How to handle a picky Toddler

[VivaciousJewelz]

Cara has become very picky lately... foods she use to eat, she refuses, even though I know she's hungry either b/c she hasn't eaten a meal yet, or she asks for some of my food. When I was little, I had to eat what I was given or I did without. Is that the way to go? I feel bad about making her go hungry, but at the same time, I don't want to give in to her and make a million different things if she's not going to eat them. I already have to hide vegetables in pasta shells or something for her to even eat them.

How do you handle a picky toddler/child?

[Jenna26]

I have a very picky 4 year old, but he has sensory issues. He has a small list of foods that he will eat, and I still give him choices. He handles it a lot better if I say, "do you want a fruit bar or toast?", and that way he feels like he still has a say.

Magazines like Parents and Family Fun always have such cute ideas for food! Make it creative ~ cut her sandwiches with a cookie cutter, layer berries with yogurt in a clear cup, make tortilla roll-ups and then cut them in little circles, pancakes with fruit in the batter, etc. My 8 year old loves things like that.

Good luck!

[amylynne01]

Breakfast and lunch are kind of made to order within reason - E like one type of cereal, and L likes another, or E has a pb&j while L has pb&fluff. I am okay with that kind of catering to them, but I won't make toast for one and frozen waffles for the other.

Dinner is another story. I make sure that every dinner has at least one thing that I KNOW my kids like. Sometimes they like everything, sometimes I specifically add bread with butter just for them. I am not a short order cook, and I cook one meal. If they are hungry, they will eat, and if they miss one meal, they won't starve. Elise is super picky, and we've starting enforcing that she has to try one bite of everything on her plate. We're trying to expand her horizons beyond chicken nuggets and fries, which is what she wants everyday lol. Because we've given in to her in the past, she expects it, and she's having a hard time coping with new foods.

We've also made eating a game sometimes. Since E is practicing counting, I say "can you eat this many bites?" and show her my hand with some fingers up. Then she counts and eats that many bites. What about using fun plates or forks? My kids love the Zoopal plates and like to eat the food to see the faces. Elise also likes using big girl forks not the baby forks. I cut up their sandwiches using cookie cutters to make fun shapes. I mix strawberries into their yogurt for something new. They love anything they can dip - cucumbers with any kind of salad dressing, apples/celery with peanut butter, crackers with hummus.

It's also an age thing. Cara wants control of everything, including what she eats. Control is the issue we have with Elise. So I try to give choices as much as I can - what kind of veggie we have, what shape pasta to use, which plate she wants, what she wants to drink. She likes knowing that I care about what she wants, and I still get the end result I'm looking for.

Now L on the other hand is the exact opposite. She eats anything you put in front of her. She'll finish her plate, ask for more, finish all that, and then work on whatever I left on my plate lol. And yet she is still around 22lb at nearly 2. They are like night and day when it comes to food!

[fungirl2727]

My son is 3 yr old and very picky! He will eat breadsticks, chk nuggets and fri, mac and cheese and hot dogs! He will also eat some junk food! I am very healthy weigh 115 and 5'4 and eat healthy! I special order all his food 3 meals a day. If you try to give him something he doesn't like he will gag and throw it up! He goes to schoo 3 days a wk 7 to 6 and I order healthy meal there for lunch. So I think just give her what she wants! My son is very thin healthy active little boy.

[foggierbard9]

My son gets what is for dinner. No short order cooks live in this house. If he doesn't eat, then he doesn't eat. That being said, my son's favorite veggies are broccoli and carrots, and he won't touch a chicken nugget most days. If there is something that he has never had for dinner, then the veggie will usually be something he likes...most days we have no issue, but some days he wants to see what he can get away with...he is quickly learning that mom and dad are in charge.

My daughter is just getting to the mostly solid foods stage, so her meals are sometimes different, but most days she can eat what we have also.

I think you have to decide what works for you, either decide now that you are in charge and she eats what you make, or she is in charge, and you cater to her every want/need.

[VivaciousJewelz]

Thanks guys!

How I've been handling it so far is that if she doesn't like what I make for a meal, I try to make sure that the next snack time/meal time is something that I know she likes. Like yesterday at lunch, she suddenly decided she didn't like the Beech Nut steamies I put in front of her, so I told her she didn't get to eat if she didn't eat what I gave her, and then I waited an hour and gave her a yogurt, which she ate.

I do give her real spoons and forks, though she does like this one purple and yellow spoon that's more of a baby spoon. She also sits in a booster seat instead of a high chair now, and I have Zoo pals items that she can eat out of/off of.

[CW&M Mom]

I would suggest moving on from toddler foods and sticking to regular food. Toddler foods tend to be bland and kids just get sick of them.

[mama_saver]

I hate feeling like a short order cook. We moved into our own place a month ago (we were living at his parents) and since we moved in I think my 3 year old has had MAYBE 2 pbj's whereas when we were at the old place he had at least one pbj everyday. I try to add to the meal what I know he will eat and just work around it.

[wolfangel]

I have 5 kids: one who is Mikey from the old Life cereal commercials reincarnated, lol...one who's picture is in Webster's next to the definition of picky, and 3 middle of the roaders. Mr Picky is almost 20 years old, if he doesn't like what I cook, when he is home, then he gets his own meal. "Mikey" is 19, he has one thing he won't eat: squash. OK, easy enough and that's a great trade because the guy eats any and everything else. The 3 girls are my middle of the roaders and they are 17 (today!!), 14 and 6. They all have their items they like and don't like, and we just try to incorporate enough into each meal so that everyone will eat some part of it.

As one PP said, I do the "take # bites of this and then you're done" with my 6 yo and it works like a charm. Sometimes you have to just be able to cut through the bull too, if they know there's dessert and all of a sudden aren't hungry, then they get told, then I guess you'll have dessert tomorrow. All of a sudden, they have more room. Huh. It's a Miracle. (my usual reaction, lol)

As several PP's said, remember who is in charge. If she is ultra picky, maybe try the Pedia Sure side kicks (Q's available now) as a meal supplement so that while she is going through her picky phase she is still getting the nutrition. She might like em!