My oldest had a birthday. Part of his gift was going to a baseball game, which has become his birthday tradition. He loves going, even though he still hasn’t learned all the lingo or who even all the players are. Something about going to a game is exciting. I can relate.

I thought it was sweet because he wanted to take his brother G.

Another thing was he finally {after asking everyday for months} received a Lego Pirates of the Carribean Black Pearl Ship.

He put it together in less than 1.5 hours flat. It was ah-mazing to witness.

Oh and…

He is now 9.

Nine

9

Nine

Yeah no matter how I write it he is getting older.  And while Mike & I are loving seeing him grow into a handsome, bright, loving young man.

DID I mention he IS already 9?! That means we are half-way to 18!

Hold me.

The kids have been very interested in learning more about nature and the animal kingdom. One of the shows we watched recently that perked their interest had a section in it about bears.  Bear cubs to be more precise where the target of the episode.  How bear cubs survive, the dangers they face and how the momma bear is a fierce protector of her cubs.

While watching Mamacita looks at Mr. G and says “Aww…look at the babies they are so cute.”

He looked back at her.  His face became serious and with a somber tone he said:

“Yes, they are cute. They are adorable killing machines.”

She looked surprised by his response and asked him: “Are you sure?”

“I am sure. They would eat you if you made them angry. Like I said: adorable killing machines.”

To which we all tried not to laugh.

Because really he wasn’t joking.

He meant it. Every word.  Adorable killing machines.

I received an interesting question from a reader, Lisa, she asked:

You feature a lot of food your family eats on your blog some I want to try but I don’t think my kids would like it. How do you get kids to eat these things? How do get them to love their food? How do get them to eat healthy?

I am am sure I do not know all the answers and I must confess we don’t eat perfectly healthy all the time. I have had my struggles like every other parent to encourage a love of food and a love of good food. But I can offer what has worked for us in real life, the hands on experience as a large family with a lot of different personalities and tastes.

So here it goes…

My 8 Tips For Encouraging Kids To Love Food!!

1. Try, try and try again!

It has not always been easy to get our kids to love food. Or to even try different foods. Especially for children who might have sensory issues. It has instead taken a lot of patience. A lot. Starting slowly, asking for them to try a bite. If they don’t like it at least they tried it. And then try again another day. Some estimates state that you may have to offer food over 30 times before kids will willingly eat it. This means come to the table with a lot of patience, respect of their efforts to try and willingness on our parts as parents to try, try and try again!

2. Acknowledge different food personalities.

However, in your quest to try, try and try again. Remember we also have different food personalities. One is more adventurous than the others, another likes {no loves} routine and comfort, and another child is way too busy exploring the world to focus on eating. Do not berate a child to get him or her to eat something that might be different or outside their comfort zone. Keep it simple in how you offer it, make sure they try it and encourage them when they do!

3. Have them help pick out meal ideas.

We will often include the kids in making meal plans. We ask them what their favorite dishes are and show them magazines, shows, blogs, websites, and cookbooks that offer different food options than they are use to. This gives them the chance to see a variety of food choices and to perk their interest. You might be surprised what they are interested in. I know my kids surprise me sometimes.

4. Put them to work!

No, seriously. I mean it. Put them to work. Have them help along side you in the kitchen. Have them read recipes with you, stir in flour, roll out dough, peel apples and so on. If you have the time, plant a garden. I have found when my kids are active in the process of food prep they can see their food come alive and it is great for us to share that time together. We get to share stories, laughs and create memories during those times. Yes, it can be a little hard for those of us who love to control our kitchens BUT the pay off is having kids who will try new dishes and foods more willingly because they made it!

5. Destination Food

Sometimes new foods or foods that are not normally part of your family’s regular meal rotation, like Mujadara, can be added in with a connection to making the meals “destination meals.” What I mean by this is, use the time to explore the country or culture the dish or unique food comes from. You can learn about the customs, read books, watch a documentary on it, celebrate a particular feast day that is popular in another part of the world and even set the table to match the theme. Also, take advantage of any cultural festivals in your area, this is a great time to learn and try new things! We live in a global world why not explore all of it!

6. Model Behavior

If you never eat your vegetables and grab only what is always the most convenient of items then how do you expect your kids to want to do anything different? They are learning by what not only what you tell them but also by what you do. Our example teaches our kids so much & it is something I have learned first hand. If I want my kid to try new things then I have to step out of MY comfort zone too. So eat those fruits, veggies and try a new dish. Who knows, you might also be surprised by how much you like it! I know I have.

7. 80/20

I know this might be controversial. It might rock the health boat. But remember at the beginning of this when I said we don’t eat healthy all the time. We don’t really ban foods per se. Instead we strive for the 80/20 rule in our home and we strive to teach about what is good food and where it comes from. We eat healthy 80% of the time and the other 20% of the time if someone wants a cookie or we eat something that is less than desirable we do not stress about it. We find that the 80/20 rule allows us to have a good balance while we educate our kids and ourselves about food. You might that your balance is different for a variety of reasons, that’s OK. Being aware about the food you eat and what it does for your body is really what is the key here.

8. Turn off outside distractions

Turn the T.V. off, put the phone down, put away the toys and focus on being together. We try to find fun ways to get them to focus on their plates. And most of all family time at meals is sacred space for us to focus on sharing our day together. We try to right now to eat one meal together daily. It does not always happen, but we make it happen as many times during our week as we can. We know that as the kids get older more activities will enter our lives, but we want to make family meals a chance to reconnect and share our lives. It also helps the child who is easily distracted to stay focused at regular meal times. If you have a busier schedule, maybe select one meal that is YOUR meal. Set that as your sacred family space.

