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How do you get kids to eat vegetables? #EatinFullColour at the Bird’s Eye First Plates Restaurant
How do you deal with getting your kids to eat vegetables?
An easy life or forever a struggle?
Mine is the latter, so I was intrigued when we got an invitation to the Bird’s Eye First Plates Restaurant.
Here little ones were encouraged to #eatinfullcolour with a range of veg based dishes which included pea cake (yep, and it was actually quite nice!).
It was interesting to see the dynamic as all the kids sat together happily – mostly – trying out lots of different vegetables.
Us parents were lucky enough to get tips on how to get more veg in their tummies from TV child psychologist, Dr Elizabeth Kilbey, as seen on Channel 4’s The Secret Life of 4, 5 and 6 Year Olds.
She told me: ‘Don’t be deterred by them saying ‘I don’t like that’.
‘If they like particular colours try pairing them up, association helps.’
And even, gasp, making eating veggies fun!
For example, Dr Kilbey added: ‘Can we have a snack of every single colour today? Can we build a rainbow of the food we eat today?’
Research by Bird’s Eye to mark their Eat in Full Colour campaign shows that children are actually becoming more adventurous with their food, with 4-9 year olds naming sprouts and spinach as their favourite vegetables.
Almost a third (32 per cent) of parents say their children would eat just about ANY type of vegetable served – and only 29 per cent struggle to get their kids to eat their greens. Unfortunately I’m in that 29 percent!
But I was given some hope to keep trying after the event, adding more colour to ALL of our plates and trying new vegetables.
Click to see footage from the event (my daughter even has a speaking part!).
Spread the Love – not Covid – with the 2020 Charity Gifting Appeal
2020 is definitely the year which made us realise how important it is to think of others and those less well off.
While many of us now have the choice to spend Christmas with our loved ones, feasting on turkey and opening multiple gifts around the tree – many people will not have that option.
And so it was great to hear that leading gift retailer Thumbs Up has partnered with Great Ormond Street Hospital and The Salvation Army to create the 2020 Charity Gifting Appeal and donate a massive 2,000 presents to those who might not otherwise receive anything for Christmas.
To help them carry out their target Thumbs Up are asking people to contribute just £5 for postage and packaging.
The donation will see each individual receive a package full of presents worth £30.
You read that right people! All they’re asking is for £5 towards postage and packaging!
Times are hard, but if you feel you can help please visit thumbsup.com to choose from four different packs (Teen Girls 12-17, Teen Boys 12-17, Male or Female 18+).
Spread the love this Christmas (not Covid!).
£200 in vouchers to breastfeed your child…?!
When I heard the latest news today that a pilot scheme is being planned in parts of Sheffield and Chesterfield to encourage more mothers to breastfeed their babies – I held my breath and listened out to hear what would be the latest way for new mums to feel even more pressure to live up to the often used adage ‘breast is best’.
So, wait for it…. – £200 in shopping vouchers if you breastfeed for the recommended six months. Oh great, brilliant. Or rather slightly condescending and/or patronising… thinking that the chance for a bit of retail therapy can form the basis of someone’s decision as to whether or not to breastfeed their child. And sometimes the choice to breastfeed is simply a decision that’s taken out of your hands. So what would happen then? Surely it would be as if that parent was being penalised.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for breastfeeding, but what horrifies me is the pressure us mums are put under – by both our peers, elders and organisations – to consider it as the only option.
I was lucky – (when I say lucky, I still had initial problems getting my daughter to latch on and throughout breastfeeding, Lansinoh was a regular addition to my shopping list!) but sometimes it upsets me to think about, and witness, the stress and difficulty some mothers (and of course their partners looking on) go through getting their babies to latch on / breastfeed – made only worse by judging comments or the feeling that they’re simply giving up or not trying hard enough.
Only time will tell if this pilot scheme works – happy babies aren’t just the result of simply being breastfed. A happy home goes a long way too.
Above all, surely education and support is the best way forward, instead of what appears to be a case of pure bribery?
Rant over.
Normal service (ie celebrity chat etc) will resume shortly!
Review: Barbie Spy Squad
Barbie is well known for having a catalogue of careers, and this time around the blonde one hits cinema screens as the star of her very own movie, in the guise of a super spy.
The action begins when Barbie and her gymnast pals are recruited for their skills to apprehend a jewel thief, learning along the way the values of teamwork, friendship and that believing in yourself always brings you closer to success.
Attending a preview screening with an overexcited five year old – and life-long Barbie fan – I have to say my daughter’s attention was held from start to finish. And while I may have had to contend with the little one jumping across the sofa and rolling around the living room floor, I also caught her taking a deep breath and closing her eyes when she was having trouble with a task at home – just like Barbie does in the film to visualise herself completing a complicated jump.. These kids pick up so much more than we think!
And of course, as expected, there’s a range of undercover agent toys from Mattel to go with the film. One guess what she’ll be waiting for her birthday present this year…