My 17 month old son is constantly throwing his sippy cup, silverware and food on the floor. This is a every day/meal battle thats been happening for sometime. At first, I thought it was just a "stage", but nothing I seem to do or say is helping correct this. I REALLY need help from you moms out here who have some ideas on how to handle this. It's getting very annoying:).
Thanks everyone for the encouraging words. I found out that he doesn't seem to do this at daycare so I took away his high chair and have him eating on little kids table (like they use at daycare). The last 2 days have been a little better but you all were right....he thinks by throwing it and us picking it up we are playing a game. I noticed he would start laughing every time. I finally had enough and have been taking it away for good.
I know the more you attention you give to it the more he will do it. When he throws it leave it. let him eat with his fingers and no sippy cup till after he is done. I mean let him have it at meal time once. This will show him that he is not getting attention for this behavior, Good luck
Kids, ya gotta love em.
I kinda laughed when I read this, not at you but because I went through it and it drove me nuts! Yes it is a phase! I can give you some info I read about it that made it seem a lot less annoying. When babies are younger and they drop something, they have no idea they can get it back, they just think its gone forever or just really dont care about it. But it is actually a milestone when they figure out, "Hey I dropped that on the floor, I can see it, and I can get it back!" Because Mommy picks it up every time! They like dropping things and getting it back. It really bothered me in restaurants when my daughter would throw everything on those dirty floors. Another thing I have noticed in boys, they love playing with food and being messy with it! My daughter was never a messy baby but my nephew, goodness get a hose! Its funny when you look back on it. Im laughing now, wait until my baby boy gets to this stage, I will probably be annoyed to! Hes not trying to make you mad, its just so much fun!
Seriously....just set your limits...whether it be once on the floor or twice or ???....& stick to your choice. Clearly state that the meal is over when the food/utensils hit the floor & don't give extra snacks. Your son is old enough to understand this, & is certainly old enough to learn basic table manners.
I provide childcare & am continually astounded at how many children are allowed to eat off of the floor, table, & chair....& are not taught to remain sitting in their chair! It's very frustrating to have to teach the parents, not just the children.
I think it's best not to react too much because then they do it just for the reaction. If he were mine meal time would be over. Without saying anything or acting upset, just get up and start clearing his tray and washing him up. If he protests ignore him. If you feel real sorry for him, offer him something to eat in 1-2 hours instead of 3-4 hours. He won't starve, I promise. Each time you offer him food he should eat a few more bites before throwing it. If he gets hungry enough he'll at least finish eating it. When you get to the point that he's eating until full you'll have to try and pay attention to how he acts when he's getting full. If you learn to start clearing his try before he eats the last few bites, he'll learn early in life to eat only to satisfied and not over full. It's a great lesson to learn.
Suzi
We went through this also, us and the sitter got him down and he was done eating as soon as he started that. They figure it out pretty quickly, because then they end up hungry! We did not give him anything until the next scheduled meal or snack. He hated that, then he started keeping everything on his tray. I agree dont get mad, use Love and Logic, Uh-Oh i guess your done eating now! and get him down! The thing is dont give in when he begs you for food in an hour, because he is just starting a new habit then! Have fun!
Give it back to him, once. Tell him if he throws it again, he will not get it back. Don't worry, he won't starve or go thirsty. When he's hungry, thirsty enough, he won't throw it anymore. OR when he learns that you mean it, that when its thrown, it is NOT returned, he will stop.
Good luck and God Bless :)
Good Morning B., Our 15 mo. old gr son is at that stage now, except he does it when he is finished or doesn't want anymore. Whatever he drops he doesn't get back. If he is in his swing and his bottle drops I set it someplace else. I do have a nosey Puppy, so i keep things, food bottles away from her reach too. Zane will throw Cheerios on the floor for Amber.......lol No No Baby!!
DIL and I went to lunch yesterday with Zane only. Daddy kept the Big boy entertained. She always takes snacks just in case. That boy loves Cheese curls, if he see's them before he eats his other foods, Well all eating stops until he gets them. But those even go on the floor when he is full.
