The Food Thief

[Mother Goose]

My DD is a food thief!!!
When I dropped her off at child care this morning, she promptly went over to the kids having morning tea in their high chairs and swiped a biscuit off of one! My little monkey had only finished breakfast 30 minutes prior!!! I was shocked and scolded DD - took it away and moved her. The carer thought it was amusing and told me that DD is always doing that - even if she has just finished her lunch and refused any more! Apparently she just cruises past and swipes a piece of bread/biscuit/fruit/cheese and keeps walking... a little like the spies in movies who do those pass overs when brushing past each other. If she sees you eating at home she sidles over and tries to take it out of your hand and when that fails goes all cute and coy to con you into giving her some...

So, I don't know what to do, any ideas on how to manage this behaviour? She eats plenty during the day and I'm sure she doesn't do it out of hunger...

TIA

MG

[nay23]

he he he i dont know how to fix that one! Shes a clever little thing
Good Luck
xox

[squidipa]

just curious has she got sibling?

my son would pinch food from siblings, even after breaky sneak off with dd's lunch of the bench and scoff that. He is 2.5 years old and he eats almost as much as my 9 year old whom eats nearly as much as i do at meal times. He is not over weight but is a compulsive eater. if it makes you feel any betetr we had to put an alarm on the fridge door. It only ever went off once and he has never tried to sneak food again.

As for what u should do i would try to nip it int he bud right away.

we make a lunch box with ds lunch and morning tea and afternoon tea in it as a way of preventing him from thinking he is missing out. It works great no pinching of food of kids or out of cupboard or fridge as we show him in morning and tell him what each bit is for.

[Ozziehoffy]

PMSL MG... Oskar is very similar by the sounds of it! When we go to playgroup if he sees food he heads on over and sits there like a seagull!! I think part of it is it's the "I want what I don't have". I'd just keep on explaining to her that she can't just take it off other people like that... something along those lines.. she'll get it one day and in the mean time try not to be too embarassed although that's easier said than done I know cos I get terribly embarassed..lol.

[Mother Goose]

Thanks girls. DD is an only child.

Ozzie - I'm glad I'm not the only one who has experienced it!!! I do explain to her that she isn't hungry and can't swipe from other people. I was just in shock at her tactic this morning! The little monkey knew exactly what she was doing! And it's hard because what I do at home can't always be done at child care. Arg! I;ll just have to persist!

[Mother Goose]

Thanks girls. DD is an only child.

Ozzie - I'm glad I'm not the only one who has experienced it!!! I do explain to her that she isn't hungry and can't swipe from other people. I was just in shock at her tactic this morning! The little monkey knew exactly what she was doing! And it's hard because what I do at home can't always be done at child care. Arg! I;ll just have to persist!

[MrsBump]

MG your post made me smile!! Jett is EXACTLY the same!! he even wants what i have if he doesnt like it or has his own. The only way i have prevented him from pinching others food is to give him his own on his own plate at the same time... If i eat brekky he does. Lunch the same time as me and same as dinner. The only peace i really get is when i have dessert when he goes to bed!! LOL

Good on Abbey for eating!!
(Jett eats more than Zhai some days!)

[Liviam]

Oh thank god my darling daughter is normal. She crawls around underneath all the highchairs and cruises around the table and steals food from all the other kids. It is so embarrassing and she definitely isn't hungry she just does it because she wants to. I would guess that Abbey is the same. They just do it because they can. Our DD's are gorgeous little cheeky munchkins.

[DoubleK]

maybe its the reaction they get when the take the food off someone! a toddler might cry, where as an adult might say 'hey! come back here with my biscuit!' they might think thats funny!!!

sorry, no advice for you, but good luck with it!

[paradise lost]

My DD constantly steals food from the kitchen - this morning she had dry weetabix straight from the box for breaky (i was having a wee, away for about 50seconds!), then proceeded to knaw on a raw onion from the veg box while i was making her lunch. She just likes food i think. She's more of a grazer than a big meal-eater so i don't worry about her food intake as such.

She always wants what i have, even if it's identical to what she has, and will do ANYTHING to have a taste of whatever anyone else is eating. On the plus side she eats all her veggies! Including raw (!?) garlic! LOL.

[Lil_Aussie]

MG - I am not sure really how to help out hun, as Griffen does not grab at our food,, and most times,, i have to kinda insist he eats as he has become a tiny eater,, but I just wanted to send both you and Princess Abbey a big :hugs: and let you know that we are thiking of you both .
She really does though sound like she is a very confident and assertive little bubba,, which can only be a good thing.

[Ca Plane Pour Moi]

My DS likes raw onion and garlic too, he prefers raw carrot and courgette to cooked as well. Strange child. He's also a swiper - he'll pluck a biscuit from my hand or just lunge with his mouth open and eat it. At nursery they pop him in a high chair and give him toast the second he arrives, even if he's been refusing the last bits of his second helping of porridge at home! We now only eat together at home, if I want a biscuit DS has to have one too!

At least she knows what she wants and goes for it. That's a lot better than just whinging because she's feeling iffy and doesn't know what to do.