How Many Snacks Per Day do You Serve?

[SunshineMama]

How many meals/snacks per day do you serve and what is the time period you have children in your home?

I usually do an am snack, lunch, and a pm snack. I am not on any food program. Just wondering what you all are doing. Thanks

[Blackcat31]

I do the same as you.

My kiddos are here from 7:00 a.m. until 5:30 p.m.

Not all kids are here that long but those are the hours I actually have one or more kids in care.

[quailsgarden]

I do the same as you. I have kids from 8am-5pm. We usually have am snack at 9am, lunch at 1130am and pm snack at 3pm.

[Country Kids]

Breakfast 8:00-They bring from home

Snack:10:30

Lunch:12:30

Afternoon Snack:3;30 if they are awake. some days I don't serve it because no one wakes up in time to have it before they go home.

[BumbleBee]

My current schedule for meals is:

8:30 - Snack

11:30 - Lunch

3:30 - Snack

Pm snack is later because school gets out at 3 and I don't want to do 2 pm snack times.

[SilverSabre25]

Am snack/breakfast (I call it a snack to make the parents feed the kids at home but I serve according to breakfast guidelines)

Lunch

PM snack

[Countrygal]

Breakfast 8:00-They bring from home

Snack:10:30

Lunch:12:30

Afternoon Snack:3;30 if they are awake. some days I don't serve it because no one wakes up in time to have it before they go home.

I have exactly these same times for my meals!

[Country Kids]

I have exactly these same times for my meals!

We have connected!!!::

It probably has something to do with us both having "Country" in our names-

[Sunchimes]

I don't really have firm meal times because my kids come and go at such funny times. But, generally, breakfast is at 7 or 7:15, snack about 9:15 or 9:30, lunch at noon, snack at about 2:15, and two or three days a week, we have one here for dinner at 6:15.

[CountryMommy]

7:30-8:00 am Breakfast
10:00-10:30 am Snack
12:30-1:00 pm Lunch
3:00-3:30 Snack

Because I offer both Breakfast and Lunch and my eating times are all 2 hours apart, my snacks are very nutritious, but small. They are just a filler to get through until the meal, not a meal in themselves.

[SunflowerMama]

I do breakfast at 8:30a, lunch at 11:30a, snack at 3p when everyone is awake.

I used to do a morning snack but kids would not eat their lunch. The schedule now really works better for us.

[Former Teacher]

Am snack/breakfast (I call it a snack to make the parents feed the kids at home but I serve according to breakfast guidelines)

Lunch

PM snack

Pretty sad.

I remember once at my former center this parent thought we served breakfast because the menu stated different things like pancakes, waffles, french toast etc.

Her mouth hit the floor when I told her that the morning snack was just something to get little tummys to lunch. Likewise with PM snack...just a little something to get through to dinner.

Her line of thinking was that we were serving a 5 course breakfast

[daycarediva]

Breakfast 7:00
Am Snack 9:30
Lunch 11:30
PM snack 3:00

I have early arrivals, so I feed most of my kiddos a (full) breakfast.

[SilverSabre25]

Pretty sad.

I remember once at my former center this parent thought we served breakfast because the menu stated different things like pancakes, waffles, french toast etc.

Her mouth hit the floor when I told her that the morning snack was just something to get little tummys to lunch. Likewise with PM snack...just a little something to get through to dinner.

Her line of thinking was that we were serving a 5 course breakfast

yeah, it is. But that's the reality. I think some parents hear "snack" and think sweets and treats no matter what time of day. Also, I serve it at 9 (convenient for me due to DD's wake up time; dcks arrive between 7 and 8) and a parent expressed concern over breakfast being so late. So, I changed the name and voila! No more concerns, better lunches being eaten and most importantly, no whining about being hungry by the dcks until about 8:30!

I had been doing breakfast at 8 for the dcks then needed to feed DD around 8:45 or 9...which caused problems with the dcks...then snack was around 10ish and lunch wasn't getting eaten at noon so changing the time and name was one of the best things I've ever done.

[Childminder]

Breakfast 8-8:30
AM 10:15 - 10:30
Lunch 12 - 12:30
PM 4 - 4:15
Dinner 6 -6:30
Eve 8-8:15