Vegan mamas

I understand how you feel. I explained to my daughter that cow milk is meant for baby cows not us. Unfortunately my family does not care and they feed her whatever and nobody seems to respect what I say, but I do my best. My daughter does eat non-vegan food when she visits her dad And other people don’t seem to respect my rules either, but at the end of the day I try very hard to feed her vegan only food. It’s important to educate why you follow that lifestyle and once she is older you can explain where meat, dairy, eggs etc. comes from. Situations like that are gonna happen so don’t beat yourself up about it just continue doing what you’re doing mama 💜

@Jessye tysm! That’s really helpful 

We’re not at that age yet but the mindset I have is of teaching my child and allowing them to make informed decisions on their own. So educating her on where cow’s milk comes from, how it’s obtained, why some people drink it and some people don’t, and then if she still wants to drink it, just let her do it. The last thing I want is for her to be restricted with her food in any way and grow up to have an unhealthy relationship with it. Tbh I can’t imagine what child could say they still want a piece of bacon for example, after learning it’s from a dead pig, but if they do then that’s their own journey. We also won’t be keeping any non-vegan foods in the home so this will just be based on exposure elsewhere.

I have been eating plant based for 27 years and i purposely expose my child to every food. It’s important to me to teach her to have a healthy relationship with food and that includes the freedom to make her own informed choices. Shes 2 and comes with me to our neighbors house to pick up eggs and to pick up meat from a local farmer… we talk about where food comes from, and give thanks as we prepare and she eats it. I dont see any benefits in being restrictive around food… even sugar for instance - we dont cook with it or buy any products with it in it, but occasionally when we are out we split a vegan pastry at a coffee shop or she has cake and sweets at gatherings. I think it’s all about balance. At our house, all the meals we make are plant based but i do make her snacks with animal products. And if we are out a restaurant, I’ll give her two choices of what to have (one vegan and one animal product option) and let her pick.

I'm definitely more strict with what my children eat. My kids aren't in school now but when my oldest was it was about education about where animal products actually come from and how they get them. And I also teach them it's ok to be different as there will be many things (besides food) where differences will be between them and their friends. And rather to succumb to peer pressure maybe my child can educate others. Our household is strictly plant based and my oldest had the option to go plant based and gradually made the decision in his own. My youngest was born into the plant based lifestyle

@Anne this is my outlook on it too, as my partner eats dairy and meat, so my son will be able to choose between the options and eat whichever he prefers, and then be educated in it all

@Angel yes! i think offering them the freedom of choice is empowering. and practically, if littles aren’t exposed to allergens like dairy or eggs - they may not be able to ever eat them, which i think sets them up for less choices in life.

Yeah that’s how it is for me too me and my baby are the only vegans in the house my hubby and other kids are not so I know the time was gonna come where she gets to make her own choice butttt I didn’t think it would be so soon!

We are a fully vegan family. I’ve been vegan for over 10 years, my husband has been vegan for 6 years and our kids are vegan since conception. When they get curious about non vegan items we tell them it’s not vegan, it’s made with animal products and it’ll hurt their tummy. They always listened to that and we counter it with we can make a vegan version at home. If I’m not able to make a vegan alternative I’ll let them get their favorite vegan treat from the store.

I guess I’m in a different mindset than others here. We are a fully vegan family and my husband and I have been vegan for 13 years or more. We won’t allow our kids non-vegan food. It’s just like anything else that goes against our morals. We also don’t/won’t allow our kids to hit others, to make fun of others, to handle weapons, to be around drugs, ect. We do things all the time to prohibit our kids from doing things that are against our morals. I see this as being handled similarly.

For families that expect their children to eat vegan always, how do you navigate times when they aren’t with you? Like if they are at school and someone brings cupcakes. Would you expect them not to eat them if they had dairy or eggs? Would you punish your child if they told you they ate one? Genuinely curious. My daughter is two so we haven’t been in these scenarios yet.

@Anne I'd bring my kids an alternative. But it's also education. If you believe non vegan food is morally wrong or not beneficial health wise, it's no different than teaching your child how eating, say McDonald's, isn't good for them. So just bc someone else does it doesn't mean they have to. They will have to learn to say no even if that means they may not get something else short term that seems good/ fun. Same as everything else cheating, lying, stealing...kids do those things and you'd want to teach your own not to do those things as well. Just my thoughts and how we do it

@Krystle gotcha! So I guess theres a lot of effort on your part to ensure they always have an alternative option when they’re not with you. I chose to start eating plant based at 7 by my own choice and i remember feeling really left out and isolated in a lot of social situations because of it. So im always curious how families approach this. Thanks!

@Anne my kids are homeschooled but my oldest does attend a homeschool co op once a week with other kids where he’s instructed to bring a packed lunch. Our co op is great about not letting kids share food and parents are not allowed to bring food to share with the class either. My kids are also little vegan activists and are very local about making sure what they’re given food wise is vegan friendly. My kids will straight up ask an adult “ does this have eggs or milk in it? I’m vegan and only eat vegan food!” 😂 We’ve had no issue with attending birthday parties for non vegan friends since they also know my kids are vegan they have even gone out of their way to ensure my kids have access to fruit and veggie platters along with some type of vegan dessert which i heavily appreciate.

@Lorri🌱 so sweet! this seems to work really well for your homeschool lifestyle. you have a lot more control over their environment that they’re in. awesome that they are learning to advocate for themselves

@Anne yes they're my responsibility until they can make decisions on their own as to what they think is best for them. Until then, I educate them on the why, how, etc. And at times feelings can be a little hurt but that's part of life. They can't always have a toy another kid has. And I explain it the same way. I also make everything we eat from scratch and my youngest has allergies. My son's friends are always willing to try vegan alternatives I bring and make and often times enjoy them so it's a win win for us

@Anne I bring vegan snacks for my son so there is always something there he can have. I try to know if there will be cupcakes or something like that ahead of time (the teachers are good about it) and have a vegan version brought to school that day. My son is special needs and nonverbal though so he doesn’t really know or have a desire for other things. My 2 year old is learning about being vegan already. Id never punish but just inform. Everything is about learning to do the best we can and preparing as much as we can for those moments.

@Abby I agree with this. I'm not at this point yet as he only 8 months but to me, I don't want to pay and contribute to animal suffering. Everyones food is different if they taking in different meals from home, like a package lunch 🤷 if itw meals the nursery is preparing I'd ask if they could make the vegan alternative, or maybe I would. But I hope to teach him being different isn't a bad thing. I'll explain why we are vegan and we can have cruelty free alternatives. Like you say, we prohibit other behaviour so why not this one