BabyWhispererForums.com
EAT => Eating For Toddlers => Topic started by: ~inbalance~ on May 14, 2011, 21:38:35 pm
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I am trying to find a good balance between meals and snacks. My kids would happily snack all day and then not eat their meals, and while I don't mind them having healthy snacks, I really want them to eat at least some of their meals! It seems like even the smallest snack will ruin dinner and they won't touch a thing. I practically need them to be starving to eat lunch or dinner!
So I'm just wondering what other moms offer. I'm also always worried that what I give will be too small to sustain them. This might be what a day here looks like:
8am breakfast - cereal or toast, and some fruit; sometimes eggs
10am snack - a healthy cookie or granola bar, maybe some more fruit, milk
12pm lunch - soups, sandwiches, cheese, crackers, fruit, veggies, etc etc
3pm snack - some raisins or other dried fruit, cheerios or other dry cereal, a cookie (though I have decided no more cookies and will not buy them anymore!), milk
5:30/6pm dinner - protein, vegetables
Today we were out all morning and they really didn't get much in the way of a morning snack, mostly just a bit of milk. But then they both ate at lunch, the most they've eaten in awhile! So I wonder if the snacks are getting in the way of their appetites. It doesn't seem right though to not give snacks, but I would like to limit them to something very small.
Like, is only a handful of raisins and some milk a sufficient snack do you think?
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Yeh to me that is a sufficient snack. A snack here is:
A few cucumber and carrot sticks
Half an apple or a tangerine
(rarely) half a slice of toast with PB
(rarely) a cookie
7 grapes
A small handful of nuts and raisins
Usually I try to stick to fruit/veg for snacks. I do milk with breakfast and before bed, not at snack times.
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T usually gets his milk with lunch and dinner, I'm still working out F's because he is still BFding. So F gets a BF around 3pm which is part of his snack.
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My dd eats so much that I have often wondered if she might have a tapeworm!!! ;)
We almost never did a morning snack since dd is such a big breakfast kid....but we always had a mid-afternoon snack about 2 hours after lunch and 2-2.5 hrs before dinner. Yogurt (she loves the tubes now and likes to squirt them into her mouth!), carrots and celery with dip, apple, fruit salad, babana, granola mixed with raisins, crackers w/peanut butter, graham crackers with some grapes or berries, a homemade muffin, and my favorite snacks, Kashi cereal bars and Kashi oatmeal cookies...loaded with fiber and good stuff! :)
The other day I was tempted to post a picture of her plates of food for the day and asking if you guys thought I was giving her enough, because she is always just so ready to eat!
I think the best way to determine if they are getting the *right* amount of snack is that they stay in a good mood with no breakdowns due to hunger, and that they are eating at mealtimes. I think for us, we rarely get to the 3 hour mark without food! So if lunch is at 1, I can expect that at about 3:30 she will want to eat....which is fine by me if dinner will be around 6pm.
HTH!
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I try to keep snacks small BUT if DS is too tired for lunch before his nap (not unusual for him) I'll offer it right after instead and then try for no snack.
Or if he's really hungry close to dinner and we are out I'll let him fill up on something healthy like a homemade granola bar or a whole banana - that way if he doesn't eat dinner at least it was nutritious.
We made these today and DD and DS both really loved them. Great for a healthy snack! http://weelicious.com/2011/05/10/roasted-honey-cinnamon-chickpeas/
I made them as is except added some salt along with the cinnamon/oil.
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Oh my goodness Millie LOVES chickpeas...I can't wait to make these!!!! ;D
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I saw that recipe on the picky toddlers thread and am going to try it! ;)
So I have been pondering then what I should be doing with their milk? T is 32mos, he drinks about a cup of milk a day but it is usually in parts rather than in one shot (some at lunch, some after nap sometimes, some at dinner, some at bed). Should I offer it just at one time of day, say bedtime?
Like I said we are still working out F's milk. Right now he gets BF between 4-5am (before anyone comments on this, we have struggled with this feed but for now it is staying!), then again at 3pm and before bed, about 7:15. He does eat some cheese but doesn't eat yogurt so I have been offering a little bit of goat's milk in a sippy mid morning (where he used to BF). Does he need this extra milk do you think? He really does love it!
