So proud of my little veggie :)

[WushuMom]

Hey guys, I'm sorry I'm sporadic with my board visitations and you all probably don't even know who I am at this point but I like to lurk and occasionally post :)

Anyways! My son is vegan, he's five years old and we are Greek/Native American & Spanish. Yesterday was the Greek Orthodox Easter and we went ot my grandmothers for dinner. Usually they try and get him to eat turkey or lamb or whatever they're having but they've gotten used to the fact that we're vegan and we bring our own food.. but it was also my little sisters 10th birthday. They bought an ice cream cake and I had decided to let Ethan decide whether or not he wanted to partake (usually with birthdays I'm a little lax because well.. I don't want him to miss out - guilty, I know). My little man was so happy to sing and watch my sister blow out her candles but when it came time for him to have his slice he asked my aunt if it was vegan and when she said no, he politely declined!

He said, "No thank you" and walked away to play with his toys happily.. It just made me proud to know that he made that decision completely on his own and had absolutely no regret. I even asked him a few times afterwards if he was sure and he quite honestly didn't care that everyone else was enjoying their ice cream cake and he was playing with his toy cars :D

He has always been very good about the food choices he makes, he always asks if his food is vegan but this past year he's been going through the whole.. "Maybe I do want to eat meat" thing. I give him the option to do so (while holding my breath hoping he doesn't choose to) but he always decides to stay vegan. I know there will be a time when he wants to try something different, but until that day I am just so happy that my little happy vegan baby is turning into a happy little vegan boy and has absolutely no complains and no health problems because of it. So suck on that, haters! LOL

Sorry for the long post, but I just had to share. LOL:hamster:

[Nickle00]

Hey guys, I'm sorry I'm sporadic with my board visitations and you all probably don't even know who I am at this point but I like to lurk and occasionally post :)

Anyways! My son is vegan, he's five years old and we are Greek/Native American & Spanish. Yesterday was the Greek Orthodox Easter and we went ot my grandmothers for dinner. Usually they try and get him to eat turkey or lamb or whatever they're having but they've gotten used to the fact that we're vegan and we bring our own food.. but it was also my little sisters 10th birthday. They bought an ice cream cake and I had decided to let Ethan decide whether or not he wanted to partake (usually with birthdays I'm a little lax because well.. I don't want him to miss out - guilty, I know). My little man was so happy to sing and watch my sister blow out her candles but when it came time for him to have his slice he asked my aunt if it was vegan and when she said no, he politely declined!

He said, "No thank you" and walked away to play with his toys happily.. It just made me proud to know that he made that decision completely on his own and had absolutely no regret. I even asked him a few times afterwards if he was sure and he quite honestly didn't care that everyone else was enjoying their ice cream cake and he was playing with his toy cars :D

He has always been very good about the food choices he makes, he always asks if his food is vegan but this past year he's been going through the whole.. "Maybe I do want to eat meat" thing. I give him the option to do so (while holding my breath hoping he doesn't choose to) but he always decides to stay vegan. I know there will be a time when he wants to try something different, but until that day I am just so happy that my little happy vegan baby is turning into a happy little vegan boy and has absolutely no complains and no health problems because of it. So suck on that, haters! LOL

Sorry for the long post, but I just had to share. LOL:hamster:

I think that is absolutely wonderful that you do give your son the option to CHOOSE what he wants to eat. It's even more wonderful that he CHOOSES to eat a vegan diet but I find it admirable that you give him the choice and trust that he can make his own decisions!!

My Aunt and Uncle raised all 6 of their children vegetarian and did not allow them to CHOOSE what they ate....EVER. Needless to say, we spent our childhood summers riding our bikes to the local restaraunt and spending our allowances on hamburgers. I always felt that if they had a CHOICE in the matter the hamburgers would not have seemed so desirable. Kudos to you!!!

Peace & Love!! Everyone deserves to CHOOSE their own paths!!

