Preschoolers and meal issues

[Jacksmommy2b]

I have been pretty lucky with both of my boys being good eaters and enjoying a very wide variety of foods - BUT - for the past 2 months or so, Jack (who insisted I add this smilie to be him :hysterical:) has decided he doesn't have the time/interest/effort required to eat.

We do family sit down meals for lunch and dinner with breakfast being him in his seat with the usual eggs/toast/juice while I throw a load of laundry in or do the dishes. He'll sit at the table for about 10 minutes, pick at his food, then ask to be excused. I can get another 5-10 minutes and another half a meal into him by feeding him while he is distracted talking about his day but that is about it.

We keep the TV off at meal times and there are no ipods, books or his DS allowed at the dinner table. I have broken down and will allow lego men and the like as just another way to try to get food into him. We have also started not excusing him from the table until M and I are finished eating, thinking he won't be in a hurry to get back to whatever if he is stuck sittting with us, but that isn't working either.

I don't think I would be bothered if I thought he was just on the down end of a groth spurt - but a half hour to two hours later he starts going on about being hungry again!

So then I'm torn - J is a small guy to begin with so - I certainly don't want to ever deny him food - but on the other hand, this isn't a diner and meal times are meal times!

There have been times he has wolfed down a whole bowl of pasta to announce he's hungry again a halfhour later. I have no problem giving him snacks then, but I am getting really sick of preparing meals to have to make him snacks or reheat dinner before I'm even finished cleaning up the first wave.

I have tried announcing it to be the last meal of the day, the only lunch he is getting or that if he doesn't eat his meal the next snack is 2 hours from now so eat or be hungry - all to no avail.

And, like I said he is really into a wide variety of foods - but he will tell me if there is a meal he doesn't like and I really don't make them anymore, so I don't think it is an issue of him not liking the food offered.

So... what to do? Is this normal preschooler behavior? I don't want to do the 'clean your plate' thing but I'm running out of ideas.

[hillview]

DS2 is like this. He doesn't like to sit at all. We try to encourage him to eat at meal time and then offer another mini meal later on. Gradually I expect to get rid of this.
/hillary

[crl]

I have been known to just leave ds' plate out in case he gets hungry later. No reheating offered. :innocent:

Catherine

[hillview]

I have been known to just leave ds' plate out in case he gets hungry later. No reheating offered. :innocent:

Catherine

:yeahthat: we do that too and it does work!

[egoldber]

:yeahthat:

Younger DD is exactly like this. At dinner she eats 3 bites and then is done. Then she nibbles on her dinner (cold) for the rest of the evening.

[MaiseyDog]

DD2 is grazer. We work with her on sitting with the family at meal times, but I've pretty much given up on trying to get her to eat "a meal." She just doesn't eat a lot at one time. I fix her a plate and let her eat on it over the course of the evening. I also keep healthy snacks (fruits, veggies, cheese sticks, etc) in a drawer in the fridge that she can get to when she wants something. It's frustrating and I have to plan ahead more with her, but I figure as long as she is growing well and gets a variety of foods in over the course of the day it's all good.

[scrooks]

DD is like this to. A couple of bits and she is done. Dinner is the worst. She generally will eat a good breakfast and an ok lunch. We have just been telling her she won't get anything else to eat and we leave her plate out. A couple of times she has complained of being hungry right as we were turning out the lights for bed but both DH and I attributed it to her stall tactic.