Do You Cut Up GRAPES For A 4 Year Old?

[MissAnn]

I would never give a child under five a whole grape. It's like the number two choke food in america IIRC. (hot dogs are number one)

When we have grapes I destem and clean them and pop them in the freezer a couple hours before they are served. Right before they go to the kids I pop them in my food processor and do a couple of rounds of zipping them (ten seconds or so) and then pour them into a serving dish. I serve them like chunky applesauce.

The kids love the frosty treat and it eliminates the cutting them into quarters or eights. Half cuts are just as dangerous as whole cuts. Half cuts form a perfect plug in their airway and it's hard to get them out.

Simple solution and the time cost is just cleaning the food processor. Rinse and pop in dishwasher.

Stealing this! All ages like them?

[jokalima]

I rarely serve grapes because of this same reason, I don't like to be cutting them but if I do, all of my kids including the 4.5 yr old gets them cut. If I can avoid any serious problems while they are under my care I will, I also cut the hot dogs in ti small squares. I cut almost every fruit in the planet for them

I am reading how some of you give whole grapes to children under 2, I just can't visualize myself doing that, I am to paranoid . Even if I see a parent next to me @ a restaurant doing it I will not be able to take my eyes off that child.

I have a 2.5 yr old and I don't give him grapes or popcorn

[Unregistered]

Grapes are currently $3.50 a pound in my neck of the woods so....... not even an issue at the moment.
That being said, I was cutting up blueberries this morning.
I have more than one that haven't figured out what those small white hard things in their mouths are for.

[Twinvillageiowa]

I would never give a child under five a whole grape. It's like the number two choke food in america IIRC. (hot dogs are number one)

When we have grapes I destem and clean them and pop them in the freezer a couple hours before they are served. Right before they go to the kids I pop them in my food processor and do a couple of rounds of zipping them (ten seconds or so) and then pour them into a serving dish. I serve them like chunky applesauce.

The kids love the frosty treat and it eliminates the cutting them into quarters or eights. Half cuts are just as dangerous as whole cuts. Half cuts form a perfect plug in their airway and it's hard to get them out.

Simple solution and the time cost is just cleaning the food processor. Rinse and pop in dishwasher.

I'm sorry, but that sounds disgusting!!!!! Good for you if you can get them to eat them that way but that texture just sounds awful.

[nannyde]

Stealing this! All ages like them?

I only have birth to five so I don't know about school agers but the youngins love them. Grapes are so high in sugar. They love themselves a little sweet.

[nannyde]

I'm sorry, but that sounds disgusting!!!!! Good for you if you can get them to eat them that way but that texture just sounds awful.

If it would make you sick making it then it wouldn't be a great trick for you. My littles dig it.

[Twinvillageiowa]

If it would make you sick making it then it wouldn't be a great trick for you. My littles dig it.

Don't the skins separate and get all clumpy and gross?

[kendallina]

Nannyde...a little grape smoothie sounds delicious!

I do not typically cut up children's grapes when they're that age, but I also never serve them myself. If the parents send them in their lunchbox (only my pre-kinders stay for lunch, no younger ones), then I let them eat them whole. However, I do have one child who I have forbidden for mom to send her with grapes as she will put two in her mouth EVERY TIME. Drives me nuts and scares me!

[allsmiles]

no i dont cut up grapes for kids that old.. i have a 30 mnth old and his mom cuts his grapes though..

[MyAngels]

There's a list of quite a few foods that are not to be served to the under 2s in my state's licensing standards that includes both hot dogs and whole grapes, so I just eliminate those from my menus for all ages. I'm not particularly a Nervous Nelly, but it's just easier to not serve them at all.

[My3cents]

sometimes I do. Depends on how I am feeling that day or if the child is a choker type kid, or how big the grapes are. Some grapes are huge.

[nannyde]

Don't the skins separate and get all clumpy and gross?

The texture of the skin depends on how great your zipper is and how full the container is. I have a really good processor so I can liquify if I want. I just do about ten seconds of zipitacious and they end up being the consistency of chunky applesauce.

I've tried partially frozen and just from the fridge. I like the partially frozen. I do it a minute before serving so it goes from zipper to bowl. Kids scarf it and lick the bowls. happyface

[lovemykidstoo]

I already posted what I do for my kids (cut in 1/2, cut in quarters for under 2), but I wanted to add because what has been posted since that EVERY food can be a choking hazard. LIke someone else said, adults choke too on food. We don't need our food cut up. The dck that choked here and I had to do a rescue on her, choked on apples. I already posted that, but wanted to add to it. I HAD cut up the apples in very very small pieces and if she would have ate 1 at a time, she probably would have been fine, but she obviously put more in her mouth than 1 pice because when she threw up on the floor after I did the heimlich on her there was alot on the floor. My point is you can chop it up as little as you want, but if they put more in their mouth it becomes a choking hazard. So, use caution, cut when you think you need to and most importanly, watch the children while they eat, know what to do if they choke! That is critical! When it happened here, I whipped that girl out of her booster chair and got it out right away thank God. After I knew she was okay, I went in the front room and cried! Luckily I work great under pressure and didn't panic. I was calm and cool during the episode, it was after that I fell apart

[Childminder]

If any of you are on the food program here is a link to the recommendation from them:

[My3cents]

I don't just cut them in half, I cut them again and if they are huge I will cut them again. I guess habit and from having to do this for the 2 and younger crowd, the 4's just get them sliced up too.

I will have to try the puree deal as something different. Sounds good. Right now grapes are very high priced so it is not something I buy often. If I do get them I buy them at wholesale place, Cosco, BJ's or Sam's club- They are better looking then what is in the grocery store.

I am big on if I think they can choke on something why chance it. Cutting something up is not that much work to do.