# Meal Time



## bojana (Dec 9, 2001)

hello,

my daughter is two and a half and i swear she has an eating disorder already.
she absolutly refuses too eat and now all meal times are a war.She hates eating for me or daddy,what little she does put in her mouth she holds in her cheeks for hours,no joking here she does.
but yet when we go out too say a friends place,she gobbles down twice as much food as me with no fuss,or fighting or crying ect,,let me give you an example,for two weeks now my daughter screams and cries and says"done eat nite nite now"after she's taken two bites she won't eat anymore then i get mad and force her too eat but she won't i've taken toys away from her,i've sent her too her room for time outs,i've tried everything too get her too eat but it's a huge war,then today a friend of mine takes us out for lunch(in a restraunt)and my lil girl finished a huge bowl of soup,then eat most of my fries then wanted more crackers after that.there was no screaming and crying,no fuss,no refusing nothing.now what's up with that?she eats very well for others and when others are around but when it comes too meal times with me or my husband the war is on?Help please anybody got and suggestions?


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## sagewinna (Nov 19, 2001)

You can't "win" this one. She ultimately has control over what she eats.

I would suggest you stop fighting her. I would think that when you are eating with friends, you don't push her like you do at home because others are around and you don't get as frustrated. She sill not starve herself! Just offer healthy foods for meals and snack and put her in control over how much she eats. She doesn't need as much food as you might think, and, once she adjusts to not having the strife at mealtime she will eat on her own.

Trust her to eat when she needs to. There have been studies done that show that toddlers, when offered healthy choices and given freedom to eat what and how much they wanted, ate a very balanced diet over the course of the week.


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## TreeLove (Nov 20, 2001)

I agree w/ sagewinna whole heartedly. I would limit afternoon snacks to fruit and maybe a slice of cheese. Maybe, if she won't eat dinner, could you reheat it and serve ot for breakfast or lunch, so she gets the food you want? Also, if she's saying "nite nite now." maybe she's too tired to eat/cooperate?
Really, I would just lighten up. It's no fun battling everyday about it. I have 3 boys. One is very underweight, but he ultimately decides. I just offer nutritious high fat foods for him when he does want to eat. If I make eating an unpleasant and a power struggle I'll never win. Ya know that ugly saying "Kill 'em w/ kindness?" Try it. if she says no, say okay. After a few days she may just eat.
GOOD LUCK!


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## bojana (Dec 9, 2001)

hello,

ok i understand what you both are telling me and belive me both my husband and i have been kind with her and lightened up and not pushed her,but what do you do when it goes from skipping one meal too eating only one meal a week?i'm very serious here.
if my daughter could have it her way she'd never eat and i mean never.i don't want too have a battle with her and no she's not tired when she's saying "nite nite"cause the second i "lighten up and let her go"she's running around the house laughing and playing with the kittens,dog,toys and she goes and goes and goes until it's her bedtime which is 9pm i try and give her supper at 5pm.i've also tried at 4pm and 6pm.
i'll gladly take more tips from anybody and will listen especially if one of you happen too be a pediatricain.


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## TreeLove (Nov 20, 2001)

has she always been this way? coul she have some kind of reflux, etc? I'm grasping at straws here....

Does she still nurse?


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## Alexander (Nov 22, 2001)

Does she really eat _nothing_? or does it just seem like that?

Do you ask her what she would like to eat?

Do you let her eat on her time table, or do you "make" her sit up to table when you decide it's time to eat?

We let our kids eat when and what (ever is on the table) they want to.

Sometimes they don't eat, or eat very much. They are alowed to trot back and finish off later etc.

There are some threads on non-coersive parenting at the moment. Why don't you post in Gentle discipline or Parenting? More helpful suggestions are bound to come in.

