I've been chatting with people lately who were pretty much raised the way I was: you eat what's put in front of you without fussing about it, and be glad you have food.

When my kids were little, my ex-husband said to me, "Look, I'll eat at least a little of anything you put on my plate as an example for the kids, but I just can't do green beans."

So we made a policy that everybody got to choose one food to refuse when it was served. Ex-husband chose green beans, my daughter chose peas (I think), and my son chose spinach/chard (he wanted to choose "anything green" but it didn't fly).

There were things that took the kids a very long time to eat, like my son cutting the "skin" off one slice of zucchini, removing the seeds, slicing it in little wedges like a pie, and choking each little piece down while making gagging sounds. But they had to have at least a token amount of everything else but the chosen evil food. The system served us well.

B2Y,

That's a good method! When I was a kid, the youngest of six, I had to fight for the good stuff. The bigger kids had a further reach than me, lol. If I didn't like something, I don't recall if I ate it or not. I think I was always ravenous so I worked out a system. I ate the worst stuff first and saved the best for last. I still do that today most of the time, lol.

I tried to get our boys to eat healthy, but there were things they wouldn't eat. Now they're coming around and actually like a lot of veggies and salad and such. When they were babies they loved strained veggies. Funny how it ended as they grew.

well I was raised same way BTY, eat or go to bed hungry, so we ate. my kids were raised same way, the boys had a friend who was rude when it came to dinner he would say oh i dont eat that or like that and yep you guessed it my answer was too bad, thats dinner, like I tell my kids this isnt a cafe

I am sure it was easier for me, I liked everything, so that wasnt an issue with me, my kids were also good eaters, and debbies kids loved my cooking so it worked out pretty well for us, hopefully they wont let their kids control whats for dinner

We were good eaters also but no way would my Mother have made anything other than what was served for dinner if we didn't like it. Thats probably considered abuse now a days, lol.

lol Jules that or grounds for divorcing your parents, lol oh my, my pa would of knocked into next week if I ever tossed that at them lol

wizbethcathy do those dogs even look happy, lol, they really dont lol, where did you get the pic? are these your pups?

growing up we were told that we had to eat what was on our plates or that plate would be breakfast the next morning ... i would literally become ill on the nights we would have liver but i would eat it anyway cause cold liver for breakfast is worse ... i finially got to the point that if i cut it up tiny and smothered each bite in a ton of gravy and swallow quickly i could get the whole piece down without having to repeatedly leave the table ... my boys were raised that they had to at least eat two bites of whatever they thought they didn't like ... 9 times out of 10 though they found they did like the item and would eat it all ... lol ... kids sheeesh

lol deb just like how sean doesnt like cheese or butter lol want to bet he just doenst know he does, like chris not liking mayo another enlightening moment in his life oh yes you do like it

I love liver and onions no one here does which bites

It was no problem with me, the only thing I wouldn't eat was brussel sprouts. However, that has become my major problem. I like nearly everything -- except that I will not eat thick pasta. It has to be angel hair pasta, or I won't eat it. And, I still hate brussel sprouts!

One of my grandsons would only eat mashed potatoes for about six months. His parents went along with it (this was when he was two). Now he is nine, and he is a good eater.

I am fairly strict about a lot of rules, but must admit I am not so strict about food.

We never had food in our house, growing up, so I never really acquired a taste for it. I eat now only because I wouldn't sleep if I didn't, but I really don't desire food too much. I could live on toast, actually ... but always eat what's served at other people's houses.

It was hard to be strict, when I don't eat. I've always cooked good meals for the kids, but never sat and ate them myself (I always told them I ate at work). I have one daughter who will eat almost anything, and another who eats very few things. The fussy one eats things that are good for her (well, except noodles ), and would be quite happy if I made a mixed or ceasar salad every other night, alternated by sushi the other.

I had a hard time with the fussy one, and did keep meals for her if she didn't eat them. The problem was that she would still refuse to eat, then go to daycare the next day and fill up there. She figured that out VERY early on. There are many nights that she will eat ONLY the salad, or ONLY eat the meat (HATES cooked veggies, only raw), so feeding her has always been a challenge. She is trained to at least take as much of "something" at other people's houses, so that it looks like she has eaten a meal . . . even if it is only the salad at the end of it.

I was forced to sit and eat at home, WHEN there were meals, but I could sit there till the next day. Guess I know where my daughter got her stubborness from.

Cherie

I remember the "you must eat half of everything" rule when I was growing up. We didn't have dessert that often in my house, and there was no other food to be had if you didn't eat what was cooked. But to make sure we got enough, we had to eat at least half of the veggies as well as the meat.

Luckily my grandmother was a great cook, since her house rule was "clean your plate".