- Pregnancy
- Baby & Toddler
- Parents
- Getting Pregnant
- Baby Names
- Product Reviews
-
Registry
- Community
-
More
Want a personalized experience?
Download the free app
Toddlers: 12 - 24 Months
Kahf15
member
Do you make LO eat whatever you eat for dinner?
Kahf15
member
Lately DS has been SOO picky with what he is eating. It is almost impossible to get any veggies into this kid. On top of that, one day he loves a grilled cheese (or chicken or mac.. etc.) and the next he wants nothing to do with it. So I will keep pulling out different things until he eats something. He is only 14 months so I feel like it is important for him to get a good meal in, BUT I don't want to set in motion this habbit where I make 5 dinners every night. So my question is, do you make LO eat whatever it is you choose to make and if he doesn't want it, then he just doesn't eat? Also, what do I do about this veggie problem? I have tried hiding them in his food but that just backfires on me and he wont eat any part of the meal. He loves fruit, but the veggies just aren't happening. what do i do???
Thanks!
This discussion has been closed.
Re: Do you make LO eat whatever you eat for dinner?
I usually offer DD a variety of foods (say grilled cheese, blueberries, and yogurt) at a meal, so if she refuses one, then she usually eats something else. There have been days where her dinner has consisted of two minigos.
I've been told that it is our choice what we offer our children, but it is our children's choice whether or not they eat it. If they are hungry, they will eat it.
Also, I would say don't worry too much about the veggies - my DD doesn't eat a lot of veggies but she does eat tonnes of fruit so I will take that trade off right now and will worry about the veggies a bit later.
Bar tab = $156,000, Bus to Foxwoods = $0, Puking in the Stanley Cup = Priceless
For the most part, we do. We have always give the kids whatever we're eating for dinner whenever they start table food unless it's an allergen or choking hazard basically from day one of table food. This is still true for the girls. It's not a battle, but what I'm cooking is what's for dinner and there's nothing else offered until breakfast. Period. They can eat or not as they like. Our pedi is big on they'll eat if they're hungry enough so we're pretty strict on this. I do try really hard to have at least one thing on their plates that I know they'll usually eat - often a roll or their meat. My girls are pretty picky, but they will eat (and even request) a lot of things I never thought they would like potato soup, shepherd's pie, jambalaya, steak, etc.
All that said, DS is officially FTT. Because of that, we are a bit more lenient with his meals, though not much (with our pedi's ok). We will sometimes offer him a yogurt or a cheese stick if he's not eating anything. We also will give him seconds of something like his roll or potatoes or whatever he's eating without him having to try everything else. (The girls have to take a least a bite of everything to get seconds of anything.) We also often give him dessert even if he doesn't eat if they girls are getting it just to get calories in him. We've started backing off on this and trying to be more strict about the meals like we've always been with the girls now that we have gone through all the testing and the pedi is officially "less worried." But it's still hard when he's so tiny. At the same time, I feel like he's already learned bad eating habits and bad manners knowing we'll give him whatever he wants (when it comes to food) because of all the concerns.
Still, at the end of the day, I refuse to be a short order cook and absolutely will not make 5 meals every time we sit down at the table.
I don't ever make something special for him unless we are eating something that I know he can't eat (like steak, we like it medium rare). On those nights we also wait to eat until after he goes to sleep. If he really doesn't like something and isn't just being picky I will give him a slice of whole wheat bread or something to fill him up at the end of the meal. But I always make sure that he eats part of it. He's pretty much at the age where he wants to eat what we are eating, off of "grown up" flatware and off of a plate just like ours. Yesterday I had to take 2 bites of his lunch before he would even try a bite, but then he ate all of it.
As long as it is something she can eat, we offer her what we are eating and most times she will eat all of it or at least some of it. If she does not eat I don?t make her something else I just offer her the next meal or snack and like the PP poster said she will always drink her milk. I have not run into her not eating and crying because she is hungry. She will always eat at least one of the options in the meal and most nights she eats everything. I refuse to be a short order cook or chase my child around begging her to eat. I am hoping by getting in the habit of eating together as a family around the same time each night she will develop good eating habits.
ETA: As for veggies have you tried those plum organic or happy baby squeeze things? I have seen moms on her rave about them. They consist of a veggie/fruit mix. A lot of toddlers like to suck the mixure out of the package and moms find them to be good snack items.
Yup, DS eats what we eat. My DH and I decided that neither one of us would become short order cooks. DS has never gone hungry, but he does sometimes eat later then us.
We give him a plate of what we have, if he refuses then he waits in his highchair until we are done eating, we continue to offer while we eat. If he has not eaten by the time we finish, we wrap up his food and let him down so we can go for a walk, play outside, whatever. So far it always works, he will complain within about an hour that he is hungry, we reheat his plate put it in front of him and he does eat. He loves fruit so sometimes we will show him the fruit and then tell him he has to take 2 bites and then he gets a bite of fruit, this also works really well for him and this tactic will get him to eat just about anything.
Another idea for the veggies - try getting your hands on the cookbook "Deceptively Delicious" it is written by Jessica Seinfeld (yes, Jerry Seinfeld's wife). They have 4 kids and she has come up with recipes that hide veggies in everyday foods. She has recipes for banana bread w/ cauliflower, sweet potato french toast etc. I am going to start trying some of these recipes, it will be a good way for even DH and I to fit in more veggies, and especially a good way to fit in the veggies that all of us may not be fond of.