[The Lurker]

My 3-year old boy has also chosen to become vegetarian (because I am) and always asks if anything he is given is vegetarian.

What has disappointed me is the way certain reletives will outright lie to him by giving him meat and saying it is vegetarian - I know he's only 3 and they think its only a phase but I certainly dont appreciate it. Just means I need to keep an eye on him when I can and hope people come round to it. As you say, if it is their choice rather than being forced on them, it should be easier for people to accept.

[zoebird]

i would tell them that lying is a bad thing to teach a 3 yr old!

[raefactor]

I think that is absolutely wonderful that you do give your son the option to CHOOSE what he wants to eat. It's even more wonderful that he CHOOSES to eat a vegan diet but I find it admirable that you give him the choice and trust that he can make his own decisions!!

My Aunt and Uncle raised all 6 of their children vegetarian and did not allow them to CHOOSE what they ate....EVER. Needless to say, we spent our childhood summers riding our bikes to the local restaraunt and spending our allowances on hamburgers. I always felt that if they had a CHOICE in the matter the hamburgers would not have seemed so desirable. Kudos to you!!!

Peace & Love!! Everyone deserves to CHOOSE their own paths!!

Seriously! I probably would have gone vegan as a teenager (instead of doing what you and your cousins did, lol!) if I had actually been given a choice. I'm so happy for you, WushuMom. :) That's great that your little boy is so smart with his choices.

[starling]

That's great! Even kids know that veganism is awesome!

(By the way, I do wushu! I think we chatted about it once.) :)

[nookle]

...What has disappointed me is the way certain reletives will outright lie to him by giving him meat and saying it is vegetarian - I know he's only 3 and they think its only a phase but I certainly dont appreciate it. ...


This is so not ok - against your wishes, and against his, against your values, lying to a child, the disrespect.... god. I think I would tell them if they did not stop, I would stop visiting. I cannot even believe how disrespectful this is!

[PneumaticJawz78]

That's precious and awesome! :) I went to the dentist recently and my mom mentioned in passing my veganism, and she said that her four-year-old wouldn't eat meat either. Her parents aren't even vegetarian, so it's very interesting that she made that choice on her own! But, a good sign, lol.

[WushuMom]

Yes, we did talk about it. I hope your training is going well! :D We just raised a few guys to black sashes this past month and it made me so proud lol.


My 3-year old boy has also chosen to become vegetarian (because I am) and always asks if anything he is given is vegetarian.

What has disappointed me is the way certain reletives will outright lie to him by giving him meat and saying it is vegetarian - I know he's only 3 and they think its only a phase but I certainly dont appreciate it. Just means I need to keep an eye on him when I can and hope people come round to it. As you say, if it is their choice rather than being forced on them, it should be easier for people to accept.

WOW! You know I suspected my family would try that but they have been very good about it.. except once my mom fed my son a bowl of mac n cheese when he was three because "It didn't have meat in it!" she didn't realize I guess that we don't eat dairy either. Poor kid had a horrible belly ache :(

I'd stand up to them about it, I know it's hard though. Hopefully they will get it because that's just very very very disrespectful :( I hope things get better for you!

Thanks everyone for the positive feedback!

[KatherineLynn]

I work in a daycare and there's a baby there that hates meat. If you try to feed him meat baby food (smells suspiciously like dog food :p) he will gag or spit up.
His parents learned that if they put a little chicken baby food on a spoon, and then dipped the whole thing in banana baby food, for example, they could trick him into eating it.
It made me so sad :(

[pandora9kry]

I work in a daycare and there's a baby there that hates meat. If you try to feed him meat baby food (smells suspiciously like dog food :p) he will gag or spit up.
His parents learned that if they put a little chicken baby food on a spoon, and then dipped the whole thing in banana baby food, for example, they could trick him into eating it.
It made me so sad :(

I also work in a daycare, and on a four week rotating menu, we get chicken nuggets <i>every</i> week.