Oh yeah, they both get a smoothie at breakfast which is why I don't offer milk at that time, but there is some yogurt in the smoothie. It is hit or miss whether or not they drink it though. ::)
Have I got too much going on? I keep thinking I need to keep snacks small and simple to avoid interfering with their main meals.
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Ok wow, I feed my kid a lot! He eats breakfast which consists of an 8oz smoothie, a muffin, and half a pear, apple, whichever fruit is in the house. Then he had a mid- morning snack of 2 crackers, 4 slices of cheese, cut up chicken or whatever meat we had the night before (probably about 4 tablespoons worth) and half of whichever fruit is around. Then we have lunch which is usually half a sandwich, veggie sticks and a bowl of soup. Then an afternoon snack of yogurt, more veggie sticks, another half a fruit and usually a rice cracker. Then he eats a full supper ::) It is like having a teenager in the house, I swear. I know I feed him a ton and he is a big, very active boy but somedays (especially after grocery shopping) I wonder how normal it is!
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Jenn, I think that's fine and it's great that he eats all that!
I am not so fortunate with my boys and so have to wonder about what to feed them that will be the most nutritious since they are just not all that interested in eating. ::)
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I cannot imagine how frustrating that is Martina! My kiddo must just share my enjoyment of food! I live for eating!
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Stan eats good big meals but is much more likely to 'I don't like it'/'I'm finished' after 3 bites if he's had a bigger snack.
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Just to offer a different perspective ( :) ) eating 6 smaller meals really can be better for them than having to limit snacks to favour a bigger 'meal.' So I try to make sure that DS's snacks are really just parts of his meal spread out and only a couple of days a week does he get something "snacky" mid-morn or mid-aft, the rest of the time it is something that would be included in his meal anyway iyswim. So he might eat a whole grain bread roll and slice of turkey at 10:30/11am as a snack but then just have a few spoonfuls of corn and some jogurt for lunch at 1230 (and that would be a decent lunch if consumed all at once). Nothing wrong with that at all, in fact spreading the meals out is easier on the body to digest when it is done that way!
We do milk throughout the day, like you do Martina. It is quite caloric and would be a meal on its own if I gave him it all in one shot. I don't think he has the tummy space for that much at once! A cup is only about half of their daily calcium needs (500mg at this age, and there is 300mg of calcium in a 250ml cup)
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Yeh, we only do fruit or veg for snacks in this house. Anything else always takes the edge off their appetite.
That said, Leo (21 months) has a small sippy of milk when we wakes up from his nap at 3ish and then his fruit about 30 mins later. We did drop this for a while but now he's refusing his breakfast milk ::) so we started giving it after his nap again.
If I gave milk to either of them with their main meal, it would definitely take the edge off their appetite. I've never done it - I always thought how I wouldn't fancy a cup of milk with a roast dinner ;D
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Mashi, I know about eating smaller snacks being healthy. But overall I find that with snacks it's too easy to gravitate towards unhealthy stuff, and I really want them to eat their meals. They are both likely to refuse a meal altogether if they've had a snack! And so, hence why I need to find a balance!
I'm not trying to get rid of snacks, just need to figure out what to offer that won't take away from their other times.
Good to know you do milk spaced out too though. :)
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Mashi, I know about eating smaller snacks being healthy. But overall I find that with snacks it's too easy to gravitate towards unhealthy stuff, and I really want them to eat their meals. They are both likely to refuse a meal altogether if they've had a snack! And so, hence why I need to find a balance!
I also think it's important to sit down at the table to eat at least one meal a day. Snacks tend to be on the go iyswim.
Even better if the whole family can eat together for one meal - we only manage this at the weekends :-\
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Yes, we do sit down at the table for a meal every night as a family, and he and I eat breakfast together and prob 3-4 days a week lunch together. I just don't expect him to eat "large" three times a day and very tiny two times a day, but for me it is okay to eat a handful of corn and a slice of turkey and chunk of cheese for a snack but then at lunch only want toast and a bit of apple, rather than limit him to a bit of apple for snack and then have him eat corn, turkey, toast, cheese, etc all at once at lunch. So I split his meals up so his snacks are part of what his meal would be anyway, rather than it being anything I have to limit. (We are having dinner in an hour, he is hungry right now so he is eating a bowl of corn and slices of raw red pepper - rather than thinking of it as ruining his dinner, I just don't expect him to eat any veggies with his meal tonight, kwim?)
