What are we feeding our (grand) children? ???

not an Open day for virtuous healthy eaters

Those kinds of foods are known as joyless treats in this house.

I usually have a homemade sponge cake, oaty biscuits, flapjacks or something similar in the cupboard and both I, and DGC's parents are quite happy for them to dig in. If you deny children any sweet things, they'll simply source them elsewhere. Far better that they have small amounts that are managed, surely?

The way I get around this is to make something with the best available ingredients. If the GC are around for any time they even help make it - so double whammy of smugness!
Seriously if you make some decent home-made flap jacks or a fruit bread or even just jam tarts you know exactly what went into them and the odd treat is surely what life's all about!

Chewbacca...snap!

I have 2 GC, who are raised with with very healthy diets and lifestyles.
Still, the top treat on sleepovers is tea and Jammie Dodgers in grandmas bed in the morning ?

What happens at Nannies house stays at Nannies house and that includes biscuits. Mostly home made but who can resist a Jammy Dodger?

Of course they live 4 hours away so they don’t get indulged very often.

I like the ‘healthy’ bar of oats and stuff that has yogurt drizzled over it, full of sugar and I’m hungry again as soon as Ive eaten it, but it’s soooooo good.

DH has just gone out in the rain to the Co-op to get chocolate! It was his suggestion..but I didn't stop him!

I did not have many sweets as a kiddie. We lived overseas where the heat made them either melt or become hideously glutinous. My Nana was a great cake maker: ginger, marmalade and fruit cake..one was always in the pantry! Other Grandma used to give me an orange to suck but not until she had put sugar lumps into the middle of it!
Jaffa cakes are out DGC treats!

Has anyone every tried one of those awful organic rice cardboard thingies they make for children?

Luckily my DGC love fruit (and the occasional Jaffa cake)!

ps and they are slim, fit and energetic

Some of these posts have brought back memories of picking blackberries etc from the hedgerows as a child and picking peas from the garden shelling and eating them raw, did the same with broad beans.

I was brought up with sweet rationing. I remember being allowed one sweet after dinner when I was small,and arguing with my brother over sweet coupons when I was old enough to buy my own. I was about 14 when sweet rationing ended, and did I rush off with my pocket money to buy all the sweets I could afford! I remember the day well.

My younger son used to spend much of his pocket money on sweets when he was about nine. I don’t remember my elder son doing that. I never bought sweets myself for my children.

My grandchildren don’t get sweets except very occasional chocolate. They aren’t particularly interested in sweet things except ice cream. Puddings like apple crumble don’t appeal to them at all, which I find rather surprising. Stodgy puddings were always treats for me.

PS No-one of any age in our family is overweight, and we all (except my brother) have pretty good teeth, too.

Grandma70's" I was born just at the end of rationing and my aunts brought me sweets every day ,liquorice comfits and sweetie cigarettes were a favourite ,though one auntie always bought me an orange and a doughnut.Strangely I was never overweight and had great teeth until an accident when I was 10 when all my front teeth were broken.Been a nightmare with dentists for the past 55 years .My mother did cook good wholesome food,no pies or fries in our house ...she was weight obsessed and watched everything we ate .She never made us eat things we didn't like as some mothers did in the 50's and 60's ,her mother had never forced her to eat food she didn't like/want .

This thread just reminded me of when I tried one of many strategies to encourage mine to eat good healthy food this time by dishing up whole meal pasta.
Child: (chewing stoically in a resigned sort of way) Mummy is this good for me?
Me: (observing in a determined sort of way) Yes it is
Child: I thought so!
I have to admit to having a very sweet tooth (as did my father) which I did try to ensure sure my children did not inherit. But I do think these things may be in the genes, my own children aren’t fussed about sweet stuff but I see that craving in a couple of the grandchildren, despite their parents best efforts at healthy family eating.
By the way, I think you’re spot on there chewbacca I used to childmind some children who were never, ever allowed sweets at home. These children became obsessed with anything sweet, one of them resorted to taking a bite out my daughters collection of scented rubbers!!
Moderation in all things is surely the way to go and anyway life’s too short never to enjoy a Jaffa Cake or a Jammie Dodger!

Let's hear it for Jammie Dodgers! I amjust heading for the biscuit tin!

grannyqueenie - reminds me of my DD when small chewing away at a pie I had made and asking - "Mummy, do I have to eat the wood?"

Jalima try Snack-a-Jacks caramel flavour rice cakes - really delicious, much better than the packets of cardboard thingies made for children

Lucky , was that with or without the wholemeal flour option?

I will Bathsheba (low in calories too?)

Just fed 2 of mine plus DD roast chicken, roasted roots and broccoli..It was yummy even if I say so myself! They parked here for the day as they were off to The Horniman Museum in SE London & we are close to the station.

I have just been out and bought some chocolate bars because my DGC are coming tomorrow and they love it. They are all stick thin, have boundless energy and love chocolate. So do I. They all drink only water, no sodas or the like, eat well but do enjoy the off choccy binge. DH and I eat a healthy diet, we work hard to keep the fat off and if I want some chocolate I will have it. I think that in moderation and with sensible eating there is nothing wrong with a bit of what you fancy ?

P.s. Lots of the non fatty, non sugary things are loaded with salt so not necessarily any better for the children than chocolate.

I have become a fan of the choc covered frog biscuits called Freddos, ostensibly kept in the cupboard for the little ones when they visit.
Luckily, they are allowed some sweet treats, but I know others their age aren’t so lucky, with worried parents who check every item for sugar and salt levels.Don’t they have anything else to worry about? What a life.

Everything in moderation.