Hunger Strike

I have mentioned in the past that Autumn is a picky eater. Looking back I have realized that when I wrote that post I did not know what a picky eater was. I do now.

Yesterday was not a good day in our house. Autumn slept in, which I thought was a good sign, thinking she would wake up nice and rested and ready to start the day. On the contrary, she woke up particularly cranky and wanted nothing to do with food.

So I gave her a cup of chocolate milk and waited for when she was ready to eat. I waited and I waited and I offered food and I waited. Nothing. Every thing I offered was turned down with an "I don't want that" or a shake of her head. I think there were a couple of times she actually put her hand over her mouth in protest.

After several hours of Autumn having nothing but milk and juice, I decided to take extreme measures. I held one of her most valued things hostage, her juice. I told her that she can only have a cup of juice when she is eating food. If she is not eating anything she can have milk or water. Needless to say, this did not go over well. There was a lot of protesting and loads of tears. Let me tell you, Autumn is not just a picky eater, she is a stubborn picky eater. But let's not forget where that stubbornness comes from.

I continued to offer Autumn food choices and she continued to say "No". She went down for a nap without eating lunch. During her entire two hour nap I sat on our couch trying to figure out different ways to make eating more appealing for Autumn. I researched different food options and looked up tactics for getting picky eaters to eat.

When Autumn woke up I asked her if she would like something to eat. "With juice?" she asked. "Yes, you can have juice if you eat something for lunch." "OK" she replied.

Finally. Autumn sat in her high chair, ate her sandwich and apple slices and happily drank her juice. I sat on the couch and prepared myself for round two. Dinner.