Good luck!!! Can’t wait to hear what you decide upon!

Soapstone and engineered stone counter-tops are another option. Both materials require minimal maintenance, as they are stain and heat-resistant. Soapstone is one of the more expensive stones, usually in the 65 to 80 dollar range. It scratches quite easily, but the scratches can be sanded out. Soapstone is truly heat resistant, but quartz counter-tops are not heat resistant.
In addition, engineered stone is uniform in color, pattern, and texture. And, both material are considerably cheaper than marble, granite, and stainless steel.

While this method served a peaceful purpose, it did not make them open to eating all foods. It did however let them know that they could try new things, and were free to either accept or decline them going forward. To this day, my daughter will not eat anything with “gravy” on it, but she will eat just about any type of Asian food you sit in front of her. My son on the other hand will eat just about anything. He has however been through three cycles of a love/hate relationship with tomatoes. I always check before I put them on his salad

I guess our kid/food experience proved that by offering them everything, and letting them choose, it gives them the ground work necessary to feel comfortable embracing new experiences and flavors. In fact, they both are very good cooks who are not afraid to open the fridge and just start throwing together some really good eats using whatever is available.

What kind of range/tolerance does your kid have for trying new foods? Both of my sons are not afraid to try new foods, even strange textures (like summer rolls) or interesting spices like indian food.

Is your kid’s approach to food a function of nature or nurture? I think some elements are nuture, but some are nature. While they have some elements that are the same, there are distinct differences. Not sure if it’s personality or genetics but one of my sons is adopted and has entirely different eating habits and places far less importance on food than my biological son.

What are the best tricks you’ve used to get your kid to enjoy mealtime? Limiting snacks leading up to dinner, making sure i join them at the dinner table for the meal and don’t get hung up serving/cleaning up, having interesting ‘dips’ to correspond with whatever they might be eating, letting them choose what they want to drink (within limits).

What do you wish you had done, but didn’t? What are you really glad you did? Wish I wasn’t in such a hurry to get the kids fed once I have them home after work/daycare, I often choose quicker options that may not be as healthy as if i took the time to cook them up something healthier from scratch. I’m really glad I got them to try many different foods even as young kids – including spicier dishes normally reserved for adults. They are much more willing to try different foods now as they get older without turning up their noses immediately.

Any other secrets to mealtime kids? Keeping a fairly consistent schedule and habits at the table seems to help. They also like to help when it comes to setting up for dinner, getting any condiments, napkins, and like to feel like they are contributing. They are far more likely to eat something they have helped cook with me also.

One of my biggest frustrations as a step-parent is meal time. I want the kids to eat healthy foods, but they will claim to be “not hungry” if they don’t like what’s on the plate, and then be scavenging for string cheese and popcorn at non-meal times. We can usually get them to try a bite or two of something new, and every once in a while we have a surprising new addition on the list (pepperoni pizza brats was the latest).

Otherwise, the basic formula for finding something they’ll eat goes like this: carb + cheese.

You can borrow the kids any time you want to experiment, and if you find something for me to add to the list, please let me know!