The bloody childcare books and the nice brisk health visitors make it all sound so easy, Soozie, don't you think? Such good advice - don't give your child sweet stuff and they won't get a sweet tooth, children will eat whatever you give them if they're hungry enough, no child will voluntarily starve, children are endlessly curious and love strong flavours and new eating experiences, children who refuse to eat are rebelling against parents who overvalue eating...
BOLLOX!
Nobody devoured more childcare books than I did, and NONE of my children would touch baby rice and unsweetened apple puree. I don't blame them. The only thing that kept me sane during the weaning years was that I had so much to do that I didn't particularly care whether the kids ate or not. Milupa good, Mummy's hand-prepared ice-cube-tray portions of meat and veg bad. It's better now, but I still have one six-year-old who subsisted until recently on "butter sandwiches" and chunks of cucumber - she has recently added broccoli and apples to her repertoire. She's scarily skinny, but it doesn't seem to slow her down.
Look forward to the teens. I'm told that having a teenage boy is like sharing your home with a plague of locusts. My 8-year-old son is pretty much like that already.
Soozie, throw the leftovers away. Waste, not waist. Tell the rascals that they eat it or they starve till the next meal and it's them that will be hungry, not you. And don't worry about what Annabel Karmel says. I'll bet she buys Chicksticks like the rest of us.
