In my last post here, I wrote about my son’s extreme pickiness with many, many foods. It has been a real challenge for my husband and I over these past 4 years but I can now say that there is no greater joy than witnessing when big a payoff happens.
We had that moment last week when my Mother In-Law was visiting us for the week. We decided to do what we always do in the summer on Wednesday nights – go to the farmer’s market, have a picnic and watch a free outdoor concert.
What is my son Leif’s favorite food at the market? Fresh baked bread. We get him a whole wheat sourdough baguette every week and he happily munches on it as we buy our fruits and veggies. Since he hasn’t ever eaten a sandwich, I’ve given up on asking or making suggestions about it.
When we were done shopping, we laid out our picnic blanket, started eating all of our different items we brought with us as well as some of what we purchased there and then we see a little boy next to us with what looked like a cold grilled cheese sandwich in his hand. The boy looked to be about 18 months old and was eating his quarter of a sandwich near Leif. My husband says, “Look at that little boy eating a sandwich, wouldn’t you like to eat a sandwich, too?” Leif by then was eating his all time favorite protein food – organic, uncured turkey bologna, rolled up. To our surprise Leif said, “Sure.”
“What?!” We all looked at each other in amazement and I said, “Ok, I am going to put your turkey bologna inside this chunk of bread and showed him what I did and he took the sandwich from me with two hands and took a big bite. We three cheered and clapped and high five’d him. He was giggling over the big production we were making out of this momentous moment. My Mother In-Law even took a photo of this (which sadly I don’t have yet).
When he was done with that one little mini sandwich, he wanted another. We sat there until he was done eating a second and much bigger sandwich and then we went over to the concert where he and I danced a lot to a great band and I told him several times how proud I was of him for trying the sandwich and how happy Daddy and I were that he likes sandwiches now. So much joy we all felt that night!
I was hoping this wasn’t just a fluke so the next day I offered to make him a sandwich on the bread we had at home and he agreed to it – even with some lettuce on it (but nothing else). Wow. Eating three different items altogether – unheard of. He eats half of a whole sandwich now every day since that night. All week for camp this is what he’s wanted for lunch and eats all of it. I’m still amazed watching him eat a sandwich. I can’t wait until he says “sure” about eating a nut butter and jam sandwich or even wanting to sleep in his own room finally. Now I really know it will be coming and maybe sooner than I think.
This really proves to us that once again, our gentle, AP techniques we’ve been using really pay off well. For a child that says, “I don’t like it” for so many foods even if he’s never tasted it to all of a sudden say “sure” instead is amazing. When they are ready, they embrace it and make it their own with ease.
Written by Melissa from Nature Deva.
Fabulous!! I know all too well about how new foods and food combinations are a reason to rejoice!!
Very exciting! And you’re right – you could have “attempted” to force him to eat a sandwich years ago, which surely would have ended badly, or you could wait until he is ready, and have a lasting success!
Well done to both of you!
Thanks, Sarah!
I still get a thrill every time I see him eat a sandwich, even now a couple of weeks later and I am always secretly hoping that he won’t change his mind!
Woo hoo!!! Go, Leif!! I’ve been thinking about this too…my kid who used to eat EVERYTHING now eats almost exactly NOTHING. Very frustrating, but I think really normal. I’m taking deep breaths and trying to meet him where he is and trust that he’ll someday eat food again.
Yay – I know the joy you must have felt seeing that first bite…then the second bite go in and not come right back out. 🙂