Ok moms, is it just me, or do you find it INCREDIBLY difficult to sit and eat Thanksgiving dinner with your toddlers? We had Thanksgiving at my aunt's house this year and she has 2 dogs and a nice huge backyard. Well, this was very distracting for my 2 yr old son as he wanted to run around outside and play with the dogs. I could not for the life of me get him to sit and eat. I'd try and force him but he'd start throwing a tantrum so I just let him go. I didnt want him outside unattended so I stayed with him outside until my husband finished and we "switched". Needless to say, I didnt really get to sit, talk, and eat. We also have a 9 mo old who I had on my lap while I ate and slipped her spoonfuls of mashed potato every few minutes.
My Thanksgiving was quite stressful and I spent most of it chasing my 2 yr old around my aunt's house. I hardly had one plate full. :/
I suppose next year we'll have to take portable high chairs or what? How do you moms deal with sit down dinners at other people's homes when you have an active toddler???
Thank you. I'll get a couple of the booster high chairs and get them used to eating in them. At home, mealtime is very easy b/c we have a routine we follow EVERY day.
Restaurants are fairly easy as well. It's just difficult in someone else's home. There were no other children besides mine(my immediate family spends thanksgiving back home in San Antonio and we didn't feel like making the drive this year). My aunt and her husband are in their 40's and a high powered career couple with no children. Their house is very modern, far from childproofed. My son wanted to play(bang) on the piano, chase the (watch it, they might bite)scottish terrier dogs, and throw the ball in the house. The dining room back wall is all window with a glass door that opens into the yard. They had the fire going so to keep things cool and "airy", they cracked the door to the yard. The yard has a pool and my son kept wanting to run outside. So, as you can see, my eyes were on him every second. My daughter is easier b/c she is content to just on someone's lap.
Anyway, the good news is that we were able to bring some leftovers home and have a pleasant meal on Friday. I finally was able to enjoy the parmesan mashed potatoes evryone was raving about. :-)
Hopefully by next year, my son will be able to sit still for a bit. But yes, I will def get some booster chairs with straps and get them used to sitting in them.
Thanks again!! Christmas is much easier b/c we do it in San Antonio and the house there is full of kids,childproofed, and I can relax a little and just let my son run around and play while I eat and catch up with the fam.
Happy Holidays!
We went to my mother-in-law's house and brought the highchair. Even with that my 16month old did no want to eat either. When he got too fidgety in the high chair we just let him go play (by then his older brother was already done eating so at least he had someone to play with). Don't stress too much, they won't be small forever.
Welcome to life with a toddler (and having 2 under age 2)! My husband and I have been switching off for the past 5 years at gatherings like this {our daughter is 5, son is 3 1/2, and now most recently, we have a 2 month old daughter}. We keep our expectations low, and are happy if the kids eat even a little. They still don't sit for very long...
Keep your expectations low... don't expect a toddler to eat when they're too excited about their surroundings and the crowd. If you want to try to get your son to sit and eat, a portable booster seat is a good idea (but you'll need to get him used to eating meals in it. If you only bring it along to use once in a while, he'll have a tantrum that he's being strapped down~ try using the seat regularly at home, so he knows that when he's in it, it's mealtime~ no surprises).
Good luck the next time around & happy holidays!
Welcome to motherhood, I thought this was normal! LOL! I have a 5 year old and 2 year old, and the 2 year old eats in like less than 5 minutes, if he even eats. I have to say the 5 year old used to do the same, and now he's better! It does get better as they get older. I know it seems like they will be little forever and you will never get to sit down, but they will grow up so fast!! Just try to be patient, it will pass. I have to tell myself that daily, and try to enjoy the moment. You sound like a great mom and your kids are very fortunate.
I know what you're talking about! This was out first year without a baby or toddler (our youngest is 3 1/2) and it was by far the most enjoyable Thanksgiving in the last 5 years.
Definitely get a couple of those portable booster chair/high chairs that strap onto a regular chair. Even if there are no extra chairs available, you can put them on the floor. These are sooo worth it. We even kept ours because so many friends have tots that use them when they come over.
Also, taking turns is basically how we handled these big group meals for a while. We've spent many Thanksgivings at our aunt's house with one of us outside watching kids while the other ate. There are a bunch of cousins, so it always ended up that the dads would all take backyard duty at the same time while the moms ate, then the moms end up on duty when the football game is on.
