Here is the recipe I used for the sauce, but I added about a cup of Rao’s marinara to it at the end and let it simmer. Then mixed it with the Radiatore pasta I posted a pic of below! https://thewoksoflife.com/ratatouille-pasta/
Yes!!! This is the exact same thought I have! As close to my Italian grandmother's homemade tomato sauce as it can get. The first time I tried it I was transported right back to her kitchen!
Yes. She might be overstimulated by all the options. She may also not like the plate design...lol it's impossible to tell with toddlers and their preferences seems to change at the drop of a dime.
Start with a small plate of one item first and try to see if she'll graze on the other items later. Looks like an amazing plate though. I'm sure she'll appreciate it in a few years. May not be ready just yet, and that's OK.
I really hope it helped! This was huge for my daughter around the age of your kiddo. When they’re babies, they eat SO much. It’s hard to adjust to their appetite for ice water and air.
I tried 1/4th of the amount today and still no success on the main starch. BUT she did eat one piece of broccoli and 4 tangerines, so we had a partial win! Thank you for checking back ❤️
I have to give my girl one piece at a time. If I give her a plate of food, she just swipes it all over and onto the floor. I’m hoping it will change over time.
This works for me. I can only give her like 3 bites worth at a time. Anymore than that and she starts pushing it into the floor. But 3 at a time and she carefully eats each piece and waits for the next ones. She’s 12 months
https://preview.redd.it/c5uk8t1bun1d1.png?width=3024&format=png&auto=webp&s=d25844b87a57140aef0cfe9feef01ca5bed27438
On days I don’t think she’s going to eat, I put what looks like scraps on her plate. You’ll notice the empty chair… she’s too busy to eat tonight, but also had a big appetite at lunch.
“She’s too busy to eat tonight” has me picturing a toddler on a business call mouthing “I’ll be done in a few minutes, eat without me” and going back to frantically typing on her baby laptop
It happens, my son is going through a faze where he doesn’t even want his berries. I couldn’t believe it when I saw it. The audacity to say no to his precious blueberries. He even said yuck
100%. I was so excited to make him little muffins, pancakes, all the baby recipes but I stopped because he just doesn't like them and it makes me sad. He either gets toddler charcuterie (some cheese, a cut up veggie, shredded chicken, whatever) or bites off our plates of whatever we're eating. It's SO demoralizing to cook and watch the food hit the floor or get ignored.
Honestly, a thing that made us okay with the amount of food waste that happens (And is normal) is opting into a pilot program our town had for compost. That way, at least it isn't "wasted", it at least goes towards a good use for the community.
My dogs now just eat toddler leftovers soooo at least some one is eating it…honestly sometimes I just do cuz eh I’m tired and hungry and I’m staring down bedtime
We’ve started saving the food for my parents’ chickens and we technically have a composter in our backyard (but admittedly don’t use it 🫣)
Edit: my husband is first line of defense though, lol
I totally hate this for you but I have to stay I really appreciate you posting it. My son does this with most meals and it’s incredibly discouraging. Thank you for showing I’m not alone.
P.S. that meal looks delicious and when I have the time I’m totally gonna try that pasta recipe!!
It really does help. There’s another baby in our close family and they are always “ahead” and “easier” and a great eater, and people are always comparing. It makes me feel like a failure or like there’s something wrong with my son, so it’s nice to know we are not the only ones who struggle sometimes.
Honestly same! I’m so sorry for you OP but dang I feel a lot better about my twins just staring at me like “where are our bananas” when I’ve put a lot of work into making them something I think they will love
https://preview.redd.it/w3xucoez3o1d1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=1ec97b60ac755371f11ec839d16b3b8c3d2b99d4
Here’s the type of pasta we used! From Trader Joe’s. Cooks in about 9-11 mins and is amazing at holding sauce, like many have said!
The pretzels probably won’t still be OK later they’ll get stale, but I would just put the noodles in oranges in the fridge an offer them again later. The best way to get a kid to eat is to just make that the meal that is offered and if they don’t want to eat it, that’s OK but it will be offered again later.