Hope this helps

a


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## bojana (Dec 9, 2001)

thank you for your suggestions,

my daughter has been not wanting bottles,food ect basically since she was born but she did eat a bit at a time and the doctors told me not too worry since she was drinking,but since the past 6 months i'd say she's really not wanting too eat and fights not too eat and she's getting worse.
no i don't breast feed her and haven't since she was a week old.

now in reguards too does she really not eat.if i let her have it her way 100% then yes she would not eat at all not even a nibble.
i get her too eat at least a few bites.
Do i let her pick what she wants too eat?always i always ask her what she wants too eat and she tells me then she takes a bite or two and says"done now"i leave it out for her too come back too.will she come back?no she doesn't i can leave it out all day and she won't come back for it unless i make her.
i ask her like every hour if she is hungry?does she want something too eat?her response too me"no thanks,no eat,done eat."too give a better example of what she eats i say in a week she's had a bowl of ceral,a carrot stick,half piece of toast,bannana,and three chicken fingers and like 6 hashbrowns.
now that's in a weeks time not a day's feeding.can a two year old survive heathly on that alone in one week.also remember inorder too get her too eat that much i had too make her.Would she eat it on her own in her own time and pace,no she would not.


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## Alexander (Nov 22, 2001)

Tough one!









And my sympathies are with you.

With the greatest respect, it seems you have turned meal time into something that your dd finds trawmatic instead of fun. Force now is clearly counter-productive.

While some might say "It is no use clenching you buttocks after you have farted" (Japanese proverb)







you can possibly re-wind the clock with a dramatic new approach.

Meal-times are meant to be F*U*N, not for eating at at all. If you came and saw what went on in my house you would think that you had walked into a looney bin, but it is child heaven!









I suggest you try things like:

1) a doll's tea party, with her teddies and dolls sitting around. She can help feed them the ham sandwiches, strawberry milk shakes, banana cakes with icing sugar sprinkled on the top etc.

Resist the temptation to tell her how to eat if she starts "eg don't just lick the iceing!" etc. Put her in charge as much as possible.

2) Play choo choo with her food on a fork. "Little train is going in . . . . your ear!" / nose / tummy / eye / bottom! what-ever, it makes kids laugh, and usually they say "NO, In my mouf!"

3) Find stuff that she really likes. Jelly etc that is not junk. Put her in charge of feeding herself this.

DON'T say to her, "you can have the jelly when you're done with the chicken!"

That is not putting her in control.

Hope this helps

a

PS Our dd lived on practically air at that age. some kids do.

PPS How's her weight / height?

a


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## leafylady (Nov 19, 2001)

If she's eating for others, and not for you, then it sounds like a power struggle with you and her father.
I'm not a pediatrician, but I say just let it go. What does your pediatrician say? Is she underweight? Can she survive? It sounds like she is surviving. Is she lethargic? Is her growth stunted?

My trusty daycare provider with 5 of her own grown kids and 30 years daycare experience tells me that her policy is to put the food in front of the child and then not say a word about whether the child eats or not.
My son is very lean and small boned, and doesn't like to eat much for me at all. We've never made food an issue at this early age, because it can become a very serious issue when kids get older (obesity, anorexia, bulimia). I started giving him a multi vitamin with iron because he rarely eats meat.

He does eat well for other people, so I comfort myself with the thought that he gets 3 or 4 square meals a week at daycare. You could have your child go to daycare or eat with a friend 3 or 4 days a week just so you know she is eating a few good meals. Who cares who she eats with, as long as she eats occasionally.

Have some snacks available that she can easily get into when she wants- such as dry cereal. Put it in some kind of easy to open container that is easy for her to reach and then don't say anything else about it. Give her healthy but small snacks when she asks for them. Give her a multi vitamin if you are worried about her overall nutrition.


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## bojana (Dec 9, 2001)

just wanted too say thank you and i will try the suggestions.i will give them all a try and let my daughter "be in charge"and see how it goes.I'll give it a week then i'll post a message again and let you all know how she is doing.
my daughter's height and weight are good but that's cause the mean mommy ogar makes her eat at least two bites each meal.
but i will loose up and do what you all suggested then i'll get back and post a message next week


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## sparklemom (Dec 11, 2001)

I have to slip one more post in here. I can sence your frustration. If I may.....
Food should be a NONissue. It is a fact that no young child will literally starve him/herself. It's your job to make sure you're providing healthy, balanced choices at meal times. Whether she eats should be completely up to her. You should say nothing about it----you'll want to(likely because you heard your parents making a big deal about it while you were growing up), but don't.
Turning food into a power struggle or attaching emotions to food is a very bad idea.
I promise, your daughter will be just fine and much better off in the long run if all of this is dropped.


