Everyday Systems

How do other people with children handle the inevitable fact that no matter how little you put on a kid's plate, he or she will leave 1/3 to 1/2 behind? I used to just eat it, but now I'm more aware of when I've had enough, and I don't want to eat beyond that. But it seems sort of wrong to just throw it out. Sometimes I can combine the kid's leftovers with the rest, but not always. Any thoughts?

Thanks!

I just put on even less than I used to, and pitch the leftovers - unless my husband eats them.

Can't you save them for lunch the next day?

I don't have kids, but I know that you're not a garbage bin. You don't need to eat all the food just because it's there. It's not nice to throw it out, but it's better than eating it.

When my eldest (10) has had enough and I agree that he can leave the table, he takes his plate and puts the left overs in the bin. I take my youngest son's plate and quickly clear it into the bin before I clear the rest of the table. This has helped me to stop being the garbage disposal in our house.

It is not easy, but as No S gets more ingrained with no seconds and no snacking it has become easier.

If it is something that can be repackaged - I do the same kind of thing.

But it seems sort of wrong to just throw it out. Sometimes I can combine the kid's leftovers with the rest, but not always. Any thoughts?

If you don't already, I recommend composting, I'm not an expert on it though as we're lucky enough to have a simple council run composting scheme (we fill up our compost bins with any raw or cooked food waste, even tea bags and coffee, and the council collect the bins once a week).

I think though that you would benefit from changing your mentatlity and telling youself that your body doesn't need the excess food, and the only solution is to either compost it for some plants, give it to a hungry dog (if you have one!) or simply throw it away. Also, if your kids are old enough to understand, seeing leftovers get thrown away may prompt them to eat more instead of letting it go to waste.

I'm interested in this composting idea. Can you really put cooked food in it? We have a "green waste" trash bin--maybe we can put it in that. Thanks!

I have two daughters, one is a vacuum cleaner and eats everything you put in front of her. The other eats like a sparrow and has to be cajoled bite for bite.

In both cases, putting LESS in front of them helps. For the sparrow, it's less daunting. She winds up eating more. And then there's less to feel guilty about throwing away (or tempted to eat yourself).

What if by some miracle junior does plow through all her reduced portion? I'll give her some extra from my plate. No matter how hungry I am, my joy at her actually eating far outweighs the pleasure of satisfying my own personal appetite.

I wish I could say I composted, but I'm far too lazy (and squeamish).... (rightly or wrongly, I've placated my green conscience with painless, no brainer CFLs).

Whatever you decide, DO NOT CLEAN UP AFTER THEM. That's seconds. It muddies that clarity of the system in a big way.

Reinhard

Reinhard, I've been hoping you would post any parenting strategies you use!

As for composting cooked food, that might not be a good idea...might attract rodents. I know that vegetable peelings can be used, but I think a bowl of uneaten macaroni and cheese would not be a good idea. But there are plenty of websites that describe what can and can't be used.

Reinhard, my son flips between being a sparrow and a vacuum cleaner in a completely unpredictable way! Mostly, he eats small portions, but if he's in a growth spurt, he can out-eat my husband! (He's seven.)

When he's hungry (growth spurt or not), he REALLY over-estimates how much he wants. We emphasize that he needs to start small. "Take this much, and then listen to your body when it's gone. If you want more, there's enough." Usually he cleans up his first serving, and is done. If he does want more, we him have it.

Our coping strategy for unpredictability is to PLAN left-overs for lunches. If our son ends up eating it, then my husband and I have "default" lunches we can have instead. But knowing that I really want the food to be for tonight AND tomorrow helps me keep all the portions more reasonable.

Food left on plates at the end of a meal goes straight to the trash (or garbage disposal or compost). No exceptions. As for portions for kids -- I'm still trying to figure that one out and my kids are adults! We ate dinner together last night and the eldest took a huge serving of mashed potatoes and left more than half.

As for composting cooked food, that might not be a good idea...might attract rodents

I think we're lucky in that we have bins provided with corn starch liners, the bins are lockable too so pests can't get in, then the bins are collected and we don't really know what they do with them

franxious wrote:As for composting cooked food, that might not be a good idea...might attract rodents.

If I remember correctly, cooked food is no more likely to attract rodents than raw foods, but meat and other animal foods should be avoided. It's got nothing to do with attracting rodents, but keeps the plant foods from breaking down and "composting." Egg shells are an exception.

rxea wrote:How do other people with children handle the inevitable fact that no matter how little you put on a kid's plate, he or she will leave 1/3 to 1/2 behind? I used to just eat it, but now I'm more aware of when I've had enough, and I don't want to eat beyond that. But it seems sort of wrong to just throw it out. Sometimes I can combine the kid's leftovers with the rest, but not always. Any thoughts?

Thanks!

Garbage Soup!

Some people -- I do -- will save certain classes of leftovers until there's enough to throw in a soup.

I usually combine this with a chicken carcass soup. Get a cheap whole chicken. Roast it. Have a fine dinner. Save the leftover meat and bones. In a day or two, toss them in the crock pot to simmer all day. That evening, strain the broth, then pick all the meat out of the bones. Throw away the bones, put the meat in the soup and clean the fridge out of veggies and leftovers. Salt the soup well and make sure you use plenty of herbs.

My son actually looks FORWARD to this meal, though it started when our budget was tighter than I like it to get.

(I'm one of those awful people who makes veggie broth out of vegetable tops, too. Onion broth in particular is great when you're doing a marinara sauce).