Guest guest Posted January 15, 2007 Report Share Posted January 15, 2007 Hi All This is the same line of the topic " How to deal with... " Although I don't have so much trouble with family or friends about food (as most of them are either vegetarians themselves or understand/respect it very well), but I can understand the difficulties most of you face in such situations. and my question is I have a 3 yr old and we are trying our best raise him vegetarian (with limited milk by product, no egg etc) and one day (when he was little shy of 2 ) we asked him what he wanted to eat for lunch and he told us he wanted Stake and Hot Dogs. I was shocked that knew he knew these terms. and yes I know he didn't really know what they were but he just said that he read some book in the daycare that had pictures of these things. Well that day on we have been trying to find a way to let him know( in his own way ) that we don't eat all that. But he is too small to understand it. So we keep tell him simply that we are vegetarians and so we don't eat meat ( " we don't eat animals we eat only plants " ) and he picked it up as he finds it funny to say " We are vegetariam " (that's how he says it) but really I keep wondering if this will work or if he will grow curious to try eating meat when he sees someone else eat it and so on. Anybody our there with similar situation and what do u do? In a side note i have yet another issue to handle which is when friends and family offer snacks and junk to our kids (that we don't typically like to have at home). Shree Don't be flakey. Get Mail for Mobile and always stay connected to friends. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 15, 2007 Report Share Posted January 15, 2007 We've focused a lot on the actual animals involved in the meat industry. We teach them animal sounds, show them pictures, and if we can find a video of them we let them enjoy watching the animals. We're planning on visiting a farm sanctuary if we can find one. We tell them stories about how nice cows are and how smart pigs are, etc. They get to know and love the animals, and whenever our daughter was old enough to really understand we told her that a lot of people eat something called meat, and that when they do it hurts those animals. We told her that we don't eat animals, and that makes them happy. We also told her how good we feel when we eat healthy things. Just put it in language he understands and make sure he knows and loves the animals. That is what helped me resist temptation right after I became a vegetarian, not that I had any really bad cravings. I just looked at it and asked myself if that food was worth a life, and the answer was always no. I'm putting that into my kids early on. Once they really know the animals I don't feel like they'll have any problem saying no, not if they know what's involved in bringing it to the plate. Maybe it's a big concept for a little child, but I feel it's not beyond them. They don't want to cause pain to others, and young children have a much more open relationship with animals than we adults do. If we educate them early on, maybe that will stick better than it would otherwise. Just my opinion. Shreelakshmi Krishnamurthi <shreelak wrote: Hi All This is the same line of the topic " How to deal with... " Although I don't have so much trouble with family or friends about food (as most of them are either vegetarians themselves or understand/respect it very well), but I can understand the difficulties most of you face in such situations. and my question is I have a 3 yr old and we are trying our best raise him vegetarian (with limited milk by product, no egg etc) and one day (when he was little shy of 2 ) we asked him what he wanted to eat for lunch and he told us he wanted Stake and Hot Dogs. I was shocked that knew he knew these terms. and yes I know he didn't really know what they were but he just said that he read some book in the daycare that had pictures of these things. Well that day on we have been trying to find a way to let him know( in his own way ) that we don't eat all that. But he is too small to understand it. So we keep tell him simply that we are vegetarians and so we don't eat meat ( " we don't eat animals we eat only plants " ) and he picked it up as he finds it funny to say " We are vegetariam " (that's how he says it) but really I keep wondering if this will work or if he will grow curious to try eating meat when he sees someone else eat it and so on. Anybody our there with similar situation and what do u do? In a side note i have yet another issue to handle which is when friends and family offer snacks and junk to our kids (that we don't typically like to have at home). Shree Don't be flakey. Get Mail for Mobile and always stay connected to friends. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 15, 2007 Report Share Posted January 15, 2007 My 3 and 5 yr old love telling people that we don't eat meat. We only eat " Veggie " food. Like if they are seeing a hot dog stand, and want it, I might say, I'm hungry too, too bad there aren't any veggie dog stands, or something like that, then offer a pretzel or something else that we would eat. Sometimes it's confusing, and kids like to fit it, but they also like to be different, before they accept a gummi candy they haven't had before, they'll ask for the grown up to read the ingredients for them to see if it has gelatin. Just as an example. I had a little trouble one time when they wanted to pretend to eat meat also, but overall, they are pretty good about it. Kids are great if you can find a way to explain things in their terms. If I tell my kids something has an animal in it, they don't want to eat it. I may have to tell them that I'll explain exactly what it is later, so as not to be rude to the person who has chosen to eat it. I also let them know that people make different choices and we want people to respect us, so we do the same for them. That was an issue that my 3yr old was proud to tell people we " don't eat that " while the