#33: Will Grandparents ruin my healthy feeding efforts?

In this episode, I’m tackling a very common worry among parents… “Will my child’s Grandparents ruin all the hard work I’ve done in creating healthy eating habits for my kids?”. This is a question I get asked a lot, and I totally understand it because...well...I LIVED it! My kids would come home from their grandparents’ house and say… “Mommy - I had ice cream for supper!” Then I’d ask my Mom what she’d done with the kids all day while she was looking after them for me, and she’d go... “Well, we made chocolate chip cookies, and then I took them to the canteen to get some chips, and then we watched a movie with hot chocolate and marshmallows!” (Insert eye-roll here…) To top it off, my father-in-law used to pressure my kids to eat everything on their plate (which he heaped completely full of food!), and then would even guilt them into eating dessert by saying: “Come on...it’s dessert...YUM!”. And the icing on top of that cake was that he’d even make ME out to be the bad guy. He’d hint to my boys that I’d be mad they were eating dessert and it had to be their secret. No thank you! So, believe me, I’ve dealt with my fair share of this, and I 100% understand your concerns! I’m sharing with you my top tips - tried and tested - for dealing with these super common grandparent issues. Find yourself a quiet space, away from the kiddos (and grandparents ;) ), and listen in! DISCLAIMER: If you’re one of the many grandparents that follows me to get my feeding tips, and that regularly provides care to their grandkids keeping in mind all that I teach - this episode is not for you! There are grandparents who are certainly exceptions to these scenarios, and honestly, whether you’re an exception or not, we absolutely love and support all grandparents. What you do to help out parents, and the endless love you show your grandchildren, is not going unnoticed, so thank you. :) As always, if you get value from this episode, please subscribe, rate, and review it on Apple Podcasts. And, I’d love for you to share this episode with a friend, or sibling, who may have to deal with this too! ADDITIONAL RESOURCES: If you’re looking to get some tips and tricks on how to manage sweets with your kids, and on how you can make a dessert strategy for your family (like I mention in the episode), it’s time to enroll in my Feeding Toddlers online course! Get this, and a whole lot more, by signing up now! I’ll teach you how to create a positive mealtime environment that sets you and your toddler up for success in feeding, and I give you all the details on nutrition for their age too. Enroll today! (https://mylittleeater.com/feeding-toddlers/) Content I mention in the episode… EPISODE 16: WHAT TO DO WHEN YOUR TODDLER IS SWEET OBSESSED https://mylittleeater.com/16-what-to-do-when-your-toddler-is-sweet-obsessed/ EPISODE 27: 5 SIMPLE TIPS FOR HANDLING HALLOWEEN TREATS FOR TODDLERS https://mylittleeater.com/27-halloweencandy/ HOW TO RAISE A TODDLER TO HAVE A HEALTHY RELATIONSHIP WITH SUGAR https://mylittleeater.com/healthyrelationshipwithsugar/ SKIP TO... My experience with grandparents (1:59) Why how often your children see their grandparents matters (5:14) My advice if grandparents don’t have regular feeding responsibilities (7:38) My advice if grandparents do have regular feeding responsibilities (8:59)