If you are having a lot of stress around mealtime there are resources out there for you. If you live in the Toronto area, I (Emma) am leading a course with Joy Morrasutti entitled Trouble at the Table on Thursday, May 22 at Yonge and Lawrence. This is a course put together by the Parenting Network which is overseen by Beverly Catchart-Ross. I have written about Beverly before and I can not say enough about her and her courses. If you need some perspecive and some ideas on how to handle tough situations, which let's be honest is about everyday in parenting, check out the Parenting Network! And then you to can be part of the "cult" of Beverly-ites. (oh she would be mad that I said that). And when the days get tough, you can ask yourself WWBD (What Would Beverly Do)and then if that reptilian part of your brain is action you can say Who the ^%$#% cares.....
Ellyn Satter is a must-read for all parents. It should be a pre-requisite for all new parents and could easily replace most of what is out there. She is a pioneer in the area of feeding kids. She advocates a strict division of responsibility (you choose food, they choose how much.... see Whining and Dining for more info) even in cases of child obesity. When you are feeling like you just can't trust your kids to make good choices for themselves, she is a great person to look to to bolster up your confidence. Child of Mine is a great place to start, but she is coming out with a new edition of Secrets of Feeding a Family soon. To be honest its not the most scintillating read, but well worth it!
Unfortunately books and courses can not answer all your questions or solve all your problems but sometimes one line, or one small tool can change the way you handle your kids. And as group of moms who I discuss parenting with came to realize, your kids will act innapropriately no matter what you do, it's all in how you handle it.
