How much does your 17/18mo eat?

[KathrynK]

Hi everyone

I have had a theory that dd has started waking early most days as she is hungry. Yesterday I fed her more than usual at dinner time and she slept almost an hour later than previous days 
So this got me to wondering whether I was feeding her enough each day. It's so hard to judge how much is enough! We have just stayed with parents for 4 days and every single meal time my mum made comments about the amount I fed her (she'll never eat all that, etc etc). But I still don't think it's enough.

She is almost 17mo but is the size of your average 22mo- big girl! She is on the 99th centile for height but 75th for weight so is not fat. She is trying desperately to walk so has been on her feet all day these past couple of weeks- but I have not upped her food intake to account for the extra activity. Should I have done?
I would be grateful if you would post what your lo of this age eats in a day for b'fast, lunch, dinner and snacks so I can compare!
thanks for help
K xx

[Mom to M&M]

Kathryn - my DD eats quite little for her age/size (21 months, 50% for weight) but if your DD is acting hungry, I'd give her as much to eat at each meal as she wants/will have. And as long as snacks don't interfere with her meals, you can up those as well!

[A_C]

My DD is 17 months old today and she happens to be a pretty consistent eater...here is her menu this week (when I make each meal the batches that I make usually last about 2 weeks):

BREAKFAST:
Wake and BF (7:30 am)
8 ounces (packed full in a pastic container) of Yams/sweet potato, carrots, butternut squash with milk and butter mixed in...so looks like orange mashed potatoes; 1 banana; and if she wants more a tbs. of cream topped yogurt and 3 tsp. of applesauce.

LUNCH: 8 ounces (packed very full) of pasta with ground beef, tom. sauce and carrots and for dessert 4.5 oz of Earth's Best peach apple barley (we have stopped this now and have opted to end the bottled foods so just today we are starting to give her a snack after her pm nap, of fruit and cheese instead...she will usually not have a snack if we gave her dessert after lunch)

DINNER:
6:00 pm - BF
8 oz of veggies (this week: broccoli, spinach, carrots, with tofu and brown rice mixed in); oatmeal with milk (roughly 3/4 cup of oatmeal to 3/4 cup of whole milk); for dessert 3 heaping tbs. of cream topped yogurt with about 3 tsp. of applesauce.

HTH,
Ana

[macsmum]

my ds eats
breakfast
wake 8 oz bottle
1 slice toast, 1yoghurt and half a banana/ or 6oz porridge and half a banana

lunch
7 to 8 oz of whatever, it could be ravioli, spaghetti, cottage pie etc
3oz custard with fruit or yoghurt

tea
7to 8oz of again whatever i have in plus some sort of pudding

he will also have 2 to 3 malted milk biscuits throughout the day and he has been known to eat a full bag of quavers on occasion
he loves his food but never really says enough mum, he will just carry on eating till i say all gone then if he whines i give a biscuit.

my father thinks it's hillarious the amount ds eats, yet i often wonder if i sould give more but surely not, although he is a big lad, looks like a 2 yr old already.

Emma

[KathrynK]

thanks guys, that's really helpful 

I've given her more at dinner the last few days and she's been sleeping almost an hour longer than last week 
dh made a comment about her having a 5 course meal but if that's what it takes then that's what she's having! besides, he just carries on sleeping when she wakes mummy at 5.15am..........

[Lana]

Honestly I just let B eat until he lets me know he is done .  Some days that means he will eat a whole piece of toast and other days only half.  I figure he knows better what he needs than I do. 

He is a pretty good eater for the most part and we have supper at 5 pm but we also do a snack before the bath at 7pm

HTH

[Zoey]

I do what Lana does, Owen does knows when he is hungry and for how much.  As far as how much that is, differs from day to day. This is what I offer on a typical day:

B
Cereal, slice wheat toast with butter, and some fruit cut up - like 1/4 apple or whatever - 4-6oz milk

L
1/2c pasta and red sauce or 1/2 grilled cheese or 1/2c soup or leftovers from the night before - 4-6oz milk

Snack
grahams or yogurt or apple sauce or cheese and crackers

D
meat, 1/4c veg, 1/4c starch - 4-6oz milk

He has a sippy of water (8oz) which I filled probably 4-6 times a day - whenever he brings it to me empty lol.  He is big too, 29lbs and 34inches tall.  Most often he will eat like a horse one day and then practically nothing the next.

I think we are born knowing exactly what we need and don't need.  I think sometimes that "Im full, Im hungry" part of us can be easily over-ridden by our care-givers when we are little.  Therefore, I believe letting Owen eat til he says he is done - be it all the food and then some or two bites - is important, as is offering healthy snacks when he appears hungry. 

HTH!

[Stace]

Just to give you another example, our DS's day is roughly -

Wakes about 7-7:30am but plays in room until 07:30/08:00

Breakfast (08:30) = Handful of Cheerios with Full Fat milk or handful of porridge FF milk and half a banana or 1 slice of toast and half a banana.

Snack (10:30) - Quavers or organic fruit bar or fruit = 3 strawbs & 10 grapes.

Lunch (12:30) = 10 cubes of Cheese, 2 slices chicken and 8oz FF milk.

Nap = 13:00 to 15:30

Dinner (17:30) = Whatever we're having, eg tonight - half a medium baked pot, 2 slices of cold meat, 2 dessert spoons full worth of mixed veg, same volume of beans or spaghetti in tom sauce, small handful of grated cheese. He'll usually eat around 3/4 of his meal. Yogurt or rice pudding for dessert.

Supper (19:00/19:30 just before bed at 19:30/20:00) = 8oz FF milk and some dry cheerios or rusk if hungry.

When DS started walking his appetite definitely increased, so I would suggest adding a couple of snacks or increasing each meal slightly to compensate but as with pp DS will sometimes eat everything in sight, then other days just pick and we just go with whatever he feels too.

Stace x

[KathrynK]

thanks again, I think I will definitely up her food- she always eats everything I give her and rarely leaves anything so I guess that's a sign I need to offer more perhaps?