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## SoHappy (Nov 19, 2001)

Bojana,
Good luck. I know it's frustrating and scary. I'm looking forward to your checking back in a week. My son's the same age, and also was a "social eater". He only liked to eat around other people. We were never the type to push the food issue and he finally got over it. I'd suggest you just leave plenty of food within reach, even in places where she won't expect to find it, and don't say a word about it. She might be surprised by the discovery and just have to try it. (How'd those strawberries get on that shelf? Who put that organic cereal bar in my toy crate? Soy chips on the step stool?)


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## laelsweet (Dec 6, 2001)

sounds like you've got some great advice bojana, good luck with this

i love the idea of hiding exciting snacks around
maybe once she senses the pressures is off you could make it really fun - when my babe's sleeping i put stuffed toys in her bookshelf all reading books, maybe you could set them up with food
also, if she eats with other people and you really are worried about her health, why not get other people to take her out for a picnic? or to a healthy restaurant?
i have also heard that some toddlers eat barely a thing for awhile, and they're f i n e, if she's that energetic she is probably doing great and would love not to struggle and have the suggestions made about food

sometimes when i'm having trouble coping with my toddler's developments, i read tcs theory, which alexander makes reference to, and i take some rescue remedy and go give myself a break as soon as possible (maybe while your daughter is out for lunch with a friend)


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## E-Mom (Nov 26, 2001)

Just wanted to suggest a book, Feeding Your Child with Love and Good Sense, which I think is by Ellen Satter. She's a nutritionist and she talks a lot about food issues, particulary battles like you're describing. The book has some suggestions for how exactly to "back off" and give your child more, but not total, control. Good luck!


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## peacemama (Nov 21, 2001)

I completely agree with EMom about that, and highly recommend the book! I can see that you are a loving, concerned mom, but you've got to give up the battle. You can't control how much a child eats, and the damage you can be doing by forcing her to eat...well, would she really starve to death without those two bites? The key is to stop worrying, because as others said, no child will starve herself. She will eat if she is hungry, and if she seems to have days where she eats almost nothing, she may be trying to assert her independence as retaliation for the pressure. You are only responsible for what foods you offer your dd. She is responsible for how much, and even whether or not, she eats. Don't make her feel she has to eat to please others.

Try changing your definition of "a good eater" from someone who cleans her plate, or someone who eats three balanced meals a day, to someone who eats when she's hungry, stops when she's full, and chooses fairly healthy foods.


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## Paulab52 (Nov 20, 2001)

Here's a question that I haven't seen addressed. Does she drink a lot of juice? If she is, that could be filling her up and she just doesn't have room in her belly to eat anything. Milk too....

Good luck.


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## Dot.mom (Nov 28, 2001)

My best trick to get my dd to eat is to sit on the living room floor while she is playing and eat someting myself, all the while telling dh how good it is and ignoring dd. DD will practically catapult herself into my lap to get a taste and will eat much more than seated in her highchair. I usually use this to get her to try new foods and feed her the old favorites when she is in her highchair. If she has been ill and not eating well (we all just did the stomach flu thing), I can usually coax some whole milk yogurt into her this way and feel reassured that she has at least gotten some fat and protien.


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## saganaga (Nov 23, 2001)

If you haven't already read this book, you might find something helpful...
"Feeding the Picky Eater" by Dr. Sears
It's a newer (2001) little paperback.
"The Family Nutrition Book" also by Dr. Sears could be helpful, too.


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## Linda in Arizona (Nov 20, 2001)

I agree with what others have said about making food a non-issue. If this were my child, I wouldn't let her have sweets or junk food until this problem is way in the past, and the only thing I would let my child have outside of a planned, healthy snack or meal is water. Other than that, I would let go of the issue

Unless there is something medically wrong with your DD, she will not starve herself to death. Really. It is your job to serve your child a variety of healthy foods; it is your child's job to eat.

One idea from Sears is to use a muffin pan and put a different kid friendly food in each section, such as sliced cheese, baby carrots, chopped fruit, boiled egg, ect. and then leave it where you child can help herself. This never really worked for us because of our dog, but it might work for you.

It is totally normal for kids this age to skip meals. The rule at our house is that you have to come to the table for meals and you have to have a little of everything on your plate, but you don't have to eat anything.


