Having a hard time with solids

[Twolilbeans]

My LO is almost 11 months and he is not at all interested in solids. I'm not sure how/where to start to get him to eat more. Right now he still takes in almost all of his nutrients from formula and will, on occasion, take in a whole meals worth of solids. He seems to go through a week or two of refusing all solids and only wanting formula to a week of eating solids really well. Here is his routine

7:30 wake for the day
8:00 6 oz bottle and solids (usually 1tbs oatmeal and pears and toast)
10:55-11:45 nap (will take 4 oz bottle before his nap sometimes)
1:00 lunch pasta/beans/pureed or mashed veggies/soup and water in sippy (he only eats a few spoonfuls)
2:30 6 oz bottle
3:15-4:30 nap
5:00 6 oz bottle
6:30 dinner (he usually eats whatever we're eating, but doesn't eat much, just a few spoonfuls)
8:00 8-10 oz bottle and bedtime
**3:00 am 6 oz bottle (currently trying to phase this out, he's waking out of habit)

I know he's getting too much formula, but I have no idea where to start cutting that out. If I try to feed him solids and give him less formula during the day he gets really fussy and cranky from being hungry. I haven't been able to get a spoon into his mouth for over a week, he tries to grab it, push it away, or will just refuse to open up for the spoon. He will finger feed himself pretty well in the morning, but the other two meals just don't work out as well. Where do I start?

[~inbalance~]

Hey there.    Check out this link:  http://babywhispererforums.com/index.php?topic=70142.0
Personally I would stop trying to spoon feed him altogether and just offer him finger foods.  Especially since he's approaching an age where he will want to have more control over things, like eating.  Toddlers love to exercise their independence, and mealtimes are no different.    Make mealtimes fun and social, make sure he is included in mealtimes with the family.  If this is not possible, then sit and have a snack with him.  But let him choose what he wants to eat instead of trying to feed him.  Offer a variety of healthy foods and let him explore.  I think you will have more luck once he starts to be able to explore and eat more on his own.  Lastly, if he doesn't eat much don't stress as he will pick up on it.  He is getting a lot of formula though, I would start by trying to get rid of the night time feed.  You could also post on the bottle feeding forum to help you work out dropping one of those bottles, I'm not entirely familiar with bottle feeding but it seems to me that he should probably only have 3 or maybe 4 a day, and no more than 30oz max (maybe even a less after he turns a year).

[Twolilbeans]

I think I've been hesitant to let him do things on his own because he makes such a huge mess and usually ends up playing with his food more than eating it, but I know that's all part of learning. It's also hard to stop spoon feeding him because I know how much he gets if I control it, when he feeds himself most of it ends up on the floor. I'm going to take your advice and just let him do it on his own. I can tell he gets frustrated when I don't let him do it himself. I'll repost on the bottle feeding forums as suggested. I'm in the middle of dropping his early am bottle so I don't know if I should drop a daytime bottle at the same time.

Thanks!

[MasynSpencerElliotte]

I totally agree with Martina on letting him have a go at finger foods...my oldest stopped letting me spoon feed her at around 8 months.  Very messy, but she learned how to use a spoon fairly quickly.  I can see where the formula filling him up makes a vicious circle though, I think we were on about 4 ish feeds of 6-7oz each at that time, around 24-28oz per day. 

[~inbalance~]

You are right, the mess and the playing is all part of the learning process.    The easiest thing is to just accept the mess as an inevitability.  The sooner he learns to self-feed, the better he will get at doing it without mess! 

Here is another perspective.  Babies who are allowed to feed themselves and control what they eat earlier on will develop better lifelong eating habits and are less likely to be picky.  So you might think you are getting more food into him now by feeding it to him, but perhaps later on he will become pickier and eat less for never have been given the chance to see what it's all about for himself.  However, if you let him start to experience it now, he is more likely to see eating in a whole different way.  Longterm, he may just be a happier, healthier, and more adventurous eater! 

[Twolilbeans]

perhaps later on he will become pickier and eat less for never have been given the chance to see what it's all about for himself.  However, if you let him start to experience it now, he is more likely to see eating in a whole different way.  Longterm, he may just be a happier, healthier, and more adventurous eater!

I would love that! My husbands 4 yr old brother is such a picky eater and still has to be spoon fed most of the time because he was never given an opportunity to eat on his own. She just didn't want the mess and to her it was just easier to force feed him rather than let him do it on his own! It's crazy because she will make a nice meal for the family and still has to make him his own meal because he's so picky. I DO NOT want my son to be that way at all.

So should I start with finger foods first and then let him figure out the spoon later, or can I just put his food in a little bowl and let him have at it with a spoon? I've actually let him use a spoon a few times and he loved it, but he didn't really get anything into his mouth.

[~inbalance~]

You can do both!  Practice makes perfect.  He might be able to eat more with finger foods, but if he likes experimenting with a spoon then let him.  He is still probably a long way off of actually using it properly, but the more he gets to practice, the sooner he will get good at it.  You can even give him foods that he can dip into dippers and sauces, like veggie sticks, breadsticks, etc.  Aside from avoiding troublesome foods and watching for choking obviously, there are really no limitations to what you can offer him.