Six months ago I would have refused to serve Nutella for breakfast. Yesterday, I was beyond pleased B. agreed to eat a chocolate sandwich before school. But the mind games don't happen overnight. It's a long con until they've got you so brainwashed you don't even know it's happening. And somebody needs to expose the truth about these crafty kids!
A year ago B. was eating fruit, veggies, chicken, steak, fish. All kinds of good, fresh stuff. So the occasional ice cream or Nutella on whole wheat bread didn't seem so bad. Then slowly and stealthily he started dropping foods from his diet. Not fast enough to raise any red flags. But just enough that I started offering multiple options to try and make him eat. That's a mom's job, right? But it was info he was filing away for later. Like I said, it's a long con.
Even six months ago B. would have eaten a ham sandwich or spaghetti with tomato sauce. But the menu list was getting shorter. Then he suddenly shut it down, refusing to eat. I did try to out-bluff him, serving only healthy options. But the kid really didn't and still doesn't care about food and seems just fine skipping breakfast and lunch if he's not in the mood. (That's another book somebody needs to write: All I Learned About Dieting I Learned From My Toddler)
Ultimately, I think a picky kid will revert to the worst things you've ever fed them in a weak moment. For me, that's Nutella (thank god for the whole wheat bread...see how brainwashed I am!), cupcakes, cookies and ice cream. But I can see how easily that could have become chicken nuggets and hot dogs. And now I'm just so happy when B. agrees to open his mouth that he gets away with almost whatever he wants.
If it wasn't for my competitive streak (hiding veggie and fruit purees into the few things I can use as decoys) he'd have me in complete submission. But I'm holding on to the smallest shred of hope that one day I can turn this around and win this game.
Chocolate is like TV - once you're turned on, there's no switching off.
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