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## dollface's ma (Nov 19, 2001)

After a long and demanding day with our 13 month old dd, the simple things in life are often the most needed (ie. a nice warm meal). It seems that whenever we either sit at the table to eat, or sit on our laps to eat, or put dd in her high chair next to us and give her what we are eating, she instantly plays up.

She actually wants to be right on our lap (well my lap actually) holding my fork and flicking my food out of the plate. Other nights she just wants to be held. Other nights she will just whinge while we are eating etc. I am getting really tired of wolfing down my meal and getting indigestion each night!

I have tried giving her a fork and her own bowl to play with, tried getting on the floor and giving her toys to be interested in, the high chair contains her for like a minute. What are some ideas that have enabled you to eat a meal in piece or is this another of those pre-parenthood pipe dreams?







:


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## peggy (Nov 19, 2001)

Could you eat later when she's asleep?
At my house dinner is a zoo. My 10 month old does all the things you are describing, my 4 yr.old wants her share of attention and my teenagers argue over who's turn it is to clean up. My DH and I have decided peaceful meals are something to look forward to like retirement LOL! We have to find our quiet moments in bits and pieces.

peggy


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## Elismama (Jan 2, 2002)

What helped us was to eat earlier. Eli (18mos) does so much better if we eat by 5:30 that I set that as a goal. On the nights we eat later he completely breaks down.

I don't know if this will help you- but it helped us.


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## mamababe (Dec 24, 2001)

Are you giving her lots of snacks before dinner? If so try and cut down on them so she is nice and hungry.


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## Erin Pavlina (Nov 11, 2001)

We feed Emily dinner at around 6pm. Then hubby and I eat dinner peacefully at 8pm after she goes down. It's not ideal, but we need the time to catch up and just be at peace.


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## NaturalMamma (Nov 22, 2001)

I haven't eaten a meal in peace since our little miracle came into the world. First was the endless screaming from colic, or she was at my breast on the Boppy and DH was cutting my food and feeding me. When she started solids at 7 mos, I spent a lot of time preparing fresh food for her. Now she's doing the antics you describe. When she gets feisty, she'll stare at me w/a grin while dropping food on the floor. We aren't able to keep her in a high chair at a restaurant--we get a booth. But, after just a couple of minutes, she's doing the side-step routine and is standing on my lap stealing my food. I have indigestion too. People are often surprised that I'm less than my pre-pg weight, but this little toddler is the world's fastest weight-loss program, LOL!







If DD is getting hungry, I'll give her part of her dinner or BF her until we eat together when DH gets home at 5:30 or 6pm. Sorry, no real advice, just empathy.

Cindi


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## Trentonsmom (Dec 31, 2001)

We are not the traditional sit at the table family - we sit around the loung and just enjoy our food - Trenton will most nights come to either me or his daddy and try what we're eating - to make sure we're not eating chocolate or anything.... LOL It works for us, I don't try to keep him in one place - if he wants to walk around and eat - so be it.
We never have the luxury of eating in a resturant anyway - so there is nothing to practice for. Trenton does well at family's house where he has to sit at the table. But when he's ready to get up - I don't fight him - just let him go.
Its not worth the stress.........
Good luck
Chelly
DS - Trenton 8/19/99


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## feather (Jan 5, 2002)

I've gone back and forth between insisting that dd SIT and be a good girl during meals and just letting it go. Because she WON'T sit anyway, so I just give up so that I can quickly shovel in my food. I should weigh 90 pounds at this point! I even try sitting at her little table and eat my meal with her. That isn't good enough either! She wants to be on my lap sabotaging my meal or standing on a chair at the table(which was fine until she fell off and literally knocked herself unconscious for 10 seconds)
It is a constant problem having dinner in peace because she does EXACTLY what you describe - EXACTLY. God, it is so annoying.........I don't know what to tell you! lol I just wanted to tell you that your child is not the only one! Thanx for making ME feel more normal!
I think the solution is to just let them wander....unfortunately our furniture may end up wearing most of their meals though







:
JR


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## Bay's Mamma (Jan 2, 2002)

