Throwing Food!

[stuckingermany]

I know things are always changing up I need some advise.

My little guy has just started throwing his finger foods (all of them). He is 11 1/2 months and has previously been a great eater. I guess this could just be a phase, but I am torn between making sure he gets enough to eat and creating a bad habit. Normally he would eat everything we put on his tray. We try not to give him too many items, so we put just a few down at a time. However now he picks an item up and throws it and then looks at me with a serious face. We have always made a point not to laugh at him. I tell him "No we don't throw our food, we eat it". He knows a few signs, so I then sign we "eat" the food. Normally, he would then put it in his mouth, but not now. I have tried to offer him something different and he throws that too??? Then after a few bits of spoon fed food, he signs that he is finished. So, I get him cleaned up and let him go play. Maybe he is just not hungry?? I am very confused. Thoughts? His schedule is below.

7-wake
7:15-bottel with formula 230ml
8:00-breakfast
9:00-10:30 Sleep
11:00 snack with water (cup)
12:00 lunch
1:30-3:30 Sleep
4:00 snack with formula in cup
6:00 dinner
7:00 bath
7:30 bottle with formula 230 ml/sleep

[xxkaty23xx]

My LO's both went through this as im sure every baby does, my ds2 is still doing it. I was given some advise by my dr, i give him a couple of things in finger food but then i spoon feed him yoghurt or something else while he is busy throwing the other stuff around. He is beginning to stop it now, he will eat and then once he is full he throws it about. He is over 13mo now so hopefully it is something your LO will grow out of too, as long as he drinks enough milk and eats some other things he will be fine, but if you are concerned he isnt eating enough then speak to your dr as my LO has never been a big eater and he is quite little for his age so he was prescribed vitamin drops. I would think that is a last resort though, i was once told babies use their 1st year to stock up baby fat so that when they begin toddling and dont want to eat because everything else is so much more exciting they dont starve and dont become underweight. If that makes sense 
Anyways i'm rambling now, lol. Good luck!!

Katy xxx

[tylersmommy]

It's a phase...figuring out how gravity works is pretty interesting! Your best bet is to either ignore the behavior or simply sign for him to eat and see if you might be able to get a few spoons into him. If he does it again, just end the meal and take him out of the high chair without making a fuss. Babies and toddlers have an innate ability to regulate their appetites based on what their bodies need, so he may well not be hungry. Plus, there's a huge decrease in appetite once babies get close to their first birthdays. Their growth slows down quite a bit so they often don't need near as much food. As long as his breastmilk/formula intake is still fine and he isn't waking at night from hunger, losing weight (slower gain is normal, losing isn't), or showing other signs of being ill, it's likely just a phase and will pass. It might be hard to end a meal when he's hardly eaten anything, but I'd suspect that he just isn't hungry if he's signing "all done." Hang in there!