These are from Parent’s magazine. It is a few ways to attempt to calm down your toddler when he/she is acting like a teenager. We’re not ready for that…yet!
Parents.com reminds us that it’s never too soon to start setting limits and encouraging good behavior from your kid.
Too Young to Discipline?
When your 1-year-old screams for candy or throws food out of your cart at the grocery store, it’s hard to know how to deal with her misbehaving. After all, a child this age is still too young to be disciplined, right? Not quite. While tactics like time-outs or taking away privileges don’t work well on toddlers (they aren’t old enough to link cause and effect), this is actually a good time to introduce your child to the concept of right and wrong.
When leaving the kids at home is NOT an option :)
“Exposing kids to colors, shapes, and textures in the market makes them more open to new tastes” says Bridget Swinney, R.D. author of Baby Bites.
1. Focus on Touch — Have your child hold a big, dimply orange or a fuzzy little kiwi. Ask her to describe how it feels, looks, and smells.
2. Let your child make some noise — Give him a box of pasta to shake, and then point out the difference between regular and whole wheat pasta.
3. Look at labels — Once your preschooler recognizes numbers up to ten, have her pick the cereal with the most fiber (you’ll need to point at the label for her.) Say, “Fiber helps you poop better.”
4. Be a tour guide –Point out all the food aisles, then say, “I like the produce area the best, because fruits and veggies help you grow big and strong.”
5. Offer Choices — Ask if you should buy apples or mangoes for a snack. Also let him pick some new veggies for the family to try.
6. Play the color game — See if your child can find three kinds of purple produce (such as grapes, eggplant, cabbage or potatoes)
7. Try a sample dish — Your child is more likely to eat something if he sees other people lining up for a bite.
8. Check out a local farmer’s market — Most vendors will be happy to talk to kids about their harvest.
9. Take a wiff — Vegetable stands are great places to have your child sniff garlic green onions, cilantro, and mint. Ask him, “Do you think this would make our tuna taste better?”
10. Shapes — Ask your child to find 3 circles, triangles, squares, etc. Looking for shapes everywhere from the produce department to the floor tiles will keep his eyes roaming. Then change to colors.
Even finicky kids can get jazzed about fruits and vegetables. “It’s all in the presentation,” says Hendel.
1. Fruit Parfaits — Spoon layers of fat-free yogurt, fruit, and crushed cereal into a nonbreakable ice cream dish.
2. Smoothies — Mix fruit with juice or fat-free yogurt or milk. Your kids will get a kick out of watching the color change.
3. Extraordinary Eggs — Lay cookie cutters on a frying pan, fill the egg mixture, then sprinkle in veggies with your child.
4. veggie Tic-Tac-Toe — Play this three-across game on a paper plate (so you can draw the grid) with cut-up veggies. Then munch away.
5. Pepper Bowl — Fill a hollowed bell pepper with chicken salad or hummus. Slice up some carrot sticks for dipping.
6. Blind Taste Test — Cut up veggies, blindfold your child, and have him taste them. See if he can guess what each is.
7. Quickie Pizza — Let your child put tomato sauce and shredded cheese on a tortilla. Add veggies. Then toast and serve.
8. Homemade Fruit Pops — Pour juice into ice pop trays. Drop in chopped up berries and oranges. Add a stick, then freeze.
9. Waffle Face — Have your child create a silly face or pattern with strawberry or banana slices. It works with pancakes too.
10. Frozen Fruit — Icy grapes and blueberries are more fun than fresh ones because they seem like popsicles, not fruit. Try any combination!
(From Parents Magazine)
