Author Topic: breakfast/lunch help! Pls.. much appreciated.  (Read 3985 times)

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Offline mommytogabriel

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breakfast/lunch help! Pls.. much appreciated.
« on: September 24, 2014, 14:59:07 pm »
HELLO everyone!

My little man has a hard time chewing and swallowing solid food (gag issue which is very slowly improving) and i am completely out of ideas of healthy and filling meals that dont require to much chewing. Right now he mainly gets yogurt or rice cereal for breakfast (sometimes toast, but it take 10min for 3 bites) Lunch he will get baby pastina pasta with pureed veggie, scrambled egg, yogurt, toast, pieces of chicken/deli meat, and tiny pieces of spiral pasta. I dont know what else to give him... AND HES GOING THROUGH THE LETS THROW EVERYTHING ON THE FLOOR AND DRIVE MAMMA NUTS PHASE ALSO LOL.

Looking forward to some help!

Offline Martini~

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Re: breakfast/lunch help! Pls.. much appreciated.
« Reply #1 on: September 24, 2014, 15:54:24 pm »
Are you going with BLW Hon or puree with spoon are also fine?
My DS is 7,5mo and I must say I am pretty boring with his diet:). For breaksfast always fruits with cereal or yogurt, on lunch always veggie puree with some meat and for dinner/tea always baby rice with fruits or veggies. And we are pretty consitent with this menu for last 6 weeks:))) LOL. I change type of fruits, type of cereal, try different veggies, different meats.
Do you look for more variety here or just more ideas for BLW?
~Marta

Offline We Three

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Re: breakfast/lunch help! Pls.. much appreciated.
« Reply #2 on: September 24, 2014, 15:59:40 pm »
 How old is he....?

lilac83

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Re: breakfast/lunch help! Pls.. much appreciated.
« Reply #3 on: September 24, 2014, 17:04:18 pm »
Some of M's favorites at the moment:
- grilled cheese
- baked fish
- mini pancakes
- oatmeal
- corn
- any fruit (peaches, pears, banana, etc) I buy the no-sugar canned fruit so it's softer for her

She's also going through a phase of throwing food on the floor, I think she's feeding our dog. I've noticed though that when she starts that up she's usually done. Her appetite has dropped considerably over the last month now that growth has slowed a bit. :)

Offline mommytogabriel

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Re: breakfast/lunch help! Pls.. much appreciated.
« Reply #4 on: September 24, 2014, 17:35:23 pm »
my apologies! hes 1 year old.

Offline We Three

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Re: breakfast/lunch help! Pls.. much appreciated.
« Reply #5 on: September 24, 2014, 17:42:08 pm »
^^ No worries!   :)

 Mashed potatoes
 Soup
 Soggy cereal....like Cheerios that have sat in milk for a bit?
 Bits of french toast/eggy bread

 Will he let you feed him....? Some of what I'm coming up with would need you to do it....is he ok with that?

 

Offline mommytogabriel

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Re: breakfast/lunch help! Pls.. much appreciated.
« Reply #6 on: September 24, 2014, 18:52:46 pm »
thank you:) yes he will let me feed him by spoon. My main problem is how to get a balanced lunch meaning a carb and a protein at the minimum. So if i give him mashed potatoes what else with that? I can do chicken but he has such a hard time swallowing:(
any other ideas for lunch ladies? I have to go back to work next monday so that doesnt help at all since i have to have most lunch prepared in advance...

Offline eva026

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Re: breakfast/lunch help! Pls.. much appreciated.
« Reply #7 on: September 24, 2014, 19:02:50 pm »
How about bolognese sauce? Just pure the meat so it's finer than the adult version

My DD is a soup freak. We start off with Chicken soup with carrots and noodles. The next day I throw in broccoli, next day I add pumpkin etc. If you boil the chicken legs at least 40 min they get so soft you can break them up in the soup to almost a pure form.
It's a meal in itself with all food groups and it freezes really well too.

