DD thinks she is fooling me, and ? about snacks

m0132

Her new thing is to stick bites of food she doesn't want into the cup holder of her highchair tray, like I will never find them there lol. But I'm wondering how many snacks your LOs are having in between meals, and what they usually have? We stopped BFing a few weeks ago and once we cut out her morning nursing session I started giving her a snack after breakfast and before her nap since she is now having breakfast first thing in the morning and not nursing. So now she has one morning snack and one afternoon snack after lunch but I am noticing she is not as interested in the afternoon snack or her dinner. The pedi told me two snacks a day and I give her small snacks (usually just a yogurt and then cheese + fruit) but I don't know if she isn't hungry or what because this just started. She is normally a great eater and I don't let her fill up on drinks, she only gets a few sips of milk during her meals and then gets to finish it after she eats her food, same with snacks except she has water but lately she keeps pointing to her cups during snack time and telling me "that, that!" instead of wanting to eat. Can it just be a phase or should I cut back on one of the snacks?

RD'sgirl

Personally, I would cut back on the afternoon snack.  My dd is a really good eater also and she has 2 snack/day.  I think yogurt and fruit and cheese is quite alot for just a snack.  This is my dd's schedule, a sippy of milk when she gets up and maybe some cheerios or a little fruit, she has breakfast at daycare at 8:00, 11:30 she gets a bottle and then lunch, and 2:30 she has her afternoon snack (usually one of these, fruit, applesauce, puffs, grahm crackers) with a sippy of water, then dinner at 5:30-6

m0132

RD'sgirl:

Personally, I would cut back on the afternoon snack.  My dd is a really good eater also and she has 2 snack/day.  I think yogurt and fruit and cheese is quite alot for just a snack.  This is my dd's schedule, a sippy of milk when she gets up and maybe some cheerios or a little fruit, she has breakfast at daycare at 8:00, 11:30 she gets a bottle and then lunch, and 2:30 she has her afternoon snack (usually one of these, fruit, applesauce, puffs, grahm crackers) with a sippy of water, then dinner at 5:30-6

She only has one or the other per snack, like yogurt for one snack and then a little bit of cheese or fruit for the other. I don't know because my DD seems to have her meals stretched out longer than yours does, so she should be hungry I would think. This is new to me because everyone always comments on how great she eats and I even cut back on the amount of food for lunch since she has milk now but it still hasn't made her have a bigger appetite later in the day. 

RD'sgirl

oh I misunderstood.  Hmmm, maybe just try to cut out the afternoon snack and just give her a sippy of milk or water and see if she eats better at dinner.  They are not growing as fast now so maybe she just doesn't need an afternoon snack right now.

CeltiCutie

Addy's food schedule goes as such most days:

8am-breakfast (usually oatmeal, scrambled eggs or toast and fruit) with Milk

Sometimes she'll have a snack around 10am of fruit, craisins or graham crackers (nothing major)

11:30-12 Lunch (for example: grilled cheese and veggies) with Milk

3pm-- Snack (fruit, graham crackers, yogurt, etc...) with water at home or juice at DCP

6pm-dinner with Milk

m0132

No, I re-read what I wrote and it you didn't really misunderstand I wrote it wrong lol. But yeah I should try that I think, I worry she will be starving by dinner but maybe she needs to be in order to eat! I don't know what else to do, I just worry because she has always been really tiny so I freak out about if she is eating enough, luckily whole milk has made her chunk up a little bit though : )

m0132

CeltiCutie:

Addy's food schedule goes as such most days:

8am-breakfast (usually oatmeal, scrambled eggs or toast and fruit) with Milk

Sometimes she'll have a snack around 10am of fruit, craisins or graham crackers (nothing major)

11:30-12 Lunch (for example: grilled cheese and veggies) with Milk

3pm-- Snack (fruit, graham crackers, yogurt, etc...) with water at home or juice at DCP

6pm-dinner with Milk

See, thats about exactly like Leah's schedule. I don't know what made her start this lately, especially the pointing at the cup during meals and telling me she wants a drink instead of food. I have never let her fill up on drinks but it seems like that is what she wants to do lately. 

