How do I punish my children for wasting food in their lunch kits?
My two girls aged 5 & 7 consistently leave food in their lunch kits. Since it is perishable, by the time the food is discovered in the evening or the next morning it has gone bad. Often times it is a full meal which is wasted. No matter how often I scold them about it they keep wasting food. How do I punish them about this in a reasonable and humane way?
How do you stop your child from sneaking food in the middle of the night?
It's a very bizarre problem - and this is just a hunch, but have you considered that she might actually have an intolerance to something which (illogically, but commonly) leads her to crave it at odd times? It struck me that the things she's stealing have a theme: milk, lasagne (cheese/milk sauce), mac and cheese. And you said she likes cheeseburgers. Dairy products are one of the commonest forms of food intolerance. I knew of a child who was less extreme than your daughter, but would easily drink a pint of milk at a meal, and then help himself to another pint, plus yogurt, during the evening. When his family cut out dairy products entirely, his behaviour in general improved enormously. You say that you have healthy foods at home, but other than the fruit (and anyone can feel like fruit in the night!) everything else you mention is quite processed - canned veggies, frozen lasagne, etc, do not sound like healthy foods at all :-( As for fast food - really, once a year is too often for a child. McDonalds and similar contain all kinds of horrible toxic junk that I would not give to a dog, let alone a child. However, those are asides.. I would suggest that first of all you get rid of ALL dairy products for at least a month, and see if that makes a difference. Cow's milk products are not healthy in any case - particularly if you're in the US, where they have hormones added as well as the antibiotics that are common in the rest of the world. Home-made nut milk or coconut milk is much healthier, as well as tastier. Stop eating fast food altogether, and try to cut down on canned and other processed products - you'll all feel better, and if your cupboards simply contain dried ingredients, there will be far less for your daughter to pick at. In the meantime, since her metabolism is evidently accustomed to eating during the night, I'd suggest you *encourage* her to take a piece of fruit or some cut-up raw veggies, or even a piece of wholemeal toast to eat in the night if she feels hungry. If you tell her it's fine she'll have no need to hide anything - and it will also stop feeling like a way she can take control.