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And what do you do when you offer them a snack but they keep crying for something else? Do you say 'well if you are hungry you will eat what's in that bowl' and let them hang off your leg screaming at you...because that was my night tonight. We are having issues these days with cheese, and other carb items that he seems to want all the time. I typically offer veg for snack before dinner (same premise as Mashi) but honestly, this kid won't eat the same thing twice it seems. He loved carrots, now he won't eat them for love or money. I got him on the pepper bandwagon a long time ago, and that was terribly short-lived. He won't eat much in the way of veg at all, not even with dip. Cucumber used to be a fave now he can't be bothered. He always says he's not hungry when asked...yet then wants 'cheese mommy cheese'
He's eating like a bird these days too. He's taking notice of textures, and spitting foods he's eaten into the foods he hasn't eaten. Example is that he had some orange the other day, got some of the white bits gone in and then spit the hunk of orange into the other oranges. Same with apples, he won't eat the skin now. Keeps spitting and pulling it out of his mouth with every bite. Is this all just a phase?
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We get all that too Wendy. ::) T in particular is very demanding these days and is throwing tantrums when I don't offer what he wants.
I offer what I offer and that is it. I am not made of snacks!
I meant to say too that I do like your ideas Mashi. I think my issue with wanting them to be hungry for their meals is that that is where all the healthy stuff is. Veggies are tricky, they are very limited with what they like and prefer cooked veggies over raw ones. So I don't generally offer veg as a snack, therefore want them to be hungry to eat them at lunch and dinner, kwim? Neither of them would sit and munch on raw peppers!
Ugh, veg is just a struggle altogether these days whereas previously they would both happily eat it. :P
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I offer what I offer and that is it. I am not made of snacks!
Can I quote that lol?
I know that when I cook veggies he doesn't eat them really. Occasionally some peas or whatever but that's about all. So I aim for snacks of raw when he's most hungry hoping something, anything, will go in.
I am limiting my fruit offerings but then we aren't left with much! He was enjoying prunes and apricots but that seems to have been a passing fancy too. It's tiring lol
School gives them Cheerios every evening and I can't ask them not to because then he would be the only kid not eating at 5 p.m. Not fair on him really. But then it means our dinner has to be later...and later...because he's not hungry.
I don't really have many ideas for snacks of things he will eat...
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Did you see the breakfast cookies I've listed before? Can be made with either tofu or ricotta for lots of protein and calcium and my kiddos both like them. And the roasted chickpeas work well too, as do pistachio nuts, Matty's new favorite!
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I meant to say too that I do like your ideas Mashi. I think my issue with wanting them to be hungry for their meals is that that is where all the healthy stuff is.
Yes, I mean, in practice it doesn't really matter when they eat, as long as they DO eat ;) :)
But with my two, they have to be hungry to sit at the table for any length of time - especially Leo at his age ::)
And I like the 'routine' of knowing when to give what iyswim. This way I know exactly when they're hungry (and I avoid meltdowns - N is terrible when he's hungry ::)) and I know that generally speaking they will eat everything that's put in front of them ;)
But that's just me ;)
:-*
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My 2 are being really tricky as well Martina. I wonder if there is something in the age to a degree? Or the small age gap anyway?
We are really struggling with meals - especially dinner - someone suggested to me that I might need to switch the meals round so the better was at lunch as they naturally will pick more at dinner time due to tiredness.
J has pretty much dropped his milk as well now. Megan gets 2-3 bottle - largely depending on her nap schedule.
I think dropping carbs from the snacks is a good idea though :).
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i've got dramas with ds2. ds1 would eat anything and everything (tho definitely got a bit fussy and started refusing some favs after 2yo, but still a good eater for the most part) and would eat all day if i let him.
