How it all Began

A question I get a lot is how did I get Silly to eat so many different foods. Honestly, she wasn't a great eater until after a year old. She resisted the introduction of solids, but the when finger foods started coming her way, she got a little better. In my (very) limited experience the important key factors in getting a kid to eat well are: Offer variety at every meal, re-offer foods many times, & don't force them to eat.

These points are definitely easier said than done. When you spend half an hour chopping and rinsing and warming a wide selection of foods for your toddler's meal, only to have them take 2 bites of the 'familiar' food, it can quickly become a disheartening process. After composting enough food to feed a small village, I finally came up with a way to deal with the waste that worked for me. Salads! I would chop up a bunch of stuff for Silly's lunch or snack, and what she didn't eat would get scooped onto a bed of greens and become my lunch.

Here is a photograph I took in January 2011 of a pretty typical lunch for Silly when she was 1.5 years old:

There are black beans, cucumbers, feta cheese, tomatoes, spinach, and mushrooms in that dish. I have no recollection of what she ate that day, but I do know that today, she would lick that plate clean. So, however many introductions it took, all of those foods became favorites. And though it may have been an unusual salad, I have no doubt that I preferred the taste of that medley going into my mouth rather than into the compost bin. 

The third prong in this strategy is very important. Do not force them to eat or even try the new foods. Just place it out in front of them and let them explore. Very early on we implemented the rule, "If you don't want to eat it, just leave it on your plate and wait until everyone else has finished eating." Notice I don't use "If you don't LIKE it." We simply never introduced that language. The option to not like something wasn't really on the table so to speak. Also, and I know a lot of parents will balk at this, but I allow Sylvia to spit food out on her plate after trying it. 9 times out of 10, she will pick up the food she spit out and finish eating it. But something about having the option to not commit to the bite makes her braver at trying new things. She knows she can taste it, chew it, feel its texture, and decide it's not for her. 

That's how it all began! And the picture above is evidence of how long this strange habit I have of photographing my children's food has existed: Pretty much since Silly started eating!