Until she was one, I felt OK about her not wanting to eat because she was at least getting bottles with formula which had plenty of nutrition. And lets be honest, the child is definitely NOT starving. Now that she is drinking whole milk instead of formula and really only has that at nap time, I have had to find real food items that she will eat.
The first thing I discovered was that the more she snacked, the less she wanted to sit down and eat an actual meal. Over the course of a few weeks, I slowly got her to stop snacking and start eating 3 meals a day. I also discovered that if I sit her in her highchair and turn on Curious George, she will sit and eat without really paying attention to the food and she eats a lot more (desperate times people).
For those of you who find yourself in the same predicament, here are some of the foods I have tried that have worked.
Breakfast
scrambled eggs (I make sure that they taste good...add cheese and salt like I would for myself)
canned peaches and pears
frozen blueberries (i thaw them out in a bowl of hot water)
dry cereal (not her favorite)
She is just starting to learn to eat with a spoon. Today I made her some oatmeal and put blueberries in it. I set it on her tray with a spoon. She ate some of it with the spoon and some with her fingers but she got a lot of it down! A whole new world of possibilities may have just opened up.
Lunch
string cheese
lunch meat
cut up pb&j
cut up fruit
Dinner
I usually just give her whatever we are eating
Lets be honest. It isn't always practical to make a delicious homemade healthy meal for the toddler. Especially on nights when I don't cook for myself. On days like this, I have a few things that I like to have on hand.
Gerber Graduates meals for toddlers. These are AWESOME! They take 30 seconds to heat up and Allie LOVES them. I just scoop the contents onto her highchair and she will eat almost the entire thing. They always include a vegetable and are a great alternative to a homemade meal.
Frozen chicken nuggets...I usually try to buy the ones that are more chicken breast and less chicken paste...I know it isn't 100% healthy, but she loves them and I can pair it with some frozen veggies.
Aren't toddlers fun? Sophie goes through food phases like most toddlers and we've found a couple things that have helped with a few foods. There are some things she won't touch if we put them on her tray by themselves (steamed carrots, most meats) but if we make little skewers of them, she can't get enough. We've also recently discovered the joy of "dippable" foods. Who knew eating wheat thins with soft cheese (Laughing Cow wedges are a fave) and/or peanut butter could be so fun? Awesome suggestions, by the way :)
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