Friday, April 11, 2008

What to Eat?

I'm sure that we're not the only parents who struggle to figure out what to feed their child every morning, noon, and night.  Breakfast is pretty routine thanks to the lovely and beautiful Aunt Jemima. Pop one of those babies in the microwave for 30 seconds and viola, you've got half of Jacob's breakfast.  The challenge is to figure out what else I can get him to shove in his mouth so that I don't feel like I'm the asshole parent who doesn't give his kid a nutritious meal.  It usually ends up being some combination of CheeriosKix, and Raisin Bran with organic whole milk, Yo Baby Yogurt, or a banana.  I'm sure some parents will tell me that it's not the most nutritious of meals but as long as I think it is, then I'm' okay with it.  

During the week lunch is a lot easier because Jacob's daycare provides lunches.  They're not always the healthiest, but he seems to like them.  On the days where I can't stomach the crap they serve I'll usually send a turkey sandwich on some whole wheat bread.  Those are the days where I feel like I'm being a good parent.

Dinner's a whole other issue.  I don't have Aunt Jemima to bail me out and I've also got to make up for the lack of vegetables that Jacob's eaten throughout the day.  Lucky for us, Jacob's recently taken a liking to broccoli, asparagus, and even string beans.  Just tell him that he gets to have some "special sauce" with it (usually consisting of a little Wishbone Fat-Free Italian Dressing) and he'll stuff his face with some greens.  I'd like to know what other tips parents use to get their kids to eat healthy foods?  We started off by letting him dip the vegetables in ketchup, have now moved onto dressing, and hopefully soon will be able to get him to eat his veggies without any extra condiments.  The meaty portion of dinner will usually be some chicken, home-made fish sticks, meatballs,  or a turkey sandwich.  Of course there are the days where Jacob's being picky which in that case I have to call in the relief pitcher.  The good old frozen chicken nuggets.  I know they're not the most nutritious, but he likes them and having them once every other week can't be that bad.  

What does everyone else feed their kids?  Do you feel guilty when you let your kids eat crap like I do?  Do you have any quick meals that your kids love?  Help me out!  

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