I'm Starving My Kid

I'm dealing with the issue of guilt right now.

 My little Noah is the biggest stinker when it comes to food.  He won't eat most things and he refuses to even try something new.  When he was younger, I actually sat on him and forced him to try cookie dough, because EVERYONE should love cookie dough.  He does love it now, but that method doesn't work for his dinners.  Darin tries and Noah defiantly spits the food out, at which point Darin starts to fume, and Noah leaves the table and launches his own hunger strike.

Now the guilt.  Because Noah is so stubborn he won't even budge to "take 5 bites" or even a smell on most nights.  He ends up going hungry.  I don't give in. I always offer to heat up his dinner, but he'd rather starve.  Sometime in the middle of the night I start to worry about my little guy and wish I would have just given him a yogurt or toast before bed. 

Most dinners I make, I know that Noah will have issues over.  I think I am feeling especially guilty now because Noah hasn't eaten much dinner the entire week.  He usually ends up eating last around 4 because I don't want him to spoil his dinner (as if he doesn't think it is already spoiled).  Then he holds out until breakfast.

As if a parent needs anything else to feel guilty over...add starvation to my list.  (As a side note:  It doesn't help my self esteem any to have someone spitting  food all over the table rather than swallow.)