The one bite rule

Where has the time gone?????

5 years ago this very week I underwent my IVF procedure that resulted in Summie Lou & Coley Boley!  Seriously.... they are almost 4 1/2!!!!!  And at some point a long the way they stopped eating dinner food.

Our schedule has not been so normal.... so I will give them that.  For the first 3 1/2 years of their lives, Jim didn't get home from work until after 8pm since he worked west coast hours.  Although that schedule really did help our mornings be less hectic.... I would get home around 6pm with the kids feed them quickly since they want to eat as soon as we walk in the door most nights.  Then I'd cook later after they were in bed (since they went to bed at 7pm at the time). 

Well bedtime has gotten later, Jim is actually home by 6pm and I still find myself throwing something quickly together for them as soon as we walk in the door and then either cooking later or more recently resorting to take out once they've gone to bed.  On the occassion that I actually do prepare a nice meal or maybe we have dinner at someone's house.... the kids don't want to eat it.  They want cereal or eggs or no lie Cole ate just wheat thins for Thanksgiving dinner! 

What happened?  When did they become picky eaters?  They ate anything insight including salad at the age of 2.  Why now would that never ever happen?

In comes "the one bite rule".... I forget where I saw this, but probably Parents magazine because I seriously find so many good things in that magazine (love it!).  It's supposed to take people like 10 times or something of trying a new food to decide that they like it.  I don't want to force them to sit in front of a plate of food all night that they don't like, I don't want it to turn into a power struggle where they won't even try because they don't want me to win, and I don't want any long term issues or even fighting over food.  Last weekend I made my first beef brisket (which was awesome I might add), with oven roasted potatoes and sauteed green beans..... and of course... the kids wanted no parts of it.  I warned them as I was cooking that we would be starting the "one bite rule" that night.  They would need to try one bite (no spitting out) of each food and if they didn't like it... they didn't need to have any more, but if they did like it they could have more of whatever they wanted.  Guess what?  It actually worked!  Summer didn't like any of it, but she did try a bite of each.  Cole liked the potatoes (which neither one will typically eat.... even though I'm half Irish and could seriously live off of all the different types of potatoes!) and the meat and even came home from school the next day asking if he could have more!!!!  This weekend I made a big batch of pulled pork for the football games on Sunday.  They asked what I was making.... I told them and they said "eww... we don't like that".  I reminded them of the "one bite rule" and they said ok, but when we don't like it we can have something else right?  I agreed, but after their "one bite" ... they both liked it!  Summer had a sandwich with it and Cole ate it just in a bowl!  Hopefully we are getting somewhere with our new rule!