Monday, July 26, 2010

The Stealing Game

This morning, a post from Mainstream Mommy took me back to the days when my own kids were small (and picky eaters.)  Please refrain from calling Child Protective upon viewing this photo of Kyle, who was, yes, bone skinny, but not for lack of being fed.


Both of my kids just didn't have a roll between them, so naturally, we always tried to make sure they ate well. When Kyle was about five (Kendall 3), Mr.4444 and I came up with an ingenious idea for getting your kids to eat more.  If this doesn't work, nothing will, but keep in mind that the initial delivery is key....

Here's how it's went:

On the first night, as agreed ahead of time, we made a supper the kids liked (chicken, pasta, and carrots). Mark took a kid-sized bite of chicken on his fork and dramatically exclaimed,

"Boy, I am going to love this bite of chicken! I hope no one steals it from me!" (picture puzzled children here) and he faced left, engaging one of the kids, dangling the food out towards the right (where I was sitting).

Sneakily, I quickly ate the bite off of his fork, just as he turned back to put it in his mouth. So, instead of biting a juicy bite of chicken, he chomped down on a bare-naked fork, with another dramatic, distressed reaction. (I, of course, put on a big show of looking innocent for the kids.)

"Oh my gosh! Someone stole my chicken bite!" Turning to each of us, he asked suspiciously, "Did you steal my chicken?!" Of course, the kids denied taking it, and I, too, feigned innocence. (The kids and I giggled conspiratorially.) The game continued, with Mr.4444 doing this every other bite or so with each of the foods. Soon, the kids were asking if they could "steal Daddy's food, too."

At first, I said no (to make them want it really bad, of course) and eventually (as the days and weeks went on with the game) they were eating a ton of food (anything we were eating). Of course, Mr.4444 didn't get much to eat and dropped two pant sizes. (JK)

After that first night, the kids often begged us to play "the stealing game," so Mr.4444 and I sat across from each other so the kids could each steal from us. This game was so successful that we actually became annoyed with how often the kids insisted on playing it! Eventually, we had to designate one night per week to play it.

Years after we stopped playing this game, Kyle would sometimes ask to play it again. The game not only got the kids to eat, but also made dinner time fun. My kids are now in their young adults, so we have no worries about getting them to eat, of course. We don't play the stealing game any more for food (it's evolved from our forks to our wallets :).

I would love it if someone would try this and let me know how it works. Also, I think a video of this game would be priceless (and possibly become a Youtube sensation under the category of "How to get your child to eat." ) If you don't have children, please pass this idea on to someone who does, because I know it's an issue many parents deal with, and I'm happy to share this trick.

Bon Appetit!

19 comments:

  1. You are, as always, amazing. Mr. 4444 is a very lucky man.

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  2. I love that I inspired a post!! :) :) I have tried the stealing game too!!! It did work on my son for the first bite, and then he just wasn't into it. haha! He is so sneaky! (and picky!) It depends on the day too. Sometimes I can get him to eat, sometimes it just isn't happening. I fixed mashed potatoes the other night...one of his favorites, and he all of a sudden WOULDN'T eat them??!! He is a challenge, but I am NOT giving up. I sware he will like vegetables by the time he is 30 at least ;)

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  3. This is such a fabulous idea! We've been trying to find a way to get Miss Catherine to eat more...this sounds like just the ticket!

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  4. Ingenious. Fortunately my boys weren't picky eaters AT ALL!

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  5. You did have one skinny minnie kiddo there! I never have had any trouble eating LOL but it sounds like good advice for those kids that may.

    Kristin - The Goat

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  6. Charity was skinny like that but it was due to her heart problems. Now Chris was another matter, he'd go around cleanin' up anything left on everyone else's plate and the grandkids will eat anything that doesn't move. Sounds like a fun game through.

    Have the best Monday Hon!!!

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  7. An interesting idea. My daughter has always been a good weight but still has a very limited range of foods she will actually eat, so I might just have to try this out.

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  8. I've got a super picky 3 year old, who is a silly heart. I can't help but wonder if this would do the trick. Thanks for sharing, I plan on giving it a try.

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  9. That's a really great idea. Parents come up with solutions in the best ways.

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  10. How clever and fun! Dang I wish I'd know that trick when my boys were little!!

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  11. Cure, cute post! And, I can totally relate.

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  12. Very creative but might it result in some side effects such stealing food at a relative or friend house?

    I think my wife must of played that game. I was so annoyed when she would eat food off my plate at restaurants. We typically order different things but I don't intentionally do that. Food comes out and it's "oh let me try that" and in goes her fork. Is it just me but I want to eat the food on my plate and just expect others to stay back.

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  13. very cool post and what a cute skinny baby ...Mine was quite the opposite but now is a little stick guy ...lol

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  14. Great trick! We tried something similar with daughter number one. Kids two and three needed no such encouragement: )

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  15. Such a great idea! I have a picky eater, and she is also a "not-much" eater.

    And my husband could stand to loose a size or two (shhh don't tell him I said that! hehe) so it's too bad that that part didn't really happen! lol

    I think we will have to give this a try this week. I'll let you know how it goes.

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  16. Sounds like a pretty good idea. I was a picky eater as a child.. I wonder if that would've worked on me.

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  17. I gave picky eaters, too. I love, Love, LOVE this suggestion! I think I am going to steal it!
    :-)
    Traci

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  18. What a great idea! I wish I would have thought to do this when my girls were little and picky eaters. I think I'm going to pass this on to all my friends and relatives with young, picky eaters.

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  19. That is a great game, I will have to remember it for my little ones, since we are all vegetarian! :)

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