Baby Led Weaning

I have no doubt this is a phase, something they all go through and we just have to work our way through, but here's hoping some one has some good ideas!

Now munchie has developed a brain and some language, she can ask for what she would like to eat. And I let her (to a point) as it's great to see her get excited about food and help mummy pull things out the cupboards now that she recognises what they are.

However, in the last few weeks, she has taken to asking for something, then, a few spoons in, wanting something else and not eating what she asked for.

This morning, breakfast took 1 hour and 10 minutes as I refused to let her have any yoghurt until she had eaten most of her cereals. She'd had about 8 cheerios, then asked for yoghurt and and orange. Great that she is asking for healthy stuff (not that unhealthy foods are on the menu) but, as I have done, if I give her an orange, she'll eat 2 pieces, then want apple...... and so it goes on, until there is a mostly left banquet on her tray

So, what to do? We were supposed to go out this morning, but after the breakfast marathon (and me feeling fairly peed off by the whole thing) we couldn't go. And I had to spoon feed her the cereals that she did have, which took sooooo much coaxing and "no yoghurt until you've had some more...." it's just not what I want to do.

There has to be a balance between happy, fun and bl mealtimes and eating what they've asked for. Isn't there??

Does it help if you offer a "this or that" kind of choice rather than a "anything" kind of choice?

I find it we give DD too much choice then she seems to flounder a bit but if I give her a choice of two or three things she is happy as she has some choice but actually seems to stick a bit better with what she has chosen.

To be fair, she doesn't eat enough to be overwhelmed by choices!!! Dinner is always pasta dinner - which she gets twice a week, and picks around whatever else I give her. Lunch is one of 4, it's breakfast that she seems to be especially bad with.

She'll only ask for either shreddies or krispies and cheerios (together) but then won't eat it. She ate about 4 shreddies this morning then wouldn't eat any more - so she went hungry. (Not that she ever seems to mind about not eating!!!)

ggrrrrrrr!

You say she went hungry but she never minds.... so I suspect she was not hungry?!
I seem to remember at about 2 Midge just wanted to do stuff and explore/ play/ run around and it was a bit of a battle to get her to the table and to maintain interest. Perhaps you just take out/ have available a selection of snacks after the mouthfuls of brekkie she has (which are probably to take the edge off hunger). I seem to remember always having toast in tupperware as a snack on the way to toddler group!
If you don't want to do that, perhaps give her small quantities of both things?
Now Midge is 3 and a half she still does that to an extent (she asks for peas with her pasta but only eats 3) but she knows she HAS to eat a decent amount of them because she has asked for them.
And FWIW Midge is the same with pasta too- it is the only thing I can guarantee she will eat! Though she has got a lot better with her fussiness....

Popsie wrote:You say she went hungry but she never minds.... so I suspect she was not hungry?!

She has never been fussed about food/milk! Even as a tiny baby, I can count on one hand the number of times she actually cried for milk - even if it was running really late!!

I have started to take the bowl away, and then put a shreddie back on her tray, one at a time, and then she's eating them! She's still eating nowhere near the amount of breakfast she was a couple of months ago! But I have learned not to mind too much........

Great thread, Chicken does the same thing to me and it drives me nuts sometimes... Her go to is PB&J or yogurt, like this morning she has yogurt, but that's it... I try to limit her choices, but it doesn't always work out... I've found that using a "fun" plate helps her to eat more...

http://www.amazon.com/The-First-Years-M ... 98&sr=1-27

Perhaps she only needs 4 shreddies? I've been reading "My child won't eat" online on Amazon and he explains why kids at this age seem to scale back dramatically on appetite. For the first year they're basically on a massive growth spurt and eating huge amounts in proportion to their size. In the second year they scale back A LOT and we tend to expect them to eat much too much.

Why not just give her four shreddies (or whatever) to start with, rather than a whole bowlful. If she wants more she'll ask for it!

TBH in this situation I think I would just give really tiny portions as she can always ask for more and it might help your frustration. Then if she asks for something different you might feel happier about giving it if she's already eaten most of her very small bowl of cereal.