calculate larger servings when I cook so we can still reap the benefits of leftovers.
First off, this is probably going to be my only post this week. I'm calling this my "Ridiculously Crazy Busy Week." I typically work anywhere from 9 to 20 hours a week. This week, due to inventory, I'm working 30 hours. I'm not complaining because I cannot wait to see this pay check. BUT... I have little time for anything other than work and the girls' homework this week.
Anyhoo, now that you know why I'm MIA this week, I have to tell you about this great little perk of all day kindergarten. My girls are so hungry at dinner that they will eat almost anything I put in front of them. I've used this as a chance to experiment and get them to eat new foods.
It all dawned on me last week when I just could not fill them up. They ate and ate and ate and still wanted more when they were done with dinner. I talked to Hubby and told him the first thing I wanted to try was grilled chicken. Even my picky eater declared it "delicious." I will confess, though, that none of them were too gungho about the baked zucchini I served with the chicken.
A few nights later I did a toned-down version of stir fry. I baked chicken nuggets, steamed some carrots, cooked some rice and threw it all together. Definitely a hit. (Although cleaning up the rice that spilled on the floor was no fun). Hubby has an excellent homemade teriyaki sauce, which I would like to incorporate the next time I make this dish.
The other night we made homemade "chicken nuggets" from scratch. The girls had a lot of fun helping coat the chicken (dipping the pieces in egg and then throwing them in a bag of crumbs) and are eager to do it again.
Kindergarten may be wearing out all of us, but I'm glad it's helping my daughters expand their palette.
Several times at the grocery store, as I fill my cart with 4 or 5 gallons of milk, I've been stopped by another shopper who says "Oh, you must have teenage boys." "No," I'll say, "Just quadruplet girls who can't stop eating." We all know the stereotype about teenage boys. Supposedly they eat their parents out of house and home. I'm beginning to think the same is true for girls between the ages of four and... I'll let you know when it stops.
I can always tell when my girls are going through growth spurts. They simply can't get enough to eat. They used to eat three chicken nuggets, a serving of vegetables, maybe some mashed potatoes and feel stuffed. Now they can eat six nuggets, vegetables, two servings of potatoes, drink all their milk and still want more. (I don't know about you, but I don't know if I could eat that much in one sitting and not feel ready to explode). Our monthly visits to Sam's Club have turned into every 2 to 3 week visits. I'm constantly looking for sales on what they eat most, but our refrigerator is always stuffed, rarely giving me the opportunity to stock up.
And so, after much discussion, over the weekend we became a two fridge family. This has actually been a long time coming. Soon after our daughters were born, we knew we would need either a deep freezer or another refrigerator. Eventually, we decided the deep freezer wasn't the best idea, since both our freezer and our fridge are stuffed to the gills after our weekly shopping trips. We've been putting it off, but once I realized I didn't have enough room to store four lunch boxes each night, we decided it was time to make the plunge. (I will be working in the morning after dropping my girls off at kindergarten, so lunches have to be made the night before. There's no way I can get all five us ready each morning and make them a decent lunch to take to school).
We initially looked at putting our current fridge in the garage and upgrading to a nicer one, but the one we have is still in good shape. Since we were purchasing a "garage fridge" we actually found a decent deal. It's pretty spacious in both the freezer and the fridge and will definitely come in handy. Now I'm off to the grocery store to fill it up!
Before I had children, I always said I would never be the type of parent who forced her children to eat. I grew up with a mom who didn't make us finish everything on our plate. My sister and I were super-picky eaters, so from time to time my mom would make us a different meal than she made for my dad and her to eat. Then I had quadruplets....
Sorry, but I'm not a short-order cook. I make my girls one meal and that's it. OK, from time to time if I make something that I KNOW one of them dislikes, then I may offer an alternative, but it's always leftovers.
Sue Sue is my pickiest eater and she and I are currently engaged in a battle. Lately, she has refused to eat breakfast. What?! It's the most important meal of the day. I finally figured out that it's because for awhile I was in such a rush that the girls were only being served Pop Tarts (yeah, yeah, not the healthiest, but whatever). Now that I've had time to give them choices (waffles, cereal, French toast, fruit), she has started eating again.
Last night, though, the battle carried over to dinner. I made spaghetti, which all four of the girls like. Sue Sue was on board... until she found out there wasn't any bread. I usually throw a Pillsbury French loaf in the oven, but didn't plan ahead and ran out of time last night. First, she wouldn't sit at the table. Then when I coaxed her to the table, she refused to eat. I made a tough decision: she didn't have to eat, she just had to sit at the table while her sisters ate. She didn't eat a crumb.
I hate sending my daughters away from a meal with an empty stomach... but I have to take a stance. If my daughters take one bite of something new and truly don't like it, then, yes, I ignore my rule of not being a short order cook. But when my daughters refuse to eat just because... then I have to be "that mom." Not eating for one meal won't damage them. If they're truly hungry, they'll eat. I don't want my daughters to have issues with food. I don't want them to think they have to eat every morsel on their plate and I don't want them to think eating is the only way to make Mommy happy.
Still, I'm open for suggestions. What do you do when your children refuse to eat?
It's no secret that I have a picky eater. For the longest time, my Sue Sue refused to eat mac and cheese. Seriously... what child doesn't like mac and cheese?! She has, fortunately, outgrown that phase, but getting her to try new foods is no easy task. Her sisters are always willing to experiment, but Sue Sue will clamp her mouth shut and act like I'm torturing her.
On Easter, we went to my in-laws for an early dinner. Before we went, I told the girls some of the things they would be eating: ham, potatoes, bread, etc. No one protested. As we sat down to eat, Sue Sue caught site of the pineapple upside down cake. She wanted it. Now. Fine, but I instituted one rule: she had to take one bite of everything I put on her plate. She didn't have to finish her meal, just take one bite. (I'm not a fan of the "eat everything on your plate" method. They'll eat when they're hungry and if they don't want to eat, then they can wait until the next meal. I offer an "incentive" to finish lunch, usually a piece of candy or a cookie, but it's more to give them a small treat, not to force them to eat. And, yes, there are plenty of times when they willingly give up their treat because they don't feel like eating lunch. Normally I wouldn't let her have cake if she didn't finish her meal, but I saw my window of opportunity and I pounced on it).
OK, so back to my story. One bite. Of everything. She took a bite of ham. Didn't like it. She took a bite of corn. She thought it was OK and actually took a few more bites. She ate her bread. She took a bite of a green bean and one bite of potato. And then? I held up my end of the bargain. She received a piece of pineapple upside down cake. This didn't go over well with the cousins, who were told they had to eat everything on their plate, but different families have different rules, and getting Sue Sue to try new things was a huge accomplishment.
Since Easter, I've been able to cash in on the "One Bite" rule. The other night I made spaghetti. Sue Sue wanted nothing to do with it. "What's the rule?" I asked. "Try one bite" she said. So she did. She ate it all and at the end of the meal declared "I really like kasgetti." She has tried Hummus and lasagna as well. Finally... my picky eater may be changing her ways.
(Don't forget to check out the Spring Sweet Treats giveaway for your chance to win some fun prizes).
