As homeschoolers we have the special privilege of having most of our meals at home. As a mom, I don’t have to worry about my kids opting for peanut butter and jelly sandwiches everytime they don’t like the meal-of-the-day at school. When Aisa was in public school it changed her eating habits so much that it became difficult to feed her good, healthy food at home. She became so used to the taste of macaroni and cheese, broccoli with cheese, chicken nuggets, fish sticks and pizza that at home she was picky and unappreciative. One of the minor reasons we chose to homeschool, but an important one in hubby’s and my opinion.

Today, at 14, she still doesn’t eat as many veggies or fruits as she should, but she has rediscovered a healthy curiosity for trying out new things, and she’s finding out that she does like things she’s sworn off when she was younger. She eats white rice like you wouldn’t believe, but tries to balance things by (with a bit of a nudge from time to time) snacking on fresh or dried fruit.

We don’t eat healthy 100% of the time, but I require my kids to try whatever’s on the table. If we have veggies they are required to eat one piece for every year of their life (e.g., Paco who’s 8 has to eat 8 pieces of green beans). We do this because it takes time and practice to develop a habit. One study says that kids need to try something 12 times before they develop a liking for it.

Other studies say eating disorders result when parents make eating a big deal, but we need to remember that it’s not the amount of food we should be concerned about (we don’t get clean plates all the time) — it’s the KIND of food we are eating. Though they are not permitted to have candy (cavities, we’ve had some) or cheese (allergies) all the time, we allow the occasional indulgence. We have the same attitude towards alcohol and coffee. We let them drink from our wine glasses and even give them their own (they don’t like it, except for champagne). This way alcohol is not a big deal that they’re waiting all their young life to taste when they’re 21. Some friends have expressed surprise that we let our kids drink coffee. Our kids think of coffee as special, and we prepare it carefully (using freshly ground beans and filtered water) on the weekends. Hey, other parents let their kids drink Coke all the time! How is this any different? Most days we only have water (not even juice). We don’t keep soda in the house, so at parties my kids act like they haven’t seen soda in ages (they haven’t!) — what’s wrong with that? Nothing, as far as I’m concerned.

This year we are also growing our own produce. Last year we were members of a CSA (community supported agriculture) program, but although we were satisfied with the amount of produce that was delivered to the door, there were weeks upon weeks when we got squash after squash after squash. You can only do so many interesting dishes featuring squash. The previous years we were in apartment homes so gardening was limited to herbs. Our last garden was in Texas where my hubby built me an 8″ x 8″ garden (I used the square foot gardening method). I grew all kinds of herbs, eggplant, tomatoes, beans, spinach, etc. One weekend we harvest 23 large tomatoes. That was in 1998. Seven years later, I am excited to be harvesting things from the garden again. Our first harvest will probably be Chinese cabbage, of which I have a ton (I sowed too heavily ). At any rate, my kids are learning to appreciate the fruits of the earth, the work of our hands; more than this they become witness to God’s goodness and provenance.

Alice Waters is one of my “heroes”, and so I thought I’d pay tribute to her by writing this post. Like Julia Child I think Alice has already touched so many lives with her dedication to great food. She has brought healthy eating to the fore, and because of her, these kids are now learning the lessons we all should have been taught long ago: to nurture the earth, to take care of it, as we help it take care of us by providing us with nutrient-rich harvests. Read more about Alice Waters and The Edible Schoolyard here. This project should be a model for schools (and homes) everywhere.