HELP! Need ideas to get Toddler to eat Again...

[koe2moe]

And he hates traveling for work so he's really dreading it.

I can imagine when it's such a mad rush, he will get so exhausted just from the flights and then the non-stop work.  And for a family man, it's no fun at all.   I hope he can sleep on the plane. 

about the grilled cheese with eggs...  Would that be a bigger surprise if he doesn't get it?  I mean adding a tiny bit of chicken seems to me more subtle.  Would he eat plain toast?  Would he dip toast into pb?  Just for fun to try?  You can only try because I don't see a pattern here at all!   this is much bigger than a normal unsolved mystery

[Mom to M&M]

He definitely will sleep on the plane so that is at least good.

He used to eat plain toast but not in quite some time now. He does eat toasted bagels with butter. I've tried the dipping thing but he doesn't seem to get it at all.

Thinking I may just offer him pinwheel pasta with veggie/tomato sauce tonight. I'm pretty sure he'll eat it and I don't really want to offer the sandwich at dinner. It is weird of me but I'm stuck on that as "lunch food" and since he has so few foods he'll eat then either... Does that make any sense? So I'm thinking maybe the pasta for him tonight, maybe try PBJ/grilled cheese at lunch tomorrow, etc. I WAS going to make pasta bolognese tomorrow night but I can always move that to Thursday night...

Thanks as always - really at a loss!

[koe2moe]

DS eats a lot and he needed hungry baby formula for us to survive.  But he's picky, too.  He won't eat other vegs.   I also tried cutting bread with cookie cutters (that was for xmas) but he ate the stuff on top and left the bread! 

I totally understand about the lunch food thing.  For me, lunch should be warm also hehe  Bread should be for breakfast and snacks only   But now I have bread for lunch coz I just don't know what to cook extra for lunch. 

Have you tried pasta with white sauce, like cheese sauce?  I'm sure you have.  Sorry I am of no help at all!!  hugsss

[Mom to M&M]

Well the pasta was a no-go tonight. I had mixed the mini-wheels with the red sauce and added a bit of butter and some ground walnuts. He felt a piece, made a face and then wouldn't eat it or even try it. Sigh. So now I'm making a piece of challah french toast for if/when he gets hungry later. Probably didn't help that he had a small banana at the library at 4:30 but what can you do...

He does like cheese sauce usually. Bigger problem is non-dairy sources of protein, other than baked chicken nuggets.

Sigh.

[squeakersmum]

When Ben went through his non protein eating phase the only meat he would eat is packaged ham. I know you don't do ham, and that the salt content is not great but maybe you could try 'flat' chicken or corned beef from the deli counter in small doses? Now B's much better about protein he only gets ham very occasionally in pasta sauce and corned beef as a lunchtime treat if we're in the supermarket and he spies it at the counter.

Also, I've been thinking and we had to cut snacks out completely at around 19/20 months or he wouldn't eat meals at all. His appetite has increased again now and he asks for snacks if we're out (generally he just gets whingey at home until I figure out he's hungry, guess he's too busy playing at home to remember to ask!!)

[Mom to M&M]

I have tried deli turkey and roast beef but he would never even touch it. Can always try again - did you used to just hand Ben a slice?

He did end up having about 2/3 of a large slice of challah french toast around 6:30 pm last night...

I only offer snacks when he asks for one and it's usually only fruit these days! Or something very small. Otherwise he gets crazed if he is too hungry and it's not meal time...

So try grilled cheese sandwich and maybe bites of PB sandwich (refused PBJ last time didn't seem to like taste) at lunch too? Try just the grilled cheese and the turkey patties he used to like? Not sure.

[squeakersmum]

No - I cut it into squares.

I'd go with the grilled cheese and the turkey patties if he used to like them.  He seems to like the cheese well enough to fill up on it but he may try the turkey.  Maybe leave the PB?  or spread a really really REALLY thin slice on the bread before you put the cheese on.  It shouldn't alter the taste much at all.

[Mom to M&M]

Well the store was out of ground turkey so I'll have to buy some at the butcher tomorrow. In the meantime, I did get some organic/nitrate free roasted turkey lunchmeat this morning so maybe I'll try a grilled cheese/chicken sandwich at lunch? Or do you think the PB/cheese would be better? Yogurt as a fall back option?

I DO have leftover meat patties (which he used to like as much - though not as much as the turkey ones) in the freezer so maybe I'll offer one at dinner time, along with the roasted potatoes?

[my3girlsjde]

Just a quick post and will get on later as we've gone through similar with our girls. Can you dip the crackers in hummus or something nutritious that he likes to get more into him?

[squeakersmum]

Have you done lunch yet? Maybe try giving him the grilled cheese that you know he has liked and eaten well, as well as a few squares of the meat maybe making a big show of popping one of the squares in your mouth. Meat patties and roast potatoes sound like a plan for dinner - again you know he has liked the roasties!

[Mom to M&M]

Yes, ended up having to do an early lunch at about 10:40 as he'd only had half a toasted whole grain mini bagel with butter for breakfast. So last second decided to do the grilled cheese and added just a tiny bit of the roasted chicken - like half a thin slice. He did eat about half the small sandwich, maybe a bit more. Plus had a yogurt. So not bad, especially considering he's not himself today - he had two shots on Monday and woke up crying this morning (not like him) and took me 20 minutes to calm him down - and he only had half his morning bottle, if that!

Well he liked the roasted potatoes twice, then refused them twice (after trying them) - seeming like too hard to chew? But will try that and the meat patties and if all else fails have a fruit/veg puree pouch and can do challah french toast as bedtime snack...

I wish he did hummus as I love the stuff!

[squeakersmum]

As he likes the puree pouches could you squeeze some out into a bowl as an introduction to dipping things??

[Mom to M&M]

Perhaps Steph!

So dinner is currently a bust. Refused turkey patty (felt it once and made a face) and roasted potatoes - wouldn't even try either. Had offered him those along with a pouch of spinach, peas and pears. He had the whole pouch and that is all. Will only re-offer the potatoes and turkey to him until 6:15 at which time I'll do his bath. After his bath I guess I'll offer his bottle and some challah french toast?

He really has such a small appetite! He did have half a small banana at 3:15 but that was his only snack. And there's no way he would have made it without something...

[koe2moe]

What if you switch things around and give him a bigger snack?  (which is just his early dinner) and then a pre bed snack?  I notice that at DS's daycare (0-2yr) they are given meal/snacks at every two hours intervals.  DS's appetite never suffered at dinner, in fact, if he went too hungry, he would be all over the place at dinner time and couldn't see well even when he's super hungry. 

Also one thing I might try if I were in your shoes is that to offer the same foods at every meal, he's bound to be hungry at some point in a day.  So he will have to eat that or nothing.  But then it's probably not a nice experience for you, too. 

What about meatloaf type of things?  Then your whole family can have the same thing.  Just a thought :*

[Mom to M&M]

So then what time/and what would you give him for "snack"? He generally seems NOT very hungry after his nap (around 2/2:30 he's up) and quite hungry around 4/4:30...

I have tried meatloaf and he USED to like that (and meatballs) but he doesn't touch meat anymore. But will certainly try again since the rest of us like my meatloaf! Darn fork issue...

I offered the challah french toast last night a little before 7 - after his bath and pajamas. He didn't have any - had about 5 ounces of his bedtime bottle. BAD night - guessing largely from hunger. Asleep by 7:35 or so but crying around 2, then 5:07, then he dozed till 5:27. Yuck!