Am I wrong again?, feeding the kids

[bawoodsmall]

My sis got me thinking specially today cuz emily is 4.5 and weighs 50 lbs with everything on including shoes. Is that bad? She seems normal to me. My sis has always just fed her kids when they say that they are hungry because she is very adamant about "not having a fat kid".

I have always fed my kids on a schedule. I dont want them to decide at 2:00 they are starving when dinner is 3 hours away.

[luvbug00]

Breakfast (6:45)
lunch ( at school)
snackie (3:00pm)
dinner (6-7pm)

when she was younger there was a morning snack too.

[amynicole21]

Sophia just hit 40lbs and will be 5.5 next month. They do get snacks in between meals, but not within about 30min of eating.

[coasterqueen]

Hmm, I don't know. Kylie will be 5.5 in a couple of weeks and she is 48 pounds. I know this because she weighed herself last night before bath and for some reason was very excited about weighing that much.

I try to feed them on some kind of schedule, but doesn't always happen. I definitely don't say "it's noon, they have to eat now" type of thing. They get snacks when they ask for them (within reason). My kids would probably tell you I starve them.

[luvbug00]

Oh and to answer. Ur not wrong. everyone does what works for them. Mya was under 20 lbs until she was almost 2 and now she is 7 and 45lbs.

[bawoodsmall]

See I guess I obviously dont want an overweight child. I said oh gosh at the dr. and they didnt say anything like..yeah you should be worried.
I also know I dont want my kids to be paranoid about their bodies at such a young age. I am trying to teach them to eat right.

Does anyone know what she should be at?

[:.Mrs_Mommy.:]

I do both. They will get breakfast in the morning within 1/2 hr of waking up, lunch between 11:00-12:00 then supper around 5:30. If they are hungry between meals they will get a snack of a cpl animal crackers, a slice of toast, piece of fruit, something small to hold them over until the next meal.

I never force my children to eat everything in front of them either. If they don't like something they have to try 1 bite and if they say they are full then they get down, but they don't get a snack before bed then.

I just figured I wouldn't want anyone telling me that I need to eat something that I don't want and I hated it when my g-ma would do that. I was overweight as a child and am now as an adult and I don't want my children to go through anything like I did so letting them decide when they want to eat, where I decide what they eat works pretty good for us.

[luvmykids]

Kylie and Colt are almost six and weigh 43 and 46lbs...she is one of the tallest kids in their class and he is right in the middle, they're both far from fat. I don't know what the range is but Emily sounds right in it imo.

We eat on a loose schedule, breakfast is at 7am, lunch at school is 10:45, snack at school is 12:45, they get home at 2:30 and have a snack, and dinner is between 5:30-6:00. They get a snack if it's not too close to mealtime, I don't see anything wrong with what you're doing.

[Kaitlin'smom]

depends on the day really, dinner and weekends are more relaxed, but breakfast and lunch during the school week are scheduled but she does not have to eat if not hungry. She does get snacks if she is hungry, things like cheese, yougert, fruit sometimes other things but she does not ask for junk very often.

you do what works for you and as long as she is heathly, eats right (for the most part) and active she shoudl be fine

[Jamison'smama]

My kids are "starving" when they wake up so the eat breakfast about the same time everyday. On days when Jamison is home from school, they eat lunch when they tell me they are hungry. We do have a sit down dinner every night. Although their meals are somewhat scheduled, they eat as much as they want--we want them to register fullness so we only push for them to eat the healthier stuff first then stop when full.

[holley79]

Annika eats breakfast when she gets to her day home during the week. She eats when she gets up on the weekends. Annika actually eats all day long. She is a snacker. We have a sit down dinner. She eats normally with us but even if she decides she doesn't want to eat right then she still sits at the table with us.

[PrairieMom]

We do everything on a schedule in my house. Ben is going to be 5 in a few months, and he just now is 40 pounds with everything on.

[bawoodsmall]

Crap. Now I am kinda freaking out cuz it seems to me like maybe she is a bit tubby. There isnt much you can do though is there besides maybe cut down on bad stuff. I am obviously not putting my 4 year old on a diet. She has been kinda lazy since it is winter and she cant play outside. We are starting gymnastics at the Y on the 28th.

