There were two quotes in the new Verbatim section of the Globe and Mail that seemed to sum up parts of our book. The first by Jeffrey Kluger in Time, "If there's one thing health experts know, it's that you don't influence behaviour by telling people what to do. You do it by exposing them to enough cases of people behaving well that it crates a new norm..." .That pretty well sums our view of feeding kids, you can lecture them and tell them and yell but they still won't eat if they don't want to. We're suggesting that you resist insisting on your child eating that one bite of vegetable (yes, we know you have their best interest at heart) and just eat more vegetables yourself.
The second quote entitled Breaking Bread: "Sharing a meal sometimes sitting face to face with strangers, is a curious act that sets humans apart from all other animals on the planet." Kate Colquhon in the Daily Telegraph. Well if the family meal is what defines us from the other animals, then shouldn't we try and do it a little bit more? Be flexible, if you can't do it every night (and for those who have read to the book know that I can't) make sure its a priority on weekends, or at breakfast or whenever you can find some time to teach your kids about the culture of the table, which in turn teaches them they are part of the all-important family unit. Which of course will lead to world peace -- ok, may not but baby steps...
Check back here for some recipes and my report on our adventures in media... tomorrow is CBC Radio One at 10:05 a.m....
