What do you mean by "family-friendly" or "kid-friendly" meals?

[aggie94]

I'm not trying to be a smart-@ss or anything, but I see references to that a lot, most recently on the thread venting about CL's redesign, and I don't get it. Kids eat what you offer/feed them. Don't they?? I'm truly trying to understand here, esp. with a kid on the way.

Growing up, we ate whatever my parents were making, and I wouldn't describe most of our meals as "kid-friendly," at least not as I understand that concept. When I hear "kid-friendly," I think fish sticks, mac & cheese, chicken nuggets, pizza, etc. I don't think I ate any of those things until I was in HS, and only when I went to someone else's house.

For as long as I can remember, I ate tofu, sushi, tons of greens and other veggies (including lots of stir-fried dishes), dim sum, kim chi, etc. Breakfast was congee with pickled veggies or some type of dried, shredded meat or some other type of soup/hot noodle dish. Lunch was whatever my dad packed (I rarely got to order the lunch at school until I was in HS), usually leftovers from dinner or occasionally a sandwich. And dinner was whatever my dad was cooking, usually something off the list above, but typically of the genre of meals that I see others on the BB describe as not being particularly family-friendly or too "exotic." But in my house, that was "normal."

So isn't "family-friendly" just whatever you make it? Or am I naive in thinking it's that simple? Again, not trying to be judgmental or argumentative here, but I find myself annoyed when I hear people refer to foods as not being "kid-friendly," when I feel like kids are only as closed-minded to foods as you make them out to be, at least to some extent. Not saying I didn't hate plenty of things when I was a kid, and that my tastebuds have changed tremendously as I've aged, but I think it's ridiculous that children are only expected to eat hot dogs, pizza, and chicken nuggets.

[TwinMom]

I agree with you. We have never catered to our kids. They eat what we eat and have since they were about 1 year old, it was just cut up really small! We have always eaten lots of veggies, ethnic foods, etc. My kids love Indian, sushi, Thai, etc food. They eat what they eat because it's never been an option to anything other than what is served, but that doesn't mean they love everything, each person has their own tastes. I always go back to a child living in another country that is not exposed to chicken fingers or hot dogs, I'm sure they are eating what their family has available because they have to.

It is a pet peeve of mine that people ask "will your kids eat ..." I always tell people to cook what you want, do not adjust your menu for my kids, they will eat whatever you have...do not treat their taste buds any different than any other guest.

I'm always surprised when we eat at an ethnic restaurant and the server is shocked that my kids eat off the menu. It never occurred to me that they would eat something other than what is on the regular menu. The only problem with how my kids eat is that it is very expensive to eat out now, so it's a rare occasion!

[LaraW]

Absolutely kid-friendly (or family-friendly) is what you make it. My kids both eat a good variety of food.

When I think of "kid friendly" I think of simpler flavors, maybe not as much spice as an adult would like, maybe serving components of a dish separately, maybe serving a sauce on the side, etc.

DD is getting to where she usually likes the sauce on things. DS sometimes not so much. She was asked at a thing over the summer what her favorite food was, and she said zucchini

I think all kids go through phases where they are more or less wiling to try new foods, and I think that can be where people fall into the "trap" of serving only hot dogs or whatever just to get them to eat. MIL talks all the time about how DH would only eat hot dogs when he was 2 or 3. Well, who made them??

DH and I did not really change our eating habits much from before we had kids. Sure, many of the things we eat for dinner are simpler than before we had kids, but that is for a lot of reasons (just the logistics of getting a meal on the table is harder w/ little kids). And, food does not have to be complicated to be good (and nutritious). We also try to respect the things we know they do and don't care for (I have dislikes, I think it is only reasonable that they do too) so that we have a variety of new things we are trying, and foods that are familiar.

[mlynn]

First of all, ongratulations on your pregnancy. I understand your question, especially because I remember thinking the same thing before I had DS and DD. I once invited my neighbors over for dinner and was insulted when they brought microwave chicken nuggets for the kids to eat.

On the one hand, I agree with you. Mac n' cheese, fish stick et al. seems to be standard fare these days, at least on the kid's menu at a restaurant. DS and DD like those things, but they also love tilapia, buffalo, hummus and things I would have considered "exotic" when I was in my teens/ early 20's. So, to some extent, it is what you make of it, as you say.

