At least I'm eating well

I hope my blog is proof that my family has access to good food every night, because sometimes I really worry.  Maybe that worry is just a given for mothers and I'll get used to it over time, but I can't help but notice how little the kids are eating at mealtimes lately.  It's possible they have physical issues going on that are making them confused about what they food they need, but I don't think that can completely account for it.  I believe I'm relatively stingy with snacks, but lately they seem to be really depending, both nutritionally and emotionally, on those once-or-twice-daily offerings of crackers and pretzels.

Sophie is now down to eating only her banana at breakfast, skipping lunch entirely, and limiting herself to eating whatever morsels of fruit I may have included with dinner.  Possibly also some protein here and there, if it's something she likes (less than half the time).  This isn't too different from her normal attitude toward food, but with her baseline being so far toward the "picky" end of the spectrum anyway, I can't help but feel some anxiety as I watch her get more extreme.

Ben's change is more pronounced.  He's been a great eater since he started eating solid food, but I see that wonderful quality disappearing and I can only hope it's temporary.  He asks for food all day, and then doesn't eat it once I've given it to him -- it's starting to feel like a major waste of groceries, time, and money.  He's learning to pick out only his favorite parts of a meal and leave the rest; for example, he now picks apart his PBJ and only eats the bread with the jelly on it.  He asks for carrots and dip so that he can just eat the dip.  He also seems to be developing some mental idiosyncrasies about his food.  Like, he only wants to eat what's on his plate if there's way more there than he plans on eating; if you give him just a few Cheerios to reduce waste, he asks insistently for more Cheerios.  And he's been a lot more likely to eat food if it's from my plate than if it's on his plate.  I know that is common, but I'm not used to it.  I like my food to be MY food.  Just because I'm a mother doesn't mean I lose all my boundaries.

Last night was even more discouraging than usual because I made some gorgeous-looking sushi rolls, and I was the only one who ate them.  It's not John's fault; he was feeling sick and raw fish just wasn't going to happen for him last night.  I ended up having to dismantle his rolls, sear the tuna, and make a sushi bowl out of the components for lunch today.  Ben actually wanted to share it with me, despite having none of it for dinner the night before.

Tomorrow night we're eating Chick-Fil-A take-out for Sophie's birthday.  So if nothing else, for one night I won't have to deal with the nagging question of whether my children are starving themselves.  That, and no dishes!