As stated earlier, families can go too far over to the do what you want side of eating. Again, it's a good idea to put aside your feelings about diabetes and think instead of how you would want to feed any child.

Coming Back Around Without Stress

So you got your child on the pump and had a two-year food free-for-all and now you know it's time to pull in the reins. Do it slowly and quietly. Cook new meals without comment and offer up healthy snacks, slowly removing the “bad” ones. See if your child likes it, and work to make him happy and balanced.

Sometimes a Kid Just Needs to Be a Kid

It's Halloween. Or New Year's Eve, and you are at a family party with a giant buffet. Or your daughter just won a dance competition and the prize is a giant frosted cookie. What is a diabetes parent to do? Sometimes, a kid just needs to be a kid.

Since you know your child's body and insulin needs, just let it go sometimes. Let her overdo it for one day or one night. We all do, and we all survive. Just remind her: healthy families don't do that all the time.

And in the end, find awesome recipes that feel special to her and seem decadent. That's the goal of the following sections. Hopefully, your kid can just be a kid and love these. Until the cure, parents have no other choice.