rest of the family devoured animals. I was proud of her for recognizing it, but had to bring her in another room to discuss it. Luckily my relatives are getting used to us and being respectful of our choices too. BTW this is always an issue for us, since my husband is still a meateater. He's sometimes a little put off with the kids responses to his meals. But very supportive of raising them veg. hope it helps... Janeen Shreelakshmi Krishnamurthi <shreelak wrote: Hi All This is the same line of the topic " How to deal with... " Although I don't have so much trouble with family or friends about food (as most of them are either vegetarians themselves or understand/respect it very well), but I can understand the difficulties most of you face in such situations. and my question is I have a 3 yr old and we are trying our best raise him vegetarian (with limited milk by product, no egg etc) and one day (when he was little shy of 2 ) we asked him what he wanted to eat for lunch and he told us he wanted Stake and Hot Dogs. I was shocked that knew he knew these terms. and yes I know he didn't really know what they were but he just said that he read some book in the daycare that had pictures of these things. Well that day on we have been trying to find a way to let him know( in his own way ) that we don't eat all that. But he is too small to understand it. So we keep tell him simply that we are vegetarians and so we don't eat meat ( " we don't eat animals we eat only plants " ) and he picked it up as he finds it funny to say " We are vegetariam " (that's how he says it) but really I keep wondering if this will work or if he will grow curious to try eating meat when he sees someone else eat it and so on. Anybody our there with similar situation and what do u do? In a side note i have yet another issue to handle which is when friends and family offer snacks and junk to our kids (that we don't typically like to have at home). Shree Don't be flakey. Get Mail for Mobile and always stay connected to friends. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 15, 2007 Report Share Posted January 15, 2007 Our son is not quite 3 yet. Since he began speaking, I've been teaching him that animals are " our friends - not food " . He can look at all of his stuffed toys and explain that his piggy is " friend, not food " and similarly for the stuffed frog, turkey, sheep, cow, horse, etc., etc. It gets more difficult as they get older because they question so much but don't understand the complexity of it all. But, give your child the benefit of the doubt and clearly explain things - a steak came from a cow which is our friend, and we don't eat our friends. It seems to be working well for us so far. A cute related story: We were eating at a restaurant and I was sharing my salad bar choices with my son. I offered him some edamame, which he had never tried before. I put some on a fork and said, " here - try some edamame - it's really good! " . My son looked at me in horror and very sterntly explained to me - " NO! 'Mommies' are friends, NOT FOOD! " I laughed hysterically!!! Now we call big peas instead...... So, the things we teach them even when very young certainly do sink in. Regards, Heather in MN Quoting Shreelakshmi Krishnamurthi <shreelak: > Hi All > > This is the same line of the topic " How to deal with... " > > Although I don't have so much trouble with family or friends about > food (as most of them are either vegetarians themselves or > understand/respect it very well), but I can understand the > difficulties most of you face in such situations. and my question is > > I have a 3 yr old and we are trying our best raise him vegetarian > (with limited milk by product, no egg etc) and one day (when he was > little shy of 2 ) we asked him what he wanted to eat for lunch and > he told us he wanted Stake and Hot Dogs. I was shocked that knew he > knew these terms. and yes I know he didn't really know what they > were but he just said that he read some book in the daycare that had > pictures of these things. > > Well that day on we have been trying to find a way to let him know( > in his own way ) that we don't eat all that. But he is too small to > understand it. So we keep tell him simply that we are vegetarians > and so we don't eat meat ( " we don't eat animals we eat only plants " ) > > and he picked it up as he finds it funny to say " We are vegetariam " > (that's how he says it) but really I keep wondering if this will > work or if he will grow curious to try eating meat when he sees > someone else eat it and so on. > Anybody our there with similar situation and what do u do? > > In a side note i have yet another issue to handle which is when > friends and family offer snacks and junk to our kids (that we don't > typically like to have at home). > > Shree > > > > Don't be flakey. Get Mail for Mobile and > always stay connected to friends. > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 17, 2007 Report Share Posted January 17, 2007 You're lucky that yourmeateating husband is supportive. Mine is actually annoyed that ourkids are veg. The older 2 chose vegetarianism themselves. When there are veggies they don't like or don't want to eat he threatens not to allow them to be vegetarian, as if he could make them eat meat. My youngest is only 2 and not old enough to decide for herself. Thank goodness he doesn't try to give her meat yet but he will. He thinks she should get the same choice that the older ones had. What he doesn't seem to understand is that it is up to us to make sure our children do the right thing. He wouldn't allow them to make choices about drinking alcohol. My 2 biggest hopes are that even if she tries it she will be disgusted by it and that she will follow what her older sisters are doing. They taught her to say ewww everytime someone mentions steak. Generally, kids have to get used to eating meat. Most don't like it at first. If I can keep her away from it long enough she won't develope a taste for it. I suppose if she does try it she will