Ketchup

Lately it seems the only thing I can get Zara to actually eat is ketchup. Yes, it's disgusting. Yes, I feel like a pretty bad mom letting her consume it. But after an hour of desperately trying to get her to eat the accompanying eggs, french fries etc., which ends in tears and frustrating (on all fronts really), I give in, and hope that the next meal, or a snack will actually get eaten, and it normally does. I guess what feels so incredibly weird about the ketchup phenomenon is that she USED to eat. A lot. She was never motivated by food, but I knew I could expect her to eat something during each of the three meals. But all of a sudden she has decided not to eat during her mealtimes. Don't get me wrong, she eats, and she is healthy and all the regular signs of normality are there, but she just rejects most food until we eat, and so I've decided to offer food as I normally does, but if she doesn't act like she is going to pick at it, I put it back in the fridge until later when I eat, or when she asks. I put out snacks, but she's obviously going through some type of shift. As for ketchup, I'll put it next to her plate (when the meal calls for it), but if she finishes it and asks for more, I no longer replenish it until she has eaten what is on her plate. Does that make me a mean mom? Maybe. But even the most natural and 'healthy' ketchups are still just a condiment, not a meal.