Terrible eater help!!!'

[creations]

For beans, I am able to buy various types in cans which are in only water, no salt or sugar added at all. I am too lazy for soaking dried beans tbh, and beans are a 'fast food' for us when for some reason we get in too late or whatever and I have to throw something on the table in moments.  Check in your shops for beans/chickpeas etc in water only. I do same for sweetcorn (we also have frozen corn and fresh corn but the canned is again our 'fast food' when needed)

for bean or veggie burgers, I just experimented like a sort of pancake mix.  Either add mashed beans to the mix or reduce milk/water and whizz the beans which makes them quite liquid.  A small amount of flour and an egg with bind almost anything together, left over veg, beans etc to fry as fritters, once they are all fried, cool then freeze.  Or if you have a mini muffin tray you can bake the mixture in there making nice individual portions.  Even with beans you might find you need to try out different ones, mine wouldn't eat kidney beans for ages and ages, they are the cheapest bean here so i was quite keen to include them at one third the price of other beans.  Mine liked a bit of herbs, spices or tom puree in his burger mix.  You can't really go wrong if the mix is very loose spoon it like pancakes, if it is thick roll into patties, or use the muffin tray.

[Miraclelim]

This morning she woke up early hungry. So I thought great I bring her downstairs make milk n put in her straw cup thinking she will drink bcos she is hungry while I reheat last night dinner for her. Guess what she took a sip n realised its not water so she refuses to drink. So I gave her dinner had z spoonful then same as last night chew then spits out everything. Arghhhhhhhh!!!! So have to give in n give milk in a bottle in the end but only had 120ml arghhhhhh!!! I m so angry so angry n frustrated!!!!!

[creations]

If she refused the straw I would have just given her the bottle straight off, maybe because I needed my DS to have that morning milk so I kept trying the switch but didn't fully go for it until he agreed.

Is there any teething?

[Miraclelim]

One of her lateral incisor just slowly cutting through. I can see the tip of it. Thank you so much everyone for ur advises n encouragement I really appreciate n needed it. :-)
I have decided the menu for today
Breakie later will be bread with avocado
Before nap milk n fruit
Lunch veggie omelette she loves egg so hopefully she will eat it all
Dinner fried rice.
I think I will just give milk from the bottle for now n try again later in a few weeks time bcos she is not eating well at the moment really want to get nutrients in her now.

[Skadiver13]

So have to give in n give milk in a bottle in the end but only had 120ml arghhhhhh!!! I m so angry so angry n frustrated!!!!!

Hun take a deep breath.. I know you are frustrated but it's turned into a power struggle and she's going to pick up on that and just dig her heals in more.  Focus more on giving her two things she will eat and one thing new for one meal. She only needs to have one good meal a day and the rest will come as she gets the hang of solids. Again she is still young and figuring out what she likes and doesn't liek. It will take her multiple times of eating something. Try sticking with just finger foods no mixes. So avocado pieces, pasta pieces, bread and butter cut up into pieces, carrot slices (bite size), peas, corn, beans, all things seh can pick up with her fingers.  Offer the milk in a bottle an hour or so after breakfast regardless of how much she eats. If she eats 2 bites that's fine. Breakfast is over and offer the bottle later like 1-2hrs later and use that as your snack.  If she knows she's going to get it as an alternative she'll continue to refuse to eat. 

I think sticking with the bottle is a good idea. Work on one thing at a time for your own sanity. At 19M my lo due to MSPI still gets a morning bottle as a snack to get the calcium he needs.  He'll drink from a sippy cut just in the past month.

[creations]

If she is teething there is every chance of going off food for a while, so keep that in mind too.
For what it's worth my 'difficulties' with DS were totally different, he wouldn't eat protein (hence my discovery of the bean burger!), he had tucked into egg from about 6 months but only when it was a very new food, once he discovered other food he wouldn't touch egg and I worried about his protein intake (he will now eat egg only for breakfast no other time!), he only ever took half the guidance amount of milk needed so I stressed over that. And he has never eaten rice, ever, I think he might have tried one mouthful once and never again, he doesn't like the texture so won't have rice, cous cous, quinoa, or anything else 'bitty'.  Despite all that he has developed a wide range of tastes and a healthy balance of foods, and consistently grew maintaining his weight gain throughout.

Really try not to be frustrated about it.  So many children eat a small variety of foods.

[Miraclelim]

Thank you thank you. Today is not a bad day in general apart from the morning
 Morning milk 120ml
Avocado sandwich half a slice n a tiny plum
 Then we r out shopping she is looking eagerly at the yoghurt pouch trying to suck it so I opened it and omg she sucked the whole pouch 100g in mins. Wow never happened before
Then 1030 I gave her 120 ml of milk before nap.
Woke up at 1345 we went out for lunch with my sister
So at 1410 I made veggie omelette and she ate half so what is offered so 1/4 of the omelette (size of the fry pan 1/4 of that size)
At 1730 dinner with family, offered fried rice had a few spoon then spit it all out have abt 5 peas n a few corn and a mouthful of leftover lunch. And the rest is on the floor. So I then offer banana and avocado had abt a tablespoon of each.
Then bedtime milk 200ml

So it's good. I am going to attempt broccoli cheddar nuggets tomorrow.
Thank you guys I am been reading on all the post and people keep saying is developmental n a phase. I am keeping my fingers crossed. Thank you much for your advice n help. You guys are amazing.

