French Kids Eat Everything, the book and the interview with Author Karen Lebillon
Few months ago I “met” Karen Lebilion via Twitter. She is very, very active on it, always finding, searching great contents, articles, posts about healthy eating for kids and adults. Soon I learned that she wrote a book ( will be released in April 2012) and I was very intrigued by the title of her book” French Kids Eat Everything”. Since I love reading Karen’s blog about what French kids eat everyday at their French cafeteria… I can’t wait to read her book!
We “connected” right away….she is fun, smart, easy to talk to. She even asked me to be a guest blogger on her blog in January:
Secrets from a French mom yes you and your family can eat healthy everyday .
In this post I trie to explain that parents should decide what their family/ kids should eat and not the other way where kids dictate what to buy at the grocery store!
I am so excited that her first book…“French kids eat everything” is going to be released soon…I haven’t read it yet but I can’t wait …. until this time Karen was kind enough to answer my questions…
1. Hello Karen thank you for your time . Who is Karen Le Billon?
– I’m married to a Frenchman from Brittany (a beautiful coastal region in northwestern France).
– We divide our time between Vancouver and France.
– In Vancouver, I work as a teacher at a university; I love my students more each year.
– My kids love spinach puree (honest). When it appears on the table, they say ‘yum.’ Warms my heart.
Over the past several years, we have been going through a journey as a family: learning how to enjoy life and community through food, unlearning our poor eating habits and attempting to learn better ones. This blog (and my book) were inspired by this personal experience. Now, I’m not a nutrition expert, and I definitely don’t want to convert anyone to French parenting (or any other kind of parenting). My goal is to inspire debate and reflection, and the stories I tell are meant to do just that. So I’d love to hear your thoughts and stories too.
Official bio: Born in Montreal and based in Vancouver, Karen Le Billon is an author and teacher. Married to a Frenchman, she has two daughters, and her family divides its time between Vancouver and France. Karen has a PhD from Oxford University, and is the recipient of numerous awards, including a Rhodes Scholarship, a Canada Research Chair, and Canada’s Top 40 Under 40 award. She currently teaches at the University of British Columbia. See my bio page here: karenlebillon.com/bio-2/
2. Congratulations on your book ! Can you tell us a little bit about your book : French kids eat everything
Thanks!
French Kids Eat Everything tells the story of the year our family ate in France, and how the French Food Rules we learned transformed our family’s eating habits. My daughters (the older one was starting kindergarten, and the younger one was a toddler) went from being picky eaters to happy omnivores. The book explains how French parents teach their children to eat well, and how school curriculum supports this. In addition to our story, the book has tips, resources, and recipes for parents.
3.How did you came up with the idea on Kids eating in France?
I was so inspired by how well the children we met there ate (both our relatives—my husband is French—and the kids at school). The school lunch menus were inspiring: so much so that I blog about them weekly at the French Kids School Lunch Project. I find it fascinating that children are trying so many new things (beet salad, roast guinea fowl, endive, all kinds of fish, fruit, and vegetables).
french-school-lunch-menus/
4. How is a typical day for Karen le Billon now as a published author, a mother, a wife, a blogger, a working woman?
Up at 5:30 to do yoga/exercise, get kids up at 7, deliver them to school by 8:45, work 9 to 5, pick up kids, make dinner, eat at 6:30, and put kids to bed by 8. Phew! Then, work 8 to 11 on my computer (sad but true—although I love my job, so I don’t complain about the extra hours).
5.How do you divide your time between France and Canada?
We have gone back and forth for the past 15 years. We are going to be spending the third school term there this year (I will be a visiting professor at a University in Montpellier).
6. What did you learn from French mothers in general? And about cooking / eating routines?
You’ll have to read the book to find out! One point I learned is that children can wait, patiently, to eat. French parents don’t give their children snacks throughout the day (there is only one snack, after school). I think this is a good idea, and explain my views in more detail here:
should-kids-be-allowed-to-randomly-snack-the-french-would-say-definitely-not-heres-why/
7. What your daughters had for Breakfast / lunch/ diner yesterday?
Good question! Yesterday was Sunday.
Breakfast: Oatmeal with blueberries, scrambled eggs, fresh fruit, milk.
Lunch: In keeping with the French approach, this was the main meal of the day. I made rice with tomates farcies (tomatoes stuffed with a yummy ground beef filling, then baked to melt-in-the-mouth texture in the oven), and salad (lettuce with home-made vinaigrette). Dessert: fruit salad, and a square of dark chocolate each. The recipe for tomates farcies was recently featured on the family food blog Sweet Potato Chronicles: it is one of our family favorites.
Snack: We finished up some oatmeal cookies we had made last week.
Dinner: Vegetable soup, French baguette. A lighter meal, as we ate our big meal at mid-day. Dinner: fruit salad.
8. What is your idea for your daughters’ lunchbox?
They bring a packed lunch (there is no cafeteria or school kitchen in our school), and it’s a challenge making meals they will eat while still encouraging them to eat a variety of foods.
Here’s one idea we love: To encourage variety and novelty, I have labeled one little compartment in their lunchboxes the ‘surprise box’. That’s the one that has a new food several days a week. Sometimes it’s a veggie, sometimes fruit, sometimes something else. It’s there for them to taste, to explore. When they get home, we talk about it. It’s an easy way to encourage them to embrace trying new foods at lunch.
9.Any advice for new moms in term of cooking for their family?
The 10 Food Rules in the book sum up what we learned, and I hope people might be interested and adapt these to their own families.
Here’s one important idea: Assume your children will learn to love to eat everything, but be patient. The French believe that teaching your kids to eat is as important as teaching them to read. It takes persistence and effort, but this will pay off.
10. What did you learn when living in France than changed your life!
That food is one of life’s greatest shared pleasures, and that eating with children can be joyful and relaxed. Before I moved there, I wouldn’t have believed it. But I saw it with my own eyes. This really transformed not only our eating habits, but our entire family relationship—for the better.
Merci Karen!
I really embraced Karen’s philsophy. We have a very similar “food “culture. In fact, my children began eating the way we do, from the very young age they began to consume solid foods. Today at 7 my children love “pate”, “saucisson” ” croque monsieur” , fresh “baguette” and ratataouille. I fact I never think twice about what I am going to make for diner. I make it and they eat.
When I saw her typical day schedule, I was like: “wow”. Like Karen, I am a working mom, a blogger, an author, and days are never long enough for me … So when I saw Karen’s everyday schedule I was wondering how she can “pack” everything in a such busy life… and now that her book is going to be released soon.. all the interviews, the events to promote her book…. she is going to be busier and busier than before…
A bientot Karen…
