Running Out Of Food, Too Many Snack Times

[Meyou]

I also serve a protein at almost all snacks. If they're hungry between meals especially in the summer I pass out apples. I buy them 20lb at a time from the farmers market.

[Blackcat31]

In all honesty i try to serve very healthy meals and snacks. I have 1 kid that refuses everything i make ( the chip boy). I make my own waffles and pancakes, i try to make all of my own food to save money and not buy processed or prepackaged food.

I try to keep them as busy as possible aswell.

They always act like i never feed them and when mom or dad come they all act like i starve them to death.

I Just wanted to know if others go through this with the kids and to get a few more food ideas.

It's funny that almost all of the food Sharlan and littlemissmuffet listed, chip boy hates!

This is a tough situation to be in but in all honesty it isn't your job to only serve what they like. If that were true we would all be flipping burgers like McD's for lunch. It is our job as providers to offer good healthy foods and if the kids (like your "chip boy") doesn't like it then that is his choice to not eat, but I guarantee you that if you just keep on serving good healthy stuff he will start to eat eventually.

Just keep serving the good stuff and don't worry about who likes what. If you have eaters who eat more than your food program guidelines say is the right serving size and can't afford to keep up with such big eaters, then I would re-think the whole way you do meals and snacks and have the parents start chipping in or donating.

[rhymia1]

This is a tough situation to be in but in all honesty it isn't your job to only serve what they like. If that were true we would all be flipping burgers like McD's for lunch. It is our job as providers to offer good healthy foods and if the kids (like your "chip boy") doesn't like it then that is his choice to not eat, but I guarantee you that if you just keep on serving good healthy stuff he will start to eat eventually.

Just keep serving the good stuff and don't worry about who likes what. If you have eaters who eat more than your food program guidelines say is the right serving size and can't afford to keep up with such big eaters, then I would re-think the whole way you do meals and snacks and have the parents start chipping in or donating.

I agree. I always say that my job is to serve healthy foods, their job is to eat (or not). Like others have said I always have a protein (low fat cheese, cottage cheese, boiled eggs, even lean turkey breast slices etc.) to go with the fruit or veggie that I serve. I rarely serve breads/muffins/cookies unless we have baked them as a group. I will say that "I'm hungry" is often a euphamisum for "I'm bored" and it may be that your kids need a change up in activity or some more structured/provider led ones. Just a thought.
I had one child this year who would literally sit at the table and take nothing all day long. That was his choice. But he also learned that I wasn't going to serve junk regardless of how hungry he said he was.

[countrymom]

They are home made muffins and cookies made from scratch with whole wheat flour. Jello is a treat, I also serve fresh fruit, veggies, cheese, yogurt, hence the ect....

If you dont mind me asking, what do you serve your dc kids?

And if anyone hasn't noticed carrots and other good food isnt that filling either!

I agree with you, I make all that stuff from scratch too and no one eats carrots except my kids but they don't fill the kids up either. I think you just have to tell the kids "no" I do. Your hours are the same as mine, I think the problem is that kids are so use to snacking all day that when it comes to food scheduals they are all out of wack. I just bought some mousse from No Frills and i'm going to make that tommorrow.

[mrsp'slilpeeps]

I understand what you all mean about serving the food and if they choose not to eat it then they dont eat. That is what i tell these kids all the time.

I cannot justify throwing this food out, it makes me sick to my stomache.
This is what i end up having to do cause they dont like turkey, cottage cheese, all the high protien foods.

So what do you do with this food that they choose not to eat?




Thank you for the triscut with p/butter. they loved it. It was whole wheat w/rye btw.

[countrymom]

I should also mention that you ladies that live in the states have cheaper food prices than us canadians. I can say that because i live 15 min from the detroit border and shop every other week to save on my groceries. Your dairy is always on sale, ours never ever goes on sale except sour creme. I can buy milk for 2.50 a gallon or pay 5.00 for 3L (which is almost the same, its off by a tad bit) also your coupons rocks, we get alot of "buy 2 get a dollar off" stuff.

[mrsp'slilpeeps]

Thank you!!! Canadian food prices are thru the roof.

We dont have a food program either, so it basically comes out of my or my husbands pocket and chucking it cause "i dont like it" truthfully pisses me off.

They dont pay me enough to buy expensive turkey slices, blocks of chesse, whole wheat, whole grain, blah blah blah.

