Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
The children are hungry. Hunger creates ingenuity. A 3 year old drags the chair to the refrigerator then places a stool atop the chair then grabs the bread - gets down from these 2 flights he created and takes the bread to a bedroom where his 1.5 year old sibling joins him in a bread feast. Oh and while the parents are not paying attention one day the child eats his "Southern" fried chicken and takes a bite out of mommy and daddy's. Pretty Novel. Gepetto needs a couple talented kids maybe we have found the one's. Sorry still no sale. How about a picture parents place a chair at refrigerator and a stool atop snaps and shares it with us.
This is the answer to your lack of belief in the tale told by the OP. When you have a small child, you cannot relax your vigilance. When you have multiples of those, you might as well resign yourself to never sleeping, sitting or even taking a bath.
I'd make an appointment with the psychiatrist. Explain to them that you characterize your 3-yr old getting food from the kitchen as "stealing." See what the psychiatrist says.
To the OP I know that you said you tried to shield the children from the things going on in your old neighborhood. Kids are very perceptive so I am wondering if this is some way of them dealing with the things they did pick up on. Also remember they can pick up on your stress levels and the fact that your wife suffers from depression. Have you tried talking to someone about this maybe counseling from your church if you can not afford someone else. I really hope things get better for your family and I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers if you do not mind.
I was beaten as a child for "stealing" food. My Father bought Twinkies and chips and soda for himself. If I ate any of "his" food, I was whipped. My food, was oatmeal, or soup and crackers. He designated areas where his food was kept. He would eat meat, fresh fruit, I got canned soup.
Parents and children should eat together, and eat the same food, as a family, there should not be "parents food" and "kid food".
So, that is my perspective....no apologies from me on my stance on any person who says kids "steal food".
If you can't afford food for your children, with WIC, and food pantries, then I suggest there are problems...and maybe Social Services in your state can provide solutions.
Well, totally ignoring all the other issues going on in OP's life and his children's, it IS totally possible for kids to be sneaking bread and cinnamon buns not just because they're hungry, but just because...they like it. My three year old takes after me, he's a total bread and pastry fanatic, as am I, and that's all he would eat if given the chance. He's picky about other stuff, but he could have a perfectly good meal and be full, yet god forbid someone leaves bread or buns or any pastry out in the open - he' gonna be begging for it non-stop or grab it if he can. He's gotten better as he got older, but around probably 2, god it was like this kid could eat non-stop, he'd just be begging for bread/crackers constantly whenever he'd see them. If left unsupervised I'm pretty sure he'd keep eating it until he made himself sick. We have no financial problem and he ate perfect balanced meals, so it wasn't that. So, we do hide bread, pastries and other snacky/junky foods from him, he gets a bit but the rest is limited because otherwise he'd never eat anything else.
Sounds like most of these people have fat over weight kids. Yes regulate the food three meals and at least 1 snack up to 2 is appropriate. But giving your child a whole large pizza for dinner is not for those who like to give their kids what they wish. There are proper portion sizes per age and size of a person. If kids are stealing food it can be a physical ailments like diabetes which is not rare but a sign is stealing of food in children. There are also mental ailments to. So talking to a dr or a mental councilor or therapist will help you determine what is best.
My suggestion is to go for help from the food bank if the reason lies in the shortage of food. If they steal food just because they are hungry then you should not punish them. To be honest hunger appears to be the best reason. You definitely would not want any reason beyond that. If they do so to gain attention that is even worse. Because that is a behavioral issue while hunger is a physical issue.
I think most people are trying to figure out the reason to help you, OP. As for dinner table you can see if there is a garage sale around your area. And go to ebay sometimes people sell things starting from one penny just to get it out of the house without paying house clearing cost. Parents should eat with children. You should think it in another way, how lucky your children are not pick eaters who won't eat anything which drives their parents mad.
Your punishment on overtaking food might give them the idea that food is something unusual or precious that they would steal them.You mentioned you both worked in fast food chain, so is possible to get staff discount on some raw materials? Have a chat with your boss to see if you can buy raw materials at the price of wholesale.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
