2 year old gets so hungry he is angry and won't eat

[TheLemur]

Just wondered if anyone else has had this experience and can offer any advice...

Recently DS (who has just turned 2) is a real grotbag in the mornings, you know the type of thing - throwing toys, not wanting to brush his teeth/get dressed/come downstairs/get into highchair. Basically a general nightmare when I'm trying to get him fed and out to nursery. He'll push food away and has even thrown full cereal bowls on the floor Anyway, when I finally manage to get some food into him, he's fine! Perfectly normal and happy so I can only conclude his awful behaviour is hunger related. So WHY does he push the food away and refuse to eat even though he's crazily hungry? He usually understands that if he's hungry he can ask for food and it will make him feel better, so why so angry in the mornings?

All I can think is he needs more calories in the day but I stuff him as full as I can before and after nursery (and they say he eats well there and has second helpings) so what can I do do avoid this morning hunger anger/not wanting to eat?

[mustrunmore]

This isnt very helpful, but I do feel the need to point out that dh is still like that when he gets hungry, and he's 44 ffs . He literally is a blinkered monster from hell once he decides he needs food, and sometimes doesnt realise thats whats making him angry till he's actually eaten.

[mustrunmore]

Btw, ds2 has always started his day about 5.30am; I just gave up getting up with him, and from about 2.5 he quite happily went down and raided the fridge

[SycamoretreeIsVile]

[TheLemur]

The milk is a great idea Princess, thank you! We have a cold kitchen so I'm not sure about the breakfast before getting dressed plus I seem to have a window of literally 30 seconds between cheery waking and immense stroppiness. Hmmmm maybe some raisins during getting dressed is the way forward.

And now you mention it munstrunmore, DH is like this too! I hadn't twigged. Sigh, I was hoping this was a phase but I don't like the idea of 2 of these irritable hungry types in the house!

Thanks all

[mustrunmore]

Lol, I'm afraid its a life sentence then! I live with 3 boys like this inc dh

[MrsBadger]

dd is the same age

I have gievn up on dressing first and do breakfast in pyjamas immediately on waking, which saves a lot of trouble. Once she's eaten she is much more amenable to teeth / nappy / hairbrushing etc

insist on dressing gown if it is arctic

[cockles]

bananas in the bedroom here but I don't recommend it , mess on bad days is horrid
We haven't got dressed before breakfast since ds was born, he has to eat by 7 it seems, so I would go for eat first dress second.

[lynniep]

DS is like that when he hasnt had enough sleep. Also it takes him about an hour to accept food - before then he just isnt interested and theres no point. He's like his dad, he just doesnt have an appetite for breakfast, even if he's hungry

He has milk when he wakes up (in a bottle - he doesnt like his morning milk in a cup - that alone is enough to start a tantrum) and this seems to stave off hunger for a while until he can face food.

If its a full nursery day and he hasnt woken early enough for me to wait to give him breakfast, then I send him off with a banana because he'll always go for that eventually/ Oh and he's currently a sucker for rice cakes (the big snackajack ones) which I figure is ok if I can't get the weetabix in. I let nursery know - they'll give him some snacks around 9.30 if he's still stropping!