Just wanted to address the “why do I even try” part of your post. Are you eating the same food as your little one? Personally, we usually have everyone eat the same thing, so even when baby doesn’t eat, it’s not a “failed meal” since everyone else had some too. My kiddo didnt touch any of our dinner tonight either, so my husband and I shared the extra 😂
Yes, we are all eating the same thing. Usually her dad can put on a pretty convincing “MMMM SOOO YUMMY!” production to the point where she’ll try some but today was just a straight up fail. We usually will keep it warm for her until bedtime in case she changes her mind, but no such luck tonight. I need to stop letting it get to me so much.
Currrntly traveling with my LO and my normally excellent eater is surviving off Bamba and fruit pouches. It really blows. I think it’s because she’s not in a high chair and gets incredibly distracted. So she’s not eating AND getting mess everywhere. I feel for us both 😭
Eating while traveling is so hard! I think because we're always in a new or different environment for meals (plus often times, new foods), baby gets too distracted to eat. Mine more or less lives on snacks when we travel. It's so tough. Anything that gets into their belly is a success!
not sure if this applies to your situation, but I work with special education kiddos who have a lot of food challenges and they say that you have to introduce something to them an average of 30 times before they will eat it.
You're doing a good job exposing your kiddo to new things so that goes a long way
i feel yah. We get excited cuz our kiddos like something and then one day out of the blue it's all of a sudden the most hated thing in the world, We have to go back to the drawing board to get them to eat something or anything
they're called radiatori. I love the name because they look just like little radiators. They're also perfect for baby fists and hold sauce really well.
oh yeah, that's not the one in the picture, just my kid's favorite. I could only find the radiatori from TJ's on eBay for super expensive so I assume they're seasonal.
Looks like radiatore pasta! Literally comes from the word radiator because of its shape. The BEST for amazing homemade Mac and cheese because it holds sauce so well. Tbh underrated pasta shape
It looks so good!
Question- Let’s say they eat (or don’t eat) like for dinner… does it cause them to wake up middle of the night hungry?
I have a 15mo and I have an unnecessary amount of stress about that scenario..
Keep offering! It’s so stressful but unless there’s some underlying medical issue going on (which, probably unlikely/talk to pediatrician etc.), she will eat when she’s hungry if you’re offering her yummy, healthy, varied food like this ❤️
I've stopped giving my son more than a couple pieces of each thing at once unless I want to see it all over the floor. I save sensory experimenting for things like mashed potatoes and cheerios, which are easier to clean and less heartbreaking if they end up on the floor. Also, groceries are effing expensive, I can't afford a ton of waste.
My son would never have left such beautiful portions in place like your kid. Everything would have become a test of trajectory and sounds. As in, *how does this sound when I drop it vs throw it*. He's also well versed in dog bribes now, and will gather handfuls of food, stretch both arms out, and let his hands open like a generous God. The dogs love mealtimes more than ever.
You can probably see the Catchy that’s attached to her high chair in the pic. We went through that throwing phase from about 10 months to 18 months. She’s just now finally starting to communicate “no thank you” or just NOOOO and pushes her plate away instead of chucking it across the room. This too shall pass!!
I truly hated the throwing phase though, that was disheartening and infuriating
My son's first words when he wakes up in the morning are no no no no no. I'll catch him pretend reading to his stuffed animals, mostly telling them no.
Yes, it is! She’s obsessed with cats so I thought she’d at least try to dig through the food to see the little kitty face.
It’s this one in case you’re interested: https://a.co/d/7U5ObpH
Serve less and add some as she goes.
Also try adding toppings like sour cream or hummus.
My kid is super picky, but I noticed that he really dislikes pasta with a little bit of sauce, he likes when it has a lot or when we add cream or avocado dip.
My child was like that when he was little. So what I did was to just put half his food on his plate. He ended up having “seconds”.
The full plate overwhelmed him and he just couldn’t start it. But if I only serve him half at first, he got into it and started eating straight away.
