Does your kid have a bottomless pit?
Because mine does.
My grandson can eat a WHOLE bowl of popcorn by himself. The whole big mixing bowl. By himself. And 20 minutes later look at me and say “I’m hungry.”
Kid, where did it go?! LOL.
I was talking to other parents of kids on the spectrum and ADHD and we all said the same thing – popcorn is the go-to.
Here’s why:
- The CRUNCH.
If you know, you know. That crunch is sensory heaven. It’s exactly what they need to sit for 5 minutes. - It’s CHEAP.
When they eat a whole bowl to themselves, you’re not going broke. At this point he eats us out of house and home anyway! - It’s full of fiber.
And if you know you know… our ADHD / autism kiddos NEED that fiber. I’m just gonna leave it at that. IYKYK. 😉
So yeah, I let him eat the whole bowl.
I just use my microwave popcorn popper – dump in the kernels, pop it, and dump it in the biggest bowl we have. That’s our afternoon ritual.
I’ve seen a lot of parents make it into a game though – hide the bowl and make them hunt for it, or hide pretzels and M&M’s in the popcorn to find the colors. I love that idea because it burns energy BEFORE they eat. That’s actually where I got the idea for my Treasure Hunt Cards in my Etsy – same concept, but they get to run all over the house! I haven’t done the hunt with him yet, but I’m going to!
Our 3 Favorite Popcorn Toppings:
Protein Popcorn: Drizzle a little melted peanut butter + mini chocolate chips – actually fills the pit for an hour!
Treasure Hunt Popcorn: Mix in pretzels, dried fruit, M&M’s and have them hunt for the colors in the bowl.
Calm Down Popcorn: We do 5 crunchy bites, 4 deep breaths while we eat – we use my Anxiety Flash Cards for this one.
And then there’s “Grandma’s Special Coffee”
Lord help me. We had to have a talk about this one.
He loves what he calls “Grandma’s Special Coffee.” It’s his treat with his popcorn. He feels so grown up.
We had to tell him “Buddy, PLEASE don’t go to school and tell them grandma makes you special coffee or grandma is getting a phone call!” 😂😂😂 Can you imagine what the teacher would think?!
What it really is: I make my own iced coffee at home. His doctor knows he has ADHD and asthma, and his doctor said a little coffee can help him a bit with both. Caffeine is a stimulant and also a mild bronchodilator, so for HIM, his doctor said it’s okay in a small amount.
So his “Special Coffee” is milk, a little of my coffee, chocolate syrup, all over ice in a cup like Starbucks. He thinks he’s so cool with his Starbucks cup.
This is just what works for us and what HIS doctor said is okay for HIM. If you’re thinking about trying anything with caffeine for your kiddo, please check with your own pediatrician first.
So that’s our afternoon: popcorn, special coffee, and chaos.
What’s your go-to cheap sensory snack? Tell me in the comments – I need ideas before this bottomless pit eats everything!
Love,
Gramma M
P.S. If you need something to burn off that popcorn energy, my ADHD Treasure Hunt Cards are in my Etsy shop – print them and they RUN! And my Anxiety Flash Cards help with after-snack meltdowns.
P.P.S. This blog is free and always will be! If you laughed and want to buy this grandma a REAL coffee so I can keep making him the fake stuff, here’s my coffee cup.
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