As a parent, I always want to make sure my son, Jordan, has the best. It’s only natural : AKA the motherly instinct. I make sure he has a fresh diaper, clean clothes, a safe and nurturing environment, tools for learning and wholesome food. And of course a never ending supply of hugs and kisses!
April had asked me: I remember in a previous post you mentioned you were going to include more of what Jordan eats in a day. What happened?
Jordan has turned into a picky eater. Of course being his mom I am quite ashamed of this and I cannot help but to feel that I did something wrong – it’s only natural to feel this way, I guess. I always made sure he had a well balanced meal, incorporating a lot of healthy vegetables, fats, fruit and a protein source. The last thing I wanted was for him to grow up not enjoying a wide variety of foods.
Over the past few weeks, Jordan has been refusing foods that he once loved. He was the BEST eater and tried anything that I put on his plate; from brussel sprouts to green beans, pancakes and soup. His list of foods he wont eat is much larger than the list of foods he will eat.
I have been extremely stressed and frustrated because of his refusal. I am worried that he is not getting enough to eat, not enough calories to survive, not enough nutrients and that he is already starting to develop poor eating habits at a young age.
Breath, Tasha. Breath.
I found an article on picky eating at a young age which explained why he has been doing this. It makes a lot of sense and I guess I will have to try to roll with the punches instead of fighting back. All I can do is offer foods to him and if he doesn’t eat them then that’s fine. I can’t force him to eat, and no, he won’t starve. Believe me, I have tried every attempt to get him to eat.
He does love fruit, though, so I guess he isn’t as bad as some picky eaters. He also loves GM’s. I have been thinking of getting him Kids Super Food to supplement his nutrition.
So lately his meals have been fruit, raisins, black olives and MorningStar “faux” chicken nuggets. I am just hoping he will once be the great eater he has always been.
Has anyone gone through this? If so, what tips can you offer a frazzled mom?
The Clean Eating Mama 
Hey tash, While I'm not a mom, I was a nanny to two picky eating boys! My remedy for them (they were a bit older than J, but not much) was to give them a choice (do you want peppers or cucumbers today)Even before they were talking a mile a min, they were pointing to which foods they chose. It changed every day too… one day they would love one thing, and dislike the other… etc. It was just a phase though, they got over it, and then were back to eating normal foods all the time!! Good luck… 🙂
It's definitely a phase! My little guy went through this, too. I remember posting about it not too long ago. He came around shortly thereafter. He's a bit older than Jordan, so hang in there–he'll be back to eating you out of house and home in no time. 🙂
Hey, I wanted to let you know I feel your pain as I have a picky eater in my house as well. My 3 yr old will eat everything! But my 4 yr old- NOTHING!! SO we have a rule in our house, this also applies to my husband, it's that we must take a "no thank you bite". Everything that is on our plate will be tried and if you don't like it you do not have to eat the rest of it. Sometimes he actually likes it, but still won't eat it, LOL.
I think it is probably a phase, and I wouldn't stress about it too much. Nick right now (13 months) eats mostly everything but some days he does refuse foods that he'll eat other days. I've been reading other blogs of babies that are Jordan's age that are going through the same thing. Try to be patient and hope that he'll go back to his eating style!
They ALL do it. I do daycare so I've seen more kids than anyone can even imagine and trust me, they ALL do this. Does he like dip? Maybe it's not so bad to dip veggies in a healthy pumpkin dip or something like that. I would keep giving him the things that he used to like and if he doesn't eat them, then he just must not be hungry. It's different if you know he actually doesn't LIKE something, I don't believe in forcing anyone to eat what they don't like but if he used to eat it, then he can continue to eat it. If he knows that you'll give him something different, then he will continue NOT to eat what you put in front of him. I have a child that I give him his veggies first and then he gets his fruit, cheese and meat. Otherwise he'll never eat the veggies. It will get better. I liked the idea of letting him cook with you too, especially as he gets older, they love that.
We haven't gone through super picky YET but I did write a post about what we do and a book that I highly recommend. I hate linking to my site in comments since it's relevant, here's what I had to say about it:http://beingchelsea.com/2010/03/16/my-food-philosophy-with-the-kidamaru/
You said it best, just gotta roll with the punches! But yes, it is frustrating. And even when it seems like the kids are more open to foods again, they may revert. Just gotta remember it's ok!My daughter will sometimes refuse a meal of even her favorite foods or something she asked for. I just remind myself that she is eating with the best intuition free from outside influence. Like J, she loves green monster shakes! We were going to make one this afternoon even, but she just decided on a late nap.Give them the best options and when they need to eat, they will. And it's perfectly ok to give in on foods/meals on occasion too.Just keep doing what your doing!Rachel
I don't have kids yet so I have no advice, but I will say that I was the pickiest kid EVER. I hated vegetales, cheese, deli meat, ground beef, the list goes on and on. I really didn't even expand my palate until after college. I think I turned out ok though 🙂
I once heard if you cut food into fun shapes that might help. Eg. melon stars, or even fun animal shapes. Or even try using different plates. Good luck
Thanks, Heather! He loves pushing the blender button! lol Yes, I totally agree that kids need to help in the kitchen. He is always in the kitchen with me, watching every little thing I do. It's cute =)
oh, what a bummer! i think everyone goes through a phase though, and even though I don't have kiddos yet, i think all you can do is just make food and eating a happy experience for him! also, i've heard that letting kids help cook helps a lot (even though he's still super young maybe you could help him put pasta in water or something like that). good luck girl!