eventually have to decide. Our kids are not always in our sight. I only hope that I give mine enough of an understanding that they will make the right one. janeen minguillo <jminshan wrote: My 3 and 5 yr old love telling people that we don't eat meat. We only eat " Veggie " food. Like if they are seeing a hot dog stand, and want it, I might say, I'm hungry too, too bad there aren't any veggie dog stands, or something like that, then offer a pretzel or something else that we would eat. Sometimes it's confusing, and kids like to fit it, but they also like to be different, before they accept a gummi candy they haven't had before, they'll ask for the grown up to read the ingredients for them to see if it has gelatin. Just as an example. I had a little trouble one time when they wanted to pretend to eat meat also, but overall, they are pretty good about it. Kids are great if you can find a way to explain things in their terms. If I tell my kids something has an animal in it, they don't want to eat it. I may have to tell them that I'll explain exactly what it is later, so as not to be rude to the person who has chosen to eat it. I also let them know that people make different choices and we want people to respect us, so we do the same for them. That was an issue that my 3yr old was proud to tell people we " don't eat that " while the rest of the family devoured animals. I was proud of her for recognizing it, but had to bring her in another room to discuss it. Luckily my relatives are getting used to us and being respectful of our choices too. BTW this is always an issue for us, since my husband is still a meateater. He's sometimes a little put off with the kids responses to his meals. But very supportive of raising them veg. hope it helps... Janeen Shreelakshmi Krishnamurthi <shreelak wrote: Hi All This is the same line of the topic " How to deal with... " Although I don't have so much trouble with family or friends about food (as most of them are either vegetarians themselves or understand/respect it very well), but I can understand the difficulties most of you face in such situations. and my question is I have a 3 yr old and we are trying our best raise him vegetarian (with limited milk by product, no egg etc) and one day (when he was little shy of 2 ) we asked him what he wanted to eat for lunch and he told us he wanted Stake and Hot Dogs. I was shocked that knew he knew these terms. and yes I know he didn't really know what they were but he just said that he read some book in the daycare that had pictures of these things. Well that day on we have been trying to find a way to let him know( in his own way ) that we don't eat all that. But he is too small to understand it. So we keep tell him simply that we are vegetarians and so we don't eat meat ( " we don't eat animals we eat only plants " ) and he picked it up as he finds it funny to say " We are vegetariam " (that's how he says it) but really I keep wondering if this will work or if he will grow curious to try eating meat when he sees someone else eat it and so on. Anybody our there with similar situation and what do u do? In a side note i have yet another issue to handle which is when friends and family offer snacks and junk to our kids (that we don't typically like to have at home). Shree Don't be flakey. Get Mail for Mobile and always stay connected to friends. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 17, 2007 Report Share Posted January 17, 2007 This is a little off topic, but as a veg mom and a meat eating dad, how did you decide to handle what your children would eat? I have been raising my children veg, but my husband and I still have conflicts over this. He is a meat eater. He attaches a lot of value to eating meat although he admits it is unhealthy. He insists it is abnormal to eat healthy, and he says he misses the fact that his children do not eat some of his tradtional meals. carol sobczak <cpsobczak wrote: You're lucky that yourmeateating husband is supportive. Mine is actually annoyed that ourkids are veg. The older 2 chose vegetarianism themselves. When there are veggies they don't like or don't want to eat he threatens not to allow them to be vegetarian, as if he could make them eat meat. My youngest is only 2 and not old enough to decide for herself. Thank goodness he doesn't try to give her meat yet but he will. He thinks she should get the same choice that the older ones had. What he doesn't seem to understand is that it is up to us to make sure our children do the right thing. He wouldn't allow them to make choices about drinking alcohol. My 2 biggest hopes are that even if she tries it she will be disgusted by it and that she will follow what her older sisters are doing. They taught her to say ewww everytime someone mentions steak. Generally, kids have to get used to eating meat. Most don't like it at first. If I can keep her away from it long enough she won't develope a taste for it. I suppose if she does try it she will eventually have to decide. Our kids are not always in our sight. I only hope that I give mine enough of an understanding that they will make the right one. janeen minguillo <jminshan wrote: My 3 and 5 yr old love telling people that we don't eat meat. We only eat " Veggie " food. Like if they are seeing a hot dog stand, and want it, I might say, I'm hungry too, too bad there aren't any veggie dog stands, or something like that, then offer a pretzel or something else that we would eat. Sometimes it's confusing, and kids like to fit it, but they also like to be different, before they accept a gummi candy they haven't had before, they'll ask for the grown up to read the ingredients for them to see if it has gelatin. Just as an example. I had a little trouble one time when they wanted to pretend to eat meat also, but overall, they are pretty good about it. Kids are great if you can find a way to explain things in their terms. If I tell my kids something has an animal in it, they don't want to eat it. I may have to tell them that I'll explain exactly