Lori Alexander believes in force-feeding children

[Snickers]

That is some seriously fucked up shit.

When I was a little kid (3-6ish), I could literally have a gag reflex to the texture of raw tomatoes or that pulpy tomato juice. My parents made me eat it, and when I vomited I then literally had to eat my vomit.

I know my mother would have thought she was doing "the right thing" by making sure I learned to be obedient, but honestly... I look back at it now and just think "WHAT THE HOLY FUCK WERE YOU THINKING?!??"

That is child abuse. I hope you eventually reported those bastards.

[kb2]

Let's just say all you who have been forced to eat vomit have my sympathy. *hugs* And those who have been abused in general, as well, of course.

This. I didn't realize there was so much abuse surrounding food.

[Three and Done]

Add me to the list of people that were forced to eat. I was never forced to eat vomit, but over thirty years later I still remember sitting at the kitchen table for hours with a cold, congealed mass of sloppy joe in front of me. I was told I could NOT get up from the table until I finished it. My dad was abusive, so the fear of being hit is what finally made me force it down. I was so sick after I ate it...

My grandmother took care of us when we were younger, and she was one of those old school "eat what's on the table or don't eat" people, plus she simply didn't like me much (but openly favored my sister). I was allowed one half of a juice glass of skim milk with my dinner, and too bad if I drank it all and still had food left. She also made some meals that I would have never eaten, such as cow tongue (know any 8 year olds that eat THAT?!), so there were times that my dinner was a couple of boiled potatoes and the afore-mentioned milk. I rarely got dessert, since I hadn't "eaten all of my dinner".

There were a few other incidents with an aunt, but the sum total of all my experiences is that I developed anorexia. I'm 5'6", and got down to 98 lbs. I still struggle with food issues today.

Due to my experiences, I have always sworn that MY children will never have to "eat what they're given". They are free to eat something different for dinner, as long as it's healthy. They are 12 and 16(oldest has been on her own for a couple of yrs), and very capable of fending for themselves if they choose to. Funnily, they both eat things I can't stand, and are much more willing to try new foods than I am. My youngest even tried octopus and squid when Fiance made some (barf).

My granddaughter H is 18 months old, and she likes to eat off our plates, or just munch here and there. If I saw/heard of someone treating H the way Emma was/is treated, I would likely commit a felony :evil:

[desertvixen]

First off, I want to hug all the people who were forced to eat vomit. There's no excuse for that.

It's basic stuff like this that makes me question their ability to care for a child. If your child expresses interest in a food, SHARE IT. That's why my two year old likes fried kalamari (which I can't stand to even touch) and kale chips (to balance the never ending chicken nugget and mac and cheese cycle). At what point will their child be allowed to join them at the table like a human member of the family?

Yes - when she was small enough that she only ate baby food, my ex and I used to save time by one of us feeding my daughter while the other one cooked dinner. Then she could sit at her high chair at the table and gnaw on something, or try whatever on our plates caught her attention. Once she was old enough for "real" food, I did a lot of scaled down, less spicy things for her so she could gradually work up to it.

I always make sure there's something on the table that everybody will eat. I think doing otherwise is rude.

This. There are a few things I make that my daughter does not like. If I decide to make one of those for myself, I make her soup or something similar.

Too many people cannot understand there is a medium between making everyone their own dinner and forcing people to eat stuff they don't like. It's the one thing I don't like about the future Mr DV's family - I don't save uneaten food for the next meal or anything like that. If my daughter doesn't like it, she doesn't have to eat it - maybe try it, but not eat it. His parents are kind of in that school, and I don't care for it. Also, my five-year old does not need to eat the same portion as everyone else, because she is not as big as everyone else.

As far as the "what will they do in other places?" question, it basically comes down to a) explaining to your child how we politely refuse food and b) working with what is available to make it work out. Occasionally, yes, the answer is give the kid a snack during dinner and feed them before/after dinner. We did this when going to a Russian/Georgian place in San Diego that was really good, but not really the place to find anything kid-appropriate. She tried some things, ate the things she liked, and then got something when the adults were done chowing down.