Good luck!
DS eats what we eat. If he doesn't want it, I will offer one simple alternative like peanut butter or hummus on toast. After that, he just doesn't eat and when he gets hungry, he is offered the same options. Usually when he refuses food, it is because he isn't hungry at that point and will eat it later.
I have no advice on veggies. I personally hate veggies myself, so I am pretty bad about not pushing them. I do need to do a better job of getting more into his diet.
I'd love to do this, but I don't have the balls. I typically make DS his own meal at every meal (unless we have pizza). And then we he refuses that, I give him something else. Today for lunch I made him grilled cheese b/c he loved it at my mom's this weekend--but he didn't eat it. So I made him PBJ and he gobbled it up. Gah. I give him veggies at dinner, but they are always projectiles.
Sort of. Unfortunately we don't usually eat together as I don't get home from work w/ DD until about 5:45 and it's usually another hour until DH gets home (on the weekends we do eat together). I sit w/ DD and feed her. She either gets leftovers from the night before, I make her something quick or she has a something easy like hummus, turkey, fruit and yogurt.
When we all eat together I do give her the same thign we are having on her plate. However, she's a finicky eater (I don't say picky because she'll eat almost anything just not when I want her to). If she refuses what I have given her I give her something simple that does not require cooking, i.e. yogurt, cheese etc. We have the veggie problem too. She does eat a ton of fruit so I don't worry too much but I still give her the Plum veggie puree pouches to supplement. My mom was never a short order cook but we were always allowed to have a carton of yogurt or a pbj if we just hated what she made for dinner (pretty rare). I don't have a problem with that.
I know I could make her go hungry but frankly she's low on the weight charts as it is and although the pedi said she's fine he really doesn't want her losing any weight. Plus, there are days when I honestly think she wouldn't stop playing to eat anything if I didn't make her (hence her low weight
)
since she started refusing purees at 9 months, she's gotten bites of whatever we are eating. and now that she's full on eating regular MEALS, she still only gets whatever we offer. period. if she refuses to eat something, oh well, she can eat something else that's on her plate. if she still refuses, she's done. if she wants to eat in 15 minutes, she can have what's on her plate (reheated of course). i've only had to do this once though. she's a very good eater; we're very lucky- she really likes everything, including veggies. (her fave veggies are frozen peas, cooked broccoli, cooked fresh green beans)
click the pic (blog)
Just promise me you won't be packing him mac & cheese to eat at a black tie wedding when he's 21, ok?
Bar tab = $156,000, Bus to Foxwoods = $0, Puking in the Stanley Cup = Priceless
Charlotte Ella 07.16.10
Emmeline Grace 03.27.13
I have long said that I refuse to become a short order cook, so DD will eat what I eat or else go hungry in life. That being said, I've found that the best way to accomplish my goal of not pulling 8 million things out of the pantry is to have at least one or two things in every menu that I know she'll eat and will also give her some good nutrition along the way. We're a big meat/starch/veggie family, so I make sure to make starches that I know DD likes (i.e. sweet potatoes or mac 'n' cheese). Likewise with veggies (she prefers green beans and peas to carrots or broccoli, so I'll make them in lieu of things I know she doesn't like as much). She's not a big meat eater at all, but I figure if she's eating a good handful each of the other stuff on her plate, then she's getting enough to be content and I'm not ripping my hair out. If I feel that she hasn't had a good enough meal at a particular occasion, I will fall back on a yogurt for 'dessert' since it's a sure bet with her and there's no preparation involved.
If your DS is REALLY struggling with the veggies, I also recommend getting the pouches of the fruit/veggie combo purees. Now that DD's older, I tend to freeze them for her and she laps 'em up. She's none the wiser that she's eating another dose of veggies and I'm content that she won't be suffering from The Scurvy anytime in the near future.
Piper, 4/10/10
Connor, 3/16/15
Morgan, EDD 9/22/16
DD always gets what we are having. She gets it in the same kind of dish we are using. She also sits at the table in a booster seat with us and has since she was about 8 months old.
I try to have at least one thing for us all that I know DD likes. If that isn't really possible, like I'm doing stir-fry then she just gets the stir-fry and it's her choice to eat or not. I will often offer her a piece of fruit after the meal if she hardly touched it but I figure she won't starve herself and it's best she learn to eat the same foods we do as she'll live with us for a long time ;-)
My LO loves tacos. He gets everything but the hard shell on a pile on his tray. He LOVES It. He actually bit his finger once becasue he was eating it so fast.
Sometimes if we are doing softshell tacos I will put it in the mic and make it into a quesdilla. Then I just cut it up and he inhales that too.
A kiss he will never forget- Disney World 2014
This is a battle I am not fighting. We have tried to give LO things like: pizza, spaghetti, MEAT, etc. He is VERY picky right now. I have accepted that toddlers are picky eaters. I keep offering him different foods but for now I am allowing him to stick with what I know he'll eat. He eats very healthy.
For breakfast he generally has a bowl of cereal and a banana. For lunch he has something like a waffle or a wheat bagel w/pb and a fruit cup. For snack a cheese stick, yogurt, etc. For dinner, he'll eat elbow noodles, chick peas, a jar of stage 3 baby food, fruit cups...
He likes all good things but is still not sold on "people" food. Once he gets a little older, we are going to be more firm.