what it is later, so as not to be rude to the person who has chosen to eat it. I also let them know that people make different choices and we want people to respect us, so we do the same for them. That was an issue that my 3yr old was proud to tell people we " don't eat that " while the rest of the family devoured animals. I was proud of her for recognizing it, but had to bring her in another room to discuss it. Luckily my relatives are getting used to us and being respectful of our choices too. BTW this is always an issue for us, since my husband is still a meateater. He's sometimes a little put off with the kids responses to his meals. But very supportive of raising them veg. hope it helps... Janeen Shreelakshmi Krishnamurthi <shreelak wrote: Hi All This is the same line of the topic " How to deal with... " Although I don't have so much trouble with family or friends about food (as most of them are either vegetarians themselves or understand/respect it very well), but I can understand the difficulties most of you face in such situations. and my question is I have a 3 yr old and we are trying our best raise him vegetarian (with limited milk by product, no egg etc) and one day (when he was little shy of 2 ) we asked him what he wanted to eat for lunch and he told us he wanted Stake and Hot Dogs. I was shocked that knew he knew these terms. and yes I know he didn't really know what they were but he just said that he read some book in the daycare that had pictures of these things. Well that day on we have been trying to find a way to let him know( in his own way ) that we don't eat all that. But he is too small to understand it. So we keep tell him simply that we are vegetarians and so we don't eat meat ( " we don't eat animals we eat only plants " ) and he picked it up as he finds it funny to say " We are vegetariam " (that's how he says it) but really I keep wondering if this will work or if he will grow curious to try eating meat when he sees someone else eat it and so on. Anybody our there with similar situation and what do u do? In a side note i have yet another issue to handle which is when friends and family offer snacks and junk to our kids (that we don't typically like to have at home). Shree Don't be flakey. Get Mail for Mobile and always stay connected to friends. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 17, 2007 Report Share Posted January 17, 2007 Hello, I don't have too much to add beyond what others have said but I'll give you my situation. I am vegetarian and my husband is not. We are raising our two boys (3 1/2 years and 18 months) as vegetarian until such time they can make their own decision (I say that's when they are 65!! ;-) We'll cross that bridge when we come to it. My husband is supportive of the decision. Before we had children he wasn't too sure - thought they might feel out of place etc. I told him I wasn't worried...I grew up is farm country (some of my best friends lived on pig farms) and our family at little if any meat. Now we live in one of the most culturally diverse cities in the world so being vegetarian is nothing out of the ordinary! My eldest son calls himself a " vegetarian boy. " I think that came from daycare when they were having lunch and the staff would always remind each other that he was vegetarian so he wasn't served meat accidentally. He ended up being best buds with one of the other " vegetarian boys " in the class - it was their bond. We now have a live-in nanny so the situation is a bit different. We haven't had too much trouble so far. Even my in-laws don't try to feed the boys meat (vegetarianism is totally foreign to them - can't imagine a meal without meat sort of people). My first nanny did serve the boys meat on two occasions so she is no longer with us. The new nanny did but not on purpose. The problem is there is meat in the house so now I label everything with a green check mark or a red X. My sister had taught the boys to say " bleh " when someone says pork chop. It's very funny. At Thanksgiving and Christmas etc there is always a lot of vegetarian (half of my family is and the other half eats very little). Our friends and family know not to serve the boys anything with meat. I limit dairy but still give it to them (cheese, yogurt, etc) and we do eat eggs occasionally. I'm not worried about the boys now but when they start school and get peer pressure we'll have to reassess. If they ever decide that they want to eat meat, I'm not sure what I'll do. I teach them about where meat comes from, that animals are " friends, not food, " etc. When they are older I can get a little more explicit - not now though! My boys are ultra-healthy (never sick) and great eaters (people are amazed that they will choose to eat raw broccoli!). In fact, I told my dh that their diet probably contributed to their never being sick (like a lot of our friends' kids) and it was like a light went off! My eldest has been somewhat curious about meat and my husband offered him some Turkey last year (with my approval) and he spit it out. Every other time he appears interested but doesn't want anything to do with tasting it. Of course, I don't regularly let dh or anyone offer. Anyway, that's a long version of our situation. Paula Shreelakshmi Krishnamurthi <shreelak Monday, January 15, 2007 12:11:50 PM Q to parents with small kids Hi All This is the same line of the topic " How to deal with... " Although I don't have so much trouble with family or friends about food (as most of them are either vegetarians themselves or understand/respect it very well), but I can understand the difficulties most of you face in such situations. and my question is I have a 3 yr old and we are trying our best raise him vegetarian (with limited milk by product, no egg etc) and one day (when he was little shy of 2 ) we asked him what he wanted to eat for lunch and he told us he wanted Stake and Hot Dogs. I was shocked that knew he knew these terms. and yes I know he didn't really know what they were but he just said that he read some book in the daycare that had pictures of these things. Well that day on we have been trying to find a way to let him know( in his own way ) that we don't eat all that. But he is too small to understand it. So we keep tell him simply that we are vegetarians and so we don't eat meat ( " we don't eat animals we eat only plants " ) and he picked it up as he finds it funny to say " We are vegetariam " (that's how he says it) but really I keep wondering if this will work or if he will grow curious to try eating meat when he sees someone else eat it and so on. Anybody our there with similar situation and what do u do? In a side note i have yet another issue to handle which is when friends and family offer snacks and junk to our kids (that we don't typically like to have at home). Shree ------------ --------- --------- --- Don't be flakey. Get Mail for Mobile and always stay connected to friends. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 17, 2007 Report Share Posted January 17, 2007 I think what you are doing is just fine. That's how we handle it with our kids. My son, who is two, knows that we are vegetarian and we don't eat meat. Meat is animals. Animals are our friends. We do have to depend on our daycare teachers to make sure he doesnt accidently eat something that he is not supposed to and, except for one little incident (with Jello) they have been very good about it. My daughter, who is five, now understands the connection that meat is dead animals. She knows exactly what she can/cannot eat and so far has never been tempted to try something non-vegetarian. They know that our diet is just part of who we are. In general, we keep the explanation simple and basic until they are ready for the next level. And if they are old enough to ask the question, then they are old enough to get the answer (although maybe a little watered down at first). Neither of them yet know about factory farming and the cruelty that goes on there, except for the basic explanation that is in the book " Benji Beansprout doesnt eat meat " which, by the way, is an excellent book to help young vegetarian kids through the " Why am I different? " stage if they go through it. , Shreelakshmi Krishnamurthi <shreelak wrote: > Well that day on we have been trying to find a way to let him know ( in his own way ) that we don't eat all that. But he is too small to understand it. So we keep tell him simply that we are vegetarians and so we don't eat meat ( " we don't eat animals we eat only plants " ) > > and he picked it up as he finds it funny to say " We are vegetariam " (that's how he says it) but really I keep wondering if this will work or if he will grow curious to try eating meat when he sees someone else eat it and so on. > Anybody our there with similar situation and what do u do? > > In a side note i have yet another issue to handle which is when friends and family offer snacks and junk to our kids (that we don't typically like to have at home). > > Shree > > > > Don't be flakey. Get Mail for Mobile and > always stay connected to friends. > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 17, 2007 Report Share Posted January 17, 2007 My three daughters are all under 6 and we have been vegetarian since the youngest were 3 years old. We are fortunate enough (smiling inside) to live down the road from a farmer who raises cows which he butchers in the basement of his restaurant in town. So, everytime we go anywhere we have to pass the cows. We moo and say how nice it is to see the cows and that it's sad that the farmer makes them into hambburgers. That may seem harsh to some people, but children are very intelligent. My daughters say, " no, we don't eat animals " all the time. To get them to stop drinking milk we told them that milk is for baby cows and if we drink the milk then the baby cows can't have any. So, we replaced their milk with Vanilla Silk and the girls gladly let the baby cows have their milk. Funny story - at Thanksgiving I found this printout to color of a turkey who looked very scared. My oldest daughter colored him and then decided that the hunters are the ones who should be scared because the turkey was going to get all his friends and they were going to hunt the hunters. All I could do was laugh. Laura , Shreelakshmi Krishnamurthi <shreelak wrote: > > I have a 3 yr old and we are trying our best raise him vegetarian (with limited milk by product, no egg etc) and one day (when he was little shy of 2 ) we asked him what he wanted to eat for lunch and he told us he wanted Stake and Hot Dogs. I was shocked that knew he knew these terms. and yes I know he didn't really know what they were but he just said that he read some book in the daycare that had pictures of these things. > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 17, 2007 Report Share Posted January 17, 2007 My husband is vegetarian at home and most of the time while he's out. Before we got married I told him our children would not eat meat. I gave him the whole list of facts and he is on my side on this. I don't know how in the world a child could ever choose the healthy path if they had a parent actively against it. Jeff is wonderful, he explains things to people who don't know, he protects the kids with me. I wouldn't have it any other way. Jeff isn't 100% veg (yet... he's trying!) but he is very supportive, he knows it's healthy, and he would never feed the kids meat or allow anyone else to. I wouldn't have married him if he wasn't this way, that's not a negotiable subject. He took in the facts and we've never had an argument about it. Laura Ballinger Morales <lballinger wrote: This is a little off topic, but as a veg mom and a meat eating dad, how did you decide to handle what your children would eat? I have been raising my children veg, but my husband and I still have conflicts over this. He is a meat eater. He attaches a lot of value to eating meat although he admits it is unhealthy. He insists it is abnormal to eat healthy, and he says he misses the fact that his children do