Baked fish and potatoes with veg should be very soft. Otherwise you can mash the fish up with a fork to make it finer.

Omelettes with ham chopped into tiny bits should work for you too or a frittata.









Offline mommytogabriel

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Re: breakfast/lunch help! Pls.. much appreciated.
« Reply #8 on: September 24, 2014, 19:09:09 pm »
thank you. Yes he gets homemade soup everyday for dinner:) loves them as well. Any ideas of what to mix potatoes with to make a proper lunch? Or anything else that is creamy like that? I do consider myself a decent cook just HORRIBLE at coming up with ideas for my son.

Offline lolsyb1982

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Re: breakfast/lunch help! Pls.. much appreciated.
« Reply #9 on: September 24, 2014, 19:14:20 pm »
How about tinned tuna with baked/jacket potato. That's nice and soft and he's getting his protein then.
Lauren




Offline eva026

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Re: breakfast/lunch help! Pls.. much appreciated.
« Reply #10 on: September 24, 2014, 19:14:44 pm »
Can't you give him whatever you are having for dinner? Just wizz the meat in a blender and cook the veg soft to be mashed with a fork?





Offline mommytogabriel

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Re: breakfast/lunch help! Pls.. much appreciated.
« Reply #11 on: September 24, 2014, 19:36:19 pm »
eva i cant simply just give him whatever we are eating because of his gag reflux issue. He gags on the slightest things such as a little piece of fruit or even a scrambled egg... so its been a challenge

Offline Khalam's Mama

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Re: breakfast/lunch help! Pls.. much appreciated.
« Reply #12 on: September 24, 2014, 20:50:27 pm »
tbh I would try not to avoid foods too much as he won't get past the gagging if he is having such soft food for his age,  gagging is actually a step towards eating lumpy food. Do you have a slow cooker? I find any meat I put in there, beef, lamb, Turkey etc cones out so soft out barely needs chewing. Most fish is soft too.

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Re: breakfast/lunch help! Pls.. much appreciated.
« Reply #13 on: September 24, 2014, 21:00:17 pm »
 You could put some baked chicken into the food processor and mix it in with the mashed potato? Also, you could mash cooked chickpeas into a paste and add them to soup, potato, just about anything! Lots of extra protein and iron.

Offline mommytogabriel

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Re: breakfast/lunch help! Pls.. much appreciated.
« Reply #14 on: September 25, 2014, 01:46:11 am »
thank you ladies! just to clarify his doctor did diagnose him with a severe gag reflex, meaning, he will vomit if its to overwhelming for him:( its stressful.

lilac83

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Re: breakfast/lunch help! Pls.. much appreciated.
« Reply #15 on: September 25, 2014, 02:00:57 am »
Did his doctor recommend starting more finger foods? Neither of my kids were gaggers but I think I would have stuck with the puréed food a bit longer while offering really dissolvable finger foods as practice during meals, like crackers. Not sure where you're located but the Gerber stage 3 food has real small, soft cooked bits in it. Also, the toddler meal food is very tender and actually tastes pretty good!

Offline creations

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Re: breakfast/lunch help! Pls.. much appreciated.
« Reply #16 on: September 25, 2014, 07:20:36 am »
Any ideas of what to mix potatoes with to make a proper lunch? Or anything else that is creamy like that? I do consider myself a decent cook just HORRIBLE at coming up with ideas for my son
Whilst potatoes seem to be a winner for him how about broadening the 'mash' with some variety which have more/different nutrients than white potato?  So I'm thinking these things mash well and can be served to replace the mash potato or added to it for an extra veg:
sweet potato
swede
turnip
celeriac
carrot
parsnip
squash (butternut squash)

Things like squash and sweet pot can be baked in the oven (skin on to avoid getting dry/crunchy edges) and will then mash well with little effort.