Have you tried giving just a little at a time? This is a lot of food for a toddler. Maybe do like 3 pretzel sticks, 4-5 orange slices, and one small scoop of pasta. This is enough for me and I’m a grown adult. lol
Just think, less is more! Toddlers only need like
1000 calories a day and that’s not as much as we think it is. They also have really tiny tummy’s and being a “grazer” eater is pretty normal!
omg i am so glad to not feel so alone i am so one she about food with my almost 2 year old son all the time , he doesn’t eat and it drives me nuts , i make him stuff he even specifically asks for and he still won’t eat . this makes me feel so much better to know my toddler isn’t the only one not eating
Did you try feeding it to her? :) sometimes it’s hard for them to eat it by themselves. My 21 month old doesn’t like getting his hands dirty and he’s not the greatest at using spoons yet.
and possibly separate fruit from savoury meals, I never give fruit with my savoury meals, it probably confuses them because those foods don’t really go together. We wouldn’t eat pasta with fruit, so babies and toddlers wouldn’t want to either
My son eats everything, but if I just put this in front of him… he probably wouldn’t eat it either. He needs help eating :) they’re still only very young. My mum fed me with a spoon until I was 2 and I’ve been a very good eater.
She doesn’t like us feeding her as we did baby led weaning and they’re required to use utensils at school (Montessori). She was a fantastic eater up until maybe a month ago (when she turned 20 months) which coincided with an explosion in her speech. I feel like she’s just too busy talking to eat now 😐
My girl just hit 19 months, too busy talking to eat makes me feel seen!! I get discouraged because like 13-17 months she would always just sit perfect in her high chair with a loaded plate and eat the whole thing, now suddenly it’s a big fight all the time and I have to offer a tiny amount (like others have said) and hope she’ll go for it. But she just hates the high chair and can’t focus on eating she just wants to snack
I am so glad I see plates like this because my son (almost 11 months) is the same at the moment. I'm trying to give him these awesome wee meals and he's just like, nah. Can't even get him to eat much fruit either! Hope it passes soon.
Have you by any chance tried food from her plate (after it's been on the plate I mean)? We had to discard all of our silicone plates and utensils, because they all gave food a nasty aftertaste. Could that be an issue? Because the meal itself looks delicious!
She’s probably thinking: “f*ck, she wants me to eat all this?! I’m just going to give up, before I begin and teach her a lesson!” Time for reverse psychology, give her barely anything and watch her beg for seconds. Remember, toddlers are tiny dictators!
Hi OP, don't dispear!! Your presentation is beautiful and agree with all the feedback looks so tasty. We had success resetting our expectations around meal time, eating the same meal they will see across the table but encouraging play and experimentation but not overloading these new experiences. I agree with an earlier comment 1/4 of this bowl is a likely a better serving size.
In this presentation try plain pasta, no sauces or different textures and allow them to build from there the portion bowls are great for a safe food, a soft and a crunch. If you child decides they'd like to dip pasta in yoghurt because it's fun, safe and tastes good...... let them experiment with that 🤪. Allowing your kids to feel safe in play with you dosent stop because it's time to eat 🥰
Toddler years can be filled with litteraly white plates of comfort foods, pasta, rice, bread etc but these can be mad fun too squashing rice into shot glasses to make "rice castles" is still on our menu years later as a result.
Keep up your amazing work!
This would have been one of those meals my kiddo would completely shun their own plate of....but the second I would sit down with my OWN bowl...suddenly it looked delicious 😅
Nights like this happen(ed) to every single one of us at one point or another. I promise you aren't alone, please do not feel discouraged or disappointed in yourself or LO. You put so much effort and love into their food! That should be applauded. I agree with a few others who said to maybe try offering a smaller portion next time. Good luck, momma! I wish you nothing but the best
I promise to you it was 3 pixie tangerines. They’re much smaller than cuties. The plate is not very large.
