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Here comes the soup train! Chugga chugga chugga chugga choo choo!

These aren’t regular slices of cucumber, they’re stars! Much more exciting than boring old circles, and they taste better. See?

No, no, that’s not spinach! It’s just some green food coloring because I know green is your favorite color!

If you’re a parent, you know the struggles that can come along with trying to convince a picky eater to try even one bite of the meal you so lovingly prepared. But sometimes the frustrating task of trying to get kids to eat is hindered less by pickiness and more by confusing or unrealistic expectations. Writer Lucy Huber recently tweeted about an experience she had with her two-year-old where he called all the shots when preparing dinner then somehow still refused to eat it…

Lucy’s tweet inspired hundreds of other parents to share similar stories of when trying to get their kids to eat made them want to rip their hair out, so we’ve gathered the most hilarious ones down below. Be sure to upvote all the tweets that you find painfully relatable, whether you’re a parent, you’ve worked with kids, or you remember being the same way as a child, and then let us know in the comments if you have any personal stories to share proving that we can’t ever get kids to eat anything they don’t want to. And then if you’re interested in reading another article from Bored Panda featuring creative reasons kids have come up with for refusing food, check out this hilarious story next.

Image credits: clhubes

#1

Image credits: CourtneyHella

When I turned 5, my favorite film was The Wizard of Oz. I was obsessed with Dorothy and watched the movie on VHS every day. So for my birthday, my parents pulled out all the stops and got me a ruby red slipper cake. It was shaped like the famous shoes from the film, which I of course also had a pair of that I refused to take off, and was covered in red glittery frosting. After taking one bite, however, I had an absolute meltdown because I didn’t like the taste of the icing. I’m not sure if red food coloring actually has a strong taste or if it was all in my head, but looking back on that experience makes me cringe. I imagine that my parents had to use all their energy to stop themselves from smashing my face into the beautiful cake.

#2

Image credits: AlexaBeaute7

Preparing food for children can be a painful experience. What they devoured yesterday and said they wanted to eat every single day for the rest of their lives might be deemed disgusting today. The bread has to be cut exactly the right way, the butter has to be the perfect temperature because if it melts and can’t be seen it might as well have disappeared, the fruit can’t be ugly, and if the apple starts to turn brown several minutes after being cut, you might as well throw it in the trash. Kids’ preferences can change rapidly, but one thing is for sure: their preferences are powerful.

If you have children, I’m sure you are familiar with the frustrating experience of finding the perfect recipe for dinner, getting it pre-approved by your little ones, having them help out in the kitchen, and then when it comes time to sit down for dinner, your kids refuse to try even one bite. I don’t have children of my own, but I have worked with many and lived with two as an au pair, and let me tell you: meal times could be incredibly stressful.

#3

Image credits: hilarywithoneh

Sometimes kids just don’t know what they want. Whether they ask for a certain vegetable that they did not realize is green or they saw a food on a cartoon and requested it without realizing the real-life version could never live up to their expectations, children have no problem refusing foods. Picky eating is common among kids, as the unknown can be scary and if they are not introduced to certain foods early on they can seem unappealing, but the stories on this list are even funnier than outright denying a particular food. These kids got their parents’ hopes up only to squash them and leave them with a pot full of mushroom soup leftovers to eat the rest of the week.

I have seen this happen many times with the children I have babysat and au paired for as well. “Mom, I really want broccoli!” He then would proceed to eat one nibble off the top of a piece. And honestly, calling it a nibble is being generous. “Adelaide, can you make me a cheese sandwich?” I would then present what I would consider a stunning sandwich only to be met with, “No! It’s UGLY! Throw it in the trash and make another!” Having kids is certainly no walk in the park.

#4

Image credits: OLovekill

#5

Image credits: 2mean4canada

#6

Image credits: uppityfabulous

The thing is, it can be impossible to get kids to do things they don’t want to do. Regardless of how impressionable they may be, they can also be incredibly stubborn. And considering that children’s personalities really start showing between the ages of 3 and 5, if they have made their minds up about a certain food or meal, it can be extremely hard to change it. You might be thinking that a kid will always eat a food if they help with the preparation because they want to enjoy the fruits of their labor, but sadly, it’s not that easy.

As Lucy’s tweet goes to show, being involved can mean nothing to a child. And I can vouch with personal stories as well. I have helped a child prepare a salad that he was thrilled to make, as he chose all of the ingredients and cut them up while I supervised, and he still wanted no part in eating it. His job was to make it and serve it to others, apparently. And it does not only happen with vegetables. This same child would request that we make cupcakes, brownies and pies and then proceed to ask for ice cream or the cookies from the store instead while everyone else was trying his creation. Kids can be impossible to understand.

