What are you all feeding your 15-16 month olds??

Lauren - posted on 12/08/2010

My son was not eating in his high chair either and we finally figured out why! He wanted to eat at the big table with the rest of us. Have you thought about a booster seat that straps into the regular chair so that he can be pushed up to the table when you are eating? It also helps to have him eat when you eat. My son always eats better when sitting at the table eating with the rest of us.

KAREN - posted on 12/04/2010

Hi am glad to hear these comments, I have to give my son anything to play with and keep him occupied whilst eating. He loves his potatoes, veg and meat but wont eat fresh fruit at all!!! Only way I can get him to eat fruit is in pureed fruit pots. Am also afraid of giving him the same thing week after week.

Julie - posted on 11/11/2010

Luckily our 15 mth old daughter will eat just about anything but our son who is now 3 is still a crazy picky eater. Supplementing with some vitamins and anything pediasure makes for his age range can help fill in the gaps. We are still mixing veggies in with pastas w/ cheese or tomato sauces to get some of that mixed in his diet. Other then that his doc has always just told us to keep trying different things and make sure he is getting his calcium in for the day. Good Luck! I know it's crazy frustrating.

Katie - posted on 11/10/2010

My daughter is like that tooo! I feel your frustration. My Leona also is allergic to tomatoes and strawberries which seem to be in all kinds of the prepared stage four meals and gerber snacks, I try to make it fun for her. Leona is using a fork she really has grown into this I dont wanna stop moving to eat and I have to do it myself. I usually buy those star puffs and put them on the tray she will eat one and then I will give her a bite of food. I alternate while shes taking the puff I put more on the fork or spoon for her. I will sing to her anything to keep her mind busy while eating. Its a tough stage I feel your pain. I dont know what to feed her though?

Becky - posted on 11/10/2010

ME TOO!!!! Oh, Jenny, I'm so glad to hear I'm not the only mother with this problem. My 15-month-old daughter is the same way: Bananas, peaches (fruit of any kind, really) are great, as are Goldfish crackers, curried tofu, yogurt (as long as it's not vanilla), peanut butter and peas. After that...it's anyone's guess as to what she'll eat from meal to meal. One thing I HAVE noticed, though, is that she tends to eat a lot more when she eats what we're eating. Last night, for instance, we had chicken pot pie and she LOVED it. The cooked carrots, celery, peas, corn, potatoes, etc....she couldn't get enough. And when we have breakfast burritos she'll eat the scrambled eggs, cheese, tomatoes, etc. I think it might have something to do with her starting to recognize that we're eating something different and she doesn't like that. Have you noticed this with your son?

Jaye - posted on 11/10/2010

By looking at my little lady, you wouldn't think that she is a picky eater, but she truly is! Most days consist of broiled or baked potato, corn, baked chicken ,applesauce, yogurt and sliced turkey breast. Occassionaly she will eat broccoli and multigrain crackers.Its frustrating because I have to prepare the same foods daily, but after speaking with her pedi last week, I was informed that she is doing just fine,just try to introduce new things to her weekly.I wish she would eat more green veges...but I will take what i can get out of her for now.

Amie - posted on 11/09/2010

It is a phase that he is going through....I have heard that boys will do this and it is nothing to worry about. He knows when he is hungry and when he isn't. I work in a daycare and we have a child who won't eat 98% of the food we serve...he doesn't eat much at home either. Try a booster chair that attaches to a chair and let him join you at the table...My son loves eating at the table with the rest of us rather than off to the side!!
Good luck

Hayley - posted on 11/09/2010

I just noticed someone above mentioned they feed their child chicken nuggets, do you kow what chicken nuggets are made of? All the yucky processed meat tat isn't good enough to use for deli or butchery meat. I can't stand the thought of feeding my daughter cicken nuggets after seeing how these are made.

Go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w2OK6xDd7...

this wil put you off. Unless you make your own with the proper meat. Then you will always know what your actually feeding your child rather than that processed c***.

But anyway Good luck post number 1. Just remember your child won't starve, if he's hungery he'll eat.

Elizabeth - posted on 11/09/2010

Christie S., my daughters Ped. said the same thing. My little girl was 4 weeks early and has 4 top teeth, 2 bottom teeth and is starting to get molars. She mostly eats baby food but will eat table food. I give her as much of that as I can. I asked the doctor at her last check up if baby food was still ok and she said as long as she will eat it then let her. As long as she is getting the nutrients, that's what's important. I feel a little better knowing I'm not the only one who has this problem.