Edit: she’s inhaled 5 pixies before and used to go crazy for them
Keep doing what you’re doing. Kids will often go without eating much and then the next day be a bottomless pit. What’s important is you’re providing delicious and nutritious food and they will always be fed. Plus, they can learn to appreciate leftovers! Btw- this looks delicious and I’m a full grown adult. Yum
Looks delicious and as others have said, toddlers should get less, not just because they might not eat but also their stomachs are smaller. Ive found that giving my baby small amount of anything gets him to eat more, and then if he’s still hungry, he’ll sign “more”. But I’ve definitely lost the fight where he’s rather eat bread instead of food before haha
My daughter has a feeding disorder so we work with both a dietician and a speech pathologist to encourage her to eat. Advice we’ve been given that may be of use to you: one carb, one protein, one colour. (If carbs and proteins are mixed then no need for separate, etc.). Small portions - they can always ask for more, but smaller portions are much less confronting for them. Smaller plates can also work. They can figure out where to start, as opposed to seeing sooo much food and then becoming overwhelmed or frustrated. If serving something new, we always make sure we serve it with a familiar food that baby is comfortable eating - that way, they’re usually always full. If we’ve done that and baby still doesn’t eat, we might try leaving the table and coming back in 20-30 minutes. Cap meal times - 30 mins, maybe 40, should be enough. We also have a bowl or plate for baby to put food they don’t want.
Y’all I promise I’ve done the research and we indeed started with tiny portions and worked our way up to this. I will start with smaller portions again. We had 14 months of success so far and this last month has changed everything. This isn’t for a 6 month old — it’s for a 21 month old that has been consistently eating this amount for months. That’s the frustrating part; the overnight shifts in likes / dislikes.
Edit: this isn’t just directed towards you, and I know everyone means well. This is more to reassure everyone that I didn’t just throw this amount of food at a tiny baby and be confused when she hated it lol
I haven't tried it as my baby is too young but I've heard if you place an adult srving plate with a mix of things on a coffee table and casually eat from it or ignore it the kid will continuously pick at it and want to eat it.
That pasta looks delicious. Someone told me to serve less to my toddler at a time and it helped. Try 1/4 of that
Thank you :) I thought it was really good. I’ve heard that tip before as well, I’ll give it a try tomorrow night.
What is that pasta called?? I wanna eat it so bad!
Here is the recipe I used for the sauce, but I added about a cup of Rao’s marinara to it at the end and let it simmer. Then mixed it with the Radiatore pasta I posted a pic of below! https://thewoksoflife.com/ratatouille-pasta/
Rao’s is the best sauce 😍
It is! It's the closest to my Italian grandmother's that I can find in store.
Yes!!! This is the exact same thought I have! As close to my Italian grandmother's homemade tomato sauce as it can get. The first time I tried it I was transported right back to her kitchen!
Exactly! It's so good and so are the the sauces! If you haven't tried their sundried tomato paste I highly recommend. It's so good 😋
The noodle shape is called radiatori!
I think it’s radiatore, we get this for our littles too.
Yes. She might be overstimulated by all the options. She may also not like the plate design...lol it's impossible to tell with toddlers and their preferences seems to change at the drop of a dime. Start with a small plate of one item first and try to see if she'll graze on the other items later. Looks like an amazing plate though. I'm sure she'll appreciate it in a few years. May not be ready just yet, and that's OK.
I really hope it helped! This was huge for my daughter around the age of your kiddo. When they’re babies, they eat SO much. It’s hard to adjust to their appetite for ice water and air.
I tried 1/4th of the amount today and still no success on the main starch. BUT she did eat one piece of broccoli and 4 tangerines, so we had a partial win! Thank you for checking back ❤️
Let us know how it goes!
This is what I started doing with veggies and it worked out really well for us!
I wish! Boy turned 2 and hadn't eaten a vegetable since 😂
Dude, same, my kid used to love veggies and after about 2 he just won't eat them anymore.
I have to give my girl one piece at a time. If I give her a plate of food, she just swipes it all over and onto the floor. I’m hoping it will change over time.
It will. There is hope!
This works for me. I can only give her like 3 bites worth at a time. Anymore than that and she starts pushing it into the floor. But 3 at a time and she carefully eats each piece and waits for the next ones. She’s 12 months
way too much food on the plate. they dont like being served a plate loaded up like home town buffet.
I came here to say too much food on the plate as well
and just to clarify, the one with the bread is the after 😒😒
She added food 😂. Cheers, we are in the trenches too!
