Stop Encouraging My Kid to Eat All That Sugar!

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My husband was making dinner when we heard the typical “I don’t want that” comment from my four-and-a-half-year-old when she heard what was for dinner. I was curious what Addison would choose to eat, so I asked! She thought for a moment and happily replied, “I would choose pasta with sprinkle cheese (it’s what we call parmesan in our house) and raw veggies.” My husband and I looked at each other and shared a proud parenting moment. Our kid chose veggies!

We are teaching her to eat healthy things at home. Mind you we aren’t those parents who never let her have sugar. I’ll admit, I told my husband I think our family should enjoy doughnuts more often because we all love them! However, when we are away from the house, she is constantly bombarded with unhealthy options at the grocery store checkout, at restaurants because noodles are obviously the only thing a civilized child will eat in public, and at birthday parties, which are the worst culprit.

We all know the celebration of a child’s birthday is a big deal and a great reason to celebrate. It’s also a great way to kill a Saturday morning with someone else entertaining the kids. Addison loves seeing her friends outside of school, so we make an effort to attend as many parties as we can.

But the problem I have are the food options at almost every party we go to. From cake to candy to cookies, there are rarely any healthy options available in case a kid wants to taste a carrot and decide for themselves if they like it or not. And it kills me when my daughter has had a piece of cake and candy, and then the party helper walks around with seconds and seriously asks a four-and-a-half-year-old if they want more.

Are they crazy? Do you really think she’s going to say no?

Please, I beg you, have a healthy option or two at the events you throw and help me encourage my kid to eat sugar in moderation.

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Erica Rabhan
A South Carolina native, Erica is originally from the Upstate and has moved back to Charleston with her family after a 10 year, traffic-filled hiatus in Atlanta, GA. Having lived in only two states she likes to explore different cultures through travel and food.  Of all the hats Erica wears her most important roles are as a wife, mother, daughter and fundraiser for her alma mater, College of Charleston. She has been married to her college sweetheart for 13 years and together they have to kiddos that keep them on their toes.  She prides herself on being honest about motherhood and enjoys learning from other moms who tell it like it is. When life offers a little down time Erica enjoys wave jumping at the beach, unapologetically watching bad TV and organizing and re-organizing everything from the dishwasher to the sock drawers to help calm her inner OCD.