"I hungry Mama"

OK. No one ever told me about this stage?!?!?! What is the deal? It started last Thursday. We left my parents house after having dinner. We got to the bottom of the driveway and Nicholas said, "I hungry Mama." WHAT?!?! Sure enough-we got home and the two of them scarfed down a yogurt. We went to dinner tonight, they ate ok(just pasta though), then went to dh's soccer game where they had a small handful of teddy grahams. Nicholas mentioned again he was hungry. MIL said they could have pbj when they got home(don't EVER do this. Two year olds have a WONDERFUL memory!). So at 9pm, before bed-they each had half of a half. SCARFED that down too!

Is this a phase? Is it a growth spurt? I don't want them to be hungry, but I also don't want it to be a habit where I am giving them food round the clock. Anyone else go through this?

 

It started with my boys when they were 3. They seem to have to eat every 2 hours. It drives me crazy. They are constantly asking for food. I think they are more active and need to replace it.
Good Luck with the grocery bills.

 

I'm going through that too. . .

Last night for dinner (not to mention the melt down that happened because they were hungry between daycare and dinner) they each ate:

3/4 cup macaroni and cheese
2 ants on a log (peanut butter, celery, raisins)
1/4 cup mixed veggies
1/2 cup cooked carrots

20 minutes later, I'm hungry:
1 popsicle
1 cup of popcorn (that's what I ate for dinner last night)

40 minutes after that, I'm hungry:
1 cup of milk
1 slice of cheese

And Royce drank 3 cups of water between getting home and the last snack. Plus a cup of milk. Plus he probably drank most of his sippy of bed water.

And Alice got an m&m every time she went pee on the potty, so probabaly 4 or 5 pretzel m&ms.

 

My son is going through the same thing right now :huh:
Except his directive is simpler, he just simply says "Eat?" or if he's impatient it's "Eat now?"
Yesterday he had:
cereal, 2 apples, chicken nuggets, 2 cups of grapes, a yogurt, turkey, fries, corn on the cob, animal crackers, 3 cups of milk, a sippy of water

At the rate he's going, he should be 6' 5" by the time he's three :laughing:

 

With my kids, it's "I huuungry! I need eeeeat!" I swear my DS can pack away some food. But with DD, she still eats like a bird. She'll complain about being hungry and then eat two bites of something and be done.

 

My guys go through phases where they eat A LOT. The only way I can manage it is to tell them they'll get food at meal and snack times (so they get food 5 times a day). They know they have to eat properly at those times because they can't snack constantly. It gets too crazy.. and time-consuming!

 

We notice it comes in waves like growth spurts. We hear "milk a ready" and "dinna hungri", sorry trying to spell it like they say it. It is too cute, but sometimes we just finish up a meal or snack and 5 minutes later they are begging for more. I don't mind if they eat it and I figure they are only in the 50% for weight so it really couldn't hurt with the extra calories.

 

It's normal for toddlers/preschoolers to need to eat frequently. Their stomachs aren't huge, and when the growth spurts hit, watch out! Where's the bad habit in letting them eat when they're hungry? Mine go through phases where they eat a TON, and phases where they don't eat as much. Just make sure you're giving them good food and not junk. Also, snacks with a decent amount of protein, fiber, and some fat will keep them going longer. They'll burn right through refined carbs like Teddy Grahams, but will probably stay full a bit longer with stuff like PB&J on whole wheat, cheese and whole wheat crackers, apple slices with peanut butter, yogurt + granola, things like that.

 

You are so very blessed! What My older two have always been eaters! It only get worse. At least it's easy to know when they are sick because they stop the incessant eating. LOL
Now my twins are another story. They eat alright, but if they had this need like most kids do maybe they would gain some weight and grow.

 

Mine would say that if they talked, but they only want snacks... but ALL DAY... I won't believe them until they actually finish their meals.

 

Karina does this. She eats pretty well at meal times, so I think she usually is pretty hungry when she says she is. I just try to give moderately healthy snack like string cheese, fruit, etc.