Melinda - posted on 11/07/2010

my sons doe the same lol

Melinda - posted on 11/07/2010

i am having the same problem i have two tho i have twin boys going to be 16months and always refuses to eat they will hit there head of the high chair and get so mad they are getting a lil better but they have there times they were 3 months early so still need to be feed so its a lil harded to just let them feed them selfs ..but i have tryed it all and all i can say is keep trying my boys now love potatos and they are lil guys they are 18 and 15 lbs and need to eat so its hard and i know it is but just keep trying them thats all u can do u dont wanna make dinner time a big fighting time trying to get them to eat they will let u know

CHRISTIE - posted on 11/07/2010

My son is not a picky eater at all but I just thought I would tell you what my doctor said. My son still eats baby food PLUS whatever we are eating, and my doc said that as long as he would eat baby food to give it to him. She said she has a 3 yr old and that if she would eat baby food then she would let her. That way she would be getting her nutrients. I don't know if your little one will eat baby food or not but it's worth a try.

Allison - posted on 11/06/2010

I hear ya on this one! My son is 16 months old and very picky. I find he eats better if I pull his high chair up to the kitchen table and he can eat with my husband and I.
I asked his doctor about this and she told me that they all go through this stage at about this age and to just keep trying to reintroduce foods. They change their minds constantly and they're at the age when they realize that they have a choice to what they eat.

Carrol - posted on 11/06/2010

my son will throw his food on the floor and then want out of his high chair and then eat his food, i know its kinda gross but the floors are always clean and for now if thats the way he wants to eat im okay with it, its not gonna hurt him,
also he enjoys having a bowl of food, fruit, dry cereal etc to have out so he can walk around with it and eat it whenever he feels like eating

Ashley - posted on 11/06/2010

Hello I feed my daughter chicken nuggets cut up, hot dog cut up in very small pieces, cheese sandwiches,spaghettio's,lots of peas and carrots in the can she loves them,eggs. Like the other women cut back on the snacks for a while see if that helps. My daughter drops food on the ground when she is done or doesn't like it.

Olivia - posted on 11/05/2010

Mine loves to eat but he has gone through a picky phase too. Maybe yours is having too many snacks in between meals, I've done that before. Anyway I give my 15 month old cereal for breakfast, he likes chex and cheerios and oatmeal with almonds & cranberries or raisins; lunch is usually fruit and pasta and dinner he will always eat spaghetti but he sometimes gets chicken nuggets, soup, grilled cheese or beans. Actually the list is pretty long. But one thing you might try with your son is not giving him a snack unless he has eaten his meal or he will just keep going for snacks instead of sitting down for a meal.

Jenelle - posted on 11/05/2010

I am in the same boat you are. My daughter always eats in her highchair but always throws her food on the ground and barely eats anything. I just try to offer her one of every food group at every meal and offer lots of snacks and hope for the best. You never stop worrying about their nutrition and want to make every meal count. It doesnt even matter if it is her favorite food or not, if she doesnt want to eat, it ends up on the floor.

Tanja - posted on 11/04/2010

My daughter goes for green vegetables these days. As long as I have broccoli, peas, green beans, or spinach on the plate she'll eat her veggies. If I give my daughter a whole sandwish she usually picks it apart and barely eats any of it. I now give her slices of chicken, turkey, ham, then later the bread with some butter, then string cheese. I do the same with fruit. This way she's snacking throughout the day and her overall intake is a lot better and going to the kitchen for the next item gives her something to do when she get's bored playing with a toy. Re. the no PB until two comment, I started giving my daughter PB a couple of months ago but I get organic plain PB for her. Look at the ingredients, it's amazing how much unnecessary stuff goes into some of our foods. A few experts seem to lean toward the additives being the cause of allergies rather than peanuts themselves such as cottonseed oil and the pesticides used while growing cotton. Do some research and decide what you're comfortable with.

Lauren - posted on 11/04/2010

I do thoes little gerber preschool foods or he eats what we eat. As for the high chair we bought him a chair that straps on to the big chairs and he sits in there but when it comes to restraunts he throws a huge fit. so we are still working on that.
I didnt think you could give kids PB until they were two? Thats just whati hear...

Jessica - posted on 11/04/2010

try frozen anything...blueberries, peas, etc. sometimes they don't want to eat well when they are teething. also try adding spices. i make spagetti with toamto, basil garlic sauce, sometimes also stuffed raviolis with a garlicy dressing, avocado and tomatoes are a favorite and olives (break into pieces and remove pitts) try the foods you and your husband like instead of baby food- i wouldn't want to eat that stuff either...food is much better with spices :)

Genia - posted on 11/04/2010

I have some more ideas for you!

