Serving Family Style Meals

[countrymom]

Do they complain that they are hungry in those 4 hours?

I was thinking they would be more hungry for morning snack/lunch because they are so busy playing, running, using energy in the mornings. It surprises me how much hungrier they are for afternoon snack after taking a nap!

sometimes I have morning snack and sometimes I don't. Do they eat better NOPE. I think it does boil down to junk food. I make healthy meals at lunch and I get kids who pick at it, but offer them cookies and donuts, and omg they go crazy for it. Oh we had tatter tots today. My own children were fighting over them, because you know I starve them all day, and the daycare kids all picked at them. Carrots where again fought over with my kids and the dck's didn't even touch them.

so I would serve restaurant style, and I have learned that all the kids get 1 tbsp on food, and if they eat it then they get more. I literally count fries, or anything else, it sounds silly but I know how much they will all eat.

[Country Kids]

sometimes I have morning snack and sometimes I don't. Do they eat better NOPE. I think it does boil down to junk food. I make healthy meals at lunch and I get kids who pick at it, but offer them cookies and donuts, and omg they go crazy for it. Oh we had tatter tots today. My own children were fighting over them, because you know I starve them all day, and the daycare kids all picked at them. Carrots where again fought over with my kids and the dck's didn't even touch them.

so I would serve restaurant style, and I have learned that all the kids get 1 tbsp on food, and if they eat it then they get more. I literally count fries, or anything else, it sounds silly but I know how much they will all eat.

We had tator tots also! None of mine would eat them. I just didn't understand. I thought they would gobble them up-no. I literally start running out of ideas for making lunch because no one eats.

[Blackcat31]

Just finished talking to my gal and here's what she said.

We can serve family style as long as there is the proper serving in the bowls per child. A child doesn't have to take any of the food if they don't want. Its been offered, thats what counts. Any food that isn't taken has to be thrown away. It can't be reserved.

She has seen a few providers do family style but most serve restaurant style as she called it. Where the food is already on the plate for the child.

Suggested offering two of everything-two fruits, two vegetables, two main things so that there is a choice.

If a child coughs or sneezes while serving themselves, food would need to be thrown away. Great, I would need to recook!

Not allowed to reserve uneaten food for snacks. So if child doesn't eat food that is on plate it has to be thrown away, no reserving.

You also can't serve left overs from dinner. If you are serving what your family had for dinner, it has to be seperated and put into seperate dishes before it goes onto your dinner table.

It also sounds like alot of people don't serve morning snack as children aren't hungry for lunch if they have one. So maybe getting rid of the morning snack is what we will do.

It makes me wonder how centers and head start does it as they have breakfast, snack, lunch and snack. Maybe thats why alot of kids don't eat dinner at night because they aren't hungry by that time.

It always amazes me how differently each area agency interprets the rules. We are completely allowed to serve left overs as long as it was never actually on someone's plate.

I can also feed every kid in care a different meal and still count it as long as ALL of the components of each child's meal is recorded and meets the guidelines. So one kid can be served a turkey dinner while the kid sitting next to him has a ham/cheese sammie with veggies.

I serve morning snack but make it VERY light. ALL my kids eat whatever I make and rarely do I have an issue with food. I have super hungry kids that are rarely ever picky.

My snacks are always light (usually fruit) so that it isn't enough to fill a kid up. I rarely do fruit at lunch time and serve two veggies instead. We NEVER do seconds for snack. Seconds are served at lunch time IF there is extra food left over and ONLY if the first serving of everything is eaten.

[Country Kids]

It always amazes me how differently each area agency interprets the rules. We are completely allowed to serve left overs as long as it was never actually on someone's plate.

I can also feed every kid in care a different meal and still count it as long as ALL of the components of each child's meal is recorded and meets the guidelines. So one kid can be served a turkey dinner while the kid sitting next to him has a ham/cheese sammie with veggies.

I serve morning snack but make it VERY light. ALL my kids eat whatever I make and rarely do I have an issue with food. I have super hungry kids that are rarely ever picky.

My snacks are always light (usually fruit) so that it isn't enough to fill a kid up. I rarely do fruit at lunch time and serve two veggies instead. We NEVER do seconds for snack. Seconds are served at lunch time IF there is extra food left over and ONLY if the first serving of everything is eaten.

How would you feed them something different and be able to record it. In minute menu I can only pick one thing per component to record. Do you somehow have a different page per child?

Also, how do you only serve fruit for snack? I have to serve two of four components. So they would have to have something else besides fruit.

[snbauser]

Do they complain that they are hungry in those 4 hours?

I was thinking they would be more hungry for morning snack/lunch because they are so busy playing, running, using energy in the mornings. It surprises me how much hungrier they are for afternoon snack after taking a nap!

They do not complain they are hungry. We start serving breakfast at 8am. By the time they are done it is usually 8:20 or so and breakfast is usually something filling like pancakes or waffles with a fruit and milk. Then we are busy. The most we get is occassionally someone will say something around 11:30 or so about being hungry and we will just respond with "Me too. I'm glad it is almost lunchtime. We are having X, Y, Z for lunch". Usually the ones that are asking for food before lunch are those that either didn't eat their breakfast or who weren't here for breakfast. Also, I make sure to have water available throughout the morning where the kids can drink frequently. I think just like adults, a lot of kids confuse being thirsty with being hungry.

[Blackcat31]

How would you feed them something different and be able to record it. In minute menu I can only pick one thing per component to record. Do you somehow have a different page per child?

Also, how do you only serve fruit for snack? I have to serve two of four components. So they would have to have something else besides fruit.

There is plenty of space on the meal planning page to add different things. I also use the area for notes too.

I didn't mean I only serve fruit as the complete snack and nothing else, I meant I only serve fruit AT snack time. I do the other component too. Fruit is just never an option at lunch time.

[daycarediva]

I serve most of my meals restaurant style. I am in the food program and although they allow (even encourage) family style I know that either way I am going to end up throwing the food away. It's SOOO wasteful to me. Also, I have some kids who will eat ALLLLLL of something and want more of just that (like homemade mac & cheese) but not touch the veggies. I don't allow seconds until it is all gone.

[Countrygal]

I also never allow seconds at snack, UNLESS they have not had their complete serving. I have to make that available. We often have fruit and a carb at snack, such as crackers or mini muffins. I got a Grreeaattt loaf of bread today that is similar to a stollen from a local Polish bakery and I think this will make a wonderful snack bread - toasted or plain! Another fav for snack is cinnamon toast. As long as I stay away from the protein, they still seem hungry for lunch....

As for the dishes, I can relate to the 2 hours a day! Sometimes it seems like all I do is dishes!!!

[Provider_Manda]

What is the definition of family style? My daycare kids eat the same as my own family....I serve the food and they eat it. I don't think I could ever let them serve themselves because of contamination either. That would, imo, waste a lot of food.

This is how I do it, and how I feel about it. And as far as the food program servings go..As long as you offer it that is all that matters.