November 1
Thursday, November 1, 2007 at 8:06AM I remember when I first heard that November was National Diabetes month I quickly caught on to the irony.
"So you are telling me that the day after kids get all hopped up on candy starts Diabetes Awarness month? That sucks!"
Each year I laugh to myself about it as I walk through my living room to see the half empty bowl of left over candy.
Now I may be thought of as the "enemy of fun" but after a few days of mindless snacking I throw the left over morsels of chocolately goodness into the trash.
I say to the kids it is becuase I do not have the will power to resist the temptation (which there is truth in) but my real reasoning is that I do not want my kids to be sugar craving kids. We have done so well with them. We have never denied they sugary snacks but we do limit them.
I remember back when our son was 4. He was in preschool and we had our very first Parent - Teacher conference when we played the role of parent (very freaky if you have not experenced that yet). After a very shining report from his teacher we offered him a bowl of ice cream to celebrate his "job well done."
He said, "Do we have any grapes? I want grapes."
Jasmine and I looked at each other as if to say, "is this a real kid?"
Our daughter will snack on tomatoes, brocolli, and fruit if its around.
I don't ever want to be a party pooper Pop but I think a few days of sugar heaven is plenty.
Am I too mean?
Reader Comments (9)
not too mean at all. That's exactly what we do in our house, long before D entered. I personally don't like much candy and my kids have followed suit. So after about a week of no one touching the stuff it all gets put in the garbage. Somewhere around Nov 20th one of the kids will say "Hey, where did all the candy go?" but otherwise, they never notice. Same thing happens at Christmas and at Easter.
I don't think you are either. I made the kids pick 10 of their favorite candies today and the rest is being hidden (so that mom can eat it. heheh).
Hah! That's a great point. Why didn't I notice the Halloween connection?
Anyway, see my summary of stuff coming up for World Diabetes Day (Nov 14) at: http://www.diabetesmine.com/2007/11/world-diabetes-.html
Best,
AmyT
I think it sounds completely reasonable.
My daughter is the same way - eats fruits & veggies, salads, etc.
My son is a lot like me. If it ain't got carbs it ain't goin' down.
:-)
Nah, it's not mean to keep it to a reasonable amount. :)
I think it's fine. I know that tastes are acquired and can change, even over a period of a few weeks, but what you eat as a kid is important. If your kids end up craving fruits & veggies & nuts and stuff rather than candy, because they enjoy it and that's what they're used to, I would say that's great! Way more to actively like healthy food than to have to go through being denied candy by themselves or someone else at a later date. And it's not like you're prohibiting it completely - I think that would be bad because then they'd just go nuts when they were somewhere else with candy.
I don't think it's mean. Even before I was diagnosed my mom limited the amount of candy I could eat, and she always bought diet soda, though pre-diabetes-diagnosis, she wouldn't make me drink diet if we went out to eat. I always remember getting the orange Hi-C at McDonalds felt like a special treat. I think you're doing a fine job--it sounds like you're trying to kindly foster healthier habits in your kids instead of hitting them over the head with organic celery sticks like I know some parents out there would do!
I think it's fine. You're not too mean, Ninjabetic. I think you're on the right track. It's so cool she asked for grapes!! LOVE THAT!
A very long time ago, when my sons were young, and they were visiting my parents... my dad would put out sliced carrots, or grapes or whatever. Chilled, no dips or anything, just sitting in a bowl. The boys ate it like candy. I continued to do the same thing at home - but if it's broccoli or cauliflower I'd have a dip. If it's there, cut up, ready to eat, they eat it. It's all in what's easy when it comes to the kids.