After pondering your question for a bit, when I say "kid friendly" what I really mean is either a) a comfort food I loved as a kid--sloppy joes, corn on the cob, or shredded chicken sandwiches (you may have to be from the Midwest to relate to that one) or b) something that is easy to serve and appeals to (many) kids' spice-adverse palates such as barbecued chicken drumsticks and rice, turkey tacos and the like.

I'd be interested to hear what others think.

mlynn

[ljt2r]

I feel like the OP. I hate the term kid-friendly and the only concession I make nowadays is to make things less spicy (hot, not less spices, but less heat). When they were younger (between 1-2) I served less things that were hard to chew (main course salads, hunks of meat that were not braised, for exs). DD#2's first non-individual pureed food meal (i.e., the first time we stopped serving individual foods to make sure she was not allergic), she had an Afghani bean soup. I made it for the family and pureed it for her. She was about 7 or 8 mos old I believe. She loved it.

[sdcook]

When I hear those terms I think of foods or dishes that would appeal to a broad range of tastes. Like something I would bring to a potluck or dinner where I'm not familiar with the tastes of everyone.

My kids have always eaten what we've eaten as soon as they were old enough. I've adjusted the heat of certain dishes for them, but for the most part they will just eat it. They both have certain aversions like most of us and I'll cater to them to a point. They've also gone through stages where all they want to eat is potatoes or ham, but those pass quickly enough.

[zackaboo]

Originally Posted by LaraW

Absolutely kid-friendly (or family-friendly) is what you make it. My kids both eat a good variety of food.

When I think of "kid friendly" I think of simpler flavors, maybe not as much spice as an adult would like, maybe serving components of a dish separately, maybe serving a sauce on the side, etc.

This is exactly how I would describe it as well. Kid-friendly in our house is not something cooked separately for our DS but the same thing that we are having minus things I know he just won't eat...i.e. strong spices, peppers, mushrooms, etc. I don't think that this term has to refer to the idea of fixing hot dogs or mac and cheese. I just wish that restaurants would get that concept when they put together their kids menus...

[krhm]

For me, kid-friendly means less heat, but also the presentation/serving. We eat at the dinner table nearly every night, but my youngest would have trouble with, say, chicken breast on the bone. I still serve it, so she'll learn, but I'm not up for such lessons every night!

While my oldest daughter is a very adventurous eater, my youngest is not, and we have not done anything differently. Even when she was trying solid foods, she already displayed a very particular sense of taste which hasn't changed much over the years. She still eats what I make, and we don't eat much fast food, processed food, or the fish sticks/hot dogs type meals.

I don't know that this is so different from just planning for personal tastes, though. My husband loathes seafood and can't stand creamy sauces, so when I'm cooking for the family, I don't consider such meals.

[Kathy B]

Originally Posted by sdcook

When I hear those terms I think of foods or dishes that would appeal to a broad range of tastes. Like something I would bring to a potluck or dinner where I'm not familiar with the tastes of everyone.

That's what I think, too. Every family has their own familiar and loved dishes, which may be different from the next family's. And while my kids eat (most) of my cooking and are pretty game when I try a new recipe, they might be more suspicious/tentative of unfamiliar items at a party or pot-luck. For example, if you brought kim chi (totally unfamiliar to them), they probably wouldn't rush to try it, but instead would say, "Mom, what did you bring and where is it?"

Kid friendly items, in my mind, are something that most kids would eat, even those with a limited list of acceptable foods, and are thus the types of food one might serve at a kid's birthday party so no one will go away hungry. (Enter the hotdogs and pizza!)

[leightx]

I wish I could say I agree 100%, and up until about 4-5 years ago, I did! Sadly, my kids didn't follow my master plan, and started turning their noses up at all manner of foods they used to eat and enjoy - salads, salmon, hummus, shrimp, Asian dishes of all kinds, etc. I am hoping this is just a phase - I still cook whatever I want, and I do make them at least try a bite or 2, but it is often a losing battle. I'm not into making them go to bed hungry (I don't want to fight battles over food), so often they'll have a bowl of cereal or a PB&J. Sigh....

Surely I'm not the only one with kids in the picky eater camp. I never thought I'd be here, and yet, here I am.

[mrswaz]

Originally Posted by LaraW

When I think of "kid friendly" I think of simpler flavors, maybe not as much spice as an adult would like, maybe serving components of a dish separately, maybe serving a sauce on the side, etc.

