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I have a four year old that is an extremely poor eater. My husband and I are always trying to get him to eat. He is as tall as the other kids in his class but a lot skinnier. I honestly feel like he controls us with food. It gets so tiring at times trying to make him eat. He is just so picky with food and when he does eat, want gain a pound. Now he is running around, jumping off furniture, and is constantly making nonstop noise. My husband tells him to stop and to be quiet but he want. Should a child be punished for not listening and obeying when it comes to keeping their mouth shut? We have had more problems with him since he turned three years old compared to the baby years. He also demands constant attention. It literally wears me out. I get mad at my husband because he is at work all day and says he is too tired to give him attention and I feel like it is all on me. Is this just a normal stage or is it my son. Please advise. ↓
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| Name: kimber | Date: Feb 5th, 2008 12:44 PM |
| For instance today, I made him a nice breakfast this morning, with orange juice, sausage, and waffles. He wasted the entire thing. Then an hour later, he brought me a block of cheese out of the frig. and a knife for me to cut him a piece off. Later it was a juicy juice drink. Then I made him a corn dog and he only ate the hot dog out of it. So I made another one and he ate the hot dog out of that. Its as if he just wants to snack all day instead of eat healthy food. It drives me crazy when I go through the trouble of making decent food which he wastes and then drives me crazy about being hungry all day. Sorry, just thought I would vent for a while, this has been going on for years and the pediatrician just says it is my fault. ↑ |
| Name: winnmom | Date: Feb 5th, 2008 12:52 PM |
Sounds like a normal 4 year old boy...sounds like my son! He is 5 now though.
They have little tummies so 5 - 6 small meals a day seems to work better.
Jumping around is normal, but he also needs to listen. Mine seems very hyper but when I talk to other moms they are going through the same thing. Do you take him to the park or swimming or somrthing to get excersize? Places he can run and jump appropriatly?
The thing is....and I am not saying you are not doing this...consistancy.....consistancy....consistancy. If he gets away with something one day, and the next not allowed to do it, this will not work....again not saying you are doing this, but some times parents get warn out and just 'Ignore" the behavior and wonder why they do not listen.
so I suggest and again not saying you are not already doing this....
4-6 small healthy meals a day
daily excersize where he is free to jump and play and run in an approriate place...
routines and consistancy.
Yes 4 year olds are exhausting! ↑ |
| Name: Dawnnn | Date: Feb 5th, 2008 12:52 PM |
| hi I know how you feel, well maybe, mine are younger. My oldest is almost 3 but she also demand constent attention, they both scream and cry when ever I leave the room. Even goin to the bathroom! I also think my husband doesnt do enough, they just dont get it! Its 24 hr job not like theirs with breaks and they get to leave their job! NO FAIR LOL!!! Any ways try hiding food in other things, I have a magic bullet and I put veggies in EVERYTHING! Including smoothies. I also give them veggie dogs. I found a great cookbook Deceptively Delicious byJessica seinfeld. Havent tryed any recipes yet just got it but it has it has really good ideas. Hope this helps, Dawn ↑ |
| Name: Dawnnn | Date: Feb 5th, 2008 12:55 PM |
| Snacking is ok, just try and offer healthy snacks. Everyone I know with kids says the same thing you are. Sometimes you just want to give up. Iknow I do. Ive actually stopped making 20 meals a day ↑ |
| Name: bmes | Date: Feb 5th, 2008 12:59 PM |
anika is not quite 2 years old yet, but she is the same way. if snacking is what gets food into him, then do it, but with healthy food. try to find things that don't have to be refrigerated, or stuff that can stay out for a while. Anika sits down to eat breakfast and dinner, but lunch and all the snacks in between, I just leave out on the coffee table, so she can pick away at it as she's busy playing. I put out cucumber, grapes, crackers, oranges, avacado....then i put out cheese, which can sit out for a little bit, and yogurt i pretend i'm sitting down to eat it myself, and because i'm eating it, she wants it, so i feed that to her so she doesn't make a big mess. I also notice she eats better when i'm not sitting there with her, so for her breakfast and dinner, when she sits in her highchair, i just leave her to eat and I'll busy myself by cleaning the kitchen. plus she sits there for a good 45 minutes. she may start to eat and then play for a bit, and you'd think then that she's done, then she'll start eating again....and next thing you know, her food is all gone. it takes a while, but she eventually eats it all.
as for hubby, i don't know what to say....my hubby was like that too....oh i'm too tired....but i told him, it doesn't have to be "work" to hang out with them. how often are you here? enjoy your time with the kids...playing with them isn't that hard to do. if you want to sit down, read a book or color with them. that's easy to do and you still get to sit down. ↑ |
| Name: homemommichele | Date: Feb 5th, 2008 1:09 PM |
| Could be a stage, could be personality too. My 8 year old is the same way too, super picky, super duper scrawny. I am scared someone is going to call cyf and report us!! We provide healthy food, we feed the kid, but short of holding him down with a funnell and forcing him....!! What we did recently is sit down with him and have HIM make a grocery list of healthy foods he will eat and try to give him some control (within reason). He was always high maintanence too and also has ADHD. You may want to talk to your pediatrician about other issues as well, behavior modification etc. Good luck!! I know what you are going through belive me!! ↑ |
| Name: cjsims | Date: Feb 5th, 2008 3:41 PM |
| Don't worry about your kid eating. He will eat when he is hungry. And certainly, don't waste your time making breakfast for him if you know he probably won't eat it anyway. My baby is 17 months, and he sometimes will only eat 2-3 bites the entire 24 hrs in a day. And maybe 1-2 cups of milk or water. I was very concerned about this, and the nurse at my drs office said that kids are just like us. They do have a mind of their own, and know when they are hungry or not. If you try to force a kid to eat, and they don't want it, it isn't going to get eaten anyway. There will just be a tantrum, and you will be more stressed than necassary. I was also told by the nurse that as long as he is acting normal, and doesn't seem dehydrated and his skin still seems supple, then don't worry about it. Trust me, not worrying about the food thing from then on was a HUGE stress reliever. If he only eats one bite of his breakfast, after not eating dinner since 6 the night before, oh well. I just put it in the fridge, and try again later. No biggie. And he seems just fine..... ↑ |
| Name: bmes | Date: Feb 5th, 2008 4:28 PM |
| this is true cj....some days Anika will barely eat anything....other days I can't keep up with the cooking cause she just wants more more more!! Lol... ↑ |
| Name: kimber | Date: Feb 5th, 2008 5:50 PM |
| Thanks for all your advice. I guess I just have to get used to a small son. Today, I noticed that his pants were falling off that he normally wears. I weighed him and he is still 35 lbs. The doctor says as long as he is gaining since the last year then it is OK. I think he has gained one pound since last year. ↑ |
| Name: bmes | Date: Feb 5th, 2008 5:59 PM |
| omg!!! my daughter is a BUTCH!!!! ha ha ha ha.....she doesn't look chunky, but she's 28 pounds....not even 2 years old yet. we've seen two year old half her size. oh man....is she gonna be the bully in school? lol... ↑ |
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