Food for toddlers? Help

Timothea - posted on 12/02/2008

I could not get my son to eat meat until he was 2, if she is drinking plenty of whole mike there should be enough protien in that but check with Dr.
If she eats grilled cheese I use to put small amounts of veggies in his sandwich.....
fruit smoothies with a few veggies, they can't taste it......

Kristi - posted on 12/02/2008

Let me add that my son LOVES rice cakes and popcorn. Rice cakes might be a good substitute for regular rice?

Kristi - posted on 12/02/2008

Just keep offering it. Sometimes it just takes babies awhile to accept certain foods. Could be smell, taste, texture, etc. It took 2 months of me trying a 2 or 3 times a week) before my son would start even TASTING eggs. Don't worry if she plays and throws her food around, she's supposed to! It's part of her development and it will eventually pass. I 'sneak' a lot of fruits and veggies in to my sons diet when I can.. He LOVES spaghetti (or any pasta for that matter, so I mix in finely chopped spinach and broccoli and add fresh pureed tomatoes to the sauce and it goes down no problem. He now even picks up and eats the pieces of broccoli left behind after all the noodles are gone. VICTORY! I also noticed he likes things more if it has a lot of flavor so I try to add spices or sauces to peas and such (he actually likes a lot of veggies in Indian sauces). I also puree up fruit and add it to his apple sauce and yogurt and he eats it very willingly, loves it. I can puree blueberries and put them in his yogurt and he loves it but he wont dare eat a plain blueberry if I offer it to him (texture maybe). Cous Cous with little pieces of fruit and veggies and maybe a little sauce goes over well here also. I did notice too that he accepts new foods or foods he normally doesn't accept when we are around others. I got him to start eating bananas by offering them to him for snack at playgroup when the other kids were eating snack. Or he'll eat edamame for me at the playground. He goes down the slide, eats an edamame, goes sown the slide, comes back and eats another.... then he started accepting it at his high chair. He is def. a social eater. He will also drink any smoothie I make him. I notice too that if I offer food sliced differently (like a french fry vs. a cube) he might accept it more. He was never into peaches but I offered him a WHOLE peach (skin on and everything) and he ate 3/4ths of it just like I would have eaten an apple. (He actually did this when we were cruising through the grocery store and eats them that way ever since). He has also started showing interest in using spoons/forks so I got him some toddler utensils and he is so excited about trying to eat with his spoon that he doesn't even care what he is eating. Hope some of these suggestions might help!

Stacey - posted on 12/02/2008

My son's favorite meal at that age was from a blender. I would have chicken and rice for the family and them put some in the blender for him. He also ate a lot of avacados just sliced up.

Gretchen - posted on 12/02/2008

A couple tips for having her help in the kitchen at that age: Sit her in her high chair, and ask her to mix something. If she's walking, ask her to carry utensils, such as spoons and spatulas over the the counter/table. Ask her to be a taste-tester, (Might be too young to understand that one, though). If you add spices, ask her to put the spices into the bowl.

Gretchen - posted on 12/02/2008

I also had my daughter "help" in the kitchen at that age, lol. Also, when we went grocery shopping, I would let her pick out some new and exciting things to eat, too. I would point out the bright shiny colors of the fruit, but not suggest one to try, just tell her, "Here, you pick one out to try". If there's certain foods you don't want to buy, hold up 2-4 different items that you approve of, and ask your child to make the final choice - the child gets something you approve of, and he/she feels like they're in control, lol. Good luck!!

Bernadette - posted on 12/02/2008

i got my little one to help with serving and preparing (as much as is possible with her wobbly little hands) to get her interested in more foods. bit messy but after a few times she thought it wasnt so bad having a bite of something new:-)

Katrina - posted on 12/02/2008

i have 7 children from 35 yrs to 23 yrs 9 grandchildren from 17yrs to 16 week and they are all differant some eat like no tomorrow one youd think i was trying to poison him lol dont you just love them and there oddities lol

Katrina - posted on 12/02/2008

kids will eat when they are hungry,tell them tales rabbits eat carrots,there tastes change all the time ,they might like one thing one day and not like it an other,my d/ter who is 24 ate weetabix for nearly 6 months,doc said as long as she is drinking and eating something its fine.dont worry,you eat them in front of them thats how they learn x

Kendel - posted on 12/02/2008

Thanks Ladies i will def try your suggestions out. Me being stressed about it doesn't help either!

Thanks

k

Katie - posted on 12/02/2008

sometimes it isn't what you give them but how you give it to them. If they are really hungry try giving them only one choice. The new food. Once they eat that give them the next thing you really want them to eat. You know the fruit will get eaten so give that at the end. The other thing is make it fun. Give a new veggie with something to dip it in. Kids love dip. They love it even more if the grownups are doing it too. The other thing I would do is put it in a snack bag and give it to them while at the park or playing in the back yard. See if any of those help you out.

Colleen - posted on 12/01/2008

My daughter has a limited menu of foods that she likes too. I give her a variety of foods each day so that I (at least) feel that I am exposing her to them. I have discovered that if I give her JUST veggies on her tray ... she will eat some ... then I introduce the next item. When I give her it all at once ... she will just eat the fruit, LOVES FRUIT. I still have to give her pureed veggies from time to time so that I know she is getting some. I was also surprized how much she liked turkey. Can't seem to get enough ... but the same thing ... I have to just put that in front of her and she will eat it. Keep trying. They say that you need to introduce new foods at least 6 times before you can rule out that they just dont like it. We will be on attempt #4 for broccolli here in a few days!!!