Re: Almost 5 yrs old won’t eat…
Glad to know that things are working out. Once I read an article in an by a pediatrician that a kids nutritional needs are met with much less food than we think.
you may want to try the following suggestions to make mealtimes easier and more enjoyable:
Give your child a heads up. Ten to 15 minutes before mealtime, tell your child that it will be time to eat soon. Children may be so tired or excited from play activities that they don’t feel like eating. Letting your child know that it is almost time for a meal will give him or her a chance to settle down before eating.Establish a routine. Children are more comfortable with routines and predictability, so set regular mealtimes, have people use the same seats at the table or create a tradition to have each person talk about something fun or interesting that happened to them during the day.Reserve mealtimes for eating and for spending quality time with your family. Don’t let your child play with toys during mealtimes. Reading books or watching television shouldn’t be allowed during mealtimes either. Explain to your child how good it is to eat together and ask him or her to stay at the table until everyone has eaten.**Make mealtimes pleasant. **If mealtimes are pleasant, there is a good chance that your child will begin to look forward to eating with other family members. Try to avoid arguments during mealtime.
**Manage your expectations. **Don’t expect manners that are too difficult for your child. For example, don’t expect a child who is 3 years old to eat with the proper utensil. For many children, a spoon is much easier to handle than a fork.
Thank you so much for the advice Mirch. I try to do most of these, except the not letting them play. At times I make them sit at the table, at others I just let them do their thing and feed them. I try to do whatever is less stressfull for them and myself.. as long as they eat. If I make them sit at the table, they may sit for a maximum of 5 - 10 minutes and both my kids are slow eaters. So that one just depends… rest of the things I do try.