This post is brought to you by vitafusion™ and L’il Critters™. All opinions are my own.
If there’s one thing we parents know, it’s that even the most well thought out, “accounted for everything,” beyond best-laid plans can get blown to smithereens in the blink of an eye. Case in point: I never planned for was having the pickiest eater on the planet. I probably should have seen that coming because up until his birth, I held that title for nearly 30 years. For some reason, I just assumed that my kid would inherit the healthy eating gene from his dad. Instead, he inherited his father’s biting sarcasm and wry sense of humor (which comes with a joy of torturing me daily, like pointing out clowns when he knows I’m petrified of them) and got pretty much everything else from me, including my picky eating habits.
Raising Picky Eaters When You’re One Too!
Since both my son and I are picky, I’ve been dealing with quite the parenting conundrum. How do I get my son to eat healthy when most vegetables make me run screaming for the hills? I never wanted to be one of those “do as I say, not as I do” parents. I also never wanted to tell my son “because I said so.” I’m raising an independent thinker, someone who isn’t afraid to ask questions, even when it comes to authority figures. Of all the things I’ve tried (including therapy, because at one point he literally would not eat anything except mushy food), I found ONE thing that works crazy well: bribery.
(Don’t worry, it’s not technically bribery!)
Don’t worry, I’m not paying my kid to eat veggies. Not really. Well, kind of, but bear with me. Rather than bribing him to eat his peas and carrots, I added an entry to his weekly behavior chart that simply said “try a new food.” In the beginning, I was content with him trying ANY new food, even if it was chocolate-covered double chocolate cookies. Remember, he wouldn’t eat ANYTHING that resembled human food at that point. As time went on and he expanded his palate a bit, I changed it to “try one new healthy food.” Every time he even took a bite of a new veggie or relatively healthy meal, he’d get his star. The stars added up to rewards. So I wasn’t paying him for the food, per se. He still had to do other things to reach the required number of stars, but it really did help. In fact, I just brought back the chart as a “chore chart” and I’m adding that one back in as I notice Jake’s food progress starting to stall out.
Filling in the gaps with vitamins
The other thing that has worked well for us is filling in the gaps with vitamins. Both Jake and I take a daily multivitamin to help us meet our nutritional requirements. Honestly, Jake eats more veggies than I do, so he’s doing a little better than me in that department. I now like 5 vegetables, which, let me tell you, is MAJOR progress from just a decade ago. Fortunately, the geniuses behind vitafusion™ and L’il Critters™ makes nutrition taste good for both kids and adults by combining essential vitamins and minerals with great-tasting gummies. Both have a delicious fruity flavor and a gummy texture that makes taking them more enjoyable. Plus, no need for water since they’re chewable!
L’il Critters™ gummy vitamins for kids
Of course, when you have a picky kid, it can be hard to find a multivitamin that they actually like. After a lot of trial and error (and wasted money), I finally found one that Jake looks forward to taking: L’il Critters™ gummy vitamins. Ever since he first tried their vitamins, he reminds me every day to make sure I give them to him. Now they have a brand-new line for kids: Fruit n’ Honey gummy vitamins.
Every time we try something new, there’s this moment where I’m petrified Jake will spit it out. Since I knew he already liked L’il Critters and he absolutely loves honey (he enjoys drinking a little tea with his honey to relax at night), I felt pretty confident this time. I was right, of course. He loves the combination of real fruit juice†(16% pear juice from concentrate) from Pacific Northwest pears and sweet golden clover honey. I love that they have nutrients he really needs. The L’il Critters™ Bee Active is a complete daily multivitamin packed with 12 essential vitamins and minerals, while the L’il Critters™ Bee Immune supports his immune system with Super C Plus Booster with added Vitamin D and Zinc*.
vitafusion™ Simply Good for You!
If you think my son is picky when it comes to vitamins, wait until you meet me! I am not as big into gummies as my son, but I really like the convenience of them. I have major issues in the morning with keeping down pills. According to 101 doctors, there’s nothing particularly wrong with my stomach, it’s just “sensitive.” Think of it as perpetual morning sickness without the cute baby payoff. I can’t explain why, but gummies are easier for me to tolerate. I can take them as part of my morning routine (which includes drinking coffee and reading the news or playing a game while I try to wake up).
Like my son, I do love the taste of honey. I can eat it plain! Good news for me (and other honey lovers), vitafusion™ is launching its Simply Good line with a blend of Pacific Northwest pear juice†, golden clover honey and essential nutrients. For me, the combination of tasty fruit and honey really makes a big difference between “okay, it’s time to take my vitamins” to “yay, it’s time to take my vitamins!” Plus, the line includes several different formulas that hit all my major needs:
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- vitafusion™ Supports Immunity– provides healthy immune support with vitamin C, vitamin D and zinc*
- vitafusion™ B-12 – supports energy production by converting food to fuel*
- vitafusion™ Vitamin D3 – The “sunshine vitamin” supports immune function, muscles and promotes calcium absorption*
- vitafusion™ Complete Multivitamin – A delicious way to get the wholesome nutrition you need with 13 essential vitamins
- vitafusion™ Bone and Muscle Support* –Vitamin D to support muscles and to promote Calcium absorption, and calcium to support strong bones*
L’il Critters Fruit n’ Honey is now available nationwide at select mass, drug and grocery stores as well as online retailers. The new Simply Good line from vitafusion™ will be available nationwide at Walmart starting in April. For more information, visit www.Vitafusion.com and w
What are your favorite ways to keep your picky kid healthy? Share below!
