I'm warning you - this is going to be a rant, but I have so got to get this off my chest! Me and my hubby are at our wits end! With four children all of whom are fussy eaters, meal times have become a constant battlefield - which we now dread. Our eldest son has a learning disability and as such has a very limited diet, so we'll forgive him - just - but at nearly 16yrs old he lives on a diet of bread, tomato soup and jam butties. We made yet another concerted effort a year ago and he will now tolerate a simple cheese and tom pizza and chips. Doesn't sound like much but I can't tell what progress this is and how much simpler it has made going out for a meal - we can now all go to Pizzahut for example or order a chip bap in a pub - instead of asking them to heat up a bowl of tomato soup!
But as for the others....... The 8yr old goes balistic if any of the items on his plate touch the others; he'll eat tinned spaghetti but not baked beans; he eats no veg and will only eat a banana; he will eat fishfingers and sausages but he cuts the ends off his sausages and I once caught him trying to take the skin off?????!!!!! He'll eat chips and smiley faces but won't contemplate mashed potato or baked spuds; he's got the appetite of a sick sparrow and will vomit if we try to get him to try something new or finish what's on his plate.
In all fairness the 12yr old is getting a bit better but he won't eat chips or smiley faces, but ironically will eat mashed potato and baked spuds!!! He doesn't like any veg and despite liking some fruit doesn't eat any!!! He too has a poor appetite, but then gets hungry later on and snacks on biscuits.
My 4yr old daughter had grown up in this environment and despite starting off well is now getting fussy. She does like some fruit but won't touch veg; she likes bacon and egg but won't touch them if I make a quiche. She won't try anything new - even puddings!?
Trying to work out what every one will eat wears me out. I've just lost 1 stone 6lbs and so try to cook something healthy to help maintain my weight; the same meal needs to satisfy my hubby's appetite; then I need to prepare my eldest son's meal; then I need to think about what combination the others will eat. The minute I call every one to the table the tension starts to mount. They all begin by looking at their food as if I've just served them something alien, then they start picking and pushing it around their plate, then the whining begins.
Before anyone out there tells me I'm pandering to them all - please don't. I've tried every trick in the book - we grow our own veg, we get the kids involved in preparing meals; we eat a varied and healthy diet ourselves; we eat together as a family (but not for much longer at this rate); we've tried zero tolerance; I've tried giving them what we eat - believe me you should be glad you weren't there - I've tried giving them the same meal every night in the hope they might beg me for a change; I've tried new recipes and old recipes; we've tried putting their tea straight in the bin the minute they moan; we've tried bartering with them; we've tried rewards charts; we've tried focusing on the positives and not the negatives - like I said we've tried everything we can think of but I am really struggling. In truth I feel like a real failure and I just don't know what to do for the best. Anybody got a magic wand?