I tell my own kids that it does not say MOMMY'S RESTERAUNT on the front of my house so eat it.

DCK's dont give a rats behind, cause they know that they can tell their parents, that I didnt feed them, and the parents believe them.

[rhymia1]

I understand what you all mean about serving the food and if they choose not to eat it then they dont eat. That is what i tell these kids all the time.

I cannot justify throwing this food out, it makes me sick to my stomache.
This is what i end up having to do cause they dont like turkey, cottage cheese, all the high protien foods.

So what do you do with this food that they choose not to eat?




Thank you for the triscut with p/butter. they loved it. It was whole wheat w/rye btw.

Typically what I do when I have a child who refuses to eat is talk to the parents to get some ideas from them. Admittedly most of my clients are really into good nutrition so that makes it easier. I might also require a doctors note stating that the child is in good health (not underweight or malnourished) and continue to provide healthy meals and snacks and give them the option of eating or not. If the child is showing signs of malnourishment then I would require the parents to provide *healthy* foods that the child would eat (and I have no issues dealing with any nonsense from that)

I also think that if you are providing meals and snacks and the DCB is refusing them, then for him to complain about hunger becomes a discipline issue, IMHO. With the one child in my care who refused to eat anything, I had to sit him down and remind him that he was offered good/healthy food and didn't want to eat it, therefore he was not allowed to tell me he was hungry (and I meant the constant, repeated: I'm hungry I'm hungry I'm hungry I'm hungry When is snack when is lunch what are we having I'm hungry I'm hungry... )
I also know many providers do not provide food, but have the parents send in lunches and snacks. Personally I think that would be more of a pain, but it might work out better for you.

[Cat Herder]

Here the current favorite snacks are:

1. Bite sized raw veggies (carrots, broccoli, cauliflower) with ranch dipping sauce. I often serve these in the restaurant style paper envelopes you see french fries served in with the dip in little paper cups. (bettymills.com) Kids like packaging, I am not too proud to bribe.

2. Homemade trail mix with 5-grain Cheerios, raisins, sunflower seeds, assorted dried fruits, and a few M&M'S for color. Again, serve in silly packaging like clearance party treat bags if you can.

3. Ham, cheese, baby spinach and flour tortilla rollups. (I use a bit of olive oil mayo). Wrap them in tissue paper so the kids "open" them themselves...

4. Homemade fruit smoothies (berries, bananas, ice, milk in the blender) Occasionally I will even add ovaltine or carnation instant breakfast if I need them to stay fuller longer (DCM called and is running late, but will be here before my family has dinner). If you serve these in paper cups with straws you get less resistance..."think milkshake"

5. Frozen fruit kabobs (Sliced apples, bananas, grapes, melon, pineapple on Popsicle sticks, frozen). Works even better if you want to give them a bit of caramel dip.

6. Fruit pops (whole fruits and juice blended together and frozen in Popsicle forms) HUGE hit if served on the playground.

7. Standard "Ants on logs". Celery with peanut butter and raisins. Best served cold. Lot's of kids get these at home because their Mom's had them as kids, too, so it is less of a battle.

8. Homemade Frozen Yogurt. (Vanilla yogurt blended with diced berries and spooned into ice cream cones with sprinkles on top, frozen before serving)

9. Bran muffins (baked in cupcake cups with cream cheese as "frosting" with a few sprinkles) served with sliced peaches.

Get creative....even sneaky if you have to until they develop a taste for these healthier choices.

[meganlavonnesmommy]

I serve Breakfast (7am), snack (9am), Lunch (11:30am) and snack (3pm).

If they dont eat, or are hungry, then they wait until the next serving. No exceptions. If I give them something else in between, then they dont eat the next meal/snack. I have water bottles available all day long, and they get as much water as they want, but that is it.

The kids quickly learn to stop asking, they know they wont get anything until the next serving.

It sounds harsh, but they need to learn to eat when its meal/snack time. They learn to eat what they are given. If they dont like it, then they can wait until the next serving.

I often change my menu around if many of them havent eaten well. For instance we tried chicken and bean taquitos for lunch last week, none of the kids really liked it, and didnt eat much lunch. So instead of graham crackers for snack that afternoon, I changed it to apples with peanut butter, and yogurt.

[littlemissmuffet]

Thank you!!! Canadian food prices are thru the roof.

We dont have a food program either, so it basically comes out of my or my husbands pocket and chucking it cause "i dont like it" truthfully pisses me off.

