4 sneaky secrets

i was blessed in this world to have very picky eaters.  carter has been picky since birth, only choosing to eat select baby food and promptly spitting out anything that he didn't approve of.  the worst has always been vegetables.  i can't entirely blame him for that, however, since vegetables aren't my favorite thing either.  in an attempt to give him the best nutrition, without the battle, i have since become quite good at sneaking vegetables into things he doesn't know.  early favorites were the v8 fusion juice, which is 1/2 fruit 1/2 vegetables and chips with vegetables in them.  

when holden came along, i had hope he wouldn't be quite as picky and he wasn't!  he loved almost all baby food given to him, with his favorites being green beans and peas (gross).  however, once we started to give him table food, that all changed.  he has never once ingested a normal green bean or pea.  and now that he's just turned 2, and entered the picky(er) phase, he seriously doesn't eat much at all.  there are many times where he literally doesn't eat because he refuses whats on his plate.  we do our best, and all those sneaky vegetable tricks i learned with carter are coming in handy.  i thought i'd highlight of few of my recent favorites, for anyone struggling with the same problem.

1) baby food pouches.  either these didn't exist when carter was a baby, or i didn't know about them,  and truly didn't discover them until holden was "off" of baby food.  however, even though he is 2, he will still suck one of these bad boys down in no time flat.  i try to get the fruit/veggie combos since any regular vegetable will be nowhere near his mouth.  although kinda pricey, i stock up when there are sales, and bottom line is that it's a way to get vegetables into his body, so it's a win.

2) rice milk snacks.  since holden has always been a fan of the gerber yogurt melts, i saw these in the aisle next to them and decided to give them a try.  they're made with organic rice milk and have fruits and veggies in them too!  this particular flavor isn't his favorite, but he will chow down an entire package (if i'd let him) of the red or purple ones.  score one for snack time.

3) pancakes.  as i mentioned previously, holden is a fan of the baby food pouches.  he didn't like one of the combinations i bought him once, and wouldn't eat it.  since they aren't cheap, i didn't want to throw it away.  i was making pancakes the next day and decided to try and just pour it into the batter and see how it went.  not one, not two, but THREE kids (i was watching my niece at the time) chowed them down.  since then, i've routinely added baby food to their pancake batter, they have never noticed and it's one of the very few meals that will make them both happy.  sweet potatoes are a go-to and then whatever fruits are yummy also.  today i put sprinkles in the batter too and that was a hit :-)

4) powdered baby food.  yes, you read correctly.  this organic baby food, freeze dried and powdered, is a product new to the market that i just tried today for the first time.  as i've been adding baby food to my pancake batter, sometimes it ends up too runny and they are too flat.  i saw these at the store and am happy to report that they worked great in our sprinkle pancakes for lunch. one package equals one jar of baby food if you were to mix it with water, formula, or breastmilk (as per the directions), but i just added the powder directly to my batter.  i can imagine that these might be a great way to add fruits or veggies to any baked goods you may be making, but i've only tried it with pancakes so far.  try them for yourself and let me know!

i hope these ideas help out some of you other mamas who struggle with veggies like i do for your kiddos.  anyone have any tips to share with me?