So far we haven't had to play the game of throw it and pick it up. He drops it, it's gone.
God Bless and Hang in there Mama
K. Nana of 5
We are dealing with this right now as well with the little guy I babysit. He is 15 months. He seriously thinks it is hilarious. I take it away everytime and I will even put it in the fridge and be done. If he throws his food, he gets down. We have been doing this for 5 months now and I am getting real tired of having to clean my hardwood floors constantly! I did just order this interesting gadget--haven't gotten it yet. www.sippycupholders.com I hope it works for the tray, if nothing else it would be great for the stroller as it has a clip as well as the suction cup. good luck!
I too struggle with this with my 2 year old as well as my almost 15 month old. Do you have pets like a cat or dog? I ask because I think my children do it because we have a dog and a cat that will eat it and they think it's funny. With Merandah (my 2 year old) she wants to be a Big Girl now so we tell her that big girls don't throw their food on the floor and it seemed to work. She still does it from time to time but not as much. Neythanael (our 15 month old) we stopped letting him feed himself. He likes to eat himself so when he throws a little bit of food on the floor we no longer allow him to feed himself and one of us will feed him.
With their sippy cups we take them away and when they tell us they want them we take it to them, let them drink (while we stand infront of them) & then put it back on the table.
Hope this will be helpful...
~H.
My son is 21 months old and he has been doing the same thing for several months now. I, too, thought it was a stage and would wane quickly. I have since figured out that if he begins throwing food, he is done. I keep an eye on him during dinner, and if he throws a piece of food on the floor, I warn him that if he throws againg, I am going to take away his plate. Then, follow through. I also watch for the entire plate heading south and try to intervene. He has actually gotten to the point that he will hand me his plate when he is done, but it is clear that when he has finished eating, he no longer want his food sitting in front of him.
Good luck! This is a very frustrating time for all involved!
Its called 'Mommy pick up' Have a laugh:
Election Night Humor-4 minutes:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3pqFVqlMX2o
Enjoy!
Hi B., We went through this with our youngest daughter and it went on forever - I thought the kid would go to school thowing her plate! As soon as she was done she would throw her plate to the floor and anything else on the tray. We got to where we watched for signs of her being done so we could grab the plate. I think what helped the most is we would make her pick up the stuff she threw down. Can be a little hard at that age but we would just tell her she had to pick up the plate/cup/spoon before she could leave. That wasn't as fun as throwing. Plus as she got closer to 2 years old she would want to sit at the table and not in the high chair, but we told her that she couldn't sit at the tabel untill she stopped trowing stuff. She is now 5 years old and in Kindergarten - and does not throw food. But is still the messiest eater I have even seen. Plays in her food all the time. So now our thing is if she is playing in her food then it will be taken away and she goes to her room and to bed. That is helping with that problem. Good luck!
boy that does sound annoying. i know that my son tended to do this when he was finished eating, so don't sweat it, just watch for his cues that mealtime is over. also my advice would be - if it hits the floor, it's gone. he won't care about silverware, but once he sees his drink go bye-bye and not reappear, he won't think it's quite such fun to throw things. of course, tell him throwing is not nice, and we don't do that, and it has to go bye-bye now...etc. put your foot down. there is a phase they go through, learning cause and effect, learning that mom will be there to help them when they need it, but eventually he's just playing with you. enough! now you'll be teaching him that you're not his little servant. good luck!
if you are picking up the things and putting it back on his tray you have made a game out of this and it is fun for your child. Don't keep giving it back to him when he throws stuff off his tray. Pick it up and put it on the table and then if he asks for the cup or stuff back or reaches for it tell him not to throw it and if he throws it again just don't give it to him again. I think all 3 of mine did this at first but learned it wasn't a game when I wouldn't give them their things back after a few times of picking it up. It may take a week to fix it but just keep reminding him not to throw it before giving it to him.
