Never Give Up (or If You're Going To Pick a Battle, You Better Win)

I've been trying really hard to get Tommy to eat healthy lately. It's not that easy. Not only does he not enjoy vegetables, but he thinks he makes all the rules and runs the show in this house. The other night I made a really good vegetable soup (containing carrots, green beans, corn, peas, potatoes, tomatoes, squash, zucchini, barley, celery, and onions). He decided he didn't want any and so I told him that if he didn't eat that, he wouldn't eat anything that night. That seemed fine with him so he went to play while Dean and I ate. Of course later on that night he wanted a popsicle after his bath. I reminded him that he didn't eat his soup and so he could have nothing else until he ate it (I should have just made him go to bed because he didn't eat the soup when I told him to, but we'll get there someday). I gave him two options. He could either eat his soup and then have a popsicle, or he could brush his teeth and get ready for bed. His response?

"No, I'm going to play with my fire trucks and then eat a popsicle."

He kept coming up with "compromises" like this but I stuck firm. Finally when I got his toothbrush out to brush his teeth, he agreed to eat his soup. So I let him. I didn't even warm it up. He had a pretty full bowl in the beginning and this is what I was left with.



I told him that Hulk Hogan eats all his vegetables and that with each bite he gets bigger Hulk Hogan muscles. So here he is showing off his Hulk muscles. All because I stuck firm in that he could have nothing else until he ate it. Woo hoo!