Sep 29 2008
Picky and The Pig
“I don’t want,” is the oft heard remark of Bug at dinnertime.
“Bug, look, it’s watermelon, you love watermelon.”
“I don’t want.”
“But Bug, you need to try a bite. It’s delicious, see?” At this point, I take an over-dramatic bite followed by an equally over-the-top, “Mmmmm! Mommy likes it.”
He remains firm, “I don’t want!”
The gloves are off, “Bug, you will take one bite of this watermelon or you’ll go to bed hungry.”
He stands up and says, “I go bed.”
Score: Bug 1, Mommy 0
This scenario has played itself out time and time again in our home. I refuse to play short order cook, so it is well known in our home that if you don’t like what Mommy made, you’ll go hungry. Unfortunately, Bug is perfectly fine with that. It’s infuriating.
It’s not like I’m trying to get him to try something exotic and creepy like cavier or octopus. It’s a friggin’ slice of watermelon for Heaven’s sake.
Just recently, I implemented a brand new tactic, after attending a Love and Logic parenting class. I took the idea that kids want to be a part of the fun, and therefore hate being excluded, and tried my own little tactic at dinner time. It went a little something like this:
“Bug, you can’t eat just applesauce, how about your eggs or this biscuit?”
Bet you’ll never guess what he said next…
“I don’t want.”
With a mock sigh I turned to him and said, “That is so sad, Bug. If you aren’t going to be in here eating dinner, then you can’t be in here at all. I’m sorry, leave the kitchen.”
It was a stretch, a bit of a leap of faith, but he left the kitchen and boy was he crushed.
He ran out to the living room and threw himself on the couch, crying, “I wanna eat dinner!”
Eureka!
“Okay, Bug, you can come and eat dinner with us, but you have to actually eat.”
Know what happened? He ate the biscuit.
Score: Bug 1 Mom 1
I utilized this trick a few times after that. Most of the time it worked, sometimes it didn’t, but no matter what happened, I wasn’t forcing food down his throat, nor was I making a special meal just for him.
Oh, and The Pig? Well, Ms. Bean sat through each and every one of these scenarios chowing down on anything and everything I put in front of her. Honestly, I think that she pays Bug off to not eat, so she can have his food.
