Desperate Measures

Lately Connor has been Mr. Independent as only a typical 2 year old can be. One of his daily independence strikes is to only sit down to eat when he is good and ready. This is usually NOT when we are eating, NOT when there are any fun toys in sight, and definitely NOT when we have to hurry to be somewhere. So, occasionally I have to pull a trick out of my bag. Today after trying to coax him into eating lunch (after skipping breakfast to play in lego land, a.k.a. our living room) for TWENTY minutes. It was time for a trick, and a really good one. Now, some might view this trick to be a tad mean, but desperate times call for desperate measures. (And please let me assure you that Connor skipping two meals in a row was heading down the road to a very grumpy and desperate afternoon!) There is only one thing that disturbs Connor more than being told when to eat...and that is when Daisy eats his food. This is not usually allowed in our house, but occasionally happens by accident. For example, when Connor leaves his plate on his low table unfinished, Daisy has a tendency to jump up there and start scarfing down the remains. (Even when he is totally done, this bothers Connor to the extreme. So much so, that he started clearing is own plate without being taught/asked to do so.) Here is Connor defending his plate with an angry, "No Daisy!" So, it was time to bring out the big guns, "Connor, should I let Daisy eat your lunch today?" I have never seen a 2-year old drop everything and run so fast in his entire life.