plates/utensils

lisamoe

How many of you give your LO a plate at mealtime vs high chair tray?  When did you make the transition and how well does LO do with it?

DS is still into the dumping food off plates and playing with them, so we are still tray people here.  I even tried the suction plates with no success.

How are you doing with utensils?  I offer a fork with meals, he attempts to stab, but isnt great yet.  He loves when I stab it for him and eats it off the fork, though.

swimiz500

Still tray people here too. She loves to fling, and I don't see us switching to plates any time soon. 

As for utensils, we just started having success with the spoon. We haven't even tried the fork yet, I assume she will just fling it too. We will probably try the fork as soon as she gets a bit better with the spoon. 

lucylea

DS has been using plates and utensils for a while now.  I'd say within the last month he got efficient with his silverware.  I don't think we started as young with DD, but DS sees her using them and wants to do anything big sister does!

Mamapoo

We've tried it all but it usually just makes it easier for him to make a mess of everything.

 

I got him his own plate/fork/spoon set for Christmas. We might try again around then.

AmandaP678

It depends on my mood, sometimes I put food on just the tray sometimes it's a plate on the tray. And he's pretty good with utensils, still makes a mess though.

Mason&Mama

We typically put the plate or bowl of food on the highchair tray (or sometimes serve lunch on the coffee table on a plate.) He does fine with the plate and will only dump it occasionally if I leave him sitting too long after he finishes. As far as the utensils, I usually offer them, but I haven't worked on them with him too much. He gets the concept, but he still hasn't mastered them.

weebos8

We do plates at every meal.  He only starts to dump it once he's done, so I take it away and we clean up.

He uses a fork or spoon at every meal too.  He's not the best with the spoon, but he will feed himself his yogurt/applesauce with no problem.  He is pretty efficient with a fork. 

dairygirl19

We do plates. LO gets a kick out of it. I also ditched her highchair for a booster at the counter recently. She seems to sit better in it/not crawl out/scream and it's less junk in the road in my kitchen.

As for the utensils..it depends on the day and the mood. Sometimes I forget. Sometimes she pitches them on the floor, the next she does great. Whatever. In her own time.

Saltina11

High chair, spoon.

Little&BigPea

DD went on a highchair strike shortly before her birthday this year.  I was never able to get her back in her highchair.  We ended up getting her a booster seat and letting her sit up to the table with us.  She was much happier there.  She has gotten a plate for every meal since then.  The only meal we attach the tray to her booster for is spaghetti.  She eats the spaghetti much better if I put sauce on it and I do not want sauce all over my table.  So, she gets stripped down, gets her towel bib put on (the only time she wears it), and food goes directly on the tray.

We introduced silverware also around her birthday.  She is getting better using them but sometimes I have to take them away because she just dips the fork/spoon into sauce and eats just the sauce.