Making Mealtime Fun
Forget the rule: It’s not polite to play with your food.
Now, I’m not saying let manners fly out the window but channel your inner-child and make eating fun once in a while.
We do this more often than not because, to be honest, getting my 3-year-old to eat is a huge chore.
Preparing Fun Food-
Cookie cutters can be used with many different foods. Sandwiches, pancakes, cheese, watermelon, etc… The Star Wars Lunch Box Sandwich Cutter set is every little boys dream lunch.
The Star Sandwich Cutter with Sandwich Box is perfect for preschool lunches.
The Martha Stewart Collection 26-Piece Alphabet Cutter Set is something I use at least 5 days a week. The cutters are sturdy and great for pancakes. Nothing spells f-u-n like seeing your own name in pancakes!
My 3-year-old loves the shape and size of the Mom Invented Sandwich Cutter- Round Bites. The size is perfect for his little hands but like all the other sandwich/cookie cutters, it requires two pieces of bread and leaves you with extra sandwich.
A really good tool to have is the Mini-Sandwich Maker. I use this all the time. Remember those extra pieces of sandwich left over from the cookie cutters? This is the perfect solution! Just cut shapes from the left over pieces and stick them on the plate (or in the lunch container) with the other cookie/sandwich cut shapes. I’ve also used this, alone, to made individual hearts, flowers, circles and squares. The fact that my preschooler can now identify the shapes and because they are his size, it makes eating more enjoyable for him.
The Wavy Cutter brings veggies to a whole new level… a level where picky kids eat and parents rejoice. This thing is magic. Get one.
I have boys so things like the Chillbots Robot Ice Tray excite them, deeply. I’m not big on giving my kids juice (especially the 3-year-old cause he has an addictive personality… to juice), but I have no problem freezing a little water/juice mixture in the form of robots to “swim” around in their water cups. Note: Might want to wait till your kids understand that they can’t play with the robots unless you don’t mind a huge mess.
Serving food-
Part of the fun is in the presentation. For an older child, the Tic-Tac-Toe Plate can help with learning portion control but it also looks really cool.
The Mr Food Face Plate is really for everyone. I think my husband likes this more than the kids.
How about the Chalkboard Placemats? I’m so running out to get these! You can let your kids doodle or better yet, create a To-Do list! 1. Eat your chicken 2. Eat your broccoli 3. Eat your rice 4. Drink your milk 5. Clear your dish after you’re done 6. I love you.
I can see the Airplane Food Placemats being a huge hit in this house. They would make a nice after dinner activity (provided dinner was eaten).
Who doesn’t play airplane with their kids? The Airfork One cracks me up! I can bet money my kids will eat better with one of these.
Sometimes things get a little monotonous. The Party People Chopsticks are a perfect way to change things up a bit. It doesn’t matter how it gets there, all that matters is that the food goes to the mouth, right?
My picky eater doesn’t like his food to touch. We must have a million plates that have built-in dividers but the one I love the most is the Boon Saucer Plate. It’s sturdy, hard for little hands to move (read: throw) and is interesting to look at.