DS2 gets breaky (porridge, weetbix or shredded wheat) plus fruit (puree, that's another issue ::) ). 2hr15 later is snack - i ended up having to cut this down to just a rice cracker or half a mini fruit muffin (about 2 bites worth) in order to get him to eat his lunch 2 hrs later, so very very small. also cut down his water intake here, he used to drink a whole cup and then wouldnt drink his milk at lunch (he has cup milk at breaky, lunch and bedtime bottle), so cut water to half cup/3oz and hey presto he drinks all his milk again. that will get him eating a decent lunch of one slice of toast, or some pasta and sauce, and some veggies (small amt of veggies, i'm talk 2tbs max).
afternoon snack is small too but a bit bigger as they have 2hr45 til dinner so doesnt spoil appetite so much. generally yoghurt, fruit (used to be half banana or few slices of pawpaw but wont touch it since teeth so now purees ) and then either a cracker, some pasta pieces, or slice of smoked salmon, ham or half a fried egg, etc. he still eats a good dinner after that. any amount of water is fine here too without affecting later intakes of milk.
took a bit of trial and error to work out what suits him but think we've finally got it sussed (at least for a week or two til it all changes again, lol).
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I used to "plan" DD's day and make sure she had three "meals" and two "snacks". Now, I follow her lead. She generally asks for food if she's hungry. I am trying to think about what she ate yesterday. I think it was something like:
B: scrambled eggs and french toast w/ milk (I decided this b/c that is what *I* wanted hehe)
S: she asked for an apple at some point and juice at some point and a slice of cheese at some point. (only had about 1/2 the apple)
L: Pasts w/ broccoli and chicken in tomato sauce. She ate only the pasta.
S: she shared a few pretzels with me and had an english muffin over at my mom's house.
D: pizza, but she didn't eat that much (the english muffin was late and we only got pizza b/c the mother's group I joined is sending me dinners every other day after having DS and the lady sent over a pizza and a grilled chick. salad which I ate...DD stole some of my salad ;) )
She has actually figured out how to climb onto the counter and open our "snack" cabinet and pull things out of it and can open the fridge and pull things out of there as well. It isn't uncommon to see her coming toward you w/ a gallon of milk asking to have some. LOL
I do find if she snacks too close to a meal she won't eat as much of the meal, but in general I let her listen to her body and if she feels hungry I let her eat. Sometimes if I am in the process of making dinner or whatever meal, I will tell her no and have her wait, but that's only b/c the meal is literally ALMOST ready ;)
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I let her listen to her body and if she feels hungry I let her eat. Sometimes if I am in the process of making dinner or whatever meal, I will tell her no and have her wait, but that's only b/c the meal is literally ALMOST ready ;)
And this is totally what I struggle with.
1) I hate cooking but I do it out of what I feel is responsibility to do so. I try to plan meals that contain most of what he needs over the course of the week and also stuff that DH and I can stomach. We just can't afford for everyone to be doing something different, it's expensive! So I want him to eat what we have as a sit-down meal as a family and if he snacks, he's very less inclined to do so. And he's a really good eater but he just has a small tummy!
2) I want him to be able to distinguish when he is hungry and ask for food, so I feel badly telling him 'no you must wait' when he's always got to wait at daycare anyway, they have a very regimented snack and lunch program. So he can't just ask for whatever he would like there. At home I try to be more flexible, but our schedule just does not allow for a snack that close to dinner. And even the quickest of meals still takes time to organize. So there is a short delay from when we get home and for him to eat. He also hates that I am cooking when I get home and not paying attention to him, and I hate that too!
3) I am a firm believer that often our bodies will have cravings if we are lacking something. So for example, I worry that his cheese obsession means that he's not getting enough of something, calcium or something? He doesn't drink a lot of milk, he has a sippy before bed and I am guessing that's about 250 ml if that. He rarely finishes it, unless he's using it to stall bedtime (which has been taking place lately to the point where we might drop the milk). He has one small fromage frais or yogurt in the morning, would that cover off enough calcium? I'm sure he's getting some milk at school too.
