Before having children, I was determined that my kids would any fruit or vegetable I served them. And like them. It would be easy, right? Right?
Wrong.
Because of our gluten-free lifestyle, pre-packaged foods have been an extreme rarity. Therefore, though it may be inconvenient at times, overall I'm thrilled my children generally have an aversion to pre-packaged "kid foods." However, that doesn't necessarily mean they'll eat any fruit or veggie I give them, either. Especially Gilead.
Mercy, as a general rule, will gorge herself on fruit, and she'll eat moderate amounts of most vegetables, but there are exceptions. Gilead, on the other hand, has been on a produce strike for some time, and I've tried everything I can think of to break it.
I think I've found the solution.
Copy-Kids Eat Fruits and Vegetables, a delightful DVD in which 12 fruits and vegetables (bell peppers, carrots, oranges, bananas, cucumbers, strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, apples, tomatoes, avocados, and broccoli) are featured in six to eight minute segments. In each segment several children are shown thoroughly enjoying eating a particular fruit or vegetable. That's right. Enjoying it. The Copy-Kids press release says this about the DVDs inspiration:
"The genesis for the project came when Cai Dixon noticed her young daughter was more willing to try new fruits and vegetables when she saw another child eating them. Bella liked to copy. Dixon wondered if the experience had to be live, or if a video of children eating fruits and vegetables would also work?"
It seemed worth a try, so I put it to the test with my 2 and 4 year olds.
First viewing. Gilead has been refusing to even try apples for months, so I thought we'd start with the apple segment.
He's definitely thinking about it.
By now, we'd actually moved on to watching the tomato segment. Then, amazingly enough, he picked up an apple slice. And ate it! As soon as he took that first bite he said "mmm. Delicious. I love it!"
Mercy loves apples, too. And she especially loves eating them while watching Copy-Kids.
A couple of days later I decided it was time to try something a little bit more foreign--cucumbers. They were my favorite snack as a child, but as of yet, I had been unable to get my children to eat them. So, I sliced one up, put in Copy-Kids, and waited to see what would happen.
After a few minutes Mercy tentatively nibbled.
And what do you know? It's yummy! She ate the whole bowl.
About half way through the segment Gilead got brave enough to touch his. This, I'm sorry to say, was a big deal. However, by the end, he actually took a bite, too. I can't say that he's loving cucumbers yet, but he's trying them, and for now, that thrills me.
Bananas are a fruit that, admittedly, they both like, but seem to have fallen out of love with as of late. Therefore, since we had bananas in the house, too, I thought we'd give the banana segment a whirl.
They each devoured a whole banana over the course of the segment and were begging for more!!!
So, it is without reservation that I tell you that Copy-Kids works. I'm looking forward to continuing to introduce my children to even more fruits and vegetables with the DVD. In fact, Mercy already studies the cover and asks if we can watch it while eat a particular fruit or veggie. We're hooked!
You can read more great reviews here and order your own copy here so that your kids can experience the joy of eating healthily right away. Keep up with the latest Copy-Kids happenings via facebook and twitter, too!
Copy-Kids has generously offered to sponsor a giveaway. One lucky reader of Gluten Free Motherhood will win their own Copy-Kids Eat Fruits and Vegetables DVD. Enter using the Rafflecopter form below.
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