What to feed my toddler

[wendmatt]

It's so frustrating isn't it! DD is an OK eater most of the time (not great). She has a cup of milk when she gets up, we walk the dog and then have breakfast, so she's hungry. Usually a bowl of cheerios or bran flakes and some cut up fruit (canteloupe, pear is her fave, grapes, honeydew melon). Sometimes wholewheat waffle or a slice of toast and marmite (English veg/yeast spread that most US adults hate!!)
I do have to keep her entertained throughout though, DH says she likes a "show" while she is eating! I read books or let her color. If I don't she will eat one or 2 bites and then want to get down from the table. I don't think it's necessarily a good thing, but if I don't entertain, she won't eat! So I do what works!
For lunch she mostly has a sandwich...pb, cheese with green peppers (she liked mine so I give it to her now and she eats it!), a string cheese cuts in slices and bread and butter. I always try to get her to eat a veg, she only eats steamed baby carrots or canned green beans (no sugar or salt). She likes croissant too.
For dinner it's tough coz she won't eat meat! She did eat a hot dog the other day but I don't want her to eat that every day! She likes pasta, so I do a variety of pasta, steam broccoli or some other veg, chop it up really small and mix it in with the pasta, she will only eat it with cheese on top though! Although she refused it the last few times so I might have to think of something else as a staple!
She likes tater tots and yams if I cut them in strips and bake them so they are a bit like fries.
Veggie nuggets are popular again or the basil pizza veggie burgers sometimes, sometimes they get spat out!
Fruit after dinner, but I have to chase her around the house and pop it in her mouth, she won't sit at the table long enough for desert...unless it's cake on a special occasion!
She likes cereal bars too, nutrigrain are her fave, but she likes the quaker ones with the reduced sugar...They still have a fair amount of sugar but they have lots of vitamins.
Got long there, sorry.
Good luck

[Sharon]

my DS only eats at the babysitter and sometimes at my in-laws and he is like a hoover vacuum there but not with me. He is also allergic to eggs

Pre-Breakfast in my house: We are always running late so I sometimes give him this yogurt-like drink called Leben when he's ravenous - it's basically cream, sugar, milk & chocolate that can be drunk with a straw inserted through the cover. I haven't given it to him so much recently but when he stopped drinking milk this was the only dairy he got. It holds him until he can chow down at the babysitter

Breakfast: 1 - 2 cereal bowls of rice krispies, cheerios or rice chex with milk followed by 8 oz of yogurt. OR a pita with apricot jam

Snack: cookies & fruit - a banana, apple, small grapes, raisins

Lunch: 1 - 2 big bowls of mac & cheese (he will only eat elbow macaroni with the babysitter, will eat any shape with me) &
serving of applesauce


Post - nap: depends on how large lunch was - if it was small he'll have 2 homemade muffins OR 1 slice of pizza OR few slices of orange american cheese & applesauce if it was a big lunch - 1 cookie and water downed apple juice holds him until dinner.

dinner: he will only eat freshly fried and battered chicken cutlets straight from the pan (do not pass go or let cool and reheat). Sometimes cubed baked potatoes. Always thin french fries that are still white that I make in the oven. He was eating rice once or twice but now doesn't like the texture. Sometimes chicken soup if he is starved and it has nothing textured in it. He also loves bread.

What he won't eat: any pasta with sauce. "No lizingzings Mommy! no pizza noodles!" ANY vegetable. Noodles that are the wrong shape. French fries that are fat. French fries that are too brown. Food that has black on it. Foods that are too mushy and get his clothes dirty. Ah the joys of toddlerhood

[cilantromapuche]

I was/am going through this and was worried also about my DS getting enough fat (as well as all the other things) and the ped said to give him pediasure. I also give him baby yo (from stonyfield organics) drinkable yogurt because it is the only yogurt made from whole milk that I could find around here.
HTH!
Chris
mama to Abe