There is a look I get from my kids that goes along with the declaration, “You know I don’t like that!” The look, of course, implies that I have either entered into a type of dementia unique to motherhood or are purposefully trying to offer them some food item they hate in order to annoy them. The fact is, they are not static creatures–the person who used to hate mashed potatoes has now become a convert, one of them no longer eats meat, and another has given up all sweets. I’m not losing my mind, they’re just all constantly changing theirs!
In my kids’ scrapbooks, I’ve shaved the sheets of paper where I kept track of the foods they liked and didn’t like when they were first being introduced to solid foods–my crazy organization is scary even to me–the neatly handwritten lists that used to hang on the refrigerator door since I took my job as family nutritionist so seriously. I knew who liked strawberries and who liked their cereal without milk, even which one of them liked which kind of lettuce. Now, I really have no idea how to keep up on the changing and evolving eating habits of three teenagers.
All I know is that unless supper is served “deconstructed”–as in all the veggies for the salad are left separate so each person can arrange their own, and we eat tacos or deli sandwiches or some similarly diversity-friendly meal–there’s bound to be at least one person who will have sworn off whatever I’ve cooked. That’s fine, but it’s usually accompanied by that annoying statement, “You know I don’t eat…”
I’ve thrown in the towel, I can’t keep up with the changing preferences of three teenagers. Even if they have never been picky before, I understand that food preferences is just one more way teens experiment with identity and individuality. I’ll wait until they get to the other side and then I can “relearn” who likes and eats what.