22-month-old throwing food...again!

[Novus]

DS will be 2 in May and has recently started testing some of the "rules" that he's known and accepted for months now.  The current one is throwing food from his chair.  He went through the normal food throwing stage almost a year ago and he outgrew it.  Now, when he does it, he grins & watches my reaction.

I used to end the meal when he started throwing because he mostly did it when he was full, but now, he does it through the entire meal, even with foods he likes!  Letting him throw isn't really an option because our dining room is carpeted and already has mold spots from where he's spilled in the past.  Even if I vacuum and use carpet cleaner right away, it molds somehow. 

He's very verbal and will say, "No throw food, eat food!" but that doesn't curb the behavior.  He knows the rule, just can't make himself follow it yet.  Any suggestions for how to handle this?  Or am I just going to have to put a tarp on the floor and wait it out?

[crunchy_mommy]

What finally worked for us was ignoring the throwing & refusing to give back anything he threw (including his fork, cup of water, etc.) We just continued eating our meal as normal...

[1blueheron]

Maybe a machine washable shower curtain would make life easier?  Or you can borrow our dog.

[D_McG]

end the meal. Even if he's hungry. If he says "but I'm hungry" just say "at snack time you'll remember not to throw then" and move on. My kids only do stuff like that if they can get away with it