For proteins:
chicken liver pate (so easy to home make and can be frozen in portions)
lentil pate
cheese and mushroom pate (sound weird but actually tasty)
humus (chickpea dip)
red kidney bean dip
white bean dip...ok any bean dip...tahini or peanut butter can be added to up the protein too
butter bean mash (is that different? just thicker I suppose, can be served in place of mashed potato)

Another lovely dip is baba ghanoush (aubergine/eggplant dip).

Whilst they are all smooth/puree/dip type foods they are also 'real' adult foods too rather than baby food iyswim so everyone could enjoy them.

I see you had a diagnosis from the GP, are you seeing a dietician to help guide you through this? If it was me I'd like some guidance as to how long to continue with the soft foods and when to go for more finger foods. I think my DS was more likely to gag at soft food than hard too (like it mushed in his mouth and moved too far back where as the harder foods he could control in his mouth more easily). He also seemed to gag at this he didn't want/like or when he was full, do you find this has any impact?


Offline mommytogabriel

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Re: breakfast/lunch help! Pls.. much appreciated.
« Reply #17 on: September 25, 2014, 15:08:51 pm »
interestingly i have gotten ZERO support in regards to diet and going back to work full time monday is just causing lots of stress since no one is helping me.

This is what i have for lunch
scrambled eggs with ---either avocado or meat
pastina pasta with pureed spinach, cauliflower, or meat sauce
mashed potato---not sure what to add to it
tuna salad with tiny pasta

this is it:( Not very creative..

Offline sunflower321

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Re: breakfast/lunch help! Pls.. much appreciated.
« Reply #18 on: September 29, 2014, 03:00:22 am »
well now you've gotten loads of ideas from creations and the other ladies for protein that you can add to mashed potatoes so does that help? And you've been given lots of ideas to be more creative with his diet while still offering soft mash or puree. Really most protein food will puree in a blender and you can add to the mash. My little girl was on puree for longer than average but at 21 months she's starting to catch up re finger food.
« Last Edit: September 29, 2014, 03:04:32 am by sunflower321 »

Offline creations

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Re: breakfast/lunch help! Pls.. much appreciated.
« Reply #19 on: September 29, 2014, 08:14:29 am »
interestingly i have gotten ZERO support in regards to diet and going back to work full time monday is just causing lots of stress since no one is helping me.
Have you requested a referral to a dietician?  Not sure where you are, in the UK I basically just tell the GP I want a referral if I feel strongly about something needing specialist help.


Offline anna*

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Re: breakfast/lunch help! Pls.. much appreciated.
« Reply #20 on: September 29, 2014, 08:20:22 am »
thank you ladies! just to clarify his doctor did diagnose him with a severe gag reflex, meaning, he will vomit if its to overwhelming for him:( its stressful.

Did the Dr say to stick with soft foods? I tend to agree that he'll only learn to 'manage' his gag reflex through practice, but maybe your dr told something different.





Offline We Three

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Re: breakfast/lunch help! Pls.. much appreciated.
« Reply #21 on: October 02, 2014, 03:57:42 am »
  Also wanted to say that I was once told by a nutritionist that as parents, everyone worries about protein, but it is a nutrient that most kids with an average diet actually get MORE than enough of.  American children tend to actually eat too much of it.   :-\   I remember now that when dd was about 3 or 4, she stopped eating meat, and that is why I consulted someone.
  A good "rule" is 1/2 gram of protein per pound of body weight. So a 20 pound toddler would need 10 grams of protein per day, as an example.  That gets covered with just 2 cups of milk, or one egg and a slice of cheese.  Or about 6 oz of greek yogurt. So, based on your example, he gets plenty of protein and I wouldn't worry about that piece of the puzzle.  :)

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Re: breakfast/lunch help! Pls.. much appreciated.
« Reply #22 on: October 02, 2014, 18:22:33 pm »
^^^ That's really good to know. Neither of my kids are huge meat fans (are any kids big meat fans? none I've come across) but both like eggs and dairy.