One thing I didn’t realize we did differently than other parents of 2-4 y/o’s is to order the food presented by ‘yuckiest’ to ‘yumiest’.
E.g. salad/veggies first, then starch/protein, then fruit, then dessert.
If they refuse to eat at any stage, we show them the dessert that they would get if they continued.
We learned that they will eventually eat a small salad with training (for every dinner) and it eventually becomes second nature.
Small children are like pets, if you let them make the decision, then they will eat what they want until they get sick. If you provide a smaller subset of healthy choices, they learn to make better choices as a consequence.
E.g. salad/veggies first, then starch/protein, then fruit, then dessert.
If they refuse to eat at any stage, we show them the dessert that they would get if they continued.
We learned that they will eventually eat a small salad with training (for every dinner) and it eventually becomes second nature.
Small children are like pets, if you let them make the decision, then they will eat what they want until they get sick. If you provide a smaller subset of healthy choices, they learn to make better choices as a consequence.