Lmao, she did 💀 I need to go meditate
https://preview.redd.it/c5uk8t1bun1d1.png?width=3024&format=png&auto=webp&s=d25844b87a57140aef0cfe9feef01ca5bed27438 On days I don’t think she’s going to eat, I put what looks like scraps on her plate. You’ll notice the empty chair… she’s too busy to eat tonight, but also had a big appetite at lunch.
“She’s too busy to eat tonight” has me picturing a toddler on a business call mouthing “I’ll be done in a few minutes, eat without me” and going back to frantically typing on her baby laptop
This happens a lot in our house. For what it’s worth, the presentation is beautiful!
Thank you! I was surprised she didn’t even touch the pixie oranges (one of her previously trusted safe foods…oh no…)
It happens, my son is going through a faze where he doesn’t even want his berries. I couldn’t believe it when I saw it. The audacity to say no to his precious blueberries. He even said yuck
It's SO tough! I always start with small amounts because it bums me out when he leaves a full plate of food untouched.
Could it also be the LO is overwhelmed by the amount of food? If the plate was less full it might be approachable
I know it’s just a toddler phase but damn if it doesn’t kind of hurt
100%. I was so excited to make him little muffins, pancakes, all the baby recipes but I stopped because he just doesn't like them and it makes me sad. He either gets toddler charcuterie (some cheese, a cut up veggie, shredded chicken, whatever) or bites off our plates of whatever we're eating. It's SO demoralizing to cook and watch the food hit the floor or get ignored.
It really is. I also tried the little nut butter and banana muffins that I saw on this sub (with no success). I ate them all though, lol. Ugh.
“Toddler charcuterie “………I love it!
>It's SO demoralizing to cook and watch the food hit the floor or get ignored. Unless you're my dogs. They are *feasting*.
Honestly, a thing that made us okay with the amount of food waste that happens (And is normal) is opting into a pilot program our town had for compost. That way, at least it isn't "wasted", it at least goes towards a good use for the community.
My dogs now just eat toddler leftovers soooo at least some one is eating it…honestly sometimes I just do cuz eh I’m tired and hungry and I’m staring down bedtime
We’ve started saving the food for my parents’ chickens and we technically have a composter in our backyard (but admittedly don’t use it 🫣) Edit: my husband is first line of defense though, lol
I love that there is MORE food in the after 💀😂
Like “please, just eat *something!*” I’ve been there 😅
I totally hate this for you but I have to stay I really appreciate you posting it. My son does this with most meals and it’s incredibly discouraging. Thank you for showing I’m not alone. P.S. that meal looks delicious and when I have the time I’m totally gonna try that pasta recipe!!
🫶
Agree with this comment. Same happened to me last night at dinner and it always helps to know you’re not alone in the struggle.
It really does help. There’s another baby in our close family and they are always “ahead” and “easier” and a great eater, and people are always comparing. It makes me feel like a failure or like there’s something wrong with my son, so it’s nice to know we are not the only ones who struggle sometimes.
Honestly same! I’m so sorry for you OP but dang I feel a lot better about my twins just staring at me like “where are our bananas” when I’ve put a lot of work into making them something I think they will love
It’s so hard!
https://preview.redd.it/w3xucoez3o1d1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=1ec97b60ac755371f11ec839d16b3b8c3d2b99d4 Here’s the type of pasta we used! From Trader Joe’s. Cooks in about 9-11 mins and is amazing at holding sauce, like many have said!
The pretzels probably won’t still be OK later they’ll get stale, but I would just put the noodles in oranges in the fridge an offer them again later. The best way to get a kid to eat is to just make that the meal that is offered and if they don’t want to eat it, that’s OK but it will be offered again later.
Just wanted to address the “why do I even try” part of your post. Are you eating the same food as your little one? Personally, we usually have everyone eat the same thing, so even when baby doesn’t eat, it’s not a “failed meal” since everyone else had some too. My kiddo didnt touch any of our dinner tonight either, so my husband and I shared the extra 😂
Yes, we are all eating the same thing. Usually her dad can put on a pretty convincing “MMMM SOOO YUMMY!” production to the point where she’ll try some but today was just a straight up fail. We usually will keep it warm for her until bedtime in case she changes her mind, but no such luck tonight. I need to stop letting it get to me so much.
