Setting the Example

When you become a parent, your whole perspective on life changes. After you get through the initial phase of figuring out your baby, you suddenly realize that you are responsible for a life and you are your child's first teacher and role model.

I've been thinking about this topic a lot lately. In the realm of food, when our children see us eating healthy food, they will want to eat healthy food (even if it takes a picky toddler what seems like a million times to eat it!). The other day, I was eating a salad, and Chris asked for a piece of lettuce. He's a great eater but I wasn't sure if he would like the texture of the leaf. He ate it right up and I was happy to share more with him. I'm convinced that his desire to eat this salad was partly because he sees me eating it a lot.

I feel like it is so important to set the example for our children that it is important to think about what we are eating. So often, "family" meals are not eaten together at all but in front of the TV or computer. I love talking to Chris about how certain foods are going to make us big and strong and then seeing him flex his muscles and eat his beans!

Of course, we also need to set the example that it's okay to not eat perfectly (or be perfect--come on American parents, settle down! our kids are going to turn out alright!) all the time. Treats are good every now and then. If we can shoot for eating healthy foods 80 to 90 percent of the time, we will be okay.

(PS--While I am still doing the long course triathlon in a week, the marathon is out. I just plain old didn't want to train for it right now. So I added one more triathlon in September... Oh and me and coffee are back together, in case you're keeping track. :)