Originally Posted by sdcook

When I hear those terms I think of foods or dishes that would appeal to a broad range of tastes. Like something I would bring to a potluck or dinner where I'm not familiar with the tastes of everyone.

I think both of these when I think of kid-friendly. I think every child and family are unique, and every situation is different. Tastebuds are always changing too, so when a child may eat one thing with gusto one day, the next, they barely pick at it.

As an example, tonight I made sloppy joe's for dinner and both kids went to town on them, where I swear the last time I made them DS barely took two bites. Then he surprised me by turning to me and asking if I could make tuna burgers again sometime. Puzzled, I asked him why, because when I made those last, he was vehement about his displeasure. He just looked at me very seriously and told me he had new tastebuds, so they should be okay now.

[Gail]

Hi Eva,

(and what wonderful news about the baby! )

Working on a weight loss site has been quite an education for me. I've learned things about eating habits I never imagined to be the case. I deal with people on a daily basis who'll tell us with complete gravity that they HAVE to have junk in their pantries because they have kids-- or that they MUST go to McDonald's for the same reason. You know the term about taking candy from a baby (why would someone GIVE candy to a baby?!) There is a sector of our population that believes that because you have children, it is necessary for you to stock your home with sugary sweets, cereals, goopy foods and fried stuff. I'm not saying that we shouldn't eat any of these things on an occasional basis-- but to assume they're the basis of a normal diet? Nuh uh. Not sure why the reasoning is that it this stuff is bad for mom as an adult that it's okay for a growing kid. But there's lots of stuff I don't understand.

Anyway, that's ONE perception of kid friendly...

Another version is a little less frightening to think about. Kids start out the self-feeding process with finger foods-- things they can feed themselves with their hands and aren't too hard to chew. Simple, unadorned foods (except for spaghetti and mac and cheese, which for some reason make us accept as an inevitability of toddlerhood) seem to work best for this purpose, so you'll see things like hot dog pieces, fish sticks, bananas, chicken nuggets, fries, small chunks of mild-flavored cheese and naked burgers being popular favorites (and maybe mashed potatoes on the fingers.) For a time, these sorts of things seem to stick with kids as the basis of an early diet (hopefully, we sneak in chunks of fruit and veggie as well so this diet doesn't become too slanted toward carbs and fried foods.) So, if you're talking about a fairly small child, this types of food may still figure pretty prominently into his or her diet as the chld continues to improve the fine motor skills. Hopefully as that happens, Mom and Dad are introducing increasingly more sophisticated types of foods so that the Little Person's tastes continue to grow with his or her body.

I think also that for some kids these early foods become comfort foods for them and even though their tastes may have matured, they may sometimes like to default to the simpler foods they ate when they were very young.

Like escargot.

[Mamasue]

No imput....just wanting to say CONGRATULATIONS to you and Che!

And, hello to Gail!

[BetsyS]

I have 2 small children, age 3 and 1. The 1 year old will eat anything really. I put it in front of him, and he's good to go. He cries if food is too (spicy) hot, though, so I've had to tone it down for him.

The 3 year old has been picky since his first bite of solid food. He regularly licks a food, then starts gagging. He doesn't eat meat. He only eats the most basic vegetables (corn, cucumbers, carrots, celery, okra occasionally, broccoli) and the most basic fruits (apple, banana, orange). Getting him to try a new food is a crazy battle. He gets stuck on a food and refuses variations (like he only likes sharp cheddar cheese--everything else is "no"). He is a crazy hot head, though, so all the food that he does eat has hot sauce on it. LOL

I didn't do anything differently with the 2 of them. In fact, my brother is incredibly picky (he's 33 years old, and he still won't eat most sauces ), so I was bound and determined never to cave to my child's desires. Alas, sometimes little kids just come out with their own personalities.

It doesn't mean that I don't keep trying. Heaven knows that I do. But, I've accepted that he just might be slower in accepting lots of different flavors. So, I do accomodate him somewhat.

