Picky Eaters Suck

I love my family, really I do.  But my children are such picky eaters... well one in particular (oh little one you try my patience) is really bad.  The big one will take a bite and try things but then he politely says "I don't care for the noodles (or whatever he is eating)."  The little one will just whine like a big baby and/or vomit at the dinner table.  Drives me crazy.  I think there are only about 2 home-cooked meals I can prepare that the family actually ENJOYS.  Tacos (little one will only eat meat and the hard taco shell - but will do so without complaining).  And spaghetti (little one will only eat garlic bread dipped in the sauce - no noodles - 90% of the time without complaining).

Everything else is a big no-no.  That list is so long I get sad.  Some of the things I would like to make are soup, macaroni and cheese (homemade or in a box), any noodle-bake dish, any rice-bake dish, any noodles or rice period, pasta dishes, mashed potatoes... i could go on, but I'm getting depressed with this list.

Things they will eat but only in their whole form - never mixed with any of the above... broccoli, most fruits (not bananas though), asparagus, cauliflower, carrots (not cooked), chicken bites (even plain non-nugget style), plain BBQ meat.  This sounds like the list of meals would be wide open right?  Nope, because I can only get them to eat these things if they are REALLY hungry.  If they are even a little filled up, they won't eat a "good" dinner and then they complain about being hungry later.

Now I know that there is a MOUNTAIN of research out there that I could read that talks about how to fix these problems.  I have tried including them in the cooking process - doesn't work for the little one.  He wants to cook, but still won't eat the food.  I've tried making them eat it later or even the next day for breakfast - doesn't work.  I've tried letting them choose the meals - sorta works but boring for me because I never get to try new recipes.  I've tried having them eat the food repeatedly (the exposure method over and over) - doesn't work - they still won't eat rice or pasta.  I'm at a loss.....

I hear about families with boys where they complain that the boys eat them out of house and home... won't be me.  Won't be my kids.  EVER.  Unless I let them eat only chicken nuggets, pizza, hotdogs/hamburgers (for the big one), waffles/pancakes (for the little one), and maybe bacon.

What spurred this rant?  Dinner tonight.  I made this yummy Sour Cream Noodle Bake from Pioneer Woman's blog.  Oh my gosh, I thought it was delicious.  But alas the dinner did not win the hearts of my children and got only a mild "it was good" from the husband.  I enjoy cooking but the family does not get excited about food and could care less when I try new things...

What did my family get excited about most recently????  This recipe for Monkey Bread also from Pioneer Woman's blog.  Why did they like it?  Was it homemade and super delicious?  Homemade?  Not by my standards - it involved 3 "cans" of biscuits.  Super delicious?  YES!  The little one liked it because it has LOADS of sugar.  The big one liked it because it was his idea - he had it at a friend's house one time.  The husband liked it so much that he ate too much and the declared that he felt sick - oh how I love to hear my food made him sick.

I have no idea what to do.  I want to try new recipes, but alas it just isn't worth listening to the complaining and whining at the dinner table - it stresses me out and makes me not enjoy my meal.  And on the occasion when the little one vomits... well that is obvious how that makes the night go.

So what's for dinner tomorrow night?  I HAVE NO FREAKIN' CLUE!  I may have to just leave the house and let my husband feed them whatever...  I'm so exhausted from trying...

100 Days

Happy 100th Day of School!

First let me say that I can't recall ever having a 100th day of school party when I was in school.  Must be "one of them new-fangled things!"

My little guy was so excited about the 100th day of school.  It was very cute.  He got the cool T-shirt in the picture above.  They did all kinds of fun 100 day activities... 100 stickers on the number 100, 100 cheerios to make a necklace, 100 snacks (10 groups of 10 things), playing games on a 100 chart, a pair of 100 glasses... the list goes on!

So in honor of the 100th day of school... I brought my guy and his two playmates home for the afternoon.  After they ate lunch (no I didn't give them 100 chicken nuggets - that would just be insane!), I had them go outside and make a pile of 100 rocks!  They did a good job and were very cute as they were running around collecting and counting rocks.  I should have taken a picture of the rock pile.  It was very under-whelming.  I really thought it would be bigger, but it wasn't.  I also thought it would take longer to do, but it didn't.

Anyway, they made their rock pile and then proceeded to climb trees and jump on the trampoline and swing on the swings.  It was a wonderful afternoon and I just love that I get to stay home and be a part of it all!  Happy 100th Day of School to me!

PARTY!

Today was Kieron's birthday party day.  He had 8 of his little friends join him at Carson Slotcar Raceway (a totally great deal - $90 for 1 hour of racing and extra time for party and very nice owner).  Kieron had a great time and it was such a nice party.  Just wanted to share a couple pictures.

Then we came home and he wanted to play with his toys.  The Nerf gun was fun but fortunately for me it didn't last too long.  He's crashing from the sugar rush and has decided to watch a movie and relax (the mama is VERY thankful for this).

I get to enjoy some peace and quiet.  Then I may cook something healthy later... MAYBE... or we may just eat Oreos and cake.  There would be some milk though.  Now it is also time to switch gears and start focusing on Canon's 8th birthday party coming up.

Happy beautiful Saturday afternoon!

Taking the plunge on Kieron's Birthday

This blog is for me as I have decided to take the time to create a "journal" of sorts.  I have found through reading other blogs that I like the idea of having a journal of what is going on in my life and the life of my family.  I have tried traditional journals where you write stuff down and your hand cramps up... not for me.  So after surfing the internet and reading lots of blogs I am starting my own.

Today is Kieron's 6th birthday!  I can't believe my baby is 6!  How did that happen?  How is it possible that he is 6?  It seems like he will be going to college tomorrow.  The funny thing is that he told me today that he "didn't feel bigger."  Like he expected to go to bed last night and wake up this morning and be instantly taller?  It is so cute how kids see the world.

I have decided I deserve the mom of the year award today also... he had DONUTS for his birthday breakfast.  Yes, donutS.  As in plural.  As in we drove to the donut shop and he picked 2 and ate them both.  I'm so awesome.  I'm sure the sugar and fat really helped him have a productive day at school.  And we plan to follow it all up with a trip to McDonalds for dinner.  Yum.  More fat and sugar!  He isn't known for being my healthy eater anyway.  Pretty sure he could subsist on chicken nuggets and oreos.  He would drink milk all the time though - doesn't like soda (as shocking as that sounds).

So Happy Birthday Kieron!  May you grow up to not have food issues with sugar (good luck).  But mostly, may you grow up to be happy and successful!  Love you a million-bo-billion.