not eat some of his tradtional meals. carol sobczak <cpsobczak wrote: You're lucky that yourmeateating husband is supportive. Mine is actually annoyed that ourkids are veg. The older 2 chose vegetarianism themselves. When there are veggies they don't like or don't want to eat he threatens not to allow them to be vegetarian, as if he could make them eat meat. My youngest is only 2 and not old enough to decide for herself. Thank goodness he doesn't try to give her meat yet but he will. He thinks she should get the same choice that the older ones had. What he doesn't seem to understand is that it is up to us to make sure our children do the right thing. He wouldn't allow them to make choices about drinking alcohol. My 2 biggest hopes are that even if she tries it she will be disgusted by it and that she will follow what her older sisters are doing. They taught her to say ewww everytime someone mentions steak. Generally, kids have to get used to eating meat. Most don't like it at first. If I can keep her away from it long enough she won't develope a taste for it. I suppose if she does try it she will eventually have to decide. Our kids are not always in our sight. I only hope that I give mine enough of an understanding that they will make the right one. janeen minguillo <jminshan wrote: My 3 and 5 yr old love telling people that we don't eat meat. We only eat " Veggie " food. Like if they are seeing a hot dog stand, and want it, I might say, I'm hungry too, too bad there aren't any veggie dog stands, or something like that, then offer a pretzel or something else that we would eat. Sometimes it's confusing, and kids like to fit it, but they also like to be different, before they accept a gummi candy they haven't had before, they'll ask for the grown up to read the ingredients for them to see if it has gelatin. Just as an example. I had a little trouble one time when they wanted to pretend to eat meat also, but overall, they are pretty good about it. Kids are great if you can find a way to explain things in their terms. If I tell my kids something has an animal in it, they don't want to eat it. I may have to tell them that I'll explain exactly what it is later, so as not to be rude to the person who has chosen to eat it. I also let them know that people make different choices and we want people to respect us, so we do the same for them. That was an issue that my 3yr old was proud to tell people we " don't eat that " while the rest of the family devoured animals. I was proud of her for recognizing it, but had to bring her in another room to discuss it. Luckily my relatives are getting used to us and being respectful of our choices too. BTW this is always an issue for us, since my husband is still a meateater. He's sometimes a little put off with the kids responses to his meals. But very supportive of raising them veg. hope it helps... Janeen Shreelakshmi Krishnamurthi <shreelak wrote: Hi All This is the same line of the topic " How to deal with... " Although I don't have so much trouble with family or friends about food (as most of them are either vegetarians themselves or understand/respect it very well), but I can understand the difficulties most of you face in such situations. and my question is I have a 3 yr old and we are trying our best raise him vegetarian (with limited milk by product, no egg etc) and one day (when he was little shy of 2 ) we asked him what he wanted to eat for lunch and he told us he wanted Stake and Hot Dogs. I was shocked that knew he knew these terms. and yes I know he didn't really know what they were but he just said that he read some book in the daycare that had pictures of these things. Well that day on we have been trying to find a way to let him know( in his own way ) that we don't eat all that. But he is too small to understand it. So we keep tell him simply that we are vegetarians and so we don't eat meat ( " we don't eat animals we eat only plants " ) and he picked it up as he finds it funny to say " We are vegetariam " (that's how he says it) but really I keep wondering if this will work or if he will grow curious to try eating meat when he sees someone else eat it and so on. Anybody our there with similar situation and what do u do? In a side note i have yet another issue to handle which is when friends and family offer snacks and junk to our kids (that we don't typically like to have at home). Shree Don't be flakey. Get Mail for Mobile and always stay connected to friends. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 18, 2007 Report Share Posted January 18, 2007 It is amazing how kids learn and develop their understanding of being vegetarian. My younger daughter is 3 and her basic understanding is that eating meat hurts animals and recently seems to be grasping that that " hurt " is actually death. My older daughter is seven and it's wonderful to see how much she wants to learn and help. She recently decided to start saving up to sponsor a cow at the Farm Sanctuary. She is saving like crazy, which is wonderful for a little girl who could previously only think of the next stuffed animal she could get. I guarantee that nobody could convince one of these girls to eat meat. When my youngest was first born I constantly got the question from family, 'what if she decides to eat meat someday?' Which was great since an aunt had forbidden her daughters from giving up meat. Ugh. But now people see her at seven and even the three year old and nobody asks that question anymore. I have to hand it to the people raising veg kids while their partner eats meat. I would think it would cause a lot of complication. But then people find ways... How do you teach your children about the hurt meat causes while your husband is eating it? That is not meant as offensive. I just really wonder. But then we typically don't tell our children that eating meat or not is just a choice and we each make our own choices...we teach them that it is wrong and that the people who eat it just don't yet understand why it is wrong, so we need to