[zwieback]

No, not all kids eat what is offered or what you feed them. And leightx, you are not the only one with kids in the picky eater camp. My two kids also used to eat everything I offered them, but they now only like bland foods. They like noodles with no sauce, just butter. They like bread and crackers. DD will eat chicken nuggets, hot dogs and pepperoni pizza when/if offered. She will also eat broccoli, fruit and yogurt. DS will not eat any meat, although he will eat Boca burgers, most fruit, string cheese and yogurt. DD has gotten better with at least trying a bite of something since I implemented the "you eat what I cook or you get nothing" rule. DS has gone many nights without dinner. He just won't budge.

I don't think I've ever used the terms "family-friendly" or "kid-friendly", but if I ever see that, I do tend to think more of simpler, easy to make dishes, kind of the things I grew up eating -- the noodle casseroles, sloppy joes, chili, basic spaghetti and meat sauce, meat - potato - vegetables, etc. But, I also think of dishes that the whole family tends to eat, whether that be spaghetti and meatballs or vegetarian moussaka.

I do tend to think that "family" or "kid" friendly is a bit subjective. Many families these days seem to have various restrictions to their diets -- vegetarians, religion, no nuts, sodium restricted, picky eaters, etc. So what is family friendly to one is not necessarily to another. JMO

[Angelina]

I completely understand what you mean, Eva, and I have wondered the same thing many times.

I grew up in Italy and Holland, and while everyday food over there is not as exotic as what you are used to, it is definitely much more varied than chicken fingers/mac and cheese, etc.

Actually, I never even saw a chicken finger till I moved to the U.S. and the mere idea of mixing melted cheese with pasta as in mac and cheese would completely horrify an Italian. I do like it myself though, when homemade with some nice cheeses. When I go to WW, I hear the same things Gail hears. They keep the junk for their kids. That is so beyond me. You would jump in front of a moving train for your child, and yet you feed them crap?? How does that work?

My niece has been making herself hot pepper sandwiches since she was 8 years old, and will turn up her nose at chicken fingers which seem to be the standard kiddie plate at many restaurants. She would rather order from the menu any day of the week. I used to eat spicy foods myself since I was about her age, but we get that from my dad. It's genetic.

Angela

[ljt2r]

This thread is turning a bit into do picky child eaters exist and should we indulge them and I would just like to say that while they do exist, many who are picky--probably not the kids of anyone on these boards--are picky because our society believes in such a thing as "kid friendly food." As though kids in other countries don't eat their native cuisines or something. It really drives me nuts. I think you can abhor the concept of kid friendly food and still believe, sympathetically, that sometimes genetics takes over. But I have seen how some of my friends feed their kids and therefore I am positive that it is nurture not nature in quite a few cases and I think the concept of kid friendly food is at the heart of it.

Does that make sense?

[jellyben]

I think there is a distinction between sticking with kid-friendly meals and feeding kids a steady diet of cr@p. If a family wants to rotate the same 5 meals all the time, what is the harm in that? Sure, the kids might grow up to be unadventurous eaters, but so what? Not everyone is going to be a gourmand and that's OK. They will probably be frustrating dinner guests but I have had lots of frustrating dinner guests that weren't picky eaters!

[ClaraB]

Originally Posted by leightx

I wish I could say I agree 100%, and up until about 4-5 years ago, I did! Sadly, my kids didn't follow my master plan, and started turning their noses up at all manner of foods they used to eat and enjoy - salads, salmon, hummus, shrimp, Asian dishes of all kinds, etc. I am hoping this is just a phase - I still cook whatever I want, and I do make them at least try a bite or 2, but it is often a losing battle. I'm not into making them go to bed hungry (I don't want to fight battles over food), so often they'll have a bowl of cereal or a PB&J. Sigh....

Surely I'm not the only one with kids in the picky eater camp. I never thought I'd be here, and yet, here I am.

I just have to pitch in to reassure you that no, you're not alone. Both of my sons went from eating most of what was put in front of them (including such delicacies as beets and pickled herring) to "Blech! I don't like that!", seemingly overnight. My oldest DS went from drinking milk continually to refusing it completely within the span of a week when he was two. At 14, he still doesn't drink white milk, but he is starting to eat foods he wouldn't look at a few years ago.

I don't think it's abnormal for kids to eat a narrow range of foods - people have commented on kids of other cultures not being picky, but I think they would be if they were given unfamiliar foods to eat. Most cultures don't have the wide variety of foods available that we do in North America, and if they did I think you'd find they were just as choosy as American kids are. Put it this way, Eva - if you'd been given a nice eggplant parmigiana when you were 5, would you have eaten it the way you ate dim sum?