Wow, my heart goes out to you. When my dd was that age, we had no hard and fast rules on dining. However, we did have a philosophy about meals and food that we continue today. First, mealtime, is supposed to be enjoyable for everyone. If a child associates meals with frustration, prodding, and tension, they will be more likely to have issues with food later in life. We try to show her that regular, healthy meals are a priority to us. We try not to associate food and celebration. This is a tough one, but very important. Instead of cake and ice cream for Birthdays, we do a family outing of her choice like the zoo! We try to keep meals associated with good health and energy and not with reward or celebration. When she was younger (she's now four), I did not insist on her eating at "regular" meal times. Instead, if she was hungry, she ate. If she wasn't, we did not pressure her. Now that she's older we do have more regimented snack and meal times. We have a couple of rules at the dinner table like, no toys at the table and no singing at the table. Trust me, the singing thing was a must. My dd belts out songs like and opera singer!!! One more "rule" we have. You must "try" everything on your plate. If you don't care for it, that's okay. But, you must try it. It works great when we are trying out a new food. We kind of make it an adventure. I learned that one from my sister who has four children and it works great for her too! Dollface's ma - your dd is still very young and if you feed her before you do and let her play nearby, her interest will peak and she'll want to be with you. It sounds like she already has an interest. The "playing" with your food is actually very good for her to become associated with foods in general. You're doing a great job!

Much love and light.


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## lee's mama (Nov 29, 2001)

I'm looking for more variety for my 13 mo ds's diet. He loves to eat chunks of avocado, banana, or sweet potato, frozen blueberries, yogurt, arrowroot cookies and peas. That's it! He will almost only eat things he can feed himself. What does your toddler love to eat?


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## gret the great (Nov 26, 2001)

Plain tofu, grape tomatoes (cut in half), pears, toast with applebutter, asparagus, cheddar cheese, orange slices, kidney beans, scrambled eggs...

These are some of the recent favorites!


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## scribblerkate (Jan 19, 2002)

DS (16 mos) has in the past month or two really started to eat solids in earnest. He also loves many of the foods gret mentioned, including especially scrambled eggs and tofu in its many forms (careful, soy can be allergenic for babes). He is particular about cheese, but loves co-jack. He also loves toast; we get a wheat bread specially created by our co-op for babes and kids who might otherwise not like whole grain bread.

Other big hits: grains in their many forms (barley, bulgur, rice, millet, etc) and pasta (much to my chagrin), beans (whites and blacks esp), lentils, and greens. Regular oatmeal is also a fave. I make ours with a little vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg, and sometimes cardamom. Mine gets topped with buttermilk and honey or brown sugar, but he's happy with it plain. We've expanded to include rolled rye and barley.

He's really digging grapefruit and orange pieces these days.

Once your babe has been on solids for a while, I encourage letting them try bits of whatever you're having, assuming it isn't on the list of foods to be avoided by toddlers, like raw honey. And, reintroduce periodically because they're prone to changing their minds.


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## Sahara (Nov 28, 2001)

DS has been really picky lately. He just turned a year old, and loves most of the same things you mentioned. He also enjoys spinach mixed with rice or cheese, plain rice in little piles on the table, shredded cheese (he just discovered this Saturday), grapes peeled and quartered, any type of pasta - I buy the whole grain kind so at least he gets something from it! Sometimes he really gets into yogurt, I get those little organic ones from the health food store.
I feel like I'm lacking creativity when it comes to his food. I haven't tried beans very often. Do you just serve them plain?


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## scribblerkate (Jan 19, 2002)

Regarding beans . . . we are veggie (well, I am and DH mostly is at home by default) so we eat a lot of beans in our evening meal dishes. So, much of the time the beans are not plain but come from the meal we're having. Same with the grains.

I know that DH tried some salad beans (red and kidney and pinto, I think) from a can for a snack, and DS basically rejected them. I think the first and most thing is that the beans need to be warm, not room temp. Also, I have found that he really does prefer the black and white beans, especially navy beans, which have a nice but mild flavor. I am not sure off the top of my head what you could add to the beans for a little bit of flavor that would be really easy. Let me think on it a bit.


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## Alexander (Nov 22, 2001)

sausages, strawberries strawberries strawberries, cake, strawberries strawberries strawberries, egg and tomato sandwiches, strawberries strawberries, apple slices, strawberries strawberries strawberries, soup, strawberries strawberries strawberries, tuna, strawberries strawberries strawberries, rice balls with things in them, strawberries strawberries strawberries.