teach them. Sounds like your kids are doing well though and I really hand it to you! Jill , " Laura " <redmountaindragon wrote: > > My three daughters are all under 6 and we have been vegetarian since the youngest were 3 > years old. We are fortunate enough (smiling inside) to live down the road from a farmer > who raises cows which he butchers in the basement of his restaurant in town. So, > everytime we go anywhere we have to pass the cows. We moo and say how nice it is to see > the cows and that it's sad that the farmer makes them into hambburgers. That may seem > harsh to some people, but children are very intelligent. My daughters say, " no, we don't > eat animals " all the time. To get them to stop drinking milk we told them that milk is for > baby cows and if we drink the milk then the baby cows can't have any. So, we replaced > their milk with Vanilla Silk and the girls gladly let the baby cows have their milk. > > Funny story - at Thanksgiving I found this printout to color of a turkey who looked very > scared. My oldest daughter colored him and then decided that the hunters are the ones > who should be scared because the turkey was going to get all his friends and they were > going to hunt the hunters. All I could do was laugh. > > Laura > > > > > , Shreelakshmi Krishnamurthi <shreelak@> wrote: > > > > I have a 3 yr old and we are trying our best raise him vegetarian (with limited milk by > product, no egg etc) and one day (when he was little shy of 2 ) we asked him what he > wanted to eat for lunch and he told us he wanted Stake and Hot Dogs. I was shocked that > knew he knew these terms. and yes I know he didn't really know what they were but he > just said that he read some book in the daycare that had pictures of these things. > > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 18, 2007 Report Share Posted January 18, 2007 Hello I am Pam Freedman. We live in Chapel Hill, NC (snow today!). I don't have little ones anymore, but when our oldest was 12 and the second 5, I just couldn't eat meat anymore (I was also pregnant). I had read a lot and came to the point that I wanted our whole family to be veggie because I couldn't even bring myself to cook or serve meat. It went over pretty well (it's now almost 20 years later!). Our oldest said " well, this doesn't mean I won't eat meat when I'm not at home. " We said " fine " . (flash ahead 6 years, he was the first to become vegan!) My husband was very supportive, but he did not want to give up fish. One time, several months later, we were in a restaurant. My husband ordered fish and the rest of us ordered veggie things. My (then 6 yr old) daughter looked over at my husband and said " Oh Daddy, how can you eat that? What did that poor little fishy ever do to you? " We almost fell out of our seats laughing. Steve couldn't bring himself to take another bite and hasn't had meat or fish since then. When we were first starting out, I did bring up health conscious eating and that animals were our friends, at every opportunity. I even bought the kids t-shirts promoting vegetarianism. My daughter adored them. Things like Love Animals, Don't Eat Them, etc. The funny thing is that when we first brought up the idea, that daughter immediately remembered Charlotte's Web. She went on and on about it. Made me think that she had the idea without anyone ever saying anything to her. Now, they are all grown and strong. My next post will be about that baby I was carrying back then! Peace, Pam Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 18, 2007 Report Share Posted January 18, 2007 Ditto for my husband. Vegetarian at home but not when he's away during the day. Never eats meat in front of us and is VERY supportive of raising our 2 y/o as a vegetarian. He's even the one that listens to the local vegetarian radio show and tells me I should look into vegan. Of course, he still wants his cheese. But he has given up milk. Every little step is a victory. , Kadee M <abbey_road3012 wrote: > > My husband is vegetarian at home and most of the time while he's out. Before we got married I told him our children would not eat meat. I gave him the whole list of facts and he is on my side on this. I don't know how in the world a child could ever choose the healthy path if they had a parent actively against it. Jeff is wonderful, he explains things to people who don't know, he protects the kids with me. I wouldn't have it any other way. Jeff isn't 100% veg (yet... he's trying!) but he is very supportive, he knows it's healthy, and he would never feed the kids meat or allow anyone else to. I wouldn't have married him if he wasn't this way, that's not a negotiable subject. He took in the facts and we've never had an argument about it. > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 19, 2007 Report Share Posted January 19, 2007 Ha! That is funny because my husband does the same thing. He'll encourage the kids not to eat the cheese but he'll eat it. And he actually drinks the soy and rice milk. He prefers the taste of cow's milk but I think I've finally convinced him that we're not cows. Phyllis <none_ya wrote: Ditto for my husband. Vegetarian at home but not when he's away during the day. Never eats meat in front of us and is VERY supportive of raising our 2 y/o as a vegetarian. He's even the one that listens to the local vegetarian radio show and tells me I should look into vegan. Of course, he still wants his cheese. But he has given up milk. Every little step is a victory. , Kadee M <abbey_road3012 wrote: > > My husband is vegetarian at home and most of the time while he's out. Before we got married I told him our children would not eat meat. I gave him the whole list of facts and he is on my side on this. I don't know how in the world a child could ever choose the healthy path if they had a parent actively against it. Jeff is wonderful, he explains things to people who don't know, he protects the kids with me. I wouldn't have it any other way. Jeff isn't 100% veg (yet... he's trying!) but he is very supportive, he knows it's healthy, and he would never feed the kids meat or allow anyone else to. I wouldn't have married him if he wasn't this way, that's not a negotiable subject. He took in the facts and we've never had an argument about it. > Kadee Sedtal Build a man a fire and he'll stay warm for a day. Set a man on fire and he'll stay warm the rest of his life. " THERE ARE FOUR LIGHTS!!! " -Captain Picard, Next Generation, " Chain of Command part 2 " Check out my new , Classical 2 at http://launch.classical2/ We won't tell. Get more on shows you hate to love (and love to hate): TV's Guilty Pleasures list. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 19, 2007 Report Share Posted January 19, 2007 I can imagine! Jeff ate meat in the house (I wouldn't cook it or even look at it) until I was pregnant the second time, and he opened a can of shrimp. I threw up, and when I was done I told him he'd better enjoy his little death-fest because that was IT! I have always thought meat was disgusting but being pregnant magnified that feeling a hundred times over. Ick!! pmfree3 wrote: Hello I am Pam Freedman. We live in Chapel Hill, NC (snow today!). I don't have little ones anymore, but when our oldest was 12 and the second 5, I just couldn't eat meat anymore (I was also pregnant). I had read a lot and came to the point that I wanted our whole family to be veggie because I couldn't even bring myself to cook or serve meat. It went over pretty well (it's now almost 20 years later!). Our oldest said " well, this doesn't mean I won't eat meat when I'm not at home. " We said " fine " . (flash ahead 6 years, he was the first to become vegan!) My husband was very supportive, but he did not want to give up fish. One time, several months later, we were in a restaurant. My husband ordered fish and the rest of us ordered veggie things. My (then 6 yr old) daughter looked over at my husband and said " Oh Daddy, how can you eat that? What did that poor little fishy ever do to you? " We almost fell out of our seats laughing. Steve couldn't bring himself to take another bite and hasn't had meat or fish since then. When we were first starting out, I did bring up health conscious eating and that animals were our friends, at every opportunity. I even bought the kids t-shirts promoting vegetarianism. My daughter adored them. Things like Love Animals, Don't Eat Them, etc. The funny thing is that when we first brought up the idea, that daughter immediately remembered Charlotte's Web. She went on and on about it. Made me think that she had the idea without anyone ever saying anything to her. Now, they are all grown and strong. My next post will be about that baby I was carrying back then! Peace, Pam Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 19, 2007 Report Share Posted January 19, 2007 I would have to " ditto " the power of Charlotte's Web. My ds7 was 3 and interested in vegetarianism, but still liked his chicken, etc. We went on a LONG road trip and listened to Charlotte's Web on tape. We had read it to him before when he was younger (around 2 1/2, I think), and he then showed an interest (he wanted to eat chicken like at Auntie's house but not eat A CHICKEN... we did explain that those were the same thing... but he was leary of giving up one of his favorite foods -- and one he only got when out since I didn't prepare meat at home. Anyway, by the time we got to our destination (2,100 miles away at Grandma and Grandpa's) he was not going to eat another animal and was debating with his grandfather about how the pig in his ham sandwich really didn't want to be eaten. Cindy ______________________________\ ____ Need a quick answer? Get one in minutes from people who know. Ask your question on www.Answers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 20, 2007 Report Share Posted January 20, 2007 My husband eats meat out, as I don't cook or serve it at home either. Also, it gets a little frustrating when I think he's all set with a meal I made, then opens up a can of tuna and lumps it all over the nice meal I made. It really grosses me out. But I'm glad that he doesn't try to make me cook it. Although it is a topic whenever we have a major discussion/disagreement. Such is life. The fish issue is something that a lot of people have. If I say I'm veg, they would say oh, you eat fish though. " No, of course not " seems so obvious. On the funny side, my 5 yr old son asked me if ice cream is healthy, then asked to use the new juicer I got for Christmas, but haven't gotten the energy to figure out yet. Sorry if this kind of rambles, I'm really tired with a headache, and can't fall asleep. Janeen Phyllis <none_ya wrote: Ditto for my husband. Vegetarian at home but not when he's away during the day. Never eats meat in front of us and is VERY supportive of raising our 2 y/o as a vegetarian. He's even the one that listens to the local vegetarian radio show and tells me I should look into vegan. Of course, he still wants his cheese. But he has given up milk. Every little step is a victory. , Kadee M <abbey_road3012 wrote: > > My husband is vegetarian at home and most of the time while he's out. Before we got married I told him our children would not eat meat. I gave him the whole list of facts and he is on my side on this. I don't know how in the world a child could ever choose the healthy path if they had a parent actively against it. Jeff is wonderful, he explains things to people who don't know, he protects the kids with me. I wouldn't have it any other way. Jeff isn't 100% veg (yet... he's trying!) but he is very supportive, he knows it's healthy, and he would never feed the kids meat or allow anyone else to. I wouldn't have married him if he wasn't this way, that's not a negotiable subject. He took in the facts and we've never had an argument about it. > Have a burning question? Go to Answers and get answers from real people who know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You are posting as a guest. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.