My concerns are calcium and iron the most, of course vitamin C but he does have supplements. I want to try to cover this in snacks and meals combined.
Another issue I have is waste...typically go to a lot of trouble preparing a snack or meal and more than half gets wasted on a regular basis. Have really cut the portion sizes back too. He is literally eating like a bird.
Karen I LOVE your ideas but I just don't cook. I'm not remotely inclined to make our own snacks - ok well that's not true, I'm inclined if I don't have any other responsibilities. It's just too time consuming with our schedule. I do try some more complex stuff on weekends but even weekends in the summer are becoming social and busy. Perhaps down the road when there is more time I will be that cookie-making mom but I just ain't at the moment :-(
Sorry Martina not hijacking here, but was going to make a similar post too - you had it covered!
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I totally get it Wendy but just FYI - those cookies seriously take me at most 10 minutes to prep and then are in the oven for about 18 minutes. And the full recipe makes 18-20 cookies so it doesn't have to be done often. The chickpeas take maybe 5 minutes to prep and if you doubled it would make enough to easily last 1-2 weeks stored in an airtight container.
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my kids eat like birds and our snack isa glass of whole milk, followed by nuts/fruits etc as needed.
7 am we do a glass of milk on waking followed by a toast or some cereal and maybe fruit dependin on how hungry he is
10am they get a small snack and milk/juice at school
noon lunch is normally a warm meal at home - home ciooked with atleast 1 steamed veggie
milk at abt 2:30 followed by fruit/nuts if needed
5:30/45 dinner with veggies
7 fruit before sleep
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Must check that picky toddler thread. None of my girls are picky but honey roasted chickpeas sound amazing! That's just reason #776 why I love this forum, so many great ideas :D
Anyhow, what I've started doing with the girls and it's quite cheap (we were getting in the same boat with snacking) was carrot sticks. I buy organic carrots, peel and slice and keep a couple of days' supply in the fridge. When they say they're hungry (about twice an hour because they like food more than they're hungry) they get a bowl full. They're also horribly constipated and they're getting a lot of relief from it. I restrict their milk to yogurt and the odd cup as they really get irritable with normal milk. Yogurt is fine. Apples are another one. They get them whenever, but heavy carbs or bread or cheese I restrict to mealtimes only. Half a granola bar would be fine or half a cookie (not like I'd get away with breaking one of their cookies in half ::) ) but more than that seems to fill them too much.
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I wish Finn would eat nuts :-( He won't. I've tried all sorts. Texture I think. I want to make a trail mix for when we are out and about but he's not game.
Ok I'll make the cookies, sounds like they are not that complicated. I much prefer baking to cooking!
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I wish Finn would eat nuts :-( He won't. I've tried all sorts.
have you tried soaked almonds? soak them, overnight in slightly warmed up water..next am they are softer and bloated up, peel off the brown peel and the almonds are sweeter and yummier! less hard and chewy too.
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That is the same here Nicole - I will hear/see DS dragging a chair across the kitchen floor and it is so he can climb up it onto the counter to get into the cupboard, or will find him sitting on the kitchen floor with the milk and getting himself a cup - so I get him what it is he wants. Pretty much any of the food in the house, he can have though, with the exception of grapes and blueberries which I limit in the day as blueberries constipate him and grapes give him the runs. This week I have on my list to buy BOTH instead of just one so that I can let him have them together so at least they will balance out!! When he is getting shouty for food and I am at that point of plating up, I give him something from the table that is set, tell him he can pick something out of the salad bowl (he always chooses cheese though!) but it emotionally satisfies him and I can then get him past it by telling him to wash his hands and find a hungry train/car/friend to share his dinner with and by the time he has rooted through his toy box to get someone to bring to the table, dinner is ready.
I also keep things like rice cakes/corn cakes or puffed wheat/puffed rye cakes on hand (they are rectangle in shape and sort of like ryvita or crisp breads but are puffy and fluffy sort of?) as they are low calorie (about 25 cal each) so they don't affect a meal much and they are quite high in fibre (the wheat/rye ones are) and count as a whole grain serving for the day so if he eats one of them then great! They also take him quite a long time to eat and so totally distract him from the hunger - I suspect that he probably burns off those 25 calories with the games he plays with them while he is eating!