Hope this helps.

strawberries strawberries strawberries

a


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## Seawen (Nov 20, 2001)

Strawberries are great (but buy them organic they are one of the most heavily sprayed crops often 27 different pesticide/herbicides).

My dd loves cottage cheese, avocado, sweet potato, yogurt, and waffles w/ applesauce.

I'm glad to see all the above ideas. She hasn't been interested in the new foods I offer but you've all give me some great ideas.


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## scribblerkate (Jan 19, 2002)

Since your DS is only 13 mos, you might want to try the strawberries very slowly, or even wait another couple of months. Strawberries are one of those highly allergenic foods that babes shouldn't try until a certain age (I think one year???).

Gosh I can't wait 'til summer so DS can try the strawberries! I love 'em more than anything, but DH is allergic so I never have anyone to share them with.


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## saige (Dec 16, 2001)

My kids-all fruit,and all junk food.







:


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## saige (Dec 16, 2001)

PS-That's what they like,not what we feed them BTW.


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## Sara Mama (Apr 1, 2002)

Quote:

_Originally posted by lee's mama_
*I'm looking for more variety for my 13 mo ds's diet. He loves to eat chunks of avocado, banana, or sweet potato, frozen blueberries, yogurt, arrowroot cookies and peas. That's it! He will almost only eat things he can feed himself. What does your toddler love to eat?*
My son and I are vegetarians, and my husband is by default. We don't try to make sure he gets a good mix every day, but instead take a "week perspective" -- someting I read in Sears & Sears. So I make sure over the course of a week he gets a proper variety.

I also buy exclusively organic foods -- a challenge due to the expense, but I shop frequently so nothing ever goes to waste in the fridge -- thank goodness for lots of co-ops in St. Paul.

We also don't have any junk food around. We figure if it's not there he won't beg for it... So at the store he goes nuts when he sees a pear! I have to buy one before we shop or at least some chewy bread! Occasionally we do have ginger snap cookies and some ice cream, but we only serve them once in a while. Instead, a treat is fruit.

My 18 month old loves...

* Finger Bananas - he hold them and peel them himself (more or less)

* Vegie / Minestrone / Vegie Barley Soup - a miracle food as he eats _all_ the vegies in it. Plus we give him shredded cheese and oyster crackers to mix in.

* Really good Pizza - ie we go to a pizza shop that uses fresh vegies (probably not organic though...







) And we order a spinach mushroom pizza in advance, so when we show up it's ready.

* Fruit - pears and apples, crushed pineapple

* Brown Cow Organic Full Fat Plain Yogurt - even though it's not sweet Seamus loves it. It's the creamiest brand around. Everything under the sun







gets dipped in it.

* Waffles with stuff to dip them into -- fruit spread or covered with defrosted frozen strawberries and their "juice" for dipping

* Any kind of pasta -- again red sauce if you use a high quality one or make your own is a great source of vegies & vitamins etc.

* As for beans - if they are mixed in with stuff like soup etc.

* Cheese, cheese, and more cheese

* Risotto with lots of cheese and vegies mixed in

* Polenta with sauce

* Bread

* Amy's Mac & Cheese with Broccoli (just add it to the pasta water when the pasta is almost done to blanch it)

I hope this gives you some ideas. I'd love to hear what others do.


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## crowbaby (Nov 19, 2001)

my dd is 16 1/2 months and everyday it changes. Right now "Nana" is the only thing I can count on her eating. Everything else is a crap shoot from day to day. She mostly will eat pasta and sausages if she can get them, although I really try to limit the sausages. She will also eat Edemame. (If you don't know they are edible soybeans in the pod. You can cook them fast and they are delicious. Its a great way to get her protein in when she isn't eating meat.)

She really just likes to play with food. Sacking is her biggest thing. Veggie booty, Veggie sticks, sesme oat sticks, and pretzels not made with hydrogenated oils are godsends for snacking.

Keep them coming. I would really like to see more ideas, especially for a girl who won't eat cheese, cottage cheese, or yogurt...









Karen


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## Elismama (Jan 2, 2002)

Eli loves fruit, beans, rice, vegetables lightly steamed and sprayed with Braggs amino acids, whole grain bread, lentil sprouts, tempeh, cheese, etc.

