Mealtime Mayhem!

When he leaves his meal for later, don't worry about it, but when he's hungry later, give him the same meal that he didn't have before. Don't let him have snacks in place of a meal, but offer the meal as a "snack" instead.

When my daughter gets into moods like this, I only offer veggie sticks and hummus, pate or nut dips as snacks; small sandwiches, soups and mini meals as snacks --no cookies, crackers, chips etc those are only for special occasions.

Don't offer a second option. You are sending the message that there are, indeed, options and this is making him feel like he can control the situation. he gets what you give him and that's it. I JUST discovered this with my daughter. I stopped giving her the either/or choice and just gave her the meal without discussion. She has become MUCH better since then. Also, like another person suggested.... wrap his dinner and if he is hungry later, heat it up and give him the same meal. No snacks after dinner. He will figure it out eventually.

My son is doing the same thing. Unfortunately, it's my mom that offers the "buffet" while I insist on just offering a few choices. Trust me, it will get worse if you keep offering him too many choices. I give two - this one or this one? I'll say, while offering, say, soup or cheese and crackers for dinner. I have long given up on teh Martha Stewart-esque ideal of giving my child nothing but the healthiest stuff all the time. While I am still reading labels and eating green, I don't make a big deal if my son chooses to skip 1, 2, or even all 3 of his meals, preferring to only snack. I find that when I don't fuss about it, the tantrums and fussiness subside. As for the "big boy chair," my son also has longed abandoned his high chair (although, every once in a while, he wants to sit in it and cuddle with his blankie). I let him sit wherever he wants, but again, I only give him the choice of sitting at the island or on the table -- NOT in front of the TV or elsewhere, where I have to follow him around with a spoon. If he wanders, I let him and I don't chase him - I figure if he is hungry enough, he will stay in place to eat.

My daughter is doing the same thing. We have found that if we put the food on the fork and hand it to her then she will eat it. If we let her do it she just plays with it. Doesn't always work but it does get her to eat. The doctor told me that they are at the age where they would rather play then eat. I usually save her plate and when she gets hungry I give it to her again. She usually finishes the whole thing. Try to watch what he IS eating and give it to him more often and try to sneak in something new (or old. So far it is working for us. Good Luck!