I don't WANNA eat!!!
Feb 18 '01 (Updated Sep 08 '01)
The Bottom Line Nobody can force their children to eat, so be creative with their food, and, when necessary, use ketchup.
I don't wanna eat, Mommy!
That is what my son says every time I sit him down for dinner. Or lunch. Or breakfast. In fact, half the time he says that for snacks as well! I never thought I would see this day that my little boy, who used to eat at least three times his body weight, would be saying this to me.
Memories, Sweet Memories
I think back to the days when he was an infant and he could never get enough to eat (drink, actually). And again, when he was old enough to start solid foods. He would even devour those meat stick things like I had been starving him or something. I would hear "oh, Dawn, you are SO lucky to have a baby that enjoys eating!" or the more melodramatic, "Just wait until he's a toddler... then you will see what I have to go through." I would smile politely and just shake my head. My boy will never be like other toddlers, I would tell myself.
When does a baby become a toddler?
I would suppose the experts have the correct answer for this, but I am not sure. In my opinion, my son became a toddler when he could walk, which wasn't until he was 13 or 14 months old. He was weaned off of baby food at a year and put on regular food, and all those new tastes just tickled him. I mean, I thought he ate a lot pre-toddler. This was getting ridiculous. It seemed like he never stopped eating.
When does a toddler stop eating, and why?
Again... if you want real answers, ask the experts. But in my case, my son decided he didn't like to eat any more at about 18 months old. He would eat nothing but eggs and spaghetti-o's, and the occasional banana. Nothing interested him, nothing enticed him, and he sure didn't want anything green and healthy. I wonder what it is that I fed him that turned him off of food so quickly...seemingly overnight. Why did he lose interest in food? Well...I have asked him this many times, but seeing as he can't talk like you or I can, I haven't gotten the answer that I so desperately seek. Maybe in another year or two.
How can I make him eat again?
Well, short of holding him down and force-feeding him, nobody can make their child eat. What frustrated parents can do was suggested to me by a very patient friend of mine (or at least she seems patient). Disguise their food and trick them into thinking they enjoy what they eat.
What I do to "trick" my toddler
Here are some suggestions for those in my shoes:
First, buy a food processor. This helps grind up those yucky green things that are good for your toddler, but wind up on your floor or on your head if you serve them with dinner. Once you grind these up so tiny that they are not as easy to detect, you can cook them in with spaghetti, macaroni and cheese, or even in eggs. If there is a certain meat that they won't eat, you can do the same thing. You can grind up any kind of food to be immune to the toddler radar.
Second, find out what your toddler really enjoys eating. My son likes ketchup. He will, much to my disgust, use a spoon and scoop up a gob of ketchup and swallow it like it was the nectar of the gods. Well, some experts say that ketchup is a vegetable, but that doesn't make it okay to live off of. So, if my son will eat food drenched in ketchup, then he gets ketchup with dinner, and plenty of it. The most disgusting thing I have ever seen him eat was waffles dipped in ketchup. But hey, he ate the whole waffle.
Third, if your toddler insists on eating the same thing night after night after night, Let him eat it as often as he wants! Toddler's minds aren't as strict as ours are. If he wants macaroni and cheese with ground up vegetables for 4 nights out of 7, then that is what he gets. At least he is eating. Even if you want variety in your diet (who doesn't?), your toddler may not. What I do is when I cook, I freeze a bunch of toddler-sized portions and if that's what he wants, he eats that while I make a seperate dinner for myself.
Fourth, and last, you have to make your toddler think that you don't care if he eats or he doesn't. It's kind of like reverse psychology. If you keep telling him he HAS to eat and he HAS to do this, he is more likely to be defiant than if you say "Fine, sweetie. If you don't want to eat that, that's okay." If you do this a few nights in a row, he'll lose interest in his rebellion against food and start eating what you put in front of him... til he gets that urge again. I'm going through that for the third time in 2 months now. And it probably won't be the last time.
Summary
Moms, sometimes you can have better luck if Dad tries to coerce your toddler to eat, and vice-versa. My son will sometimes throw things at me and turn around and eat every last bit for his Daddy. It annoys me to no end, but I don't show it until after the child goes to bed. Then I blame his Daddy. Why not? I sure can't blame my son.
The bottom line is, don't get frustrated with your toddler's eating habits. Soon, they will be teenagers and will eat you out of house and home. At that rate, we'll all either be in the looney bin or we'll just be wishing to hear the words "I don't wanna eat, Mommy!"
Thanks for reading, and happy cooking!
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mom2daniel
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Member: Dawn Coder
Location: Florida
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About Me:
This child whom we love brings daylight into our soul.
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