March 11, 2009

Words of Wisdom

So, Michael Pollan (you know, the Omnivore's Dilemma guy) is collecting "food rules"--trying to get an archive of sorts of different bits of food wisdom from different families and cultures. I was glancing at the list, and noticed this bit of advice:

"I am not responsible for what my child eats. I am responsible for what I give my child to eat."

As the parent of a picky child, this seemed both very reassuring (ie: it's okay if they don't eat the green vegetables) and very bracing (ie: it's not okay not to give up and stop offering green vegetables, just because they haven't actually eaten one in months.)

If you want to take a gander, you can find the article here.

3 comments:

Be Like the Squirrel, Girl said...

Thank you for posting this. I feel like we're already having issues with food and I have a 10 month old. Lately she rejects vegetables and only wants fruit and cheerios. And crackers. She loves carbs! Good to know I should keep trying. I also hope to improve my own eating habits so I can be a good example.

Jenny said...

I love this! And from our own experience with a picky eater (Millie) this is so true. We just keep putting the stuff she rejects on her plate and all of a sudden she has started to eat some of it. The best part is some of the stuff she used to reject are now her favorites.

Anonymous said...

My mom still puts brussel sprouts on my plate when I go home to visit, and I still don't eat them. My brother has grown to like them. I might also add that my mom puts brussels on the plate of my polite sister-in-law, who also does not eat them.

But everything else I used to not eat, I've eventually come around to eat. The best thing this year: BEATS! Too bad they're just sugar! Of course I like them!