The boys started swim lessons last week! They were not excited to go and there were tears. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Like anything with parenting, sometimes kids don’t want to do what you want/need them to do. The boys needed swim lessons; we had tried teaching them ourselves and it was obvious we needed an outside perspective. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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I told them: “you don’t have to get in the water if you don’t want to. Let’s just go see what it’s all about.” Of course, once we got there, met the instructor, and saw the pool, they both came around, with some gentle encouragement. And if they had only wanted to sit on the steps, that would have been OK, too. The instructor mentioned that one of the most important things I could do as a parent to help them with swimming was model a positive attitude about swimming/water. I was in the pool, trying the things she asked, being excited and positive, and that helped THEM come around and be excited/positive, too! ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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This is how I approach feeding the boys. I know what they need, I serve it, and I leave the rest up to them. I model healthy eating, trying new foods, and creating a positive atmosphere for mealtimes. I provide gentle encouragement, but at the end of the day, I’m not going to force feed them, so— what they choose of what’s offered is up to them. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Moral of the story: You can lead your kids to water, but you can’t make them swim. You can lead your kids to food, but you can’t make them eat. Focus on what you CAN do, like: ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
💜 Model healthy eating⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
💜 Have a positive attitude⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
💜 Be excited about new foods!⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Do your littles like trying new things, food or otherwise? How do you approach the things they DON’T want to do?