Been Here For 5 Months And They Still Wont Eat

[mrsp'slilpeeps]

DCG 3 and DCB 6, siblings have been here this long and they still wont eat anything I serve for snack or lunch.

OYE. I just dont get it. DCB asked me yesterday to go to the store and buy him some cookies so he would eat.

My own son (6yrs) turned around and smacked his own forhead.::

Now DCG is refusing to eat anything today. All she has had today is a blue berry muffin. She doesnt like milk.

WTH am I supposed to do?

I have mentioned this to mom and she said sorry they are peticular. They get it from me.

[SilverSabre25]

I have one who has been here almost 18 months and he still rarely eats much. He's finally, FINALLY, starting to try things, even things that are unfamiliar, and starting to eat a bit more...it's been a long, frustrating road, let me tell you.

[countrymom]

because its not take out food. I remember reading a thread where the provider had the same issue, and that she had to put the food in a take out bag so the kid would eat it. If anyone remembers the thread please post it. I wonder if that would work.

[Nellie]

I have a DCB and he started when he was 12 months old. At the interview the mom told me that they and the other daycare had been not allowing the child snacks if the child didn't eat the food that had been served at the meal. They said he was very particular about textures and had been having a hard time switching to soft or mashed food instead of completely pureed. I was very nervous about it. I did say that I was required to offer food at least every three hours. I'm kind of a softy when they are that little and always tried to have one food on the tray(favorite vegies or fruit) along with a meal that I didn't know if they liked or they weren't to keen on. I was friends with the old provider and she asked me how he was doing and I mentined the above. It turned out that Dad is an extremely picky eater. There is a list of 6 items that he will eat(one of them is ritz crackers). Mom was very concerned about the child picking up on dad's picky eating and wanted to nip it in the butt before it became a problem. It is a year later and child eats pretty good for me and mom, but when he alone with dad he won't eat anything besides Ritz cracker(what dad is eating for lunch). If mom is very picky she probable doesn't push children to eat outside there comfort zone.

[e.j.]

WTH am I supposed to do?

As I see it, our job is to serve healthy meals. Their job is to decide to eat it or not.

Young kids are notoriously picky eaters. While I do try to include at least one food I know the picky eaters will eat, I don't stress over whether the kids eat or not. If they choose not to eat, they'll be hungry by the end of the day but they will survive. Once they get home, their parents can cater to them if they want to fight the picky-eater battles.

[Hunni Bee]

Your kids oughta meet our kids...they **** anything down...

We snuck some dry beans in the spaghetti sauce today...we heard (besides the slurping and gobbling) "Look, I got a bean in my spagetti!" "I got three!"

[meganlavonnesmommy]

Same as E.J.

Its your job to serve the food, not to make them eat it.
Not eating in your home isnt causing them harm. They are obviously
still alive and thriving.

Continue to serve the food, and its their choice.

[momma2girls]

I agree, the daycare children eat what I serve, or they can refuse and be hungry. When I first started nearly 10 yrs. ago- I did serve other things, all the time. Needless to say, that didn't work, and I didn't do it long!! It was getting way too much!! Either they like it, or they don't!!

[Meeko]

I simply do not worry about meal times.

I serve the food. They can eat it or not. The choice is theirs.

[mrsp'slilpeeps]

Thats what I have been telling these kids, if you dont like it dont eat it.

Im just more concerned about what they tell their mom when they are starving when they get home.

Im sure it makes for a long day, they are here from 8:30-5:30.

I serve my last snack at around 3:45-4 pm so that my kids and the school kids and the rest can all eat at the same time.

[Christian Mother]

I don't seem to have any problems getting my kids to eat...if anything they are endless pits and always asking for more..!! I have to stop them or they'll over feed them selves and then get sick.

[e.j.]

Im just more concerned about what they tell their mom when they are starving when they get home.

During the initial interview, I cover meal time with the parents. I explain what my policy is -- I belong to the food program and follow their guidelines, my meals are nutritious, I don't force kids to eat and I don't cater to picky eaters. (I say it nicely but those are the basics.) That way, if their kids are going home hungry, they know why. Also, if I notice that a child really didn't eat much during the day, I'll let the parent know just to give them a heads-up.

[Blackcat31]

I simply do not worry about meal times.

I serve the food. They can eat it or not. The choice is theirs.

THIS^^^^^^

Im just more concerned about what they tell their mom when they are starving when they get home.

You tell the parents the underlined above.

You cannot physically make anyone eat. So you serve. They choose.

[tbutler]

I had to get over the "this kid doesn't eat anything unless it's chicken nuggets" frustration too. I give them very little servings of whatever lunch is. If they don't eat it, I'm not throwing away a full plate of food. If they finish it, great! They are welcomed to have more until all the food is gone. I'll tell mom at pickup time, "Johnny may be hungry because he hasn't ate anything since breakfast". Now I have no more worries about lunch time.