Seriously...When will I be able to eat and not have to share

So my boys are a little over 4. As soon as they were able to become mobile, they have been begging for my food so a good 3+ years now.

On a daily basis, I can't eat without one or both wanting what I have. Except for dinner, I eat at different times than they do. They will sit or stand next to me and keep asking and asking to have a bite. :gah: I either have to eat really fast or share.

I have tried explaining to them that this is my food and they've already eaten, but it never works.

I just want to eat in peace. Is that too much to ask? :unknw:

 

Do they eat the same stuff as you?

 

It really depends on what I eat, but yeah, if I want to eat something they might like, I have to give them something to eat too, or it's not happening.

 

We all just generally eat the same thing at the same time so they aren't begging for my food. If I want to eat a snack or a treat that I don't want them to have, I do it after they're in bed or when they're at preschool.

 

We eat breakfast, lunch and dinner together anytime we are at home (they attend preschool 3 days a week) so it isn't a big issue. I had to adjust my eating pattern a bit to match their eating times but it was worth it. I am big on family eating together at the table so I wanted to make sure we started it young. It isn't the same if only they eat and I eat seperately. It is great for family bonding and it helps kids become healthy eaters.

I also serve them exactly what we the adults are eating. If I know they do not like the main food then I make sure I have a side, fruit and veggies that I know they love. If it is not a food they are familiar with then often they want a bite from my plate. But it isn't a huge deal.

 

We eat all the same things in this house and sometimes the same dinner looks more appealing on mine or DH's plate then it does on theirs. We have the same problem at times here too.

 

Mine are the same way and I don't see it stopping any time soon! I will have the exact same thing on my plate and it is "Mommy bite" repeatedly until I let them have some. Same with what I am drinking, so much so that I have stopped drinking soda around them because I know I will have to share. Sometimes I will not be able to eat breakfast with them because the baby needs to be nursed at the same time they are eating, so I will eat my breakfast late. They can be completely done, full from a huge meal themselves, and when I sit down to eat they are still asking for a bite!

 

mine still ask for bites of my food on a regular basis

 

Sorry, maybe this is too obvious, but have you told them "no, this is my food, you can't have it." and then insist that they leave your food alone? I could understand their point if you were eating ice cream and cookies and they weren't, but if they're eating the same thing, there doesn't seem to be any reason to let them eat your food - especially if it's driving you nuts.

 

I finally did this just this evening. Usually I'll cave in and give them some bites, but tonight I was in no mood for that. C ate all of his (large) bowl of pasta and red sauce, and B ate about 2/3. I was willing to give B an after dinner treat of 2 fig newtons since he had ate most of his food, but then he started acting up big time and refusing to swallow his last big bite of food, etc. so he was dismissed from the table between sobs (while C got to enjoy 2 newtons). Normally I don't like to let one indulge while the other can't but B's behavior was so bad tonight we finally stuck to our guns and didn't let him have a newton. Then 20 minutes later when we are eating the same dinner leftovers B came to me asking for a bite. I said "Sorry, this is mommy's dinner. You already had yours." He sulked for a minute or so but then was fine. After their baths I gave them mandarin oranges, just to make sure neither was hungry at bedtime. Anyway, long story short, I told DS that it was my dinner and he really didn't freak out about it. So don't be afraid to do the same, especially if they already ate their dinner (and especially if they weren't good at their dinnertime!).

I would like to try to eat together more often, but we can only fit a small table in the eat in kitchen space, and it just can't seat 4 people at once (not without pulling it out from the wall). and we only ever eat in the formal dining room when we have company. During lunches I do try to eat the same food with them at the table sitting between them, but for dinners me and DH try to eat together during "second shift " at the table.

 

I can't eat anything in front of them that they are not also having. I've been known to hide my precious container of trader joe's cilantro and chive yogurt dip behind a towel to sneak a few bites, because, you know, there's some things you just don't want to share Other than resorting to hiding, we all eat the same food.