Not interested in fruits/veggies, what to do?

[rayasunshine]

DS is 10 months old and is starting daycare in 2 months time.  He does awesome with his purees and will eat grilled cheese, egg, toast, pieces of chicken and things like that but won't eat any fruit or veggies that are not purees.  I continue to offer and he continues to spit it out or drop them on the floor.  When I've given him banana he acts like he's choking and then makes the vomiting noise and then I stop.  Grapes and strawberries have been a no go as well.  Veggie wise he'll do potatoes and bits of carrot but so far nothing else.  What can I do to change this? He is definitely not the eater that my daughter was so I feel so at a loss with him.  With daycare coming up I just want to make sure that he'll eat well and eat healthy.  Any suggestions would be helpful...thanks so much!

[<Catherine>]

My DS was the same, and still isn't great at 3.5 yrs! It did gradually get better tho so I think you just need to keep offering, and try to pack other meals full of hidden veggies. You may find he eats things at daycare that he won't touch at home - being offered by different people, in a different setting, and watching the other children eat really made a difference to my DS.

Don't worry too much at this age, he's still very young.

[cuckoochick]

I agree with Catherine. Try not to worry and keep offering, offering, offering. Hidden veggies/fruit will help put your mind at rest.

[rayasunshine]

Hi Catherine and Nicola,

Thanks for reducing my panic a bit lol...he did have some mashed potatoes and steamed carrots but the carrots he needed me to mash a bit before he ate it. Oh well like you ladies said just keep offering. Was also wondering for ideas regarding how to 'hide' veggies in his meals? Didn't have to do this DD so have no clue...thanks for your help!

[rach321]

Smoothies or fruit purée mixed with yoghurt. You can hide a handful of fresh spinach in a strawberry smoothie without them noticing! At daycare you will probably find he will eat things he wouldn't touch at home just because all the other kids are but don't panic if he doesn't eat very much at all when he first starts. I'm sure there is a cookbook available with loads of hidden fruit and veg recipies.

[deb]

Definitely mix fruit and veg in yogurt, and you can mix them with cereal too. Have you tried different seasonings? Mine both liked carrots and squash with a little cinnamon, or a teeny bit of curry powder, and either of those also goes well in yogurt or cottage cheese too.

Oh, and since cottage cheese is a little salty (so we didn't give too much), it goes well with pureed spinach and broccoli and kale; for a while that was almost the only way Josie would eat cottage cheese OR kale/broccoli.

You can use fruit or veg purees to make a "sauce" for meat too, for dipping or for coating. Yogurt and fruit/veg puree makes a good dip for meat pieces or for bread too.

[rayasunshine]

Thanks for the suggestions ladies...he'll still eat veg/fruit purees mixed with oat cereal and I guess I could add some to things like spaghetti sauce too. Hoping he'll just follow his sister's lead at daycare.  There's just so much going on with regards to prepping for daycare that I feel like I can't think straight. I know I didn't feel like this with DD. Thanks again!