They dont pay me enough to buy expensive turkey slices, blocks of chesse, whole wheat, whole grain, blah blah blah.

I tell my own kids that it does not say MOMMY'S RESTERAUNT on the front of my house so eat it.

DCK's dont give a rats behind, cause they know that they can tell their parents, that I didnt feed them, and the parents believe them.

I live in Canada as well, I pay just as much for food as you - there's no excuse for not feeding the children healthy food as a responsible provider.
Responsible providers factor in costs of meals in their rates. It's part of the job and you're just going to have to **** it up!

No food gets wasted here. If a child doesn't eat, typically hubs or I will eat it -- we don't make meals for ourselves during daycare hours just for this reason. If everyone eats everything then we will make ourselves something to eat. Works out.

[SunflowerMama]

I actually just got rid of my morning snack a while ago and it's working out well. We do breakfast at 8:30a, lunch at 11:30a and snack at 3:30p.

I agree with muffet and others about protein with every meal/snack. It really fills them up and holds them over.

I make a lot of my own food too but rarely add sugar and everything I serve is very low sugar and usually high in fiber and I love adding in the extra proteins...turkey bacon, yogurt, almond butter (have a peanut allergy), cheese, eggs, ground turkey, etc. I don't skimp on the quality of food for the kids and it's one of the things that sets me apart around my area.

Since I got rid of the morning snack the kids are eating great at lunch and I rarely hear anything about them being hungry during the day.

They also have unlimited access to their water bottles all day. So if someone does say they are hungry I tell them to drink some water. It's usually thirst and not hunger that they're feeling.

[Hunni Bee]

Yeah I don't do a morning snack either. I did one for a while but they weren't eating their lunch and that's more important to me. So they may be actually hungry for a few minutes but I don't think thats necessarily a bad thing.

For my PM snack...I do a grain, a fruit/veggie and a milk. Usually its various flavors of milk, but if the Food Bank gods smile on me and we have some yogurt or cheese, I do water. If I think they're hungrier than usual, I plop a gob of peanut butter on the side and let them make their own snack.

BTW I have 3, 4 and 5 year olds.

[kcnjason]

Snacks

I understand where your problem is....I no longer do a morning snack. We do breakfast around 830 and always eat by 1130. We are busy through the morning and they often don't need a snack because it would be too close to lunch which would cause them not to eat a good lunch which in turn will throw their entire eating schedule off. I often will give choices but sometimes I will say, "this is what you may have, you can either have it or not. if you are hungry you will eat it and if you are not that hungry than you can wait." Kids will often eat out of boredom and I do agree that protien will fill a child up quicker than carbs. Good luck!

[Unregistered]

high protein snacks

Tofu ranch - hidden valley packets blended with tofu and sour cream - make a batch and freeze in thirds - thaw the night before and stir before serving (soft tofu, cheap in the boxes, also freezes well, buy on sale)

Serve with crackers, veggies....


Roast beef slice sour cream rolls....salty and spirally - more of a grown up flavor profile-
spread the sour cream ( or cream cheese at room temp on thin roast beef, roll and slice)

Green cheese ( Benedictine) Cucumbers and onion blended with sour cream or cream cheese and salted (seasoned with celery salt, maybe)
serve with celery or carrots or black bean chips.

Never underestimate the power of the black bean chips!

Make your own foods - mini pizzas, rolls or wraps, peanut butter faces ( soy nut butter, others...)

Nutella. Or make your own with Carnation Chocolate drink mix and a nut butter of your choice.

Stock up on beans, nuts, cheese, and sneak protein in all the foods you can - tofu can hop in a muffin recipe, a smoothie, veggie spaghetti sauce....and it is good for you!
Mexican bean dip, baked beans, beans and ham soup, split pea soup, maybe a hummus (chick peas- garlic - olive oil and lemon) ...

You might try serving a white rice as often as possible - filling and cheap.

You really need a blender or food processor to win with most of these ideas.

If you are looking for easy stuff to stock - find a bulk deal on soy nuts, raisins, make some cereal mix snacks - watch sales, go to the farmer's market,

And - on a non-protein note....look for deals on the fruits - watermelons are getting cheap, other melons, and try doing a salad bar type thing at lunch...(less waste more choice)

I am thinking boredom is a factor, and also that labor is an issue too.....
Consider an international theme cycle?

My own kiddo is a non-eater. I have struggled.