(Oh dear, busy thread, lots of replies while i was typing!)
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Am a tad late to the party, but I just wanted to add that Aaron does better with eating if we keep his snacks few and far between. He has breakfast at ~8 (earlier if hungry), lunch at ~11:30, a post-nap snack at ~3:30, then dinner at 6:30. Obviously, if he's just positively starving, he eats, but he's now at the age that it's hard to tell if he's asking for something because he likes the taste and can SAY it, or if the request is truly hunger-driven.
His snacks are pretty much anything, we try to let him choose what he wants (within reason, of course). But it could be fruit, a granola bar, cheese, some dry cereal, yogurt...we're really lax about snacks. We are with breakfast and lunch, too, I should say; but with dinner, I try to plan something that he will eat. Most nights of the week anyways, but there are always some nights when I make him an alternative.
Going back to the original post, Martina, do you and your DH eat a lot at meals? Also, I think I remember you mentioning your boys were smaller, and if that's the case, I really think they're getting everything they need from the nice meals/snacks you provide. :)
Oh and Wendy, hon...I totally understand everything you're feeling/thinking/experiencing. Just wanted you to know.
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) I am a firm believer that often our bodies will have cravings if we are lacking something. So for example, I worry that his cheese obsession means that he's not getting enough of something, calcium or something?
I generally agree with this. I think we crave what we need, to a certain extent! I certainly crave a beverage when I am thirsty, but if I crave a beer....do I really NEED anything that it has to offer? Or a big bowl of chocolate ice cream w/ whipped cream and syrup on top? So I am also certain that sometimes she craves things she needs but other times she craves things she just plain LIKES as do we all. And DD asks for a LOT of cheese ;)
find a hungry train/car/friend to share his dinner with and by the time he has rooted through his toy box to get someone to bring to the table, dinner is ready.
I love this idea! I might start using that to stall her!
Also, I think I remember you mentioning your boys were smaller, and if that's the case, I really think they're getting everything they need from the nice meals/snacks you provide. Smiley
This is what I am thinking. With them being smaller they probably do get fuller faster but then also hungrier faster. I would imagine they NEED those snacks between meals and just smaller portions for meals in general. You are quite small as well, right? I am willing to bet they are getting all that they need from what you are providing. The examples you gave are certainly healthy and well balanced sounding to me. :)
This thread makes me hungry and this dairy/soy free elim. diet is not really satisfying my cravings! ;)
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Also, Wendy - I believe that "sometime" our bodies crave what they need/are missing BUT it's complicated by the fact that also "sometimes" our bodies crave what they are intolerant too. Like my DS used to crave cow's milk but he's actually quite intolerant of it. A good friend of mine saw her son used to crave wheat - yet he was diagnosed recently with celiac. So it's so hard to say - maybe Finn just really likes cheese?!
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karen - where is your breakfast cookie recipe? Would like to try it x
we are going through something similar so it must be an age thing. Henry just had a meltdown because I would not let him eat cereal 20 mins before dinner. I do find that too many snacks def affect dinner and he is a snack monster!
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See reply #174 here! http://babywhispererforums.com/index.php?topic=184435.165
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I too have always believed in teaching dd to listen to her body....but tbh, when she asks for food or says she is hungry just before dinner, I will just say "Oh I'm so glad you're hungry because I am making a yummy dinner!" She is fine with that...and I feel good that I haven't brushed her off, just asked her to wait a teeny bit longer, kwim? I do keep carrot sticks and celery sticks on the bottom shelf of the fridge in water, and she knows she can have these whenever, so sometimes I will say "Why don't you munch on a carrot while I finish up dinner?"
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Mealtime is important to me. I like our structured meals for me and the boys because we sit and eat together. It's not that I'm a stickler for them being at the table ALL the time, just those three times a day for a bit of together time. I think eating together promotes family time and brings ever one together in a social aspect. So I make a point of our mealtimes being the same time. DH joins us for dinner every night and occasionally for breakfast.
