Eating

One side effect of the not-napping is the not-eating.

Sometimes at lunch, and often at dinner, Isaac is simply too tired to eat. This isn't the first time this has happened -- remember back in November when we put him on a strict sleep schedule because he was having a lot of trouble sleeping long enough at night? Back then he was so tired that he couldn't control himself long enough to eat. But he was barely two years old then, and at least it made some kind of developmental sense for him to throw his food on the floor (or on himself). Now that he's almost three, that kind of behavior is a surprise to me.

Yesterday he completed his lunch by smearing egg salad on both cheeks. It's clear that he is radically overtired.

Last night we went to a family gathering at my grandmother's house, and Isaac refused to eat any of the following items: a bean burrito, an enchilada casserole, a piece of avocado, a tortilla chip, potato salad, and a fresh pea pod with dip. He usually likes all of these foods. Although he did express some interest in food -- he told me, "I want something chocolatey and yummy." I refused to give him anything sweet until he ate at least some dinner. (Later on I discovered that my mother had given him half a chocolate-chip cookie.)

I'm not actually worried about Isaac's eating habits or his diet, per se. I believe that my job is to offer him appropriate food choices, and that his job is to decide what and how much to eat. And I know he won't let himself starve. But I don't like seeing the changes in his behavior that I suspect are triggered by sleep deprivation -- these include picky eating and playing with food.