"Beth Kevles" wrote:

: The big thing to understand is that a 2 1/2 year old's
eating habits are
: very little like the eating habits of an older child. You
will NOT be
: setting yourself up for behavior problems is you let your
child snack
: between meals.
:
: My kids, and most of the kids I know, all ate three meals
plus three
: "snacks" every day. The snacks were just as nutritious as
the meals, so
: really it was six meals a day, but MUCH smaller than
regular meals.
: Two-year olds still have small tummies and really NEED to
eat more
: frequently than 3 times a day.
:
: To avoid behavioral problems with eating, start enforcing
some basic
: rules, such as staying seated until you're done. Enforce
a place where
: eating is okay and other places where eating is NOT okay.
Help your
: child use forks and spoons correctly. (Wait a bit to
introduce a knife,
: and make it a butter knife at first.)
:
: DOn't make special meals for your kids. Instead, make
sure that one or
: two things in the meal are things your child likes anyway.
For example,
: you might offer macaroni and cheesefrequently as a side
dish if your
: child loves it. And in our house, we serve the vegetables
first, then
: proceed to the starches and proteins. Sweets, when
offered, come last.
:
: As long as you only offer healthy foods, then don't fret
about exactly
: what or how much your child consumes. At this age, you'll
discover if
: you write down everything he eats, that over the course of
about 3 days
: he'll be naturally consuming a varied, healthy diet. (This
works for
: most kids.)
:
: Do excuse your child from the table when he's had enough
(but don't let
: him come back and forth to the table frequently). That
is, once a
: particular meal is over, it's over. Then wait at least an
hour before
: the next "meal". Remember that an hour is a VERY long
time for a small
: child.
:
: These suggestions have worked well for my family. My kids
are now 6 and
: 8, and they eat well and politely most of the time.
Mealtimes were a
: bit of a hassle when they were 2 and 3 years old -- not
the least
: because I had to mop the floor and wipe down the chairs
after most meals
: -- but by the time they were 4 I could definitely see
improvement.

I was going to post on the topic until I read this, agreed
with all of it, and decided I had nothing to add, except
"excellent post!" g
--
Ruth B -- Remove the blinders to send email

Stewie (reading the Bible): "My my, what a thumping good
read, lions eating Christians, people nailing each other to
two by fours. I'll say, you won't find that in Winnie the
Pooh."




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