[aggie94]

Originally Posted by ClaraB

I don't think it's abnormal for kids to eat a narrow range of foods - people have commented on kids of other cultures not being picky, but I think they would be if they were given unfamiliar foods to eat. Most cultures don't have the wide variety of foods available that we do in North America, and if they did I think you'd find they were just as choosy as American kids are.

But my point is that foods are only unfamiliar because we choose to make them that way. If we expose our kids to lots of foods and a wide variety of choices, nothing is unfamiliar.

I am not focusing on kids being picky eaters here. I'm focusing on parents limiting kids' exposure to foods. IMO, there's a huge distinction, but perhaps I'm not doing a good job of articulating my point.

[leightx]

I know you're not picking on picky eaters Eva, but it's almost a chicken and egg sort of situation. You cook whatever you want, they eat nothing, so you fall back on something that they will eat, at least occasionally. Then they decide that they *only* want pizza / noodles / cereal.

I just know that I used to take great pride in having kids that would at least try most anything, and have done everything I could to encourage that. Even as toddlers, they'd eat a much wider variety of foods than they will now. I just keep offering the same foods (well, different recipes - we don't have a ton that I repeat), and sometimes they surprise me and themselves by trying something and, gasp!, liking it. My daughter tried quiche for the first time this weekend, under great duress. She loves eggs and cheese and pie crust so I knew she'd love it, but it was like pulling teeth to get her to take a bite. Once she did, she promptly sat down with a huge slice and talked about how much she loved quiche.

I've tried all the usual tricks - getting them to help me prepare a dish, letting them pick a recipe, only putting a bite of each item on their plate, and letting them go for seconds of the foods they like once they finish a bite of everything. Nothing really works.

I can't abide picky adults, so I am rather sensitive to this issue. Of course we all have likes and dislikes, but it irritates me that we can't go to certain restaurants with friends because one of them won't try sushi, and doesn't like any of the asian dishes on the menu. Another one only eats chicken and well-done steaks, but isn't really content going to say, a seafood restaurant, if there are only one or 2 options on the menu that she'll eat. I don't want my kids to grow up like that, and we've explained that it's just not cool to be picky eater. No one enjoys eating when someone else is sitting there staring at their uneaten plate of food, or worse, grousing about it.

I will say that I totally agree with Laura that our society has created more picky eaters. My kids NEVER ate chicken nuggets (and I still don't ever keep them in the house, although we are not above the occasional nugget from Chick-Fil-A) until they ate them at a party. Of course they loved them, and that is their go-to kid's dinner when we go out. I'd love to abolish kids' menus and just have kid-sized portions of the regular meals on the menu.

I guess I am lucky in the sense that I feel absolutely no need to keep a bunch of crap on hand to feed to the kids. They do like string cheese, fruit, yogurt, smoothies, etc. Of course they like chips and cookies to, but *I* don't want or need those in the house, so we only buy them for parties or special occasions.

[testkitchen45]

Originally Posted by aggie94

. . . esp. with a kid on the way.

Way to slide that one in under the radar, Eva! Congratulations to you and Che!!

Originally Posted by sdcook

When I hear those terms I think of foods or dishes that would appeal to a broad range of tastes. Like something I would bring to a potluck or dinner where I'm not familiar with the tastes of everyone.

This is how I define "kid-friendly," too, as the term's commonly used. Same definition as "mass-market." In my own home, "kid-friendly" means something a little different: make the same dinner as for the adults, but maybe tone down the spices, serve the gravy on the side for a kid who doesn't want his food camouflaged , that sort of thing.

Originally Posted by leightx

Surely I'm not the only one with kids in the picky eater camp. I never thought I'd be here, and yet, here I am.

Sometimes it's peer pressure. My DD has a good friend who dislikes bread crusts. All of a sudden one day, my DD was leaving her crusts on the plate & saying she hates crust. However, she says with great pride, "My friends think I'm weird b/c I like sushi, and escargot, and calamari," so I think there's hope.

Originally Posted by aggie94

I am not focusing on kids being picky eaters here. I'm focusing on parents limiting kids' exposure to foods. IMO, there's a huge distinction, but perhaps I'm not doing a good job of articulating my point.