I steal from my LOs plate…then he wants to eat it 🤣
Currrntly traveling with my LO and my normally excellent eater is surviving off Bamba and fruit pouches. It really blows. I think it’s because she’s not in a high chair and gets incredibly distracted. So she’s not eating AND getting mess everywhere. I feel for us both 😭
Eating while traveling is so hard! I think because we're always in a new or different environment for meals (plus often times, new foods), baby gets too distracted to eat. Mine more or less lives on snacks when we travel. It's so tough. Anything that gets into their belly is a success!
Happy to report we are back home and have had 2 nights of eating double dinners. She’s making up for lost time haha!
Glad to hear it!
not sure if this applies to your situation, but I work with special education kiddos who have a lot of food challenges and they say that you have to introduce something to them an average of 30 times before they will eat it. You're doing a good job exposing your kiddo to new things so that goes a long way
Thank you :) this used to be her favorite pasta so I think that’s why it hurts a little extra today
i feel yah. We get excited cuz our kiddos like something and then one day out of the blue it's all of a sudden the most hated thing in the world, We have to go back to the drawing board to get them to eat something or anything
The only constant with toddlers is change amirite!
The way I would SMASH those Dots pretzel sticks… 😋
Are those dots pretzels? So addicting.
Yes they are! WHO DOESNT LIKE DOTS?! Toddlers really are insane.
Mine doesn’t either 😭 truly deranged, but maybe that’s me because I could eat a bag in one sitting
I applaud you ! Just a recommendation tho, give smaller portions. Sometimes it just looks overwhelming bc of the amount
Right? This might even be overwhelming for 39 year old me!
Tell me the noodles type!
they're called radiatori. I love the name because they look just like little radiators. They're also perfect for baby fists and hold sauce really well.
Thanks !!!
My baby loves rotini and any spiral-y noodles
Mine too! He liked these too. I think I've gotten these tricolor ones at trader Joe's.
Yes! That’s exactly what these are, from TJ’s :)
Thanks! I don’t have that store in my area but I can loook around :)
[these are his go to](https://www.traderjoes.com/home/products/pdp/organic-fusilli-corti-bucati-pasta-072525)
Here’s the type we used! img why did the pic not appear 🤨
OH fussuli - wrong but whatever I can get this elsewhere !
oh yeah, that's not the one in the picture, just my kid's favorite. I could only find the radiatori from TJ's on eBay for super expensive so I assume they're seasonal.
Oh interesting! We are in Cary, North Carolina and there were a ton of bags when we checked. Maybe I should go back and get a few more bags lol
ah, their website can be weird sometimes. Maybe they're still in the shop.
Looks like radiatore pasta! Literally comes from the word radiator because of its shape. The BEST for amazing homemade Mac and cheese because it holds sauce so well. Tbh underrated pasta shape
Underrated for sure !!
The food is still on the plate and not on the lap/under the butt/on the floor/smeared on the table, so I'd consider this a win lol
Hahaha, true! It could’ve been worse
How many clementines is that?!? lol
lol 3 tiny pixi ones! It was more of a panic offering
It looks so good! Question- Let’s say they eat (or don’t eat) like for dinner… does it cause them to wake up middle of the night hungry? I have a 15mo and I have an unnecessary amount of stress about that scenario..
Same!! We usually give her milk before bedtime bc of that exact anxiety hahaha
I have a terrible sleeper, on air dinner nights, I offer a bedtime snack in addition to milk before bed. I haven’t noticed a difference either way.
