"Hello, sugar!"
"Honey, would you please..."
"Goodnight, sweetie."
Sweet treats and affection go hand in hand even in our terms of endearment. So it's no surprise that sharing sweet, milky treats is one of the 6 Keys to Bonding.
But choosing milky sweet treats to eat isn't straightforward for some families. Some children are easily wound up by sugar. Some are sensitive to the caffeine in chocolate, and what milky dessert doesn't involve chocolate? Then, of course, there are those who are intolerant of dairy. How are you supposed to bond over a sweet milky treat if your child's body and brain respond poorly to the "sweet", the "milky", or both!
The first ideas that come to mind for sharing a sweet, milky treat are usually ice cream, milkshakes, and chocolate. But here are a few options that go beyond those initial thoughts and can help you side-step any hang-ups with cane sugar, chocolate, and cow's milk.
Super Sweets
- Dates
- Figs
- Strawberries
- Prunes or raisins
- Cantaloupe
- Mango
- Cherries (consider frozen cherries)
You may have already looked into replacing cane sugar with natural sweeteners like honey, agave, and real maple syrup, but this list of super sweet fruits takes things a step further.
Make a healthy smoothie featuring any one of these super sweets. Cantaloupe sweetens a smoothie really well!
Curious about how to use mangoes (or the more convenient mango juice) for bonding? Find a recipe you like for Mango Lassi, a delectable drink popular in India. Make a batch to last a few days and enjoy sharing it during bonding time.
Want something that doesn't require preparation? No problem. Grab bowlful of Super Sweets to share, and you're in business. The key is to pick something your child finds tantalizing or at least delicious.
Did you know that dates are CRAZY sweet!!! YUM.
If your child can handle cow or goat's milk (or if you have dairy-free alternatives to these items), consider combining the sweet fruits listed above with:
- Yogurt
- Pudding
- Caramel
- Whipped Cream
- Ice Cream
- Milkshake
- Kefir (probiotic milk with little to no lactose)
Caramel apple, anyone? Yep, it can be a bonding treat! Apple slices with store-bought carmel dip works great. It's sweet, the caramel is milky, the mess can be silly, and the whole thing is special, for sure.
But if milk is off limits, coconut is a great alternative, especially the cans of full fat coconut milk or coconut cream. (Trader Joe's and Thrive Market each sell versions without guar gum.) Add a little coconut to your sweet fruit smoothie or whip it into coconut whipped cream. Don't count yourself out of sharing "milky sweets" just because "milk" is not in your child's digestive vocabulary.
(One cookbook with delicious dairy-free treats is "Against All Grain" by Danielle Walker.)
One nice thing about these Super Sweets is that these items require a lot more chewing than a spoonful of melting ice cream. The drawback is that these foods may not tantalize your child as much as a typical dessert. If you're new to Snuggle Time, you may want to start with the more powerful motivators with which your child is familiar like ice cream or caramel candies.
That being said, the main trick to making these fruity treats attractive to your child is limiting your child's sugar intake outside of bonding time. Whenever you do give sugar (no matter what kind it is), intentionally use it as a tool for bonding by employing the other five Keys to Bonding. (You can request Parent Coaching to learn more about this.)
Don't just say yes to sugar because kids love it. Use your child's drive for sugar to grow his relationship with you.
