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Old May 10th 05, 07:11 PM
Scott
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Robyn Kozierok wrote:
My boys are 4, 8 and 11yo. When we sit down for a family dinner,
we don't currently force the 4yo to join us. We sometimes give him
something to eat earlier if he's hungry, but more often that not
he basically skips dinner, or eats only a few bites. He's very tiny,
but completely healthy. But he really doesn't eat much, especially
at dinnertime.

My question is not about feeding him, as we have worked out a plan
with his pediatrician where he is healthy and growing, albeit slowly.

My question is, if your young child is done eating his dinner before
the rest of the family, do you expect him to stay at the table with
you? We usually let him go off to play or watch a video. And frankly,
we prefer to do that because it makes mealtimes much more relaxed for
the rest of us. We do make our older children stay at the table for
a reasonable amount of time, and I think we started with them before
they were 4yo. But this one just doesn't seem "inclined" to sit still
for a while at that time of day. (He eats lunch with his group at
preschool, so he does get "experience" with group mealtime behavior.)



When ours were preschoolers, they left when they were done.
As you know, squirmy kids do not a pleasant dining experience
make. Even now, DD and DS will sometimes be excused (they
do have to ask) before I or my wife are done eating. I guess
they kind of have to ask -- we eat in a nook, and they're on
the inside seats next to the wall Usually they have
something to do when they ask.

More and more, recently, we are all finishing at about the same
time, which is convenient because DD and DS have acquired the
chore of loading the dishwasher.

Scott DD 11 and DS 9