Children can display some very strange behaviours and habits at mealtimes:
- Maybe they’ll only eat sandwiches cut into triangles and with the crusts cut off
- They might only eat the flowery bit of broccoli
- Carrots are only accepted if cut into rings and steamed
- Perhaps they’ll only eat their Weetabix by dunking it into the milk in their bowl
- Some will only eat off their favourite plate with their matching cup and cutlery
- A common one is liking all the elements of a meal to be separated on the plate.
This quirky behaviour is all part and parcel of their food exploration.
It is better not to question or fight it but to go with the flow and simply accept and deal with it for now. Through constant exposure to new foods, different ways of preparing the same foods, seeing you eating many foods in various ways, they will move on in their own time.
Far better that you see your child happily eating than to cause a fight over this and them eat nothing.