How can I get ds to eat his sandwich at nursery?

[FrannyandZooey]

Ds has just started nursery and is having his lunch there. They just let them eat what they want from their lunchbox and let them decide when they have finished, which I approve of, but the problem is ds will not eat his sandwich, he will eat all the other stuff and then get down. At home no other food appears until some sandwich has been eaten, otherwise no carbs will pass his lips (he is fruit and veg fiend). It's not a big deal, but once they choose to get down the lunch is taken away and they can't go back to it, so last week by picking up time he was a bit wobbly and frail, having had just an apple and a cereal bar.

Any ideas? I have resorted to cutting them into interesting shapes in a pathetic attempt to make them look more appealing...

Wraps seem to transport fine cut in half, wrapped fairly tightly in a bag and then into lunch box, DS has then quite often for his packed lunch.

Whenever my dd is ill or going through a fussy stage re sandwiches, I faff about making the sandwich, cut the crusts off then cut along them lengthways and roll them in to spirals then cut them up so it looks a bit like sushi this way you can get a whole sandwich down them in attractive bitesize pieces and it doesn't look so overwhelming.

"attractive bitesize pieces " bloody hell I sound like Nigella.

well if he needs Calories then give him calories that he'll eat.
honestly, he can make it up earlier or later in the day. don't make it an issue, seriously.

Agree cod, but I think it's a skill best learnt at one's own pace, and not dictated by somebody else's itinerary

Ooh, he loves those pinwheel sandwiches. Fab idea. Don't you find doing things like that just raises the stakes, though? I mean, then every sandwich has to then be cut in fancy shapes or rolled up or something, or he starts moaning.

HC it is too hot to argue but I am not making an issue out of it, I don't think. But I am getting some fab suggestions I can use.

I get those tortilla wrap things, spread them with houmous (yours, I am sure will be home made....) and grated cheese and teeny tiny bits of sliced up pepper.

Roll it up tightly then slice so you get lots of little round swirls.

(and spelt correctly)

F&Z luckily no she''s normally ok about food she'll eat anything but when it's hot or she's poorly she knows these are treats only and not the norm. I agree that you shouldn't make food like this all the time as they need to learn to eat the same food as us but I think in these cuircumstances you could just make it clear that it's only for packed lunches.

Nope I can never, ever be arsed to make houmous

All that soaking, and it has bits in. Shop bought is much too nice (it is fine to spell it that way, I checked once long ago - hummus, houmous and humous are all 'correct' spellings )

Yes I think ds is a fussy sod in his own way, and craves novelty all the time. His idea of a great treat is "something I've never tried before". It gets a bit wearing coming up with new stuff all the time.

can you not just used canned chickpeas? I did once and it was ok but not as good as Sainsbury's.

dd1 has just started staying for lunch for the past 4 weeks (sensitive flower so took a lot of persuading), and I give her different stuff everyday as it is a novelty atm for both of us.

well, he is there for two hours, isn't he? so I don't really understand why you would want to work so hard to make him eat something he doesn't want to eat when you're not there. if he's still a bit wobbly about it (nursery, that is)
maybe I am being dim about it.

yes maybe

I wouldn't bother too much about the sarnie either. I'd just give him something carbolicious before you go and something when you pick him up, if he needs it.

Or you could slip some of those lovely quinoa crisps into his lunchbox

Ok, well I asked him on the way, "please would you eat at least one of your sandwiches today" and he ate all of them. But I think he will like the ideas here more than sandwiches each time. Worth a go anyway.

He needs to eat something, because he goes to bed around 10.30, and then goes straight to nursery after he wakes up (we are always late anyway so there isn't time to eat at home). He needs something more calorific than fruit and veg bits, between 10.30 and 3. I don't mind what it is, but he needs something. The alternatives I've been given are great, thanks.

he has a sleep at 10 30 in the mornign?

Yes, he normally goes up about 10.30 am, asleep about 11 or 11.30.

Jack Sprat and all that

so eh sleeps from 11 till when?
and dos he go t o ebd at night?
cnat migione ds3 agreeing to hat

He sleeps from about 11, till 12.30 or 1, usually. Then falls asleep at night about 8 or 8.30? Up about 6 am. This is about the best routine we have ever had, and it works quite well. He's nowhere near ready to drop his daytime sleep unless he starts sleeping a lot longer at night.

Mine both quite often have a sleep in the afternoon, it can be up to 3 hours if they're really tired or have had a busy morning. They go up for a "quiet play" at about 2/2.30pm, so the sleep is optional, but they quite often do drop off. They go to bed anywhere between 6.30 and 8, depending on whether they've slept in the afternoon and how tired they are. They pretty much always sleep all night until 7.30-8ish, unless they're ill.

I think young children need an awful lot more sleep than current fashions allow.

It seems like virtually everyone else in the whole world does an afternoon sleep, but he has always been tired in the morning and then pinging around in the evening.

If we manage 11 - 12 hours in total that is a good day of sleep for him - I think they are 'meant' to be having more than that...