May 13, 2002 - Monday
I know that family dinners with everyone sitting around a table together sharing the events of the day are supposed to be one of those special bonding times, but more often these days they just bother me. Sure, dinners start out well enough - well, as long as Harry isn't hungry and whiny - but Harry never has eaten enough before the boredom of sitting still in a chair gets the better of him and he starts fidgeting, playing with whatever is within reach, and not eating and I end up trying to feed him like a baby. We've thought about just letting him go hungry, but that would likely have other undesirable reprocussions for the next several hours, through the night and into the morning. And, after it all, I'm not convinced a little boy of two would quite understand the lesson.

Jeremy hasn't been eating that well either. He's been getting the rice cereal and other baby food for almost two months now and still has very little interest in anything beyond than playing with the spoon. We've had some minor successes with applesauce and with carrots, but usually Jeremy tires of even the spoon and gets bored himself. His mother most often then needs to get up and either feed him or try to get him to sleep. Either way, our evening meal something less than a special bonding moment.

The real trouble is that I don't really have a solution for making things better. I suppose giving Harry more attention during dinner, persistently leading the conversation to keep him thinking, is a good way to start and trying to accentuate the positive in what he does. Give him 100 percent of our attention, don't talk to his mother, and forget all the other dinnertime habits I've picked up over the last near-40 years of life.

Jeremy? He probably just needs to be on a different schedule.


Comments, Opinions?