A bittersweet NO.

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There she was. A little over 90 cms and big adorable eyes. Talking in a cute UK accent "Mama, can we eat ice cream today?". Who wouldn't melt and run to get a bowl of ice cream for her. But her Mama did not budge. She took her aside and hushed something in her ear. She nodded and went back to playing with her friend and toys.

It is close to dinner time. The cute little voice asks for something again a while later. "Mama, can I have a banana?". You would think her mother would go grab a banana to give her, but she still does not budge and says NO. The first thought that goes into my mind is"How cruel can parents get?!". I would be thrilled if my daughter asked me for food, whenever she was hungry, instead of me running behind her to feed her and waste 15 hrs from my 24 hour schedule.

Since we were holidaying, we were always on the move and I did not get a chance to maintain the usual routine of food and feeding for my little one. Either we had to satisfy ourselves by giving her chocolates/bread or fruits or be content if she drank a bottle of milk,.

Spent another day and another and another in my friend's home. The same story continued.

Slowly, I started to notice that my friend and her partner were a lot less tensed than us. I realized that this was a result of their upbringing of the child. They never gave into her frequent requests of sweets and snacks. They made sure that she was given 3 meals a day, which she would eat on her own, without any fuss (as she would be damn hungry!).

We were amazed and shocked at the realization that maybe we were not doing the right thing by feeding our little one all the time, stuffing her with whatever we could. It certainly did not let her learn to eat on her own. This was one of the biggest lessons we learnt and we are now in the process of implementing it. It is tough at the beginning, but we know in our hearts that it is for something good.

Prost.


Comments

RizLee said…
Good One Chai :) and all the best for implementing the 3 meals a day policy ;) do let us know the progress
October 29, 2016 at 12:35 PM
Unknown said…
I wanna know what your friend hushed in her daughter's ear when she asked for icecream!!
But this is very true, even we do that.. Feed our little one like 5-6 times a day and everytime she eats half heartedly
January 3, 2017 at 7:42 PM
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