I was lead to believe that the "Y" chromasome was directly responsible for the emptying of pantrys, the tornado in the kitchen, the lack of food in a household.
Well guess what? WRONG! I don't know what I am doing wrong, but these kids, at 6 and (almost) 4 are always ravenous. Even after a decent breakfast they return again and again to the kitchen. I make sure there are healthy options available to snack on: fruit, vegie sticks, popcorn, muesli bars etc, but the words "Mum, can I have something to eat?" is like fingernails on a blackboard to me.
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| Very familiar scene in our house! |
Now we are in school holidays, I know it will get worse. I know some of it may be out of boredom, so we have lots of things to do/make/watch in our time at home. However, there are only so many diversionary tactics up my sleeve, and short of putting locks on the cupboard, I cannot patrol the kitchen 24/7.
I admit, I am a grazer by nature, so it should not come as a surprise to me that my kids are doing the same. I would worry more if they were not finishing dinner, but more times than not they will clean their plates.
My worry is that I am being too soft by letting them help themselves, and in the future, mindless eating will become a habit for them. I would love to hear what the 'rule of the land' is at other homes. Is the pantry open to all, or are three meals a day the way to go?
