I'm a proud mother today!  We have finally attended a potluck, where Nate, my 13 year old, willingly served himself salad and watermelon.  No bribing, no cajoling, no hiding it within his desserts.  Never give up people!  This kid, as soon as he hit puberty, started eating EVERTHING I offer!  The good, the bad, the ugly!  It wasn't always that way, but I never gave up.  Never give up parents!  Here is the proof, taken with my camera phone:

Kids by nature can be picky. They want to be independent and they want to eat what THEY want, not what you want them to.  So, while I always tell parents my best advice is to never give up, I actually have two more rules I live by.   The second can be summed up by my all time all time favorite quotes:

 "One study, using sliced bell peppers, found that bribing, cajoling, exhorting, and even rewarding kids for trying new vegetables are less effective than simply eating them yourself.  Just sit down and eat yourself, and talk about how good it tastes. It will have a much bigger impact than if you give them a lecture." Lorraine Stern.

And I might add, it works the other way around. When I'm drinking my diet coke, I shouldn't be surprised when they want some too.  So now I have to drink it in the closet.

So, here are my three best picky eater tips:

1) Never give up

2) Eat healthy food yourselves

3) Make it taste good!  This recipe today is the perfect dressing for a sweet salad that my kids can't resist!  We brought it to our 4th of July celebration last night, but you can eat it anytime of year.

Ingredients

• 1 head romaine lettuce
• 3 cups baby spinach
• 1 cup strawberries, chopped
• 1 cup blueberries
• 1 cup raspberries
• 1 cup blackberries
• 1/2 cup feta cheese
• 1/3 cup chopped pecans

  Dressing: Creamy Poppyseed

• 1/2 cup fat free miracle whip
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/8 cup white vinegar
• 1 TBL poppyseeds

Instructions

1. Wash and chop greens, and add to a salad bowl. Top with berries, feta cheese, and pecans.
2. Mix dressing ingredients together and store in the fridge. Use dressing with salad when you are ready to eat it.

Also, check out our Zesty Italian Dressing from yesterday!