Your kid a picky eater? You’re in the same club with the penguins!

Got a picky eater in your home?

I thought you’d find it amusing and somewhat comforting to know that even the animal kingdom has to deal with this!

For my 40th birthday, my family treated me to a behind the scenes tour with the penguins at the Ft. Worth Zoo.  I am a little (some would say a lot) obsessed with penguins, so this was super special to me!

We had the pleasure of watching the zookeeper feed them their afternoon meal of fishies. 

Guess what we found out?!



*  Some like one kind of fish. Some like a different kind of fish.

*  One tests the firmness of each fish, drops it if not satisfied, and waits for another.

*  One must be handed the fish a certain way or won’t accept it.

Penguins can be just as picky as humans about eating! 

We’ve had our own share of pickiness here at my house.  I am by no means a health expert, have “the best” meals all the time for my kids, or have completely eradicated pickiness.

But, I have learned and implemented a few TIPS that have helped.

No separate meals for the kids.  We all eat the same thing, where they like it or not.
I don’t give up on foods that I know are good for them.  They must try a bite or two if it’s on their plate.  Studies show it can take LOTS of tries before kids acclimate to some foods
I explain that there are some things they may never like.  Sometimes we have to eat things we don’t enjoy.  I don’t care for tomatoes, but I eat them because I know they are good for me.
For politeness (and mainly because my mother ingrained this in me), I’m trying to teach my kids not to say, “I don’t like ______.”  Instead, they may say, “I don’t care for ______” regarding a particular food.

I think it would be taking things a bit far for me to relate this to Scripture.  So, just consider this a shameless excuse for me to share my obsession with penguins with you!

These may not work on penguins, but they’ve worked on my kids.

 When a teachable moment does happen lend itself to God’s Word and you want to find a verse on the topic quickly, don’t forget to use your copy of Parenting with Scripture: A Topical Guide for Teachable Moments.