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Honored Contributor
Posts: 9,978
Registered: ‎07-28-2012

Re: Any regrets about how you fed your family when ""it"" was young?

I have no regrets, although I possibly could have done better, who couldn't, at any point in time. But I did the best I could with the knowledge and what products were available at that point in time. Food, in general, was just healthier back then than it is now, no reflection on us as parents. I believe I would feel the need to have a heart to heart talk with my son if I were you and find out what his problem is. I would also let him know that his put downs of how he was raised/fed are hurtful, especially since he has apparently not been unduly harmed by his upbringing. I am sorry to say that it sounds like he has a ways to go on growing up.

"To each their own, in all things".
Contributor
Posts: 70
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

Re: Any regrets about how you fed your family when ""it"" was young?

"As a housewife, I feel that if when my husband gets home from work the kids are still alive, then hey, I've done my job."

An early quote from Roseanne Barr. This post made me think of that.

My daughters are in their early 50s. They were raised with lots of meat, chicken, potatoes,

franks, spaghetti, rye bread, tuna sandwiches, salads i guess (it was a long time ago) yodels, cheerios, fruit I guess.

One was never a good eater, the other one loved meat, now doesn't, but eats & cooks things I never did I never forced them, never overloaded their plates. As far as I can tell, they're healthy.

In the summer, on vacations, we had plenty of McDonalds.

My grandkids are being raised as vegetarians, don't really know what they eat, but it's not my problem. {#emotions_dlg.laugh}

Honored Contributor
Posts: 10,168
Registered: ‎03-14-2010

Re: Any regrets about how you fed your family when ""it"" was young?

your son sounds very ungrateful towards you and the job you did raising him; most of us were raised on an occasional hot dog or chicken nugget and I don't think we were permanently damaged. If your son and DIL are so into the vegan eating style then more power to them.....but I would not allow my son to disrespect me in my home.....

Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 5,258
Registered: ‎03-10-2010

Re: Any regrets about how you fed your family when ""it"" was young?

I cooked delicious and nutricious meals from scratch. My daughter did not dictate what I was to prepare or purchase for her meals.

The path that your son and DIL have chosen must seem way off center to you, but it's a good one. Your son's comment sounds valid. My mother was a horrible cook and would grab a can of green beans and throw a few chops in the skillet and that was our dinner. And that was on a good night. There was only one thing that she cooked that was decent and that was chicken and dumplings, which she made only once a year. Clearly, this is what drove me to learn how to cook "beyond the can" (in the 50s) and so spent many happy hours watching and learning from Julia Child and the Galloping Gourmet.

I wish you the best in your food relationship with your family. That can be tough!

Super Contributor
Posts: 486
Registered: ‎04-14-2010

Re: Any regrets about how you fed your family when ""it"" was young?

I always felt good about the foods I raised my daughter on. I love to cook, using fresh foods as much as possible, and was fortunate to be able to do that. I made most of her baby food myself, from fresh foods I cooked and then pureed.

We got a good laugh when she had her introductory meeting with her kindergarten teacher. The teacher always asked the students what their favorite food was. My daughter's response? Artichokes! The teacher laughed and laughed, and looked at us and we said yes, she's serious! Still chuckling she asked her what her 2nd favorite food was. Her answer? Salad! The teacher was just amazed. She said in 35 years of teaching she had never heard anything like it. DD had her first chicken nugget in school lunch.

Trusted Contributor
Posts: 1,493
Registered: ‎03-22-2012

Re: Any regrets about how you fed your family when ""it"" was young?

Every mother does the best she knows how to do. But all intelligent people are willing to recognize their shortcomings and learn from them. I do not think your son is disrespectful, as you happened to overhear what he was saying to his wife, he did not say this to you to be hurtful. I can tell that you actually admire your son and his commitment to his beliefs.

It doesn't sound like he's condemming you, just making a different choice for his family. It sounds like he and his wife will enjoy sharing their lifestyle with their children, and I think you should get on board. Get in the kitchen with him and/or your DIL and learn how to make treats that your future grandchildren will enjoy. Remember, if they don't trust you to enforce the rules of THEIR household, they will limit your time with the grandkids! My husband and I certainly did when our children were too young to reject what their grandma wanted to "sneak" them.

I grew up eating home cooked meals. My mom was a single mom and she taught me how to cook for the family by the time I was twelve. Fast food was an occasional treat, not dinner. I was a stay at home mom with my children when they were young and I cooked wholesome food every day. They have taken these good eating habits into young adulthood.

