Does anyone have a neat eater yet? If so can you please share some tips? J makes huge messes most the time still. He uses utensils, has for about 6 months, but does this thing where he tries to put as much food as possible on each bite. Spoon stuff is the worst, like yogurt or applesauce, big globs end up in his lap and down his chest.
We tell, and show, him "small bites," but after 1 bite he's back to the piles.
Should he be neater yet? Or am I expecting too much?
Well, this is embarrassing, but I still end up feeding G a lot of the time. He can totally use utensils, but he likes it when I feed him. I give in. So, yeah, I'm sure he'd be really messy if it was just him.
I just bought big plastic bibs that cover everything and push up his sleeves. He's pretty neat about fork food, but makes a big mess with spoon food too. The only good thing I have going is that my kid HATES food (or anything) on his hands, so he can use a napkin pretty well on his own. I've found he does a thousand times better with a regular teaspoon spoon from the adult stash than a toddler spoon though. We've given up on toddler silverwear for the regular kind.
Well, this is embarrassing, but I still end up feeding G a lot of the time. He can totally use utensils, but he likes it when I feed him. I give in. So, yeah, I'm sure he'd be really messy if it was just him.
i feed hazel most if the time too. She can feed herself, but it drives me crazy to watch her make a mess.
Griffs a big messy eater and I still feed him half the time. He can use utensils but sometimes its just easier for me with the cleanup afterwards. Yea I know, I'm terrible. He also uses plastic bibs with the pocket but it doesn't always catch everything. I think in time it'll get better.
A has the big plastic bibs with the front pocket and towel bibs with a hole cut out that I made for the real messy meals. He makes huge messes at dinner time in his high chair (usually can tell how well he likes the food by how messy he gets). However, for snack times he eats at his little table and he's pretty good about not making too much of a mess and if he does he cleans up (picks food that he drops up, or wipes up his mess) weird kiddo. He wouldn't let me feed him even if I bribed him. He only will eat off my fork/spoon if its coming off my plate, if I try to feed him off his own he turns into mini-exorcist with how his head can twist away.
J does pretty well with a fork, but sometimes he picks a piece of food up and puts it on his fork. Then he.wipes his hand on his pants. Bibs don't work because the front of him is clean. I try laying a hand towel over his lap, but he just goes under it to wipe on his pants.
Oh HECK no I don't have a neat eater! When I take the tray off the highchair there's always all kinds of "surprises" on his lap! Not to mention the big globs down the front of his shirt! We're thinking of putting him at the table with us in a booster and I shudder to think of the mess I'm going to have on the floor, but he tends to eat better/more that way.
And kudos to all of you ladies that are able to get your LO to still wear a bib!!! That has been *ONE* of our most recent power struggles....
DS is still very messy. At home, I just take his shirt off or give him a fresh one after he eats. If we're out, I stick to finger foods or let him taste the messy foods off of my spoon but don't put them in front of him.
The funny thing is he used to like making a mess, but just this week he started asking us to wipe him clean when he gets food on himself. I'm almost positive he's saying "messy" and pointing to my napkin. It's pretty cute. I'm hoping it's a sign that he's going to WANT to start eating more carefully on his own.
Oh HECK no I don't have a neat eater! When I take the tray off the highchair there's always all kinds of "surprises" on his lap! Not to mention the big globs down the front of his shirt! We're thinking of putting him at the table with us in a booster and I shudder to think of the mess I'm going to have on the floor, but he tends to eat better/more that way.
And kudos to all of you ladies that are able to get your LO to still wear a bib!!! That has been *ONE* of our most recent power struggles....
Giant safety pin on the bib velcro part at our house. Otherwise he rips it off and then cries because he can't get it back on, while food drips off it onto his clothes....
I'm glad I'm not the only one who sometimes feeds B (if he lets me).
We're still so very very messy here, at least when he is actually eating.
