Eating What You Preach

Every morning, EC asks for a second bowl of cereal at breakfast time. And every morning we tell her that she has to have a serving of fruit first. She whines and then eats the fruit and sometimes the second bowl of cereal. And every morning I wonder why she whines about the fruit. She likes fruit.

It occurred to me this morning that I might be part of the problem. The girls have "rules" about eating fruits and vegetables before they can have seconds of other foods. They love eating fruit and even some vegetables, so we try to remind them to have some broccoli before filling their bellies with macaroni and cheese. However, I'm not usually following the same rules. I like vegetables, so there is no problem getting me to eat them with dinner, but I rarely eat fruit and don't make sure that I'm having a fruit or veggie with every meal like I do with them.

When sitting down for a snack, I'm not very likely to grab an apple, but I'm always trying to get them to eat one. I've noticed that if I peel an orange, LR toddles right over to have some, but if I just ask her if she wants one, the answer is no. Could my lack of fruit on my plate be affecting them?

Part of this dilemma is financial. I love strawberries and blueberries and blackberries, and I readily buy them for the kids in all but the most expensive months. My produce bill is pretty high without adding enough to fill my plate with.

This imperfect mommy has made a resolution to show the girls that I'm practicing what I'm preaching. I'm adding more fruits and more veggies to my meals and my snacks. And if strawberries aren't in the budget, I'll settle for the less exciting (and less expensive) apples and oranges and bananas. Maybe if I bite into an apple, the girls will be more likely to want one, too. And I'm going to make sure that my lunch has a little more green to it. Because, let's face it - this mommy could stand a few more fruits and vegetables and a few less carbs in her diet!