Hallie_D
04-14-2004, 04:50 PM
I apologize for the subject line, I'm just paraphrasing Elijah's latest fun game at dinnertime (or anytime we are eating!). Please note that this is written with lots of love in my heart for my wonderful son, and a little bit of sarcasm...I just don't know what to do about this behavior.
He will ask for a certain kind of food, usually yogurt since he has a one-track, yogurt-obsessed mind these days. If it is OK for him to have it (that is, if it is breakfast time, healthy snack time or if he has finished his dinner, and the yogurt will be dessert) I'll say, OK, and he will make the "crocodile tears" face and pitifully say "gogurt" over and over while I take forever (1 minute!) to get the yogurt and the spoon and peel the top off. Then, the second the spoon hits the yogurt, he starts in with "NO! NO! NO!" and hiding his face. He doesn't want to see the yogurt, he doesn't want to know anything about it...so I say, "OK, I'll put it away. Bye bye, yogurt!"
Instantly, he is crying, "MORE! MORE! MORE!" and adding in a few sad "Gogurt!"'s for effect. The first time this happens, I say, "Oh, you DO want some yogurt? OK..." and again, the second the spoon hits the yogurt, it is back to screams of "NO" because everyone knows that yogurt=pain and suffering.
I repeat my line about putting it away, and I do, adding that when he is ready, he can ask nicely for the yogurt...and then the tears really start to fall, and yogurt, poor yogurt, my son's one true love is lost to him (and he does say and sign "peesh!"...so out it comes from the refridgerator, and this time when the spoon hits the yogurt he is ready and he practically inhales the entire 4 oz of Yo Baby goodness, saying "gogurt!" happily after every bite, smacking his lips, and in general being as happy as it is possible to be while eating a container of yogurt.
I know, I know...he is a toddler, he likes being in control, he likes saying "no," I am the parent, I have to set limits...but please help! What am I doing wrong? Should I put it away and not offer it again after the first time he says no? Should I let him have a little power since he is so reasonable about most other things? Should I worry that he is so obsessed with yogurt that he would rather eat it than anything else, and that includes candy which I have ACTUALLY OFFERED him in an attempt to see if he would eat something other than 4 more oz of yogurt on one particularly bad day (it was a good day for Stoneyfield Farm).
He will ask for a certain kind of food, usually yogurt since he has a one-track, yogurt-obsessed mind these days. If it is OK for him to have it (that is, if it is breakfast time, healthy snack time or if he has finished his dinner, and the yogurt will be dessert) I'll say, OK, and he will make the "crocodile tears" face and pitifully say "gogurt" over and over while I take forever (1 minute!) to get the yogurt and the spoon and peel the top off. Then, the second the spoon hits the yogurt, he starts in with "NO! NO! NO!" and hiding his face. He doesn't want to see the yogurt, he doesn't want to know anything about it...so I say, "OK, I'll put it away. Bye bye, yogurt!"
Instantly, he is crying, "MORE! MORE! MORE!" and adding in a few sad "Gogurt!"'s for effect. The first time this happens, I say, "Oh, you DO want some yogurt? OK..." and again, the second the spoon hits the yogurt, it is back to screams of "NO" because everyone knows that yogurt=pain and suffering.
I repeat my line about putting it away, and I do, adding that when he is ready, he can ask nicely for the yogurt...and then the tears really start to fall, and yogurt, poor yogurt, my son's one true love is lost to him (and he does say and sign "peesh!"...so out it comes from the refridgerator, and this time when the spoon hits the yogurt he is ready and he practically inhales the entire 4 oz of Yo Baby goodness, saying "gogurt!" happily after every bite, smacking his lips, and in general being as happy as it is possible to be while eating a container of yogurt.
I know, I know...he is a toddler, he likes being in control, he likes saying "no," I am the parent, I have to set limits...but please help! What am I doing wrong? Should I put it away and not offer it again after the first time he says no? Should I let him have a little power since he is so reasonable about most other things? Should I worry that he is so obsessed with yogurt that he would rather eat it than anything else, and that includes candy which I have ACTUALLY OFFERED him in an attempt to see if he would eat something other than 4 more oz of yogurt on one particularly bad day (it was a good day for Stoneyfield Farm).