No, you did fine. We're just all getting chatty. With fewer people really cooking these days, it's only natural that fewer parents are exposing kids to a varied diet. Restaurants have to target the mainstream; that's why their kid menus are interchangeable. For most restaurants, "kid-friendly" means "brown." Think about it: chicken fingers, popcorn shrimp, fries . . . the only chance for color is in the soda. Maybe.

[ljt2r]

Originally Posted by ClaraB

I don't think it's abnormal for kids to eat a narrow range of foods - people have commented on kids of other cultures not being picky, but I think they would be if they were given unfamiliar foods to eat. Most cultures don't have the wide variety of foods available that we do in North America, and if they did I think you'd find they were just as choosy as American kids are. Put it this way, Eva - if you'd been given a nice eggplant parmigiana when you were 5, would you have eaten it the way you ate dim sum?

But you make the point I am making, and that Aggie says--dim sum is only unfamiliar if you let it be. I never said (someone else did, but the rest of us did not) that children of other cultures are less picky, it is more just that toddlers eat Chinese food, Indian food, Thai food, whatever, all over the world so why on earth is it not considered kid friendly to give them to kids here. Put another way, I think that there is a perception that it is weird to expect your toddlers to eat other cultures' foods, but of course kids in those cultures eat it so why should it be weird? And sure offer them chicken nuggets at a bar and grill--but why do the kids' menus at the local Thai and Chinese places have only nuggets and fries? I am in an Asian restaurant for cripes' sake!

Actually if we are going to verge away from the OP and what damage it does or does not do to our society to have a perception of kid friendly food and into the realm of why kids end up picky, I will say that I find it more important to focus on manners than eating a lot of different stuff in some ways. My elder daughter is pickier, she hit it around 2-3 like many, but she knows she has to try one bite, she knows it is never polite to point out what she does not like (sometimes she slips, and we talk about it), she knows that if you see something you don't like you just push it to one side and don't eat it (she is very good about this). Also I can out stubborn her any day of the week on this. I am *not* changing what I make for her. If she really dislikes something (rare that it is a strong true post-trying a bite dislike) and we have it for leftovers, we talk about how to doctor it so that she will like it better and this usually works.

[kidscooking]

I write about cooking for kids for a living. Kid-friendly does not have to mean junk food. It does not have to mean dumbed-down, processed, fatty, sugary or no-vegetables food.

The old saw "You control what you serve. They get to control what and how much they eat" is true. But as anyone with more than one kid knows, kids come with their own taste preferences, regardless of what foods you introduce to them and how often.

That being said, kids will also tend to mirror the eating patterns of the adults around them over time. (The key words being "over time." It may take longer for some kids.)

That may be why Asian kids tend to eat more fish and vegetables, simply because they are modeling what they see.

On the flip side, I know many parents who love vegetables, serve them frequently and in many tasty ways (think butter and salt), yet the kids still refuse to eat them. This is NOT the parents' fault.

It is always a bad idea to blame the parents for kids' eating habits and preferences.

Parents can choose not to have certain foods in the house, but just because you choose to serve all-natural, organic, vegetarian or whole foods meals to your kids doesn't mean they still won't gobble up a McDonald's happy meal the first chance they get.

The best idea is to sit down and eat together as a family. In fact, there is substantial research to suggest that family meals (sitting down -- no distractions) are more important to kids' health than trying to control exactly what they eat.

Provide 3 meals at specific times and 1 or 2 snacks for kids every day, and prepare the foods you like to eat in ways that taste good to you (of course, cutting back on the spices for very young children is always a good idea). Over time, your children will develop eating habits that are similar to yours.

Stephanie

[hlao23]

My DS is 16 months old and hasn't gotten picky on us yet as far as what he will eat. We eat mostly veg and lots of Indian dishes. When I say "kid-friendly" I guess I mean "easy-ish to eat without making too huge of a mess" He mostly eats what we eat but sometimes I'll use less sauce if it's particularly oily or otherwise messy.

I'm also learning that certain foods come out looking more or less the same as when they went in....so sometimes we overcook a portion for him or pre-mash it even though he has most of his teeth already.

"kid-friendly" is sort of also "easier for mom and dad" in our case.

[SusanMac]

Whoa! Congratulations Aggie!!!! When are you due? This is very exciting. You guys will make fabulous parents.