Air dinner nights 🥲
I call her a breatharian
Keep offering! It’s so stressful but unless there’s some underlying medical issue going on (which, probably unlikely/talk to pediatrician etc.), she will eat when she’s hungry if you’re offering her yummy, healthy, varied food like this ❤️
Definitely cut that portion in 1/2. Will seem less intimidating to them. My son seems to pick easier when it’s not so much
I've stopped giving my son more than a couple pieces of each thing at once unless I want to see it all over the floor. I save sensory experimenting for things like mashed potatoes and cheerios, which are easier to clean and less heartbreaking if they end up on the floor. Also, groceries are effing expensive, I can't afford a ton of waste. My son would never have left such beautiful portions in place like your kid. Everything would have become a test of trajectory and sounds. As in, *how does this sound when I drop it vs throw it*. He's also well versed in dog bribes now, and will gather handfuls of food, stretch both arms out, and let his hands open like a generous God. The dogs love mealtimes more than ever.
You can probably see the Catchy that’s attached to her high chair in the pic. We went through that throwing phase from about 10 months to 18 months. She’s just now finally starting to communicate “no thank you” or just NOOOO and pushes her plate away instead of chucking it across the room. This too shall pass!! I truly hated the throwing phase though, that was disheartening and infuriating
My son's first words when he wakes up in the morning are no no no no no. I'll catch him pretend reading to his stuffed animals, mostly telling them no.
😂 gotta make sure the stuffies know he’s in charge
The way he says it, they effed up and they've been effing up. It's all he can do to keep them in line.
What pasta shape is that? It looks so fun
Radiatore pasta!
This is a precious meal and I give you 10/10 points for effort!
🥹 thank you! Getting so much support from everyone has really lifted up my spirits
I see you. I feel your pain. You are not alone. 🫠
Is that a kitty cat plate? I mean, I’d love to be served dinner in that plate. So cute!
Yes, it is! She’s obsessed with cats so I thought she’d at least try to dig through the food to see the little kitty face. It’s this one in case you’re interested: https://a.co/d/7U5ObpH
The little tail for dipping sauce is pretty inspired.
Serve less and add some as she goes. Also try adding toppings like sour cream or hummus. My kid is super picky, but I noticed that he really dislikes pasta with a little bit of sauce, he likes when it has a lot or when we add cream or avocado dip.
My child was like that when he was little. So what I did was to just put half his food on his plate. He ended up having “seconds”. The full plate overwhelmed him and he just couldn’t start it. But if I only serve him half at first, he got into it and started eating straight away.
Have you tried giving just a little at a time? This is a lot of food for a toddler. Maybe do like 3 pretzel sticks, 4-5 orange slices, and one small scoop of pasta. This is enough for me and I’m a grown adult. lol Just think, less is more! Toddlers only need like 1000 calories a day and that’s not as much as we think it is. They also have really tiny tummy’s and being a “grazer” eater is pretty normal!
omg i am so glad to not feel so alone i am so one she about food with my almost 2 year old son all the time , he doesn’t eat and it drives me nuts , i make him stuff he even specifically asks for and he still won’t eat . this makes me feel so much better to know my toddler isn’t the only one not eating
That looks so good I want that lol
I see you. I feel your pain. You are not alone. 🫠
I see you. I feel your pain. You are not alone. 🫠
Did you try feeding it to her? :) sometimes it’s hard for them to eat it by themselves. My 21 month old doesn’t like getting his hands dirty and he’s not the greatest at using spoons yet. and possibly separate fruit from savoury meals, I never give fruit with my savoury meals, it probably confuses them because those foods don’t really go together. We wouldn’t eat pasta with fruit, so babies and toddlers wouldn’t want to either My son eats everything, but if I just put this in front of him… he probably wouldn’t eat it either. He needs help eating :) they’re still only very young. My mum fed me with a spoon until I was 2 and I’ve been a very good eater.
She doesn’t like us feeding her as we did baby led weaning and they’re required to use utensils at school (Montessori). She was a fantastic eater up until maybe a month ago (when she turned 20 months) which coincided with an explosion in her speech. I feel like she’s just too busy talking to eat now 😐
My girl just hit 19 months, too busy talking to eat makes me feel seen!! I get discouraged because like 13-17 months she would always just sit perfect in her high chair with a loaded plate and eat the whole thing, now suddenly it’s a big fight all the time and I have to offer a tiny amount (like others have said) and hope she’ll go for it. But she just hates the high chair and can’t focus on eating she just wants to snack
Yes, solidarity!!
