tv

[legend_018]

When both children "1 year old and baby in tummy" get a little older, i'd like to have more formal sit downs for dinners for the entire family. I grew up with no tv allowed and that's how I'd like it. Our upstairs is combo living room/kitchen.

The problem is....you might of seen the topic in this forum ""never ending battle it seems"" and many other topics I've put out about my 1 year olds feeding problems.  Which have been going off and on since 7 months of age.

It could be a coincidence or perhaps if I keep doing it, she'll eventually stop doing this, but it seems that watching some of her favorite shows like elmo while eating, makes her more calmer and sometimes even eats better. I'm not saying it's a world of a difference, but sometimes i"m surprised at how much "less bored" she seems and she'll actually pop food into her mouth from her tray in what seems a calm fashion.

I'm probably nuts huh?

[Ewan's Mummy]

My 24 month old is exactly the same.  We normally all eat at the table in the kitchen together for our meals but on the occasions where we don't (I need to sort out baby whilst toddler is having his lunch, kitchen in chaos due to decorating etc) he sits in his high chair in front of the TV and eats more food and stays put for longer.  At the table in the kitchen he's often saying 'all done' 'down please' before he's had two mouthfuls!

[mum101]

It's hard to know what to do in that regard.  I think it's probably a short-term solution, won't mean they will develop great and healthy eating habits. But it's hard not to worry about what they are eating on a daily basis!
If I'm giving DD something I know she won't like too much but I want her to get used too (eg. fish or a new meal) I can use the ole 'let's eat in the living room' trick!  She practically won't even notice what she is eating, which I don't like as I want her to relish and enjoy food, not just hoover!   

[tylersmommy]

Odds are that she eats more when watching TV because she's distracted and not thinking about what she's doing. On one hand, good, because it gets her to eat. On the other hand, not so good, because she isn't paying attention to her body. She might not notice when she's full and may keep eating because she's distracted. It may be a good short term solution, but you may be setting yourself up for issues further down the road.

I know it's hard, but try to remember that toddlers really don't need very much food to survive. They can eat in spurts too...nothing for several days, then act like a bottomless pit. And it's totally normal. Weight gain slows WAY down so they just don't need as much food (of course, losing weight isn't normal). Healthy kids don't starve themselves. I promise!

I haven't seen your other posts, but if you have visions of sitting down at the table as a family with no TV, your best bet is to start that habit now. Believe me, trying to break a food/TV association will be a LOT harder later on down the line. She may not eat as much, but it's probably because she's paying attention to her body and not eating past full. Does that make sense? I know how hard it is to watch your child survive on air, but if she's healthy, that means she's getting what she needs!

[legend_018]

my main problem is my child thrives on her bottles in a big way. She will literally whine to get down after hardly eating anything and within 1/2 hour be whining, crying and pulling on my leg for me to make her a bottle. She's 1 years old and i'm lucky if I can cut it down to 25-27 ounces in a day. Of course there is much more to the story and in other post, but that is basically my problem. She either eats nothign at all, very little or sometimes we have fairly good days...that dont' seem to last. I realize that sometimes teething and/or being on ear infection medicines can contribute. However, this has been an ongoing battle since she was 7 months old. everything I try backfires on me. Recent trys have been cutting down on bottles and making shakes are examples.

[tylersmommy]

Just read your other post...TBH, I think that biting the bullet and ditching bottles is the best answer. It will be hard, there will be crying, but I don't think this is entirely about food. She wants bottles and it doesn't necessarily sound like it's because she's hungry. If you go cold turkey, you'll have some pretty rough days, but I think that might be the best road. I'd imagine that gradually weaning her off them will drag the process out because she seems to be pretty dependent on them. That means no bottles in the night either, if you really feel it's hunger, then offer a sippy of milk. The first few days will suck...most toddlers don't really drink much from a sippy until after the bottle is gone for good and she probably won't eat much either. But I think it's for the best...Once she's feeling better and you're sure she isn't sick anymore, chuck the bottles in the trash if you have to and don't look back. A few hungry days won't be the end of the world and you might find her eating habits improve a lot!

[Samuel's mum]

In our old house Sam had a dinner/TV association which I wanted to break. I moved the table round so the TV was no longer visible and he accepted it fine. As an intermediate step I sat with him at the table and we read books together while he ate. Then sometimes I told stories instead of reading books. In this house I've made sure there's no TV anywhere near the table. Sometimes we still have book reading at dinner. But I also try hard to focus on our talking about the day and sometimes a bit of storytelling.
I know the TV thing is so 'easy'. In my house when we grew up we always watched TV with dinner and I was determined not to do that as I really feel I missed out. We really lost out on a time for family conversation and I feel it affected us in other ways. I don't talk to my brother a lot and I do feel if we had talked every night growing up it would have instilled habits in us that would have lasted. Even when we visit my mum today she still eats dinner with the TV. Sam has his dinner at the table earlier.
I don't think there's ever an easy time to ditch the TV but I would have thought the earlier the better. Now is the time to model good habits and conversation and show what you want to be normal family behaviour.

Anyway - you know all that. I'd just thought I'd share my story.

[kate585]

Warning:  Tough talk ahead.  Given with love!!!   

Sorry to say, but I agree with Melissa.  (I read a bit of your other post, too).  You have to get rid of the bottles...throw them away or give them to a friend to hold onto for your next baby.  If they are in the house, you will be tempted to give in. 
It will be hard, but your dd knows she'll be able to get a bottle out of you later, so why eat now?  It's really better for their oral development to have no bottles after one anyway. 
I think you will have a few rough days, but it will be so much better after that.  Think of the bottles as doing a quick nurse/bottle to sleep, instead of sleep training.  It solves the problem that day, but you'll still be dealing with night wakings for several months or years down the line.  Break the cycle now and you'll be on a good eating pattern soon.
Good luck!!!

[legend_018]

please see the 2 posts I put this morning under ""never ending battle it seems""

[Mom to M&M]

Totally agree with Melissa and Kate - it will be hard but WELL worth it in the long run.

It seems like she gets a lot of ear infections though (which ditching the bottles may also help with). Has this always been the case?