Does this mean the RnR Half Marathon is out of the cards this Jan? ;-)

[TomboXP]

Yeah, when I have kids I am going to give them portions of what we have and not cater differently because there is no point really. They will just grow up to be fussy junk food lovers.

[TerriS]

Another one who swore that her kids would not be eating off the kids' menu, now I desperately, eagerly seek it out. There are some things you just can't control. My 4 year old literally never took to table foods - just wouldn't eat them - and lived for most of a year on applesauce and various kinds of crackers, I think. We tried putting other things in front of her but it was a no go. Turns out she had some developmental issues - her chewing/sucking muscles were not very well developed, as well as issues with texture and sensory issues, so after getting an intervention of occupational therapy and lots of slow, patient, baby steps she is finally eating not only "kid friendly" staples like hamburgers, hot dogs, and pizza (believe me, this is an accomplishment, because it ensures your kid will have something to eat at parties and restaurants, and she would not touch those things before) but also more exciting stuff like flank steak, refried beans, tofu, carrots, celery, pork chops, Japanese dumplings, homemade spring rolls, ravioli, tortellini, and salmon.

My DH grew up in a very bland-food sort of household and now he LOVES spicy Asian food and will try just about anything. I grew up with pretty good exposure to a wide range of cuisines and flavors, but still, for example, don't like stinky cheese or stringy fruits (although I did recently discover I like pomelo.)

I really thing people's tastes are a combination of what they are exposed to and their own personalities. Do I think there are things we could have done differently with DD to help her eat better? Probably, but we did the best we knew how to do at the time and were following the advice of our pediatrician who told us just not to worry about it.

So that being said, yep, when I see "kid friendly" I think "woohoo, I hope there are chicken nuggets!" It can also mean appealing to a wide range of tastes, not too spicy, and often not to saucy or with sauces on the side since a lot of kids don't want sauce on their food or what to control the sauce amount. Or just want to put ketchup on everything like my DD. Or presentation - like no bones, like the previous poster mentioned. I keep a stash of nuggets and fish sticks in the freezer but try to serve meals 80-90% of the time that DD will be able to share with us. Sometimes I'm not up for a battle when we're out and about, so it's nice to know there are restaurants that have choices we can work with. Of course we also love to go out for dim sum (living in Hong Kong) and DD will happily eat a bowl of rice even if she doesn't want anything else. With chopsticks, I might add.

Ah, I remember being pregnant and thinking that I actually had some control over how my kid would turn out. That was fun. I have a second little girl now and she is only 7 months old but I can already tell that she is different from her sister - the enthusiasm she shows for eating is already 180 degrees from her sibling!

By all means, expose kids to everything you love - bearing in mind allergies and typical safety issues. But remember the number one rule of baby-raising: this too shall pass. A one year old who gobbles down tofu might become a crazy picky eater at 2. A two year old who won't touch a vegetable can become a healthy well adjusted adult. You just never know!

[ecau]

My 3 yo DD eats most of what we eat, but as others have said, I tone down the heat and present things a bit differently. But, this thread has me thinking about what I ate as a kid. I didn't get hotdogs and pizza much, and we never had chicken nuggets. However, I wouldn't call my diet growing up especially varied. It was totally midwestern. We had meat, potato and veggie almost every night. I didn't even realize there was such a thing as short pasta until college. We only had rice when we had that canned chinese food. My mom claims that the fruit and vegetables that were available at the time (the 70s) were limited, not that if she could have found kiwi that we would have eaten it. Anyway, my point is that I now eat a much wider variety of foods. So, the lack of diversity didn't really ruin my life

[kwormann]

Example: We went to a wedding recently. The dinner was chicken breast stuffed with cranberries and goat cheese; risotto and asparagus. The kids at my table were served chicken nuggets and corn.

Now, I remember as a kid my dad took us to a nice restaurant. He thought we would be impressed with the "fine food". We werent . However, we tried it. Ate part of it. And it was our dinner. And at home we were not used to "kid food" at all. We ate the same thing at our table. Its just that we werent used to a thick slice of ham v a thinner slice. A fancy sauce on it.

My mom hated to cook, so dinner would be a simple chicken breast and microwaved frozen veggie with no flavoring added, so we werent used to complex flavors. But no separate foods were served. And amazingly enough, when I started to be interested in cooking in high school. I discovered FLAVOR , so I am thinking would have liked some as a child!