Allowing any small child within 20 feet of this fearful dog is an invitation to disaster!

Her fears have been reinforced and confirmed over and over by the reasurrances and the added pressure she's been getting when she acts this way. The only way she's ever going to accept small children and strangers is to desensatize her in a calm setting as described above.

For right now forget the food, forget the reasurrances and the pampering and concentrate on allowing her to view strange people and things from a distance with no added stress or attempts at bribery!

The situation can be overcome but it didn't come about overnight and it isn't something that can be resolved quickly.