Doritos for Dessert

Mealtimes have become increasingly more difficult around my house. Andrew, my 3 year old, is on a food strike from not only the usual toddler dislikes like veggies, but also meat, potatoes and rice. What does that leave you may wonder. I'm wondering the same thing. All he wants to eat are chips, cookies, juice and the occasional apple or handful of blueberries. Aaron, my still malleable 17 month old, has begun to discover the sweet goodness of cookies and become disillusioned with ALL veggies, preferring instead to throw them onto the already stained carpet.

Needless to say, there is usually some type of bribe involved in mealtimes. Shame on me, I know. All the books say you should NEVER do that because that teaches the child to value snacks over the actual substance of a meal. However, I learned a while ago never to say never in parenting. Before I became a mom, I would have never wiped snot with my hands or used my own shirt as a tissue or examine poop/vomit for a lost button or coin. Never. Say. Never.

So back to the heart of the post, my kids are currently eating Doritos. This is after 30 painful minutes spent sitting at the dinner table trying to reach a compromise about the dinner placed in front of them. It's highly frustrating to spend hours cooking only to have 2/3 of my household push it away or yell "I said I don't like it!" Tonight, they managed to eat 2 tablespoons of rice, 2 tablespoons of mixed veggies, a square of cornbread and 1 chicken leg between the both of them. Andrew was promised chips by his aunt earlier in the day, who happened to show up right on cue. The chips sat in front of him on the table, the proverbial carrot hanging from the string.

And it worked. Thank God! Yes, I thank God for small victories such as these. Even if he has cheese flavored tortilla chips in his belly, he also has some protein and vegetables in there to keep them company. And I can sleep soundly tonight on that fact.