Nathan tends to not want to eat if he's nervous, like before giving a speech. He also didn't want anything to eat - especially spaghetti - on the day they had to dissect frogs. So when he turned down breakfast on his first day of HIGH SCHOOL and tackle football practice (leaving the safe comfy family friendly little pond of our K-8 school for the BIG OCEAN of the high school) I didn't push it, and I let it slide when I found out he didn't eat lunch that day either. When I got there that early evening to pick him up from practice, he inhaled the sandwich and snacks I brought him, and then went home to inhale more fridge/pantry/food storage items, and then he inhaled LOTS of dinner too. Since then though, he's still been ravenous in the evenings - he's still in the "somewhat polite ravenous stage" and not quite to the "Cookie Monster/Tasmanian Devil ravenous stage" but still ravenous ...
because I found out he didn't get lunch or breakfast on the 2nd day either! or the 3rd! or the 4th! On the morning of the 5th day, I told him to go GET and to EAT at least lunch of his own free will or I would do something about it. By then I'd been through all the -
me-Do you know where the cafeteria building is?
starving boy-yes, there's a really long line though and I can't be late to my next class.
I told him that there's actually several windows/places inside and outside the building he could go up to to get lunch, so to look for a shorter or faster moving line. (remember this was my campus too once upon a time, AND Michael actually tried a year there too before switching to the charter high school)
Nathan does not seem impressed - or particularly happy - that his mother knows his campus layout better than he does.
I'd told him that all he had to do was enter his code like everyone else and that no one knows who is in the reduced or free lunch program and whose parents put money on their account, that everyone just gets their lunch and enters their code. I'd written his code on his bus pass, which he should always have on him, right?
Nathan says he's just not hungry.
I told him there were different things to choose from. (Although from what was available when Michael was there, it was a sad, kinda-small-portioned, "American-diet," no real veggies, usually nuked assortment - nothing like the fresh salad bar at our K-8.)
Nathan still claimed he's not hungry during the day. But I've seen him each evening so tired and so hungry.
He doesn't want to take something with him either, not even a water bottle. I have gotten him to eat a bit on some mornings, though.
Early morning of the 6th day of school (yesterday) - I personally walked Nathan to the cafeteria building and up to a very nice lady running the register/code thing at her "window" and introduced myself and Nathan and asked a few questions and she answered them and pointed out some things to us, and again, I told Nathan to GET and EAT lunch and then I "released" him and I went back to the car and drove away.
But yesterday evening when I picked him up, I learned he had once again not gone to get any lunch. He told me the (enormous, colossal, gargantuan) cheeseburger Gpa Jim got him when we all made it safely back down from Whitney must have filled him up so much that he doesn't need lunches anymore.
This morning (the 7th day) I told him to GET and EAT lunch or I am talking to his coach - who is also the Athletic Director and the head Health Class teacher.