*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
Ҡ 16% pear juice from concentrate.
Your bribe was indeed a really good one. Why didn’t I think of it before? I am surely going to put this to use. Moreover, the vitamins do look good and they must be good in taste as well.
Have you been peeking into my home? LOL. I am a VERY picky eater and so is my son. It drives me nuts because it seems we can only have the same things every other week when he’s back with me. I haven’t heard of these vitamins before. I’ll have to take a look into them.
Both my daughter and myself are super picky eaters. We both eat with our eyes. I am always making sure that both of my kids are taking their vitamins to make sure they are getting proper nutrition.
I need to try these out for my daughter. She recently decided she was going to be a picky eater lol. Of course her mind changes on what she likes and doesn’t on a daily basis.
I hear ya with the picky eater stuff. But, I am trying to be more mindful with vitamins. Its not perfect or ideal, but it can definitely help balance things out with ones health!
All I could think reading this is what do you eat? Veggies is like 80% of my diet! It’s good that you’ve found a way to get him to enjoy new foods and vitamins to help in the inbetween!
I was always fed vitamins…Flintstones, growing up. I was (and still sort of am) a picky eater. I still take vitamins today because I know that I’m not getting the vitamins I need from the food and I eat.
I have a few picky eaters in my house. I tend to sneak veggies into foods, especially pasta. I do give my kids vitamins to make up for the things that they may not be getting.
I admit, I am a picky eater too. These days, meat kind of it not my best friend and I hate some veggies. My kids are kind of in the same boat but they never forget to remind me to give them their vitamins. This helps me keep on track to take mine too.
I’m not a picky eater, but my Husband is. I try really hard to make sure it doesn’t fall onto the kids either. A vitamin helps round it out!
My grandmother was a pharmacist assistant in the 60s and we were given vitamins daily. It was just a part of our routine as a kid, even though we were not that picky. Good advice!
This is why I can’t complain about my children being picky eaters either, because I’m a picky eater myself. I’m probably pickier about food than they are! 🙂
If I had a child I would have the same issue as I am a picky eater too! It is great though that you are making sure you all get your vitamins. It is crazy what vitamin deficiencies can do…learned that the hard way!
I don’t have a child. I have a niece who is too picky. I am glad that my sister has been able to persuade her child to eat some veggies. As from my own experience, I learned how to eat veggies just after I got ill. Well, I learned my lessons the hard way. Good for your kid, that he enjoys the multivitamins and veggies you give to him.
That is a tough one because you have to show them that you’re eating it, too to encourage them to try. This sounds like a great line of multivitamins. We’re taking a different brand, but I would love to try this one.
This is so me! I’m a picky eater (but I don’t have kids) and it so much harder as you get older. I won’t touch anything that isn’t green. I hate peas, broccoli and cabbage..etc I have to take supplements as well. xx
I’m not a picky eater at all, but my kids are. I’m trying to get them to branch out more.
I guess I’ve been lucky so far! My little one likes veggies and fruit but you know they go through so many phases that it’s hard to keep up! One day they like carrots and the day after they hate them, so it’s great to have a plan B in case they don’t feel like eating anything! Thanks for sharing
I remember when my kids were little and they went through stages where they were picky eaters. Luckily they loved smoothies .. so I could snack fruits and veggies in pretty easily. I’m glad there are vitamins to help supplement.
I’ve actually never heard of this brand, but it looks like a good one. I actually recently started selling Juice Plus products, and got them for my kids since they will not eat their veggies right now!!
My kids take the Lil Critters vitamins. They even remind me of them when I forget, and that’s saying something!
When I was a kid, we ate what my mom put on the table or we went hungry. While I don’t completely agree with everything that philosophy entails, I think employing it in some form is a good idea. Obviously, if your kid really hates something, you shouldn’t make them eat it. But they do need to learn that you are not making several different dinners just so they can have chicken nuggets for every meal.
Our eight year old daughter is extremely picky but my husband and I are not. We’ve had challenges finding foods she likes since the time she was eating baby food!
I’ve always been a picky eater but I try so hard not to influence my kids. It can be a struggle. These are really great tips to help me along the way!
I have to check out these vitamins! My son is such a picky eater and he really needs a multivitamin to help get him through.
I really appreciate gummy vitamins, they make it easier for the kids to eat! These are all awesome options. It’s important that we give them all the nutrients that they need.
My kids are picky eaters too, so I make sure they have their daily vitamin supplements as well. Those gummies are good ones to try!
I love the topic of this post because yes some adults are really picky eaters. I actually do not like taking pills of any kind so glad they make more in gummy form. A daily supplement will make sure any adult picky eater get the extra nutrients too!
This can be such a challenge. Than you for posting.