Mwahaha! Persistence paid off. Picky eater mom wins.

I didn't think this day would come, and yet here we are. Ten days have past. I remember ten days ago, cooking only the foods the picky eater crew would eat. I remember what it was like to have Ezra scream at food he didn't want, throw it across the table, throw himself on the floor and have a temper tantrum for 50 minutes. I remember him hitting and pinching me for 20 minutes, screaming at me to get what he wanted. I remember both of them refusing all food. I remember exchanging TV time and honey for bites. I remember four years passing with Micah refusing every single fruit and vegetable except for grapes, and raisins. It seems impossible that these same two children issued following statements today:

Micah: My tummy hurts a bit. I think I need some more broth. Can I have some more please?

*

Micah: Mom, can I have some spinach juice please? Just make me some spinach juice now (at bedtime).

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Micah: I had my broth for lunch at school. It was so good.

*

Ezra: Ooh, can I have a carrot, celery juice please? Please, mom?

And what did they have four lunch? I made them both "Pizza" again. It's basically ground up chicken, cauliflower, and onion spread thin like a pizza crust on a baking sheet. I heated it up and covered it with tomato sauce. They snacked it up. And for dinner I mixed 1 kg (2 lbs) of broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, and onions with about 1.5 lbs of ground pork, added some spices, and baked it in the oven in a casserole dish (for us adults, I stuffed peppers with the filling). I presented the sausage casserole and peppers and allowed them choose. They both had several helpings of the casserole including their delicious carrot and zucchini chips.

Bottom line: it can be done. Detox is crazy difficult, but 10 days of struggles is all it took, versus a life time of carb addiction and unhealthy gut. Do they eat plain veggies...well, yes but not readily. But hey, they're eating veggies, demanding healthy juice and broth, and eventually I think they will be able to and want to try all sorts of new foods, as long as it looks good and contains a major motivating delicious word like 'sausage', 'pizza', or 'chips.