We keep eating her babies

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My HFA 4yo Heidi has been adopting food as her babies.

At first it was kind of cute. Our fruit and veg delivery would arrive, Heidi'd select something (often eggplant) and it would be her baby, she wraps it in blankets, cuddles it and loves it.

Then she goes to do something else and I whisk it away into the fridge and eventually use it in cooking... and the horror!! Mummy is cutting my baby, we are eating my baby.

Bad bad bad.

This morning she adopted a container of boiled eggs and then daddy made egg salad with them.

Mostly I'm able to divert her attention, give her a baby doll or in the case of the eggs she has some realistic wooden eggs that are a similar weight to the hardboiled eggs.

But I'm starting to worry that the adopting of food only to have it cooked and eaten by mum and dad is going to leave a very bad impression long term.

I don't know, it may be just a phase. my sister used to exclaim and coo over the baby peas.

Oh goodness....

Ah, maybe you should buy her a plastic eggplant to use as her baby.

no advice, i had to comment because i think that's so funny and cute!! lol, i don't think it's too serious though, i think she knows it's pretend

Could you get her a doll or stuffed animal? Then it's not perishable. Or edible.

Get her plastic food toys. You can usually buy sets of them and there is lots of variety. We have everything from pizza to cookies to boxed spaghetti to corn and broccoli and peppers and strawberries.

That is so cute.

If she does insist on a food baby, instead of dolls or plastic food, what about giving her something like a small butternut squash that will keep for a long time. Then you can replace it with a new one when it starts to get old...and maybe, compost "the remains" instead of eating them.

Sounds like imaginative play to me.

I sure hope it is just imaginative play. She was using boxes the other day as ski's with another box as her helmet.

We've got plenty of plastic food toys and lots of dolls of a variety of textures... all these toys get neglected in favour of the food.

Today I managed to get the fruit and veg delivery packed away before Heidi noticed so no food was adopted.

*bump*

Heidi adopted an eggplant again this week but I think I found a good solution:
http://leechbabe.wordpress.com/2009/08/ ... -eggplant/

Get her a Mr Potatohead!

Well, you're doing better than my parents. When I was seven, I ended up eating one of my pets. I was half way through dinner before I found out what was going on.

I think this sounds like a phase... maybe have something delivered to the door that isn't food, and she can adopt it, instead. For example, a box with clothes, cushions and toys in it. See what she picks, and don't eat it.

Mr Potatohead wouldn't feel right, I've noticed that Heidi goes for food with a similar feel - eggplant, capsicum, hardboiled eggs... they are all kind of soft and squishy. Eggplant and the capsicum also have a very smooth surface, not sure about egg shells. I'm thinking a smallish satin pillow might be a good replacement.

I had objects that I had that were my babies, my friends, whatever. My beloved pen, my dear sweet peach-flavored-spring-water bottle, whatever I found so cute and sweet and darling at the time.

Eggplant had the perfect size and shape! When I was little, I would also "adopt" eggplants as my babies, although I was more willing to sacrifice it for dinner.

Sorry for the autobiography. I have no real advice, since I'm not a parent.