Lately, every time a child eats a bite of vegetables I reach over, squeeze their arm and tell them, "wow! I think your muscles just got bigger! They think it's great, and it encourages them to eat veggies. That, and every time I sit down with a vegetarian lunch, they all get really excited, asking me what's in it and if they can try some. I wish I could let them!

[paulwalkersgirl]

Omg, that's so beautiful, wushu. *tears* :D I'm very proud of him too! :D

[paganveg]

That's so awesome! You've got a really special son there.....and you seem like a really special mom. :love:

When faced with birthday parties, I always bake a smaller vegan cake and bring it along. That way my girls and I can have cake too. :)

[Prajna_Seeker]

Awwww...I've decided to let my son choose his diet as well but already we have noticed, depending on who he is with at the time greatly influence what he eats. He likes to eat vegetarian when he's around me but when he is with his dad he eats lots of junk food and meat. :( . His father is very adamant about him eating meat and I told him I wouldn't push vegetarianism on my son if he didn't push meat on him as well. At 2, I'm not too hard on him about it but I get proud whenever I go to the store and let him pick out what he wants and he goes straight to the fruit section!

[Fromper]

My 3-year old boy has also chosen to become vegetarian (because I am) and always asks if anything he is given is vegetarian.

What has disappointed me is the way certain reletives will outright lie to him by giving him meat and saying it is vegetarian - I know he's only 3 and they think its only a phase but I certainly dont appreciate it. Just means I need to keep an eye on him when I can and hope people come round to it. As you say, if it is their choice rather than being forced on them, it should be easier for people to accept.


This is so not ok - against your wishes, and against his, against your values, lying to a child, the disrespect.... god. I think I would tell them if they did not stop, I would stop visiting. I cannot even believe how disrespectful this is!

I agree with Nookle on this one. Anyone who lies to your child (about anything, not just food choices) shouldn't be allowed near him. I would make that clear to them and actually follow through on the threat if they continue to lie to him.

--Fromper
:juggle:

[paulwalkersgirl]

thats horrible that they'd lie to him!!!! the rudeness. <_<

[WushuMom]

That's so awesome! You've got a really special son there.....and you seem like a really special mom. :love:

When faced with birthday parties, I always bake a smaller vegan cake and bring it along. That way my girls and I can have cake too. :)

Thank you! I don't remember if I already posted this but we brought along vegan cupcakes to the last b'day party we went to and Ethan explained to everyone that he made them (he put the icing on and takes all the credit!) and that they're vegan and ALL the kids loved them!


Awwww...I've decided to let my son choose his diet as well but already we have noticed, depending on who he is with at the time greatly influence what he eats. He likes to eat vegetarian when he's around me but when he is with his dad he eats lots of junk food and meat. :( . His father is very adamant about him eating meat and I told him I wouldn't push vegetarianism on my son if he didn't push meat on him as well. At 2, I'm not too hard on him about it but I get proud whenever I go to the store and let him pick out what he wants and he goes straight to the fruit section!

That was something I couldn't stand about my ex-husband. He didn't push meat on Ethan but whenever anyone asked about it he made it sound like.. "Oh well you know.. SHE's vegan so... it's all her" like it was completely off the wall to him even though he agreed that it was a healthy way to raise him. Whatevs, he's all mine now. lol Veggiebabies all the way.

While I like to give my son his choice now that he's five, just as any other mother would do, veggie or not, it is okay for you to watch what he's eating. Another non-veggie friend of mine was telling me how angry she was that everyone picks on her for being picky about what type of food she gives her four year old, she doesn't like fast food/junk food etc. She said she feels like people think she's a bad mom because she's picky about what her son eats. To me, I think it's a huge part of just being a mom (and a dad!) to watch that your children are eating healthy foods and you have a right to be upset if your peers are pushing you or your child to eat something you don't think is healthy for them. So although it's nice to let them make their own choices or be open to other people feeding them whatever they want, it's OKAY to be upset about it! As long as you stay strong in your beliefs and positive about them then things will work out :)

Just my opinion though. Take it as you wish.