You said he likes pb & j's, I wanted to suggest, if you aren't already doing so, that you use 100% whole wheat bread, natural no-sugar-no-salt peanut butter and all-fruit preserves so those pbj's have the best bang for their buck. Also, have you tried other nut butter's? maybe mix it up with some sunflower seed butter, cashew butter, almond butter...they all have different nutrients. You could also try nut butter and banana sammiches, or pb & honey, or pb & thinly sliced peeled apples sprinkled with cinnamon.
Some other sandwich ideas - cream cheese and cucumber, egg salad, grilled cheese
a snack my picky son has always loved is whole wheat toast cut into strips and dipped in spaghetti sauce. And you can mi extras in the sauce, like ground flax seeds. For an easy homemade sauce just take 1 can of tomato puree and add about 1/2 tsp garlic powder plus 2 tsp or so of mixed Italian herbs (oregano, basil, marjoram, thyme, sage...). It can be frozen or refrigerated.
have you tried smoothies? you can sneak a lot into those. avacado is great in a smoothie. whole milk plain yogurt, milk, juice, fresh kale or spinach (really!), frozen or fresh berries, ground flax seeds, frozen cauliflower....and my daughter loves smoothie or yogurt popsicles too.
finally, if you have a juicer making carrot juice is a good way to get a veggie into him.
hth!

Janet - posted on 11/03/2010

I've also heard that at this age meeting their nutritional requirements can be looked at over the course of a week, instead of just focusing on it daily. Some days are easier than others to get food into them when they want to go-go-go. Have you tried using a suction bowl/plate. They've been a lifesaver here to help with the chronic food throwing. They sometimes do come undone, but they buy you some time at least to re-attach it, good luck.

Lizz - posted on 11/03/2010

I am the mommy of 3 (8,5 and 15 months). My oldest ate broccoli, scrambled eggs, meatballs and juice for nearly a full year. My middle guy was easy an tough, he ate everything but had reflux and was allergic to milk. My youngest won't sit still but has gone through a phase where she will only eat meat. I have always felt that they crave what they need and stop when they're full. Enjoy trying out new foods and make them fun, we often have strawberry mountains, blueberry waterfalls, berry forests, string cheese stick logs. Sometimes if you get creative with the food on the plate, they giggle and try everything.

Tshego - posted on 11/03/2010

My son is not too bad when it comes to eating, but one thing for sure is he hates the high chair, and you have to make sure his hands are far from the food, or else he will slap the spoon each time you try feed him. So i make sure i hold him and feed him until im satisfied he has had enough, then i can leave him to try feed himself knowing that at least he ate.

Jenny - posted on 11/02/2010

Thanks ladies! All great suggestions! I just want to make sure he's getting his daily nutrition requirements met.. but for now, I guess its go with the flow! And no, silly goose, I meant goldfish crackers!! ;)

Vicki - posted on 11/02/2010

Don't worry about making sure he's full. He doesn't need to be full, he won't starve himself. Just have healthy food available to him and he'll work it out.

My boy barely eats some days. I get frustrated occasionally but mostly try to go with the flow.

Um, goldfish? I take it you don't mean the kind that swim around the tank lol.

Genia - posted on 11/02/2010

an idea I read about years ago from Dr. Sears sounds perfect for your son - a snack tray. Fill the cups of a muffin tin with various snacks (cubed fruit, dried fruit, cereals, pasta, cheese, hard boiled egg slices, cubed meat, veggies, dips, etc. - nothing that's a choking hazard) and put it where he can reach. It is so hard to get them to hold still sometimes isn't it! Also, remember that he won't starve himself, and you don't have to resort to his "favorites" to get him to eat. Offer him some food (a couple options in case he really dislikes something), if he refuses, assume he's not hungry and try again in an hour. I totally know where you are, with my first son I fed him lots of graham crackers and cheese toast because I just wanted him to EAT. Here's a pic of a snack tray I did for my 15 month old girl -
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=1...

Kris - posted on 11/02/2010

There are a few nights I have let Chayce eat on the floor. I put down one of her place mats, and her food and let her be. She is a chronic food thrower like your son, and does not eat much at all. My pediatrician told me to keep trying, and start each meal with fruit or vegetables (fruit for us) and hope for the best! The few other things that what you listed that she eats includes yogurt, cheese sticks (loves the twisted ones she can pull apart) and grilled cheese on the flat wheat bread.

Tammy - posted on 11/02/2010

You could try getting him a little table and chairs for him to sit at. My son also refused to sit in the high chair as well, so we bought him a little table. It works pretty well, we just have to face him at the wall so he doesnt get too distracted. As for food, our son has been eating exactly what we eat for some time, so that includes cereal with milk, fruit, toasted sandwiches, spaghetti, baked beans, scones, pikelets, muesli bars, crackers..the list goes on. Just remember if your son doesnt like it, you can try again in a few weeks as their palete is always changing