Another tip about a kid not wanting to sit still to eat -- don't even attempt to make him sit OR eat. Eventually he'll come in and ask for food when he's hungry enough. And it's best if you throw out all pre-conceived ideas of nutrition, etc. There have been years where it seems like mine ate nothing but buttered rolls and pie all day. Just forget about it. It's ONE day. This was hard for us because we're self-proclaimed food nazis, but it was just less stressful to give up the fight for the day. Also, we started bringing a dish that we know the kids would eat. For example, they won't touch a green bean casserole, but they'll eat their weight in plain green beans. So, we bring plain green beans. This way we know that at least one vegetable will cross their lips before the day is over.
This doesn't mean that there's a total free-for-all where eating and behavior are concerned, we're just a lot more relaxed about everything.
Good luck, and I hope Christmas is less stressful!
Welcome to life with children! Don't expect your 2-y.o. to act like a small adult. Your son was doing what 2-year-olds do and you wanted to do what adults do. It's a a contradiction, but it's life. One day you'll be able to have those leisurely visits with friends and family, it's just not today, or at least not until naptime! But trust me on this, the more you try to make your children into something they are not, the more frustrated you (and they) will become.
P.S.--I didn't read any other replies until I wrote mine and I had no idea the gal before me had the same opening line!! Guess that's confirmation, huh?!
The way you get to eat is you don't make the kid sit when he doesn't want to, part of the territory when you have kids that age. It is much more stressful trying to get the child to conform. If he is still napping, you can ask your hostess to try to schedule the meal at naptime but other than that, meh.
The one thing that can be helpful is to keep the child from grazing on any treats that are around for the adults while waiting for dinner; if he's hungry he will sit and eat for a while but to me, it's not worth it to try to get them to do the Thanksgiving thing at that age.
If you will be sitting down to a Christmas dinner, talk about it now, tell your husband you would appreciate it if you can eat first so you can enjoy your meal next time and that you can switch every other holiday who is on kid duty first so you make it even. Portable height chairs are a good idea if you want to deal with them or if you are there regularly enough, ask if it is an imposition to leave one there in the garage or something, pick one up cheap at a garage sale or second hand store.
If the chasing was related to the child getting into things, ask your aunt if she minds you doing a little quick child-proofing so that you don't have to run around after the child so much to make sure he isn't getting into things and also if your little one is old enough to sit and watch a movie, you can try to do that so that you can eat.
I found that family meals at that age were never particularly enjoyable because my X wasn't into helping with the kids so all of the running around and eating stuff I had no help with unless it was offered by another family member. They will grow out of it in a couple of years and you will again be able to enjoy a normal holiday meal.
We did not have a hard time at all. We let our 2 1/2 year old play outside with the dog first.
At time to eat we put her in a high chair to eat.
It was no different than any other day for her.
My son is just 11 months old, but I'm starting to understand where you're coming from. When it comes to eating, the best thing I've purchased so far is one of the booster chairs that just straps onto your dinner chair. We have that instead of a highchair, and when we go to my dad's house, we just grab it and take it with us. Soooooo convenient. The one we have is Fisher Price Rainforest, but you could easily save some money and skip the fancy rainforest edition. My son never plays with the toy that came with it anyway. Send me a private message if you'd like me to find a link to one for you. You can sometimes even find them on craigslist for like $5 or $10 each!
I host thanksgiving dinner. I have a playroom for the kids, a naproom (that is usually my master bedroom) - where moms can set up playpens for naptime for the babies, and an understanding that toddlers are grazers. Fortunately we have several little ones in my family (a good chunk of them mine), and parents are outside watching more than they are inside watching tv.
*hugs*
S.
We do it just as you did...'the switch'. our 4 yr old eats in 5 mins flat but we don't have to worry about her as much now. But now we are on to our 18 month old. She is done quick and wants to be down and out. I feel like I haven't had a sit down meal with adult conversation in years. I figure it goes with the territory and once they are both older it will be different.
Yeah, you could buy one of those portable highchairs. I used mine everywhere...friend's houses & restaurants. They are worth it.
The only other advice I can give you is that it's hard to feed toddlers on holidays...it's just too exciting for them...I think. I just tell my 4 year old that he can't get dessert if he doesn't eat a good dinner. Sometimes it works...sometimes it doesn't. We drove home last night with my son complaining that he was hungry while we were stuffed in the front seat. I only let him eat fruit the rest of the night. lol
