Comfort Food

We talk a lot about intuitive eating and the Division of Responsibility or "responsive feeding" approach we like to take with family meals — but we know these big ideas can be tricky to put into practice. We've asked nutrition therapist Emily Fonnesback, RD, to tackle your questions. (And stay tuned for even more next week!)

Plus, an Unrelated about why moms get stuck with the mental load while dads go to the playground.

Visit our show notes at comfortfoodpodcast.com for all the links and research referenced in this episode. Send questions or comments to [email protected] or find us on social media: @v_solesmith, @yummytoddlerfood & @emilyfonnesback_rd.

SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT: Thrive By Spectrum Pediatrics

Thrive By Spectrum Pediatrics offers personalized, compassionate and evidence-based solutions for picky eating and other stressful mealtime challenges by phone, video conference or in person. Get 10% off Family Mealtime Coaching when you mention "Comfort Food Podcast" at thrivewithspectrum.com.

Several major health organizations have just released new recommendations that kids drink only water and plain milk until age 5. But is it realistic to expect your child to turn down every juicebox and chocolate milk carton that comes their way? We get into the pros and cons of this kind of all or nothing health advice and talk about what it means (or doesn't!) for your family.

Visit our show notes at comfortfoodpodcast.com for all the links and research referenced in this episode. Send questions or comments to [email protected] or find us on social media: @v_solesmith, @yummytoddlerfood

SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT: Thrive By Spectrum Pediatrics

Thrive By Spectrum Pediatrics offers personalized, compassionate and evidence-based solutions for picky eating and other stressful mealtime challenges by phone, video conference or in person. Get 10% off Family Mealtime Coaching when you mention "Comfort Food Podcast" at thrivewithspectrum.com.

Virginia has hit a wall with family dinner - so much prep! so much crying! so little eating! - and we're betting she's not alone. If you're struggling to get a meal onto the table at the end of a long work day, Amy is here to save your sanity (at least for a few nights!) with her go-to fast dinners. These easy meals hit all the marks for fast, nutritious, and accessible—and they're meals that both little kids and adults will be happy to eat.

Visit our show notes at comfortfoodpodcast.com for all the links and recipes discussed in this episode. Send questions to [email protected] or find us on social: @v_solesmith and @yummytoddlerfood.

Sponsor Spotlight: Bumkins

Take 18% off your order of suction plates, reusable snack bags, bibs, baby utensils and more with the code YUMMYTODDLERFOOD at www.bumkins.com.

We all want our kids to love their bodies. But we're also given plenty of reasons to worry about our kids' body weight, size and shape, especially if they fall on the higher end of the growth chart. This week we're talking to Anna Lutz, MPH, RD, of Sunny Side Up Nutrition about why diets are never the answer — and what you should do when you stop parenting weight.

Visit our show notes at comfortfoodpodcast.com for all the links and research referenced in this episode. Send questions or comments to [email protected] or find us on social media: @v_solesmith, @yummytoddlerfood and @sunnysideupnutritionists.

SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT: Thrive By Spectrum Pediatrics

Thrive By Spectrum Pediatrics offers personalized, compassionate and evidence-based solutions for picky eating and other stressful mealtime challenges by phone, video conference or in person. Get 10% off Family Mealtime Coaching when you mention "Comfort Food Podcast" at thrivewithspectrum.com.

Why do most men do so little at home — and especially in the kitchen? Why are women (still!) doing so much? Darcy Lockman, author of All the Rage: Mothers, Fathers and the Myth of Equal Partnership is on the podcast this week to talk about why mental load tasks like grocery list making and meal planning and prepping are still especially gendered — and what we can do, to find a better balance.

Visit our show notes at comfortfoodpodcast.com for all the research and links discussed in this episode. Send questions to [email protected] or find us on social: @v_solesmith and @yummytoddlerfood.

Do you worry whether you're spending the "right" amount of money on the food you buy for your family? We sure do... so we got some hard numbers on how much Americans spend on groceries and they may make you feel way better. We also talk about the cultural pressures that contribute to our anxiety about how much is too much to spend on food, and the social status issues involved in where you shop.

And, Amy has some breaking news about her former gluten intolerance!

Visit our show notes at comfortfoodpodcast.com for all the research and links discussed in this episode. Send questions to [email protected] or find us on social: @v_solesmith and @yummytoddlerfood.

Sponsor Spotlight: Bumkins

Take 18% off your order of suction plates, reusable snack bags, bibs, baby utensils and more with the code YUMMYTODDLERFOOD at www.bumkins.com.

We realized we had A LOT more to say about moms and fitness (and why you don't need to get your "pre-baby body" back!). So we're talking in more detail about how we find our exercise motivation and fit stress-free, fun workouts into our lives, while avoiding common diet culture fitspo traps.

We're also re-broadcasting the second half of Virginia's conversation on raising body positive kids — and navigating all the weird stuff people say about children, food and bodies — with Rebecca Scritchfield of the Body Kindness Podcast.

Visit our show notes at comfortfoodpodcast.com. And get in touch! We'd love to hear your favorite online workout or other way to bring body positive movement into your life: [email protected]. We're also on social media: @v_solesmith and @yummytoddlerfood.

It can be daunting to raise one or two healthy, happy eaters... so how about five?! This week, we chat with Melissa Griffiths of Bless This Mess about how she's raising her kids to honor their hunger and fullness cues, trust their bodies and love family meals... even when they don't love what's being served! We also get into her secrets for sharing the load and the snack drawer strategy that's kind of blowing Amy's mind. Plus an Unrelated discussion of the USDA's new school lunch rules and what it means for your kid's cafeteria.

Visit our show notes at comfortfoodpodcast.com for all the links and recipes discussed in this episode. Send questions to [email protected] or find us on social: @v_solesmith, @yummytoddlerfood, and @blessthismessblog.

Sponsor Spotlight: Bumkins

Take 18% off your order of suction plates, reusable snack bags, bibs, baby utensils and more with the code YUMMYTODDLERFOOD at www.bumkins.com.

Whether you have a kiddo in a high weight percentile, or barely on the growth chart, chances are you've had at least one pediatrician visit where you left stressed out about growth curves. Today we're discussing the limitations of the Body Mass Index, how to keep growth chart percentiles in perspective and celebrate your kid at any size. Plus we give reviews of our new favorite body positive online workouts — One Peleton and The Underbelly!

Visit comfortfoodpodcast.com for all the links, articles and other resources discussed in this episode. Have you dealt with a frustrating growth chart conversation — or do you have a favorite online workout for us? Email [email protected] or find us on social: @v_solesmith and @yummytoddlerfood.

Why do so many of our kids only want to eat "snacks?" Why can't you leave your house without a purse full of them? We're untangling some of the confusion about snacks: Why kids need them, how they can interfere with hunger and fullness cues, and how to neutralize their power — especially when it feels like your kids are encountering them everywhere they go.

Visit comfortfoodpodcast.com for all the links and resources discussed in this episode. Email your snack-related questions to [email protected], or follow us on social media: @v_solesmith & @yummytoddlerfood.