Guest guest Posted December 30, 2008 Report Share Posted December 30, 2008 I have been a vegetarian my entire life. I am also raising my daughters 3.5 and 1.5 veg. Just recently my daughter has been asking alot to eat meat because she sees her friends and dad eating meat. Any suggestions to tell her about why she can not eat meat? I really would appreciate any help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 30, 2008 Report Share Posted December 30, 2008 This conversation (just like the facts of life, reading, please and thank, etc.) is one of those ongoing conversations that starts practically from birth. Your approach to your kids depends on why you are vegetarian. If you are vegetarian because you value the rights of animals, then you talk about not eating living things; children often have a difficult time connecting a hot dog with a cow. If you are vegetarian because you believe that meat is inefficient, you explain that one meal of beef could have provided many meals of grain to a poor family; you can find photos online of poor African villages, for example. If you are vegetarian for environmental reasons, you can explain that cows pollute the air just like cars. Always look for teachable moments with your kids, such as when you are out for a walk and you see a dog, you can say: we don't eat dogs, so why do people eat sheep? Robin --- On Mon, 12/29/08, angie_quigley <angie_quigley wrote: angie_quigley <angie_quigley raising vegetarian children Monday, December 29, 2008, 11:29 PM I have been a vegetarian my entire life. I am also raising my daughters 3.5 and 1.5 veg. Just recently my daughter has been asking alot to eat meat because she sees her friends and dad eating meat. Any suggestions to tell her about why she can not eat meat? I really would appreciate any help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 30, 2008 Report Share Posted December 30, 2008 Kudos to Robin for her answer. The only thing I would add is 'At some point, you have to make your own food choices. Part of my job as your mom is to help you make the right choices while you are under my care all day. Why would I give you something I think is harmful to you? It would be like giving you poison. ' My husband eats meat, too, and I explain that he is a grown up and that's why he gets to make this decision for himself. Then, if he's actually eating meat at the moment, I'll add something half-jokingly like, " If he wants to eat the seared flesh of a dead chicken, I'm not his mommy and can't stop him. " That always gets a big laugh, but the point is taken. I think this questioning is a phase and shall pass; if I remember right, my eldest asked the same sorts of questions. Now, she blythely goes to school and is happy to declare that she can't eat pigs in a blanket or whatever the snack is, and why. No embarassment, no regret. --- On Tue, 12/30/08, robin koloms <rkoloms wrote: robin koloms <rkoloms Re: raising vegetarian children Tuesday, December 30, 2008, 6:34 AM This conversation (just like the facts of life, reading, please and thank, etc.) is one of those ongoing conversations that starts practically from birth. Your approach to your kids depends on why you are vegetarian. If you are vegetarian because you value the rights of animals, then you talk about not eating living things; children often have a difficult time connecting a hot dog with a cow. If you are vegetarian because you believe that meat is inefficient, you explain that one meal of beef could have provided many meals of grain to a poor family; you can find photos online of poor African villages, for example. If you are vegetarian for environmental reasons, you can explain that cows pollute the air just like cars. Always look for teachable moments with your kids, such as when you are out for a walk and you see a dog, you can say: we don't eat dogs, so why do people eat sheep? Robin --- On Mon, 12/29/08, angie_quigley <angie_quigley@ > wrote: angie_quigley <angie_quigley@ > raising vegetarian children @gro ups.com Monday, December 29, 2008, 11:29 PM I have been a vegetarian my entire life. I am also raising my daughters 3.5 and 1.5 veg. Just recently my daughter has been asking alot to eat meat because she sees her friends and dad eating meat. Any suggestions to tell her about why she can not eat meat? I really would appreciate any help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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