I agree that I want them to know when they feel hungry too. But if left to his devices T would be asking for crackers and cookies all day. We have snacking issues, but not out of hunger. :P But I have no problem offering fruit or veg anytime they want.
It is a fine line for a toddler!
Carrots are a staple here, but not raw ones. They only like them cooked. ::)
Thanks for all your suggestions!! :)
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as DS1 has gotten older I have noticed sometimes he says he is hungry based on boredom or just plain old thirst!
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I keep meaning to try this carrot recipe - my friend gave it to me and said her kids (5.5 and 2.5) love them!
32-oz. pkg. baby carrots
¼ cup packed brown sugar
½ cup orange juice
1 Tbsp. butter
½-¾ tsp. ground cinnamon, according to your taste preference
¼ tsp. ground nutmeg
2 Tbsp. cornstarch
¼ cup water
1. Combine all ingredients except cornstarch and water in slow cooker.
2. Cover. Cook on low 4-6 hours, or until carrots are done to your liking.
3. Put carrots in serving dish and keep warm, reserving cooking juices. Put reserved juices in small saucepan. Bring to boil.
4. Mix cornstarch and water in small bowl until blended. Add to juices. Boil one minute or until thickened, stirring constantly.
5. Pour over carrots and serve.
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I just don't know how you ladies get your LOs to accept a carrot when they don't really want a carrot. When I say to F 'that's all there is, you can snack on carrots' he throws a wobbly. Maybe it's just because he's too young to get it yet. I can't get him distracted at all either, once he has a thought in his head forget it. The walls could fall down around him and he will remain fixated on what he wants.
Mukta, that's another issue for us too, he won't drink. I offer him water all the time...sometimes now I even give him juice because it's getting warmer out and when he's been playing I figure he needs the liquid. His diapers are hardly ever wet or full. Honestly, he's like a camel.
Mmm yummy carrots!!! I have had them like that before and very tasty! Too bad I'm the only one who likes cooked carrots in our house...I have the opposite issue to Martina lol
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I just don't know how you ladies get your LOs to accept a carrot when they don't really want a carrot. When I say to F 'that's all there is, you can snack on carrots' he throws a wobbly. Maybe it's just because he's too young to get it yet. I can't get him distracted at all either, once he has a thought in his head forget it. The walls could fall down around him and he will remain fixated on what he wants.
Henry is EXACTLY the same - you are not alone. x
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Mukta, that's another issue for us too, he won't drink. I offer him water all the time...sometimes now I even give him juice because it's getting warmer out and when he's been playing I figure he needs the liquid. His diapers are hardly ever wet or full. Honestly, he's like a camel.
milk and water? he refuses both?
I have always stuck to water with meals just so that milk becomes a meal, just something i grew up with so made sens eto me IYKWIM.
What if you helped him make say a lemondae with you? would he like that? or squeeze a half orange into a glass of water? or throw in a few cucumber slices t just make it fun
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Wendy, what about having two options. A carrot, or an apple but nothing else?
I will happily sit and snack on raw carrots all day. F will suck on one, but T can't be bothered. But what drives me batty is if I'm cutting up vegetables for dinner, say carrots and peppers, he will stand at the counter and scream to have one. He is not hungry and doesn't actually want it, except only because I am there cutting it up. ::) I will give him one and find it mushed up on the floor somewhere. :P
That is where the problem lies, he will ask for all sorts of things with no intention of eating them. Or he will just ask for unhealthy stuff with every intention of eating it!! ::)
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Millie didn't like raw veggies that much at that age, until I bought some organic ranch dressing and put some in a tiny dish as a "dipping pond", Also, she enjoys having the carrots cut the other way, so they look like coins, kwim? She calls them carrot chips! Sometimes presentaion is everything!!
Also ITA with the choices, "You may have some grapes, an apple, a piece of cheese or a yogurt....your choice." But it is one of those things, if dinner is near.
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i must admit, i do not give that much of a choice, for anything that does not need cooking choices are provided but not for what needs cooking, more often than not. Mainly because i consider my kitchen as a family kitchen and not a restaurant kitchn which caters different things to differnt people based on whim.