One of our favorite snacks, especially with teething, is yogurt pops. I make smoothies with yogurt, fruit (bananas, frozen berries, mangos, etc), rice milk. I add in wheat germ and ground flax seeds. He drinks a smoothie and I freeze the rest in popsicle makers.

Dipping is a big thing too (thank you Dr. Sears). I make hummus, tzatziki, and peanutbutter dip and give him cucumbers, steamed carrot sticks, and bread sticks to dip in it.

There are days, however, when he survives on breastmilk and blueberries...

jeanie


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## precious moments (Feb 24, 2002)

My ds loves mixed beans- kidney, chickpeas, lima, navy beans warmed up-- makes a great finger food snack or mixed into our dinners. He also loves peas and carrot bites, organic yogurt, cheese, bagels with tiny bit of cream cheese, cut up avacado, peaches, pears, melons, loves brown rice cereal with applesauce, brown rice, br pasta, lentil/veggie/barley soup, arrowroot cookies, organic rice cakes, organic crackers
WOW, after writing all of these items, I just realize ds isn't as picky as I thought he was!! I sometimes find it hard to be creative or to think of alternative meals when ds rejects what we are eating, so I often use the Heinz toddler jarred foods as backup--I know that so many of you will cringe or may flame me for this, but I think as a backup they are a full meal in one, convienent(esp if we are on the run) and ds never refuses them.

Forgot to add that sometimes ds likes chicken and turkey, esp. in stirfry, but he usually ends up spitting the meat out, esp. if it is too chewy for him to chew and swallow. Anyone elses kids do this?


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## Sahara (Nov 28, 2001)

I've always been good about making DS's food, but we keep several Earth's Best jars in our cabinet for the occasional tough day, and you're right, he LOVES them. I can't imagine anyone would give you a hard time over that!!


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## precious moments (Feb 24, 2002)

teddy puffs (Healthy Times, organic), and breadsticks are also a favorite snack,
...as ds is throughly enjoying his teddy puffs this moment


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## IowaMama (Apr 3, 2002)

My daugher loves spinach, it's different for a kid to like it, but she does!


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## Lundy (Dec 5, 2001)

Everytime I think I must be starving my poor girl or not offering her enough variety I come to these boards and find out you're all doing about the same as me! Such a reassurance!

*sigh of relief*

and yes, Eliza absolutely hoovers edamame.


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## scribblerkate (Jan 19, 2002)

snoonootsmomma, a couple of times, DH has given DS bits of turkey from his sandwich and yes, DS spits it out every time. The cats love it when this happens.









IowaMama and others, DS loves greens too, especically kale and chard. He'll grab it from the back of the grocery cart and start chowing in the grocery store. We serve this sauteed with a little olive oil and garlic, and also include it in recipes, especially soup.


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## gret the great (Nov 26, 2001)

My son likes to eat greens on occasion- Twee, pea? (tree, please).

Sometimes though when he hasn't been keen on green veggies, we throw them into scrambled eggs- Hugh will eat anything with scrambled eggs, it seems!


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## Avonlea (Jan 21, 2002)

My son is 18 moths old. He really likes :

Potatoes ( in any and all forms)
Cheese
Yogurt
Pasta
Green beans
Crackers
Broccolli
Cauliflower
Avacado
Pretzels
Pears
Oranges
Apples
Pickles
Cheese Pizza
M&Ms
His great grandpas home made Vanilla icecream
Cheerios
Peanut butter on a spoon ( in his highchair)
Assorted juices
Ice water !!!! He REALLY likes a sippy cup with some water and ice . Go figure.
Scrambled Eggs
He does NOT like :

Bananas ( he spits them out ) He has NEVER liked bananas!

Meat ...which he spits out as well...should it grace his lips.

Toast . I am not sure why. I tried diferent types of bread, jam , etc. Any and all combinations..even plain. He just tries a taste and spits it right back out.

He really loves all sorts of vegetables, which is great and which I am very grateful for. I shall be incouraging this of course.

I just give him a little bit of what ever I have. If he likes he can have some...if not then we try something else.


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## christina (Apr 3, 2002)

My 18 month old is almost a fussy eater; but, he loves gardenburgers with ketchup.
Almost anything with ketchup is good. In fact, he likes easting just ketchup too!