[creations]

Wow it sounds like she at a LOT today.
Just a reminder some days they will eat tons the next day almost nothing so try not to expect a repeat every day or you may find yourself worried and frustrated again xx

[Miraclelim]

I used to cook Chinese congee ( with rice meat n veg) then put in a pouch and she will suck it all up for dinner. I also think by the time we have dinner she is tired n ready for bed so not keen to eat plus always have lunch at 2ish.
Can I give her finger food or normal food for lunch then do congee ( which is puréed but a bit of textured) and put in a pouch for dinner?

Because she is always having bread or muffins or pancakes or French toast for breakfast so I m thinking is puréed food in a pouch okie for dinner?

[creations]

I think so long as she is eating some finger foods it's fine to vary the textures of her foods. Puree after all is not much different to dip and adults eat that.  I just wouldn't give puree as back up to a regular meal or in place of finger foods that's all.

[Miraclelim]

Hi guys just a quick update of how things are. Things have really gotten better. She stops eating cereal at 8.5mth when she refused to let me spoon feed her. Well I tried on sun she finished the whole bowl of cereal without fuss until she saw my breakie (well we r out having breakie) but ti hasn't happened for a long time so more varieties for breakfast. No iPad for hmmm a week now I think. She hasn't missed it. Yah!!! Dinner she still fusses n only will eat her favourite food like avocado, bread banana or egg n cheese, and puréed food). Our menu of the day looks like this

0645Milk 150ml
0820Breakfast 1-11/2 pancakes, or 3/4 slice of bread with avocado follow by 1 serve of fruits or muffin
1030Snacks yoghurt n fruit n 1 small crackers or milk 120ml if refuse yoghurt
Nap
1400 lunch 180ml-200ml of lumpy food cheesy veg n meat or veggie pattie or lumpy congee of meat n veg
1730 dinner whatever she wants fussy will a.ways only eat avocado or egg or banana
1820 milk 180ml

So that is generally her menu for the last two days. I find that she eats very well when we r out for lunch with very minimal or no fuss. She was very hungry today that she scoff down her cheesy veg n meat for lunch .

I am still struggling slightly with getting her to eat more texture veg n meat. Just so random a week ago she eats noodles fried rice, fish fingers, chicken nuggets. no problem but this week totally refused it. She wants pureed food or softer texture like pancakes, frittata or soft veg  pattie. She  eats crackers fine there r quite hard. Not sure why she won't eat her veg n meat.

I took her for her 1yr immunisation yesterday so I wt her she is now 10.3kg at the 85th percentile. I am so happy!!!

Just want to say thank you so much for all your advises and help. Any idea how to reintroduce more textured veg n meat to her. Felt like I am stepping backwards or is it developmental n next week she might want her fried rice again???

[weaver]

Re: texture: maybe her mouth is a little sore with teething?  But honestly, they go through all sorts of crazy phases and it's just a case of waiting it out.  As you say, it's perfectly possible that next week, or the week after, she will want fried rice, and everything else!

The fact that she eats so well when you're out sounds to me like she's really interested in lots of different foods, and different presentations so I would feel free to offer her whatever you're having. Let her try things, the worst that'll happen is she won't eat it, today, but she may well in the future.

[creations]

Sounds like great progress. I wouldn't worry too much and just keep offering things she likes and new things, and keep trying every now and then with the things she used to eat and then refused.
Don't know if I mentioned this before on this thread but mine wouldn't eat meat, just wouldn't, one day ate almost an entire lamb shank!!!  Seriously, the adults had one each as a serving (large serving) and there was one remaining so I gave a little to DS as per usual thinking he wouldn’t touch it. Ate it asked for more, then more then more...he left about two bites    needless to say I didn't worry about protein for a couple of weeks after that!  He still doesn't like meat as such (but happily eats sausages now) but we keep going with it and he makes progress here and there.
So I would just keep going 

[Skadiver13]

ne day ate almost an entire lamb shank!!! 

HAHAHA this made me laugh. That's like my DS. He still doesn't like meat but one day he took a bite of my hamburger and then wanted more and more. Now he wont eat it again. They are weird.

[creations]

Yeah and all the adults around the table were glaring at one anther with 'the look', winking and so on, everyone trying desperately trying to keep a straight face and not openly comment on his eating meat or the quantity but we could barely hold ourselves together, it was an astounding sight!  At the end of the meal I said "oh looks like you enjoyed that" understatement of the year!