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You must be vigilant in enforcing this rule, however. This way they will eat the macaroni tonight without complaint, because they know they will not have to eat the meat loaf tomorrow.

Make It A Game

Most children love games so try and play a game with them at dinnertime (depending on their age of course). Have an imaginary food race. Look at another adult at the table or another child and say "Wow, I wonder which food is going to come in first place tonight on Sara's plate. The chicken, the potatoes, or the peas?" After they have gobbled down one of the items say "Wow, who do you think is going to come in second place?" At the very least you should see two of the items devoured by the end of the meal. And you know what they say, "two out of three ain't bad."

Tough Love

While this is probably the hardest of all the options, sometimes a parent is given no choice. Most of our parents did it to us and we didn't come out any the worse for it. Simply state that they have to eat what is being served for dinner or they can leave the table without eating at all. (Be sure however to put some aside for them on a small plate, so when they come back in an hour starving, it will be ready for them.) While some children are more stubborn than others and they might truly decide to eat nothing at all that first night, chances are they will eat what you serve the next evening when they see that you mean business.

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