"The good thing about Science is that it's true, whether or not you believe in it."
Neil deGrasse Tyson
Super Contributor
Posts: 2,313
Registered: ‎08-23-2012

Re: Any regrets about how you fed your family when ""it"" was young?

On 1/14/2014 upsidedown said:

your son sounds very ungrateful towards you and the job you did raising him; most of us were raised on an occasional hot dog or chicken nugget and I don't think we were permanently damaged. If your son and DIL are so into the vegan eating style then more power to them.....but I would not allow my son to disrespect me in my home.....

He is not at all disrespectful. He's a loving caring person and he'd do anything for his family, friends and strangers. He happened to be speaking to his wife and i overheard. They are at a very idealistic time in their lives right now. I understand that.

Super Contributor
Posts: 578
Registered: ‎07-30-2011

Re: Any regrets about how you fed your family when ""it"" was young?

On 1/14/2014 house cat said:
On 1/14/2014 upsidedown said:

your son sounds very ungrateful towards you and the job you did raising him; most of us were raised on an occasional hot dog or chicken nugget and I don't think we were permanently damaged. If your son and DIL are so into the vegan eating style then more power to them.....but I would not allow my son to disrespect me in my home.....

He is not at all disrespectful. He's a loving caring person and he'd do anything for his family, friends and strangers. He happened to be speaking to his wife and i overheard. They are at a very idealistic time in their lives right now. I understand that.

You hit it right on the head, delilah. (You'll always be delilah to me!) When we are young our youthful idealism can make us appear arrogant. I'll never forget when my kids were very young, (and so was I) telling my dad, regarding my new job, that *I* want to be a good role model for my kids. (Mom had never worked outside the home.) He said, "You're breaking my heart, implying that your mother wasn't a good role model." Of course that wasn't my intention, but that's how he perceived my words. Both the job and they are long gone, but the memory of my pompous attitude still brings a tear to my eye. With age comes humility. I'm glad your son doesn't know you heard him. But don't fret about his early nutrition--it sounds like he's just fine. 'Ya done good'!

Respected Contributor
Posts: 2,601
Registered: ‎03-19-2010

Re: Any regrets about how you fed your family when ""it"" was young?

I was very lucky. When I was growing up the fast food places consisted of Dairy Queen and I remember a Root Beer Drive In. We went to Dairy Queen when something important happened in our lives, such as the last day of school or a birthday for my parents. My Daddy always had a huge garden and my Mother cooked real food. My uncles raised cows, so we ate a lot of farm raised beef and pork. No fast food or processed "Debbie Cakes" and such. I remember going to the grocery store with my Mother and my only request would be a jar of olives. We just didn't have access to junk food.

My children were raised the same way. We lived across the road from my parents and they had a 100 acre farm. Daddy raised cows and vegetables. My Mother and I canned vegetables and fruit all summer. I kept a food pyramid chart on my ice box and taught my children why they were eating a yellow vegetable, a green vegetable, etc. I cooked breakfast, made lunches and cooked supper. Luckily, my girls have carried good eating habits over into their lives today.

Unfortunately, now, my husband and I don't have the energy or the resources to eat like we did when we were younger. I don't feel like getting into a big meal every day and my husband is not very adventurous with food. He wants the same thing, meat, potatoes and vegetables and when he gets tired of that, we have a Big Mac. We waste a lot of food because I still can't judge how to just cook for two and I never know if one of the children might pop in.

I miss those days for sure, but, I was much younger and had so much more energy and better health.

Contributor
Posts: 44
Registered: ‎10-23-2012

Re: Any regrets about how you fed your family when ""it"" was young?

None. No regrets. I was a wife, a mom, a full time swing-shift worker, and a part time college student. I did the best I could with what I had and the time I had. I cooked dinner almost every night; even when I was on second shift, I would make dinner and have it in the fridge or the crock pot or in the oven for the guys when they got home from work and school, our son took good lunches to school (the other kids used to try to trade the stuff in their lunches for his lunch).

Even during the time our son was in college, we made sure he didn't go hungry. We were always taking meals to him at school and I was always sending care packages to him. And now that he's married with his own family, there are still times when he'll come home and raid our freezer....especially when he thinks there just might be a pan or two of homemade lasagna in there.

"Hi Mom! Hey, is there any split pea soup around? I'm really hungry for split pea soup!"

I did what I could.