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Just because your children won't ask for any of these gifts doesn't mean your kids don't want them.
In fact, I'm willing to bet cold hard cash that there isn't a child out there who wouldn't love to receive at least one of these gifts. (Especially #1. Who wouldn't want that?)
No, your kids may not be interested in developing healthier eating habits, and that's what these gifts are designed to deliver. But, if you've been struggling with your children around food, everyone will benefit from developing a closer, calmer, more relaxed parent/child relationship. Think of the resulting healthy eating habits as a bonus.
It is easy for parents and children to see each other as adversaries.
- I want to stay up. You want me to go to sleep.
- I want to wear a bathing suit. You want me to wear snow pants.
- I want to eat chips. You want me to eat carrots. And so it goes.
Gardening, grocery shopping, cooking together and the "no thank you bite" often don't change eating habits because, over time, tension and distrust have come to underlie the parent/child dynamic—at least as it pertains to eating. And children can't/won't change while they are being defensive.
Remember, if you are tense, your children are also tense. If meals are stressful for you, meals are stressful for them. So this holiday season, give your kids the gift of the relationship reset. Improve your relationship and improve your children's eating.
(Try it and let me know how it goes.)
~Changing the conversation from nutrition to habits.~
© 2016 Dina Rose, PhD, is the author of the book, It’s Not About the Broccoli: Three Habits to Teach Your Kids for a Lifetime of Healthy Eating (Perigee Books). She also writes the blog It's Not About Nutrition.
