In Need of Some Art & Crafts New Ideas for My Toddlers!!!!

Hi V.,

My son is 11 and has one tiny piece of meat in his entire life. I was a vegetarian for several years and now I eat a small amount of meat every now and then. My son however has chosen to remain vegetarian (he eats dairy just not meat). He is vibrant, healthy and VERY active and an athlete.

So, this really isn't about you not taking good care of the children by giving them Mac and Cheese. It's about the parents personal belief system and how they handled their reaction (being disrespectful towards you).

Unfortunatley, when anyone has a strong belief (especially when it comes to what they feel is best for their children) their reactions can be strong when they experience something that is not aligned with what they believe. This however, doesn't make their reaction "right" for their are compassionate ways to express our beliefs, feelings and desires. It's unfortunate that they handled it the way they did.

I know it's hard but try not to take it personally. Find the truth in your own heart.....the place of knowing that you would never intentionally do anything against the parent's wishes and that you ARE providing good care.

Blessings,
Susan

You absolutely did nothing wrong! Fruits and vegetables are health promoting sources of foods and should be the center of everyone's diet. Almost every day there is news about how fruits and vegetables have health promoting properties that fight cancer and other degenerative diseases. When has there ever been news that we need to "eat more meat to fight cancer and obesity"? NEVER!! Because those two things cause cancer and obesity when eaten on a daily basis.

My kids eat an almost Vegan diet with no meat, only occasional organic eggs and wild salmon, and they hardly ever see a doctor's office because of it.

The best sources of protein are vegetables, grains, legumes, nuts and seeds. Yes meat has protein, but it is not a quality source because it contains no fiber, which is important in keeping the colon clean. It contains no enzymes, which aid in digestion and heal the body. Diets high in meat and other animal products actually drain calcium from the bones because they are high in phosphorous.

Please buy this book for the family to read- "Disease Proof Your Child" by Dr. Joel Fuhrman. If these people are feeding the kids meat on a daily basis for every meal, they will understand they are actually damaging the children's health. I'm not saying the kids shouldn't eat meat ever, but definitely not every day three times a day.

G. G.
Certified Health Educator
Winter Park, FL

I'm a former child-care worker in Florida, as well as mom to three kids under 6. The asnwer to the question "do children need meat at every meal/every day" is NO. Vegetarians get by just fine without it for one thing.

For another, PROTEIN is what the child needs and meat is not always the best source of protein. It sounds to me like the parent in question lacks a basic understanding of nutrition and needs a bit of a reality check. Also, is that parent not feeding their child dinner? Because that's a perfect opportunity to get the kid "meat" every day if they are that concerned.

Here is what you need to do (based on my experience in child-care): Plan a 30 Day breakfast and lunch menu that rotates. Have a few choices that repeat several times a month. Post this in a conspicuous place and give each parent a copy. If they don't like what is going to be on the menu for a given day, they are free to provide their child the food of their choosing.

Make sure that each meal is balanced and in line with the guidelines put out by the state for child-care centers and if necessary, point the parents in that direction if they persist in being a problem.

You can handwrite the menu if you feel like it. Just take a blank calendar page with 5 weeks on it and write "Week 1", "Week 2", etc in the appropriate space and then put the meal descriptions in the boxes. It doesn't have to be complicated, for example, Lunch: Mac & Cheese, Fruit, Milk.

They need PROTEIN, which does not have to be meat. I'm floored sometimes with what Seminole County Schools gives kids for lunch-- check their website and print their lunch menu for examples.
(By the way, I'm thinking you mean "heart" instead of "hurt" in your 'a little about me' section)
One more thing... if parents got mad and disrespectful over mac and cheese, there may be a deeper issue. Ask if everything is OK.

Kids certainly don't need meat everyday and can even thrive on a balanced vegetarian diet!

Everyone needs a good source of protein everyday because we can not store protein. When I say "good" I mean protein that contains all the essential amino acids in the amounts needed to support growth and repair of tissues. Now, it is easy to obtain all these essential amino acids from an animal source of protein. It is more challenging to mix and match incomplete plant sources of protein. This is especially true with a small child who can not put a lot of fiber filled plant foods in their little tummy. Milk and the cheese are animal sources of protein so you provided a protein source as good as meat, since both are animal sources. For future reference it is recommended that after age two we begin to watch our fat intake, especially animal fats. Thus look for lower fat milk and cheese sources. Good luck!

Honestly I wouldn't worry about it. Mac and cheese although it's not the best thing in the world. Most kids love it and at the age that you are watching sometimes that's all they'll eat.
All three of my kids went through the I am only going to eat this one thing phase for months.
Maybe pre printing out a form that shows what they'll be having for those meals for a week and hand them to the parents at the end of the previous week would help them.
Aside from that these parents are entrusting in you the care of their children and if they feel you aren't doing a good job with that they'll move them.
I honestly wouldn't worry about it, sounds like a healthy enough lunch to me.
Don't beat yourself up about it.