RD'sgirl

m0132:

No, I re-read what I wrote and it you didn't really misunderstand I wrote it wrong lol. But yeah I should try that I think, I worry she will be starving by dinner but maybe she needs to be in order to eat! I don't know what else to do, I just worry because she has always been really tiny so I freak out about if she is eating enough, luckily whole milk has made her chunk up a little bit though : )

try not to stress about her weight, a baby will not starve itself.  My dd only weighs 20lbs, some days she eats like a horse and others she doesn't want that much.  If you cut out the snack and you think she is too hungry to wait until dinner give her a few cheerios or whatever and a sippy to hold her over.

m0132

RD'sgirl:

m0132:

No, I re-read what I wrote and it you didn't really misunderstand I wrote it wrong lol. But yeah I should try that I think, I worry she will be starving by dinner but maybe she needs to be in order to eat! I don't know what else to do, I just worry because she has always been really tiny so I freak out about if she is eating enough, luckily whole milk has made her chunk up a little bit though : )

try not to stress about her weight, a baby will not starve itself.  My dd only weighs 20lbs, some days she eats like a horse and others she doesn't want that much.  If you cut out the snack and you think she is too hungry to wait until dinner give her a few cheerios or whatever and a sippy to hold her over.

Yeah we did that last night because we were out longer than I thought and I didn't pack a snack so I thought she would eat more but when we got home she started hiding food in the cup holder again lol. But you're right, I know she won't starve herself so I should remind myself of that. My DD weighs around 20lbs also : )

CeltiCutie

m0132:

CeltiCutie:

Addy's food schedule goes as such most days:

8am-breakfast (usually oatmeal, scrambled eggs or toast and fruit) with Milk

Sometimes she'll have a snack around 10am of fruit, craisins or graham crackers (nothing major)

11:30-12 Lunch (for example: grilled cheese and veggies) with Milk

3pm-- Snack (fruit, graham crackers, yogurt, etc...) with water at home or juice at DCP

6pm-dinner with Milk

See, thats about exactly like Leah's schedule. I don't know what made her start this lately, especially the pointing at the cup during meals and telling me she wants a drink instead of food. I have never let her fill up on drinks but it seems like that is what she wants to do lately. 

 

Ya sometimes A won't really eat dinner or drink her milk... just depends. Esp if she is getting teeth she won't eat. I wouldn't worry too much. A is 23 lbs and pretty lean. I'm sure your DD is fine.

emberlee3

My son never eats much at meals, except sometimes for breakfast.  I give him a morning and afternoon snack, and sometimes an extra bedtime snack if he doesn't eat much at dinner.  He usually can't go more than 2 1/2 hours without eating, even if I offer him milk.  I don't think it's necessary for a toddler to eat a lot at any one meal, maybe your LO just isn't very hungry later in the day.

hisaak

We just dropped DS's morning feed at a year so his schedule now looks very similar to your DD's.  I find that some days he eats a ton, but others he will only pick at his food. And his breakfast is always his biggest meal.  At his 1 year appointment our doctor stressed offering food often - as toddlers tend to be grazers.

m0132

Thanks for all the replies! I didn't even think that DD is getting another tooth so maybe that has something to do with it. Tonight for dinner she started refusing to eat and pointing to her cup so I just put the cup away and she ate her dinner really well after that, and she only picked at her afternoon snack. I don't want to force her and like one of you said all I can do is offer her good choices and I am so lucky that she loves to eat everything I offer her and never turns a food down for not liking it.

lewis514

Besides the growth slow down at 1 year, it is typical for toddlers to eat a good breakfast, ok lunch, small dinner.

DD in general eats the most at breakfast (7am) and lunch (1130am). She does ok at dinner but it varies (5p). She also has a midmorning (9a), afternoon (3p) and evening (7p) snack. Snacks are small most times (1/2 cereal bar, 1/4 graham cracker) but she asks for food now which makes it easier - she signs "more", says "eat" or will go to the pantry door or her highchair. The 2 snacks during the day are at daycare but at home most times she will ask for something around those times.