@GrayGhost - B has started saying "mess" and seeming bothered when his hands get dirty from eating. We bought an 8-pack of cheapy bright yellow facecloths from Target a few weeks ago and use those as his napkins. Since he's not an expert at wiping yet, the added texture from the facecloth seems to help him get the mess off.
And a funny - we have to tell B to wipe his face. If we tell him to wipe his mouth, he opens his mouth and wipes his tongue.
We have a messy eater here! He won't let us feed him, so that's not even an option.
We love the Bumkins super bibs, which are plastic with a little pocket. And we have a splat mat under his highchair. DS still makes a mess, but it's easy to clean up.
DH can't watch when DS eats yogurt because about 1/4 of it ends up on the bib. It's a giant mess. And like PP, we're always finding food in his lap and on the chair once we take him out.
My toddler is also a messy eater especially now that she really want to use
utensils and I allow her to do so. I used
silicone baby bibs for her because that's what I've been using since then.
Well, as a parent we must accept the fact that toddlers are messy eaters, because it is
a part of their lives as a little kid. If the baby start eating with a utensils
in his/her hand, that is something parents should be proud of. Even if the
little ones doesn't know how to use the utensils properly, at least they are
trying. Don't rush and don't expect too much, just let things happen naturally.
Re: Messy eater
I just bought big plastic bibs that cover everything and push up his sleeves. He's pretty neat about fork food, but makes a big mess with spoon food too. The only good thing I have going is that my kid HATES food (or anything) on his hands, so he can use a napkin pretty well on his own. I've found he does a thousand times better with a regular teaspoon spoon from the adult stash than a toddler spoon though. We've given up on toddler silverwear for the regular kind.
i feed hazel most if the time too. She can feed herself, but it drives me crazy to watch her make a mess.
Oh HECK no I don't have a neat eater! When I take the tray off the highchair there's always all kinds of "surprises" on his lap! Not to mention the big globs down the front of his shirt! We're thinking of putting him at the table with us in a booster and I shudder to think of the mess I'm going to have on the floor, but he tends to eat better/more that way.
And kudos to all of you ladies that are able to get your LO to still wear a bib!!! That has been *ONE* of our most recent power struggles....
DS is still very messy. At home, I just take his shirt off or give him a fresh one after he eats. If we're out, I stick to finger foods or let him taste the messy foods off of my spoon but don't put them in front of him.
The funny thing is he used to like making a mess, but just this week he started asking us to wipe him clean when he gets food on himself. I'm almost positive he's saying "messy" and pointing to my napkin. It's pretty cute. I'm hoping it's a sign that he's going to WANT to start eating more carefully on his own.
Giant safety pin on the bib velcro part at our house. Otherwise he rips it off and then cries because he can't get it back on, while food drips off it onto his clothes....
I'm glad I'm not the only one who sometimes feeds B (if he lets me).
We're still so very very messy here, at least when he is actually eating.
@GrayGhost - B has started saying "mess" and seeming bothered when his hands get dirty from eating. We bought an 8-pack of cheapy bright yellow facecloths from Target a few weeks ago and use those as his napkins. Since he's not an expert at wiping yet, the added texture from the facecloth seems to help him get the mess off.
And a funny - we have to tell B to wipe his face. If we tell him to wipe his mouth, he opens his mouth and wipes his tongue.
BFP #2 5/27/12. EDD 2/1/13. m/c and D&C 6/21/12.
We have a messy eater here! He won't let us feed him, so that's not even an option.
We love the Bumkins super bibs, which are plastic with a little pocket. And we have a splat mat under his highchair. DS still makes a mess, but it's easy to clean up.
DH can't watch when DS eats yogurt because about 1/4 of it ends up on the bib. It's a giant mess. And like PP, we're always finding food in his lap and on the chair once we take him out.
Well, as a parent we must accept the fact that toddlers are messy eaters, because it is a part of their lives as a little kid. If the baby start eating with a utensils in his/her hand, that is something parents should be proud of. Even if the little ones doesn't know how to use the utensils properly, at least they are trying. Don't rush and don't expect too much, just let things happen naturally.