Smiley Faces & I Don't Like It Phase

So we have a new phase in toddler-hood! It's the "I don't like it" at meal times phase! Burton puts a mouthful of food into his mouth, screws up his face, spits it out into his hand and says "I don't like it"!! 

My response? Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarghhhhhhhh!!!

marmite on bread with cheese is his
new food favourite!

Except that last bit is only screamed inside my head as I don't want to make the situation worse or make it look like it is annoying me!

The thing is, where on earth has he learnt to say this sentence? His Daddy and I certainly haven't taught it to him and the only other people we see on a regular basis are his grandparents and his cousin Ben who, at a few months older, LOVES his food - I mean LOVES all food so I can not possibly imagine he has learnt it from him. **

So far he has told me he doesn't like chili con carne, cottage pie and turkey bolognese - three foods I know he usually likes. Oh and peas is another food that he is removing from his mouth and trying to give back to me! He has always eaten peas - its the only vegetable I have never had to disguise. 

So in a last bid attempt to get him to eat his food after the "I don't like that" has been said, I resort to the 'smiley face' game which has been a meal saver these last few weeks. Let me explain. 


Back in August  I posted a piece about Burton being faddy about his eating and after reading the lovely comments I received I deduced it was me of his many phases. Meal times were starting to become very fraught especially the ones where daddy sat with us as he was taking Burton not eating his meals a little too far, I felt personally. I didn't want it becoming an issue. As far as I was concerned, and still am, if Burton refuses to eat something I know he likes usually, unless he is ill, then he is told that there is nothing else so he either needs to eat it or that's it. If it is something he has never eaten before, or he is unwell, then just one mouthful to try his meal is all I am asking him to do and would warrant having something he does instead.

Anyway, having discussed this with Burton's (paternal) grandma she suggested I distract Burton's attention away from what was on his plate while eating and she came up with the 'smiley face' game. Very simply, for every mouthful of his meal that Burton eat I draw a smiley face -  and not just any smiley face but mine or daddy's or Jenson's or grandma's etc... And then shove a spoonful in his mouth! This has actually worked and he was even eating foods that he wouldn't normally! Yay - a miracle! Well not quite but it worked! We don't have to play this game every meal time because most days he will eat his food but if he starts to play up I just get a piece of paper out and a crayon and off we go again.

that was 'mummy'

Now in playing this game at regular intervals over the past couple of months Burton has wanted to draw smiley faces himself. Now back in February for the Colourful Me meme which as doing the rounds on twitter I had to ask Burton to draw me and this is what he drew - well he was only 18 months back then!! 



However, a couple of weeks ago he started drawing smiley faces on a drawing app that I have on my iPad and he drew these

Burton's grampy (complete with beard!)     and Jenson

Now he draws faces all the time whenever he gets the chance and I think they are coming along very nicely

my little artiste at work ;)

Anyway, after that little art attack, back to my post!

So basically, for the last couple of months his eating has been great again and he has been eating his meals by himself again using his cutlery and not his hands (!) and not complaining and only very occasionally grumbling about what is on his plate. That was until the "I don't like this"  reared it's screwed up face last weekend!! I am hoping this is also a phase and although the good old smiley face game is still working, just about during this new meal time palava, I am wondering if it has had its day as it is getting harder to distract him from what I am placing into his mouth!

Oh well hopefully meals will return to some kind of 'normality' and no doubt a new reason not to eat them will crop up. Still on the plus side, at least Burton's smiley face drawings have come on in leaps and bounds - always good to spot a positive for every negative!

What measures have you resorted to to get your child to eat their meals? Have you had the "I don't like it" phase too?

** I have since discovered that cousin Ben did teach Burton the "I don't like it" phrase -after spending time with him yesterday! 

DAY 25