Meals help for 5, 3 and 1 year olds

ashli_2

Our routine goes like this:

Breakfast at 6:30-7, cereal
Mid morning snack at school or home, milk & fruit or toast
Lunch at 12-12.30
Mid-afternoon snack about 3.00, fruit if at home or might have crumpets etc at childminders.
Dinner at 6 ish- main, fruit and yoghurt
Milk at bedtime


DS often helps himself to one or two more snacks than this over the day, out of the fruit bowl. No such thing as too much fruit, imo.

ashli_2

madison-nyc wrote: »

14 hours without food is about right isn't it?!

No way could I go 14 hours without eating! :rotfl:

Kimberley82

When my children were that old thye had loads of snacks, little and often is what they need, we had a draw of fruit in the fridge which they could have at any time.

izoomzoom

I would ensure that you introduce some form of carbohydrate into the snack regime. These are likely to be a bit more filling than fruit or yoghurt.

madison-nyc

perhaps 5:30am is their naturally time to wake , my kids have always been early risers , it's just how their bodyclocks are set. And don't kids always wake up hungry for breakfast?? I don't know any kid that gets up then will wait any length of time for breakfast , they want to eat straight away which is normal to me. I think OP is worrying too much , kids do eat a lot and snack inbetween meals. They need to be eating every 2/3 hours through the day. If you think they're hungy or they tell you they are then just feed them , as long as it's healthy snacks then there is nothing to worry about. your meal times look fine to me , although breakfast at 7am is late if they're up at 5:30am. I give mine a snack when they first wake of a piece of cheese or cracker etc. just to tide them over til breakfast at 6:30am ish , perhaps try that.

clearingout

I have an 18 month old, a 4 year old and almost 7 year old. They all eat together.
Breakfast @ 7am. Cereal, sometimes toast with it.
Lunch at 12pm after the middle one has been to nursery.
Tea is afterschool. Depending on what it is I'm cooking, it'll be ready anywhere between 4:30pm - 5:15pm, I guess.
Nothing else to eat other than milk before bed.

In between times, they have free access to the fruit bowl (all three of them eat at least 3 pieces a day, the toddler has been known to do 3 bananas in a sitting if my eye is off the ball!) and here and there I throw in a biscuit or icecream/ice lolly in warmer weather. They sleep pretty much 7:30 pm - 6:30/7 am, including the little one. All are active during the day.

mummyroysof3

thankyou all for your help, i think im just feeling at the moment like my day revolves arond food and feeding the kids lol

could do with some more ideas for snacks though as im introducing an extra one a day and i already seem to give them the same things all the time i could do with more variety, im having a tesco shop delivered on tuesday and i have had a look for a couple of things that they havent tried or havent bought for a while

madison-nyc

ashli wrote: »

No way could I go 14 hours without eating! :rotfl:

lol , you sound like my husband! he wakes up with his tummy rumbling and eats immediately! I have my tea with the kids at 4:30pm ish then happily go til 10am ish in the morning when I sit to eat my breakfast after doing the school run

madison-nyc

mummyroysof3 wrote: »

thankyou all for your help, i think im just feeling at the moment like my day revolves arond food and feeding the kids lol

thats just kids for you!

beckseven

I know how you feel-i just feel like an unpaid dinner lady as i also cook a meal for me and DH after my two are in bed (which they get the next day warmed up!). I'm constantly hoovering up under the table and mopping up spilt drinks-and that's just for DH!