12-24mth

vanverth

Now some of the gals are refusing to feed their kids if they do not eat what they give them.  Damn, I just don't have it in me to listen to my son cry because he is hungry and not in the mood for green beans or mac-in-cheese after a long day at daycare.

robynlesley

Nor am I.  And now with Aaron's speech delay, he can't let me know what he wants.  So if he doesn't eat, I always have yogurt ready. I won't let him go to bed hungry at this age.   Maybe, after he's older and can better communicate, I'll reevaluate. But not for my 23 month old.

itsmexine

I'm with you.  The other night I put R's dinner in front of her and she started to shake her head no. I gave it about 5-10 minutes of serious protesting before I said ok and made her breakfast for dinner.  She was hungry, she ate almost 6 of those mini pancakes along with a bunch of apples and some green beans.

Pesky

seriously.  I'm all about encouraging a non-picky eater but at that age, he could have what he wanted within reason.  Even now, I can get him to try a few bites but usually that is it if he doesn't want it.  I don't want food to be a battle.  That just equates to little to no dessert depending on how he ate but something like a bagel with cream cheese. 

Piranha54

I will not remake a dinner, but that's what fruit and veggie pouches, fruit cups, pb&j, cereal bars and yogurts are often for in our house! Oh and frozen blueberries if I can stand the mess at that point.

Anyone else's often refuse at first and then 5 minutes later dive in?

BrideBuddies

My picky eater is getting better, but still throws major fits when he's tired.   And I'll give up and give him something he likes, like apples, and just walk away from him for a few minutes.  Usually that gets him started eating.

FFFC--I'm guilty of giving him a few megablocks or something "interesting" to play with at the high chair as a distraction.  Then I just start sticking food in his mouth and he almost always eats.  I think that's why he doesn't like to eat.. he'd rather play.

gimmietimmies

Piranha54:

I will not remake a dinner, but that's what fruit and veggie pouches, fruit cups, pb&j, cereal bars and yogurts are often for in our house! Oh and frozen blueberries if I can stand the mess at that point.

Anyone else's often refuse at first and then 5 minutes later dive in?

This exactly. And yes, sometimes it takes a few minutes to get into it. I will not remake anything (no short order cook here), but yogurt and pb&j work just fine. Sometimes K refuses to eat period, and others she'll eat everything in site. I won't force the issue either way, they know if they're hungry. Except L, who doesn't eat at all, not a good thing given his medical condition.

Puckchick07

Sometimes Fi will refuse her meal at first...insist on some yogurt... And, when that is done, eat her meal.

MaxandRuby

It is easy to say that "I refuse to feed my kid if they don't eat what I make"...you don't REALLY know if they are being truthful or just saying it to puff themselves up and make them sound like a hard ass or what not.  Given that, 12-24mos is too young IMO to refuse totally and not offer at least SOMETHING.

Now, my 3yr old has to eat what he is given or go hungry. He still gets a bedtime snack though because I can't bear the thought (nor do I want to deal with) him being hungry in the middle of the night. Usually it is when I decide I've had enough of his defiance and start removing the food that he shapes up and decides he wants to eat. My almost 2yr old on the other hand still gets an alternative, but he likes food more then his brother so we typically don't have too many issues with him refusing his meals.

YaraC

I feed Caroline whatever she will eat especially in the evenings. I don't want her going to sleep hungry and waking up in the middle of the night.

Plus, I just don't have the heart for it. 

Smudges*Mom

Have you ever had something planned for dinner, then when it comes time to make it, you aren't feeling it?

I know that meal times can be a power struggle. A toddler can see it as one of the few ways that they can have the upper hand. . . But I struggle with getting LO to eat enough. He is little, 15th percentile for height and weight little. (I know that is not the same as the 5th percentile or less, but he was in the mid 40's until he started crawling.). I am likely encouraging "picky eater" behaviors, but I feed LO what I know he'll eat. I encourage him to try what DH and I eat--but I can not (will not?) force him. I've tried. The end result is not pretty, and nobody wins. (And, I've noticed that LO's level of trust in me suffers greatly.). I figure that when LO gets a bit older, and understands bribing, I mean negotiation, he will be required to try what is served for dinner. If, after an honest attempt, he would like something else, easy, healthy, boring options will be available. But for now, since he is language delayed and can't tell me what he wants, and has a limited palate (sadly, much like my skills in the kitchen), I feed him what he will eat.

SFAug07

She is so picky we'll feed her whatever she wants, where she wants it. Sometimes that's yogurt in the bath tub for dinner. As long as she is eating something, that's fine. I don't want food battles and often she even refuses to sit at the table. I can't blame her - she doesn't see me all day so when I am home, sitting still and eating is not appealing for her, she wants to play.

stever

That's flippin' crazy! From a selfish POV, I find that M won't nap and wakes up in the middle of the night if he's hungry. From a parenting POV, he doesn't GET eating what's given to him because "that's the rule," he just thinks he's hungry.

Peppernut

We're lucky in that Margaux is a fabulous eater, but we kind of do that.  I make dinner, make sure there are at least 4 different things on her plate, but that's it.  Sometimes we have dessert, but it's not related to how much or how little she's eaten.  She doesn't get a snack after dinner time, but she does get snacks all day long, so I know she's not starving.

When I am making dinner, though, I do ask her if there's anything she would like, and if there is, I try to make sure that's one of the options. 

vanverth

Michael does not eat dinner with us yet.  Huge mommy fail but I start dinner when I get home at around 6pm and he is hungry way before it is done so he usually gets leftovers from last night, yogurt, etc.  I still give one thing at a time because I have found that giving two things just becomes a play toy.

benoitfan

My little man is an awesome eater, but he is often hungry before our dinner is ready.  We will feed him leftovers from the previous night.  If he doesn't eat he's either not hungry or not feeling well.  He will always eat fruit, yogurt and goldfish, so at worst we always try a few of those items before we let him leave the highchair.  Sometimes, we just let him play for another 15 or 20 mins and try again, and he will pig out.  If he eats before we do, we always put him back in his chair while we eat and he picks at a couple of pieces of whatever we are having. He'll eat anything...how many 20 month olds do you know that love radishes, olives, souvlaki, grilled veggies(peppers, onions, mushrooms), salmon cakes, fish, asparagus, green beans, cawliflower, green onions dipped in vinegar...you name it, he'll eat it.  I don't even like some of the stuff he likes!