#7

Image credits: nanditabasu2

#8

Image credits: AloColbeck

#9

Image credits: katgordon

Kids may have incredible imaginations and a sense of logic that adults cannot always comprehend, but as many of the replies to Lucy’s tweet pointed out, kids are not the only ones who change their minds. It is a common experience to go to the store, buy a mountain of groceries, and then not be able to decide what to make for dinner because nothing in the fridge sounds good. Or sometimes, we go so far as preparing an entire meal before we realize that it’s just not going to hit the spot tonight. The only difference is, when I do that, I will still eat it because to me, as an adult, one meal is not the end of the world. I’ll eat something I’m really craving for my next meal. For a child, however, it may be impossible to see past the hour that they must spend at the dinner table. So if the food is not appealing, they might just choose to skip eating altogether.

#10

Image credits: ThePracticalEsc

#11

Image credits: citraguy

#12

Image credits: damselflygal

When it comes to whether picky eaters are caused by nature or nurture, parents have mixed opinions. One parent of an 18-month-old told Family Education, “They’re born. We have struggled so much to get this kid to eat. He loves noodles and sweet things, but he likes them better on my plate than on his. He loved American cheese slices for a few days; now he won’t touch them. It’s not what we’re doing, it’s that he just keeps changing.” When a kid who is so young has already refused a variety of foods and changed his mind many times about what he likes, I can’t help but think that they are born. On the other hand, another parent of a four-year-old says, “They’re made. We’ve never made special meals for him, always insisted that he try new foods, and as a result he eats everything. He loves fruits and vegetables.” Who’s going to tell her that she probably just got very lucky or his picky eating phase has not come yet?

#13

Image credits: cmkenlin

#14

Image credits: JO112358

#15

Image credits: Jesterhat1

One mother of a five-year-old and a three-year-old told Family Education that picky eating can be caused by nature and nurture. “It’s personality, temperament. They’re born that way and it just gets made worse, or not. When Michaela was a baby she would eat everything, then at two she wouldn’t, and now she’s starting to branch out again. Lily has always been more particular. She looks at a food first, asks a lot of questions before she’ll try it.” Whatever the reason behind it, the important thing is that the kid eats something. Even if it feels like they are being spoiled at times or if giving in and letting them have a sandwich instead of the lasagna you prepared feels like a failure, it is likely they will grow out of it anyway. As a kid, I assumed I did not like many vegetables or foods I had not been exposed to many times, so I kept avoiding them out of habit. But something shifted when I went to college and became an adult and decided I was going to be open to trying everything. Turns out, I like all vegetables and basically everything else too, as long as it’s plant-based. I am not picky at all anymore, but my parents would have never guessed that considering all of the years I spent eating chicken quesadillas and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

#16

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#17

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#18

Image credits: CaptainRon72

If you’re in need of some tips to get your picky little ones to expand their palettes, Katie of the Good Life Eats blog recommends focusing on making foods more fun. She explains that using color can be a great way to get in a variety of nutrients, as well as appealing to more than one of a kid’s senses. Setting out a platter of tomatoes, oranges, yellow bell peppers, cucumber, blueberries, and purple cauliflower might be more inviting to a kid who wants to “taste the rainbow” than being presented one of these foods at a time. It can also help to use cookie cutters to make vegetables, cheese, meats or tofu into interesting shapes, so kids can play with their food as they eat it. Dino nuggets and alphabet pasta have long been favorites of picky eaters, but the same concept can be applied to a variety of foods!

#19

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#20

Image credits: BitiStrauchn

#21

Image credits: mouldygoldfish

On her blog, Katie also recommends appealing to your child’s specific interests when preparing food for them. For example, her son loves geography, so she convinced him to try Canadian bacon by focusing on the Canada aspect. This can be a great way to get kids to try foods they have seen in their favorite films or meals from different cultures as well. They don’t have to love it immediately, but if they have a reason to be excited about it, they might be more inclined to take a bite. Even using fun names for foods that kids may be less interested in can help. For example, a green smoothie can be “monster juice” and broccoli can be “baby trees”, Katie explains. Whatever you can do to pique your child’s interest, it will be worth it when you get through meal time without a meltdown.

#22

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#23

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#24

Image credits: Isis_Win

Finding new ways to serve foods can help kids become interested as well. For example, fruit on a plate might not be touched, but if a child gets to eat fruit off a stick, they might be more willing to try it and eat all of the pieces, rather than grabbing one at a time off a plate. And although none of these tips are full-proof, some parents also recommend involving your kids in menu planning. Ask them a few days before what they would like to eat that week and present them with options. Then remind them every day what is on the menu for the week, so they are prepared and there are no surprises. You can show them photos of what you are making if they are curious, but use discretion, as this can also backfire if your presentation is not exactly the same as what they have seen.

#25

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#26

Image credits: KimiMischke

#27

Image credits: Mattfanter

At the end of the day, you never know exactly how a child will react to being presented with a new food, or even an old food that they loved the day before! We hope you’re getting a kick out of this list whether you are an exhausted parent tired of begging your toddler to eat or you don’t have kids and you have absolutely no plans of having any after reading these tweets. Keep upvoting your favorite posts, and then let us know in the comments if you have any experience with extremely fickle eaters.