So, those are my 8 tips. The 8 that have learned “on the ground” of motherhood. I hope they help spark some new ways of approaching food for you and your family!

And how about you, what are your tips? Do you involve the kids in a garden, in making dinner, or have a fun way to encourage them to try something new? Please share!

I don’t think I have ever shared this photograph of all my kids.  Getting all 5 in a photo as I have found would be from this moment on a mighty challenge. Forget having them all look in the same direction.

The photograph was taken at the hospital after Baby Girl was born. The older kids were in awe of her.  They had to check her out head to toe.

I cannot believe it has been almost 9 months!

{here another favorite of her after her birth, it is of Baby Girl & her proud Daddy}

She has been under the weather.  Not feeling herself.  We have been having nurse-ins and snuggle fests. She nurses down, she snuggles in.

Close

Soft

Sweet

Heaven

The door opens

I close my eyes. I know what is next. I know they think they are sneaking up on Momma.

It is our morning ritual.

I hear the pitter-patter of little feet {which if I am honest sounded more like the running of the bulls} up the stairs and into the room.  Giggles. I wait for them to pile in.

I hear something different…

“Shhhh…I will take it”

Take what? I think

I wait a minute.

I open one eye.  Only to see my other children smiling down at me with Chester cat grins.  iPhone in hand {darn I thought I put that up}. Looking at their handiwork.

Everyone piles onto the bed. Under the covers.

Close

Soft

Sweet

I look around at my handiwork

Heaven on Earth

I snuggle in

Given it is Spring we are sprucing up around here in Casa De Confusion. This by the way is a home title that aptly reflects how I feel without my morning coffee!  Anyway, we are rearranging rooms, updating styles and getting rid of clutter.  I feel like I have lost a million pounds over the last week because of it.

At this point around here we have:

• painted the girls’ room: it is a light pink per Mamacita’s request, I swear her favorite colors are “bush and bashful” {internet high five to the person who can name that movie!}
• we also decided to keep the ceiling in the girls’ room: Mike painted it to match the night sky for the time of year when Mr. J was born
• as a result the girls are going with owls and other creatures around the room to tie it all together
•  moved D into the boys’ room, he is officially a “big” boy now!  {before D and Mamacita shared a room, now the rooms will be divided by girls in one and boys in the other}
•  the boys picked out colors for their walls: forest green and a cream {for the wainscoting}
• there will also be the addition of Lego decals for their walls
• we decluttered some of kids’ clothes and toys {but this is a work in progress}

We are now working on:

• reorganizing closets and the spaces so everything has a place {again a work in progress, but better everyday}
• the desk in the basement  is being decluttered again as well
• the toys in the basement are being mapped for a reorganize and go over {a never ending battle}
• same with books
• Mike & I are also going through all our things as well, this is a group effort

Other odds & ends:

• we still need to retouch the paint in the basement, living room and kitchen when all is said and done
• we still need to retouch the paint in the basement, living room and kitchen when all is said and done
• oh and our room needs some touch up
• put up some new pictures, photos and shelves
• figure out the flooring in the girls’ room: it was painted white when we moved here, we repainted it once {it was far less trafficked then!} and it needs either a new coat or some other type of flooring because it has a lot of traffic now and looks it
• keep up at it! this is the biggest issue since our grad days while we worked and cared for babies and now that we are an official larger than average family I have found it is still very true. But now I wonder is it ever not true?

I don’t think we will be done with everything before J’s birthday next month. But I am hoping we will have a good portion of things underway and maybe by the girls summer birthdays we will be nearly done.  We also have to work on an outdoor list of sprucing up because we spend a lot of our time outdoors in the warmer months and we did some work last year but there is always a bit more to do. In fact, I feel like it is a never ending process making our house a sweet and cozy home.

Mamacita and I were watching a show on TV. It had dancing cats who also sang. Not real cats or computer generated cats but people dressed like cats. In giant cat costumes. One played a guitar. I have no idea why cats, why giant cat costumes & why they were so darn musically inclined. But it is what it is.

It also was obvious that they were people dressed as cats. Why is this important to point out? Because of the exchange that ensued between myself & Mamacita.

While watching I made the comment: “Isn’t that funny? Giant dancing cats?”

To which my daughter looked me straight in the face and deadpanned “Um, Mommy those are just people dressed as cats NOT real cats. Real cats can’t sing, dance or play guitar. Only people dressed as cats could do that Mommy.”

Because you know she needed to be very clear just in case Mommy didn’t understand that & thought there were really dancing, signing, guttering playing cats on her TV. Oh boy.

Next you know she’s going to start talking about how she’s a winner again.

Looking through my iPhone photos from earlier this month and saw this one. It is a tad blurry but looking at it makes me think of she has a little Zoolander going on.  Except in my totally unbiased opinion she is way cuter. Just sayin’.

The conversation for this went something like: “Hey, let me take your picture?”

{Don’t forget to add in the super, peppy Mom voice of this is going to be SO MUCH FUN even if it kills us! side note: I hate when I have that voice}

Response: Grumble, grumble, grumble. Then something that sounds like: “Sure.”

Me: “OK, look at me and SMILE!”

And as you can see. He did neither look nor smile.

But when I pointed those two facts out he said: “Well, I did let you take a picture didn’t I? Anyways, you took his picture {points to brother who is deep in reading} and didn’t make him look and smile.”

Well played son. Well played.

We took the kids this weekend to a St. Patrick’s Day parade and he brought a book to read.  Mind you he didn’t want to wear his gloves while trying to turn the pages or hold the book. Why? Because he said it made it harder to read the words on the page.

He finally tore himself away from it when the parade reached us. And then as soon as we got back into the car he was back at it again. Who’s kid is this? And what did he do with my son?