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DS isn't there yet age or verbal-wise but around 2.5 we started giving DD a choice for snack of 3 items (if only two she'd get upset). So like raisins, carrots or apple slices. Seemed to work with her!
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I don't mean offering a choice for meals, just for snacks. We are not a restaurant either. I make one meal, which usually has several different components to choose from, but one meal it is. But when he is crying for a cookie for example, then I think it's fair to say "you can have an apple, some raisins or a yogurt", kwim?
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Ava will gladly walk around with a bag of frozen veggies and eat lima beans, green beans, peas, carrots, etc. But presented on her plate w/ dinner and they get left behind??!! It really is all about presentation and whether or not it appeals to them sometimes!
Wendy-I have the opposite problem that you have. Ava will drink ALL DAY LONG if I let her. Juice here, milk there, water, here....she GUZZLES her beverages like a college frat boy drinks beer. Honestly I don't think she'll ever be dry at night the way she drinks!
My biggest issue at the moment is that she will eat pet food ICK ICK ICK. Even as we are approaching the age of 3...she will sneak and eat cat/dog/bird food and claim she likes it. I've yet to get her to stop this. I hide our cat's food but my mother hasn't learned to keep her dog and bird food out of her reach, SOOOO annoying! Talk about ruining your appetite. BLECH.
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Ewww, Nicole!! lol
T is a big drinker too, water, milk, juice. So is F. I swear they would be happy on a liquid diet. :P
See, if I let my kids walk around with a bag of veggies trust they will all end up on the floor and not in their tummies! ::)
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B will walk around and eat carrots or squash cooked if I put it in a bowl but serve it with dinner and you never know who will eat it her or the dog lol. She doesn't eat the dog food but is obsessed with feeding the dog the dog food which is still pretty gross. We are walking a fine line with snacks and meals as I never know what she will or won't eat.
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We have ferrets. I guarantee that if your kids ate some of THEIR food, they would never do it again. So, so, so foul! Aaron did it once and threw up...has never done it since. ::)
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We have ferrets. I guarantee that if your kids ate some of THEIR food, they would never do it again. So, so, so foul! Aaron did it once and threw up...has never done it since. Roll Eyes
I WISH DD would get sick from the pet food so she'd learn to NOT EAT IT! It is SO disgusting.
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Finn has nibbled on cat food before...he's not meowing...yet
Last night he ate carrot sticks. Easily and without issue. I can't understand this kid. Is there a manual...seriously someone needs to write a manual.
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Here you go Wendy:
Manual for babies to toddlers:
I. Expect the unexpected
A. Babies and Toddlers will tend towards doing what you least expect when you least expect it. Be prepared...or rather, be flexible and hope for the best.
II. Have a sense of humor
A. Make sure to be able to find the humor in things, even vile and disgusting things.
III. Try to have patience
A. ....and if not, find someone else who does and walk away for a few minutes. Try out a glass of wine for assistance in this department if need be.
IV. Be prepared to cuddle and love
A. When all else fails, cuddle and love your baby or toddler. Even at the worst moments, this will help you to feel better even if it does not help your baby or toddler, but generally it WILL help them as well.
V. Mom knows best
A. Trust your instincts. You know your baby best and you will be the best mom for YOUR baby. Go with it!
Does that help????
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I like that Nicole--sooooo true! :)
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just my personal experience but too many choices are confusing and an kill my son's appetite, so if he says he is hungry, we just say ok you can have say - some apple or some almonds if I give him too many choices he gets lost in them and then ends up snacking on nothing but getting super hungry.
Also I do not keep stuff I would not like him to eat anywhere where he can see or reach it and sometimes he will out of the bluse aks for Candy and theb we discuss how its for special times as its not super healthy.
I recently found at Costco these bluberry acai berry and dark choclate little balls, about the size of say an peanut M&M and on the rare occasion that he wants a treat i often use those, it satisfies his choloate craving and is also high on anti oxidants!
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I think two, or maybe three choices would be appropriate. Especially when they are at the age where it is important to give them choices!
Definitely agree about keeping unwanted snacks out of sight or even out of the house. I try to do that but need to find more hiding spots because T is getting better at getting into the cupboards! :P