[jiodominic]

omg that was great wushu! i would loved that to happen with my 5y/o son im just a newbie w vegetarian and all same wth this forum, my husband and i just decided to be a vegetarian and it was really hard for my sons part bcoz he loves chicken so much we keeps on explainig to him how good veggies and fruits for his health

[WushuMom]

aww that's cool, there are a lot of veggie chicken substitutes out there my son loves :) The other day he was telling me how he needs more vegan friends lol.. poor kid has none! Come to think of it, I don't know any vegans around here anymore.. everyone I knew that was vegan when I was younger isn't anymore... too easy for them to go back to eating dairy. I know a few vegetarians though.

[AlexVeggie]

Reading this made my day! It makes me wish that when I was young I could have been like that. Your a good mother and your doing the right thing.

[WushuMom]

So I've been so proud of my little man for so long.. and this past weekend proved to be probably the biggest obstacle so far. He's been vegan all his five years and I have been for 8 now. People have always had issues with him being vegan and I've always been into the whole "When he's old enough to make the decision" thing about him trying meat... but with the summer and him spending so much time with family and friends while I'm at work... he's starting to think maybe meat/dairy isn't that bad.. He hasn't eaten meat (yet..geez) but I picked him up the other day from his dads (we're divorced) and he had dorito cheese all over his face..

I was visibly upset.. usually Ethan's very good about asking whether or not things are vegan and if they're not then he doesn't care for it.. but he told me that his daddy said the doritos were vegan. Now, I heard a rumor that Doritos is coming out with a vegan flavor.. but I haven't seen it and my ex-husband is not one to purchase vegan products.

I was so angry... and I tried to hide that from him because I didn't want him to think I was angry at him... we talked a little about it and he says.. and I quote... "But mommy, cheese doesn't hurt the cow.."

Now WHERE would he get THAT idea???

THEN later.. his aunt takes the kids out... and gets him an ice cream cone...

I think he's getting confused.. he says he likes being vegan and he doesn't want to hurt animals.. but everyone else around him doesn't feel the same way... so he must be getting mixed signals.. the poor kid..

I wish he had more vegan friends and family. :-/

[irie]

i think its nice of you to let him chose for himself :) if i ever get any kids ill raise them veg till their old enough to make a choice for them self.

but its not nice of his dad and the others to lie to him the way they have. that is to disrespect your son for who he want to be. it also is a wrong thing to learn away lying to a trusting child. think you have to have a talk with them about when they lie and say something is vegan when its not. no need to confuse a little boy that way :(
(dont write a lot in english, so might quite a lot of misspelling here)

[WushuMom]

Thanks, yeah, I've been talking to everyone about making sure he knows the truth and THEN asking him if he wants to eat it...

I've changed my position a little on the "it's his choice" thing though. I'm raising him vegan, if we're out together, we're still vegan. If we go to a family dinner, we're still vegan. It's not much different than my decision before but I would let him decide whether or not he wanted to eat vegan when we were out with others... I'm not doing that anymore because I think that's what's confusing him.. he seems to have this questioning expression like.. "Mommy, why is it not okay to eat meat at home but it's okay anywhere else?"... so to make things less complicated for him, he's vegan - with or without me.

I can't control what happens when he's with his father, but I can atleast try and instill in him some moral values. He's very proud to be vegan and he even tried to convince me to save some baby cows from the local farm, which I thought was hilarious... I can't fit a cow into my little car...

:)

If he decides when he's a teenager that he wants to eat meat/dairy/whatever, that's his choice but I will always encourage him to be vegan. I don't think I could ever bring myself to cook meat for my son.. or even to buy it. Ew. I :(

[Byzantea]

This is great! Good for you!

[WushuMom]

This is great! Good for you!

Thank you :)