Dinner Diva column by Leanne Ely
www.savingdinner.com
There are times in a child’s life that he or she needs training. We all remember teaching our children how to use the potty, or how to cross the street or call 911. What we hate to admit as the older, wiser adult is that we (albeit old dogs), need to learn a few new tricks.
Like eating our vegetables, for example. Yes, even though we tell our children to eat their vegetables, it doesn’t mean we necessarily like eating them any better than they do. Maybe we turn up our noses at Brussels sprouts or we gulp down our broccoli with a glass of milk like we did when we were 9, but we’re just a wee bit older than that. Now please, you’re a grown up—it doesn’t have to be that way!
There is an easy solution to this problem. First admit you have a veggie issue and then second know that you’re not powerless to change this. You just need to take this on as a challenge. Seriously, you can teach yourself to actually like vegetables! It just takes a little training.
When I was pregnant with my first child, I was bound and determined to teach myself to eat veggies. I hated them and didn’t eat them much, if at all. But all that changed when that little stick turned pink—I knew I had to change my eating habits to reflect how I wanted my child to eat. After all, nothing is more powerful than a good example.
So I did. I learned to steam veggies instead of boil them. Big difference flavor-wise. I learned to sauté them ever so gently with olive oil and garlic, wow! Then the magic of grilling veggies released a whole new dimension to my delighted palate—they were amazing!
The most powerful person in your child’s life is you—your example specifically. If you want to raise a good eater, then be a good eater. And start eating your veggies, because the Dinner Diva says so!
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