To expect my child to eat in the evenings?

[citruslemon]

DD who is 5 usually eats:

• cereal for breakfast at 7am (porridge or weetabix)
• fruit and milk at snack time
• healthy school dinner that she always finishes
• toast in After Care at 4.30pm

We have an evening meal at 6.30pm. All she wants is fish fingers/fresh salmon with veg and mash. She has a glass of milk at bed time.

She never wants anything different for evening meal. Got her involved in cooking some fresh chicken bites today but they ended up in the bin. She used to love rice and pasta but won't eat them at home (although she eats them at school!)

Should I be concerned or not? She loves her veg so at least I know that she's eating healthy. She gets variety for her school dinner including meat. I mix up the veg she has every day. But is it bad that she pretty much has the same evening meal everyday?

I wouldn't be concerned, she's eating 2 good meals plus 2 good snacks (if I had toast at 4:30 I'd probably not want my dinner either) and drinks milk. She's getting plenty of calories and nutrition in. And 6:30 seems a bit late for an evening meal for a 5 year old to me. There's a good chance she's not actually hungry at dinner time, or is too tired to eat. I'd make what I wanted to eat, let her take what she wants (if that's just the veg then fine) and not make a big deal of it.

She sounds as if she does her eating during the day and isn't hungry enough and/or is too tired for another substantial meal in the evening. I think if I were five, had a substantial school dinner at lunchtime and a toast snack after school, I'd struggle to manage another big meal, especially something carby, just before bedtime.

What Chronically said.

Sounds like a great diet to me. My DS also eats loads of stuff at nursery he wouldn't/won't eat at home.

Thank you that makes me feel better!!