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## homebirthmama (Nov 27, 2001)

My ds is 15mos and he loves
guacomole!!
polenta with spinach and garlic
pizza (cheese)
any type of pasta with sauce
cavatappi with pesto
gnocchi
potatoes in many forms
strawberry yogurt
ice cream (very rare treat)
eggs
sausage (veggie)
multigrain oat bread
goldfish
rice cakes
apples


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## charmarty (Jan 27, 2002)

But these days thier favorite is watermelon and corn on the cobb!These are offered for snacks mostly,not usually for supper bc they can eat it and walk around and play.But they are 18 months tho.


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## Naomi (Nov 27, 2001)

My dd is 18 months old. Dh and I are not vegetarians, but dd mostly is, just by preference -- she doesn't seem to much like meat. Other than a resistance to eating meat, she's a VERY adventurous eater for a toddler, I think. Some of her favorites:

* Pizza. (We had pizza tonight. "Pizza" is her newest word







)
* Cheese (any kind, but especially string cheese).
* Apples
* Pineapple - fresh, canned, or dried.
* Raisins (for a while, she lived on raisins and breastmilk)
* Crackers (any kind)
* Buttered bread (any kind; we usually feed her whole wheat. She prefers GOOD bread.)
* Egg rolls. (What we usually get her when eating at a Chinese restaurant.)
* Tortillas. (I got takeout from Chipotle's last night with my sister. For dd, I got a couple of their vegetarians soft-shell tacos.)
* Chili. (We make a chili with cut-up kielbasa, frozen corn, canned stewed tomatoes, and canned beans -- it's one of my I-don't-have-time-to-cook dishes. Dd ignores the keilbasa while devouring the kidney beans, black beans, and corn.)
* Scrambled eggs. (My standard lunch when we're out of leftovers is two eggs, scrambled in the pan, and toasted English muffins. Dd likes eggs so much I've decided I'm going up to three eggs because she'll happily eat a whole one on her own.)
* English muffins. (See above. She likes the "offin" part, too.)
* Sugar snap peas (steamed or raw)
* Broccoli

Also, if it's some sort of ghastly junk food that no one in their right mind would feed to a toddler, she LOVES it. She has had the opportunity to sample chocolate, ice cream, jelly beans, and Cool Ranch Doritos, and of course she loves them all. *sigh*.

She's a remarkably good eater and will try a LOT of new things. Of course, she's also a totally unpredictable eater. She'll LOVE something one night (this is particularly true of vegetables) and refuse it two nights later. She'll also refuse things I know she'd LOVE if she tried them (like strawberries). I'd say that right now, her most reliably preferred food are the scrambled eggs; she will eat all I give her and nag me for more. She'll nag me for an "offin," too, but she's less likely to eat the whole thing.

I've been pleasantly surprised by some of the things she will willingly eat.


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## Threefold (Nov 27, 2001)

I NEVER say this in fornt of ds, but he is, at 15 months a light and picky eater. Breastmilk is the only constant, everythign else varies from day to day, and some days he eats next to nothing. These are the food he has loved at least once:

bananas
mangos
frozen blueberries
frozen peas
broccoli








spaghetti with red sauce (I try to use whole wheat or spelt pasta)
waffles
jelly beans







:
guacamole
frijoles a la holla
chicken
cheese, cheese, cheese
last month he ate whole grain bread, but no bread so far this month. . .
breadsticks (hard and dry from the local Whole Foods)
ONCE he ate a yogurt, but he really liked it, he just won't try it again







:
scrambled eggs (I mix in a little rice cereal, rice milk and sea salt)
baked french fried and tater tots
pizza

and I bought some asparagus to try tomorrow!!


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## ladylee (Nov 20, 2001)

I take baked sweet potatoes and mix in a little silken tofu and make little balls--she loves those. For breakfast she loves french toast made w/millet bread, and protein smoothies. Soups are also great--homemade lentil, corn chowder, bean, etc. Hummus w/pita bread, veggie corn dogs, spinach pancakes (I use all kinds of vegetables to make pancakes,) and she'll nibble steamed veggies of all kinds--carrots, broccoli, zucchini, kale, peas, etc.
We eat some free range meat and farmed fish here, so turkey burgers w/spinach and carrots mixed in, and fish fingers go over well. And I'm very happy because she's recently started eating salad!


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