[mysweetpeasWil&Wes]

We are on a schedule, but not a strict one. But I personally don't wait until my kids are hungry to feed them because then they would probably just fill up on snacks. I want them to eat a well-rounded full meal, sitting down with us. JMO. But I don't think there is a right or wrong way. As long as your child isn't eating empty-calories or lots of soda or lots of saturated fat, then I wouldn't worry about her weight. Make sure she is active. And if the doctor didn't say anything, then again, I bet she is fine. Sometimes you just have to ignore family (sister)!! I do it all the time.

This post has been edited by mysweetpeasWil&Wes on Feb 21 2008, 01:46 PM

[luvmykids]

I think your dr would have said something if you needed to be concerned, and the fact that you do eat on a schedule is good, it's not like Em eats all day long....so as long as she's eating well, getting some exercise, and the dr thinks she's ok, I think you're doing just fine

[My3LilMonkeys]

If it makes you feel any better, Madison will be 3 in May and she weighs 41 lbs. She is a big kid!! But she has always been on the larger side, so our Dr. says not to worry just yet.

[Maddie&EthansMom]

I do both. I give them snacks pretty often throughout the day b/c I don't want them so hungry that they start craving fattening stuff. They eat pretty much the same as I do, several small, healthy meals throughout the day. But I still fix healthy lunch and dinner, we just eat less.

My kids are skinny. But that has more to do with genes than the way they eat.

You aren't doing anything wrong and your kids are NOT overweight.

[TrulyBlessed]

Dinner is our only scheduled meal, outside of that I feed my kids when they are hungry or I'll begin cooking for all of us.

[HuskerMom]

I don't have a set schedule but I try to have Keith eat at around the same time each day. He's not a very big eater though.

[Hillbilly Housewife]

We follow a general routine... but nobody's "forced" to eat, and we dno't withhold food when they are hungry... unless the meal we're going to be having is less than an hour away... but then I might give them a slice of cheese or 2 or 3 crackers..

Kids listen to their metabolism more than adults do. They haven't lost that connection yet... most adults eat when they're actually thirsty, which is why so many are overweight. Kids still drink. A little belly and cheeks until about 8 or 9 is fine... it's when puberty hits that I'd be more concerned.

I used to get so angry at dh when the kids would ask for a snack between meals, or before bedtime, and he'd say no... for crying out loud, he feeds HIMSELF when he's hungry..why shouldn't the kids be fed when they're hungry??

What I do NOT do, however, is allow the kids to have a different meal. If they're not hungry at dinner time, fine..they don't "have" to eat... but when they ARE hungry, they get their reheated meal. I'm not about to make another dish just because someone's picky.

For what it's worth... zach at 5 1/2 weighs 59 pounds... emilie at 4 weighs 48 pounds and Naomie at 2 1/2 weighs about 35 pounds.

[A&A'smommy]

Its different for every child, and every family.. we didn't start a "schedule" until around 2 and she has never been a good eater but I have to keep her on a schedule so that we can have a family dinner at night. Alyssa is 4 and she was 37lbs and she is SUPER tall most people think she is 5 or so anyway she sounds fine to me!!!

[bawoodsmall]

Ahh. I feel better. Thank you. I do feel like I am not over feeding her and she isnt eating junk. She was a big baby and the belly has just not left yet. I will however make sure we stay active and really watch the junk even more(dh is the junkie not me)

[moped]

We have meals and snacks within reason............

Jack is 3.5 and 40 pounds, but very tall....so he is a bean pole.

[My2Beauties]

Hanna is 4 and weighs almost 45 pounds so she is not big by any means. Atleast IMHO, I'm picturing her weighing 5 more pounds than Hanna and I can't see that making her big at all. You're doing what works for your family and that is fine. Hanna never ever wants to eat breakfast, very rarely when she wakes up, half the time she isn't hungry until around lunch, she gets that from me, I don't really eat breakfast very much. She will every once in a while if we sleep in later on the weekends or something. She eats lunch at daycare and on the weekends I feed her lunch around noon or 1:00 and we eat supper later because I don't even get home until 5:30 pm, supper isn't ready until usually around 6:30-7:00 so I do give her a snack sometimes about 30 minutes to an hour before supper is ready.

[kimberley]

i feed my kids 3 meals on a schedule but let them snack whenever as long as it is healthy stuff. for treats... they are allowed one after lunch and/or dinner IF they eat all their food.