Over two years ago, our whole family went veg. Our boys are now six and seven and have really embraced the veggie lifestyle. Here are some things that helped us a lot.

1. Do your homework! There's tons of information and misinformation out there. Make sure you are providing a healthy, nutrient rich diet for your children. That way if any has questions, you can easily and confidently answer them.

2. Get them involved! Even if your kids haven't been big fruit or veggie eaters, they need to be. Spider-man vitamins can only take you so far. If you get your children involved in the cooking, it helps a lot. We have bi-weekly grocery brainstorming sessions. The boys tell me what they would like to have again for dinner, what fruits would be good for lunch, what dinners I should never fix again... :p We also make regular trips to the farmer's market together so that they can choose new fruits and veggies. And then I get the fun challenge of incorporating them into our diet.

3. Make friends with nutritional yeast. (http://www.veggieboards.com/boards/search.php?searchid=1178733)It's an amazing versatile ingredient, and if you get the fortified type, it will cover that all important B12 gap that veg*ns and vegans alike will sometimes have trouble with.

4. Learn how to make their favorites. Were they chicken nugget fiends? Try one of the pre-made ones or my Ranch Tofu Nuggets. (http://www.veggieboards.com/boards/showthread.php?t=30717) Have some plain ole spaghetti and garlic bread nights. Not everything has to be new and exotic.

Threads here that I love:
What did you feed your kids today? (http://www.veggieboards.com/boards/showthread.php?t=16935)
Favorite veg*n kids storybooks (http://www.veggieboards.com/boards/showthread.php?t=36850)

Outside sites that I love:
Vegan-licious (http://vegan-licious.blogspot.com/)
Vegan Lunch Box (http://veganlunchbox.blogspot.com/)
Feeding Vegan Kids (http://www.vrg.org/nutshell/kids.htm)

hey..
thanks, rincaro!

my hubby and i have been veggie for many years, but now that we have a 3 yr old, i feel like it puts such a different spin on things...he's veggie, so far, but he's very sheltered--doesn't know what meat is...so now that he's 3 and will be going to preschool next year, i'm realizing that i need to start giving him some info...i'm gonna check out some of the books from the link you posted, for sure...also, he already helps me shop and cook and he loves it--he's so much more likely to try something new if he helped make it! he is really good about trying things, but often only one bite--i'm just glad he's willing to try...

might need to come to you for advice sometimes!

The one thing I've found with school is that I have to pack their lunch every single day. Gets tiresome at times, but one look at the school menu and it reminds me it's the best option. Even the veg*n friendly options are total crap-food.

I find that if you go to teachers etc. and explain your situation most are helpful. But I also don't really expect anyone to help my kids be veg. That's my job. But being friendly with the teachers (and educating them) helps me to get info that makes their lives more seamless. For example they recently did a fun snack thing with gummy worms. But the teacher called me and told me about it and I was able to send in vegan gummy worms to my son could participate. Little things make all the difference.

Thanks Rincaro, I loved the ideas. And yeah, making lunches everyday can get tiresome for us and our children but like you said, the lunch menu is crap. How nice of your child's teacher to tell you about the snack time thing. My daughter gets so flustered when a parent will bring in doughnuts or whatever for their kids birthday etc and my daughter eats the snack and gets upset later though I explain to her that she should not feel upset over it. THis is when I wish I knew what was going on before-hand so I can send my daughter an alternative. Any thoughts on this, anyone?
Btw, I loved your idea about getting the kids involved with meal planning. I will definitately adopt that idea. Thanks:D

To be honest, I haven't tackled that issue kyliemc. I know there are gonna be cupcakes, cookies, etc. that come in for birthdays that will have eggs and dairy in them that my boys will eat. But I also know that the small amounts contained aren't going to be bad for their tummies or anything and they like to feel included. I'm really the only one in the house who is focusing on being vegan. Everything I feed the boys and my husband and everything I send them is vegan, but not everything they eat out of my reach is.

My husband quite honestly doesn't make it a priority, and I respect his views on that. For the boys, they won't eat marshmellows or gummy candies or ice cream, but the rest of it I let them use their best judgment on. I figure as they get older they can make the choice to about whether or not to be vegan and I will do my best to help them.

You can probably get a birthday list from the teacher, but not every child will send in treats.

Yeah, I understand about the small amount of dairy etc not affecting them too much. When I went vegan I also included my two youngest children. My nine year old daughter is well-informed on veganism and therefore will question what she eats. THough I tell her that it's not much of a problem outside of our home and I do want her to be included. I think next year for school I will talk to the teacher and will take a cue from you and at least provide sweets etc for my daughter to eat when the class gets candy etc.
You're right, there's no way of telling what parent will send a birthday treat so I will continue with telling my daughter that it is her choice to eat it or not. I know she wants to and when she does I don't ever get upset with her. Thanks for the input:D

thx for this thread! df and i were discussing this last night. he's omni and approves of vegetarian, but vegan scares him b/c he wants our kid to not feel excluded.

The one thing I've found with school is that I have to pack their lunch every single day. Gets tiresome at times, but one look at the school menu and it reminds me it's the best option. Even the veg*n friendly options are total crap-food.


he pointed out that i'd have to make lunch everyday, and i said it was worth the effort. ugh - i just remembered this "salisbury steak" they gave us in middle school - :spew:

i gave him the idea that i could be in contact w/ teachers so they could let me know when the kids are going to have a treat and i can send them in w/ vegan alternatives.

i gave him the idea that i could be in contact w/ teachers so they could let me know when the kids are going to have a treat and i can send them in w/ vegan alternatives.

So far all the teachers we've had have been extremely cooperative. I'll often get a note in the planner if say they're gonna do some sort of learning activity by counting gummi bears. It helps tremendously.

Kyliemc, would it be possible for you to leave a prepackaged vegan sweet or w/ the teacher for student birthdays? They could just keep them in their desk until they are needed. A bag of vegan candy, or a vegan doughnut or something would keep for the whole school year and then you wouldn't have to know every student birthday.

Kyliemc, would it be possible for you to leave a prepackaged vegan sweet or w/ the teacher for student birthdays? They could just keep them in their desk until they are needed. A bag of vegan candy, or a vegan doughnut or something would keep for the whole school year and then you wouldn't have to know every student birthday.
That's a great idea:D I will for sure do that when school starts again. I didn't even think about sending vegan treats for both snack/fun time and birthday time. I'm gonna tell my daughter this, and as I have a pre-k daughter starting school this year, I know they will both be relieved. They seem to be more passionate about veganism than me! Thanks for the heads up, belovedtree:D