sneaky way to get kids to eat veggies: frozen peas

More frozen what?

Peas.

That’s right. Peas.

The 30-45 minutes before dinnertime can be a total nightmare for me, especially now that Cora is rarely napping and has always tried to “help” me during dinner prep.

I’ve tried many things to keep the animals at bay (watercolors, numerous games, having helpers, etc.), but I always lean on two things to bring on the calm after an afternoon of playing: a half an hour of Sesame Street (totally non-negotiable) and frozen peas.

Those teeny-tiny green droplets from Greenland are this week’s Quick Trick:

• Frozen Peas: I can’t remember where I read this, but I read it somewhere during the foggy time that surrounds Owen’s birth and, then, okay. . . the next 3+ years.

The article suggested giving tiny, hungry, antsy, cranky before-dinner people a small amount of the petite frozen peas to curb their hunger, sneak in some veggies, and buy you some meal-prep time. It works like a charm for me and has for the last three years. Woo-hoo!

Granted, I’ve done some expansion and exploring in the pre-dinner foods I provide; if we don’t have peas, the options are usually a few cut red, green, or yellow peppers or some carrots. Or whatever raw veggie I have on hand.

And that’s it–no crackers, candy, milk, or cheese before dinner. Only veggies, and if they’re hungry, they’ll eat ’em.