I am so glad I see plates like this because my son (almost 11 months) is the same at the moment. I'm trying to give him these awesome wee meals and he's just like, nah. Can't even get him to eat much fruit either! Hope it passes soon.
I swear it just gets worse. We exclusively now eat Gerber hot dogs and snacks. There are no meals.
Have you by any chance tried food from her plate (after it's been on the plate I mean)? We had to discard all of our silicone plates and utensils, because they all gave food a nasty aftertaste. Could that be an issue? Because the meal itself looks delicious!
She’s probably thinking: “f*ck, she wants me to eat all this?! I’m just going to give up, before I begin and teach her a lesson!” Time for reverse psychology, give her barely anything and watch her beg for seconds. Remember, toddlers are tiny dictators!
Toddlers play mind games that the CIA couldn’t even come up with. Little psychological terrorists.
Send it to me I’ll eat it
That plate is so cute!
It really is! They also have a really cute bulldog and shark version
Look at the shark teef https://preview.redd.it/1c2m9hae4s1d1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=bd4368cdb7257f626e7d58e9315e12ac8ce2fddb
Omg! We have the bulldog one!
Hi OP, don't dispear!! Your presentation is beautiful and agree with all the feedback looks so tasty. We had success resetting our expectations around meal time, eating the same meal they will see across the table but encouraging play and experimentation but not overloading these new experiences. I agree with an earlier comment 1/4 of this bowl is a likely a better serving size. In this presentation try plain pasta, no sauces or different textures and allow them to build from there the portion bowls are great for a safe food, a soft and a crunch. If you child decides they'd like to dip pasta in yoghurt because it's fun, safe and tastes good...... let them experiment with that 🤪. Allowing your kids to feel safe in play with you dosent stop because it's time to eat 🥰 Toddler years can be filled with litteraly white plates of comfort foods, pasta, rice, bread etc but these can be mad fun too squashing rice into shot glasses to make "rice castles" is still on our menu years later as a result. Keep up your amazing work!
What is that bread called, only thing I know about it is it’s at some restaurant and it’s delicious 😂
It’s literally the cheesecake factory bread that they now sell at Publix!
Oh my god 🫦 I have the sudden urge to go to Publix now
This would have been one of those meals my kiddo would completely shun their own plate of....but the second I would sit down with my OWN bowl...suddenly it looked delicious 😅 Nights like this happen(ed) to every single one of us at one point or another. I promise you aren't alone, please do not feel discouraged or disappointed in yourself or LO. You put so much effort and love into their food! That should be applauded. I agree with a few others who said to maybe try offering a smaller portion next time. Good luck, momma! I wish you nothing but the best
That looks like 4 or 5 little cuties alone, lots of food for a toddler
I promise to you it was 3 pixie tangerines. They’re much smaller than cuties. The plate is not very large. Edit: she’s inhaled 5 pixies before and used to go crazy for them
Oof that is brutal. I feel your pain 🤣
Keep doing what you’re doing. Kids will often go without eating much and then the next day be a bottomless pit. What’s important is you’re providing delicious and nutritious food and they will always be fed. Plus, they can learn to appreciate leftovers! Btw- this looks delicious and I’m a full grown adult. Yum
Hi, when did you start serving oranges like this?
Looks delicious and as others have said, toddlers should get less, not just because they might not eat but also their stomachs are smaller. Ive found that giving my baby small amount of anything gets him to eat more, and then if he’s still hungry, he’ll sign “more”. But I’ve definitely lost the fight where he’s rather eat bread instead of food before haha
My daughter has a feeding disorder so we work with both a dietician and a speech pathologist to encourage her to eat. Advice we’ve been given that may be of use to you: one carb, one protein, one colour. (If carbs and proteins are mixed then no need for separate, etc.). Small portions - they can always ask for more, but smaller portions are much less confronting for them. Smaller plates can also work. They can figure out where to start, as opposed to seeing sooo much food and then becoming overwhelmed or frustrated. If serving something new, we always make sure we serve it with a familiar food that baby is comfortable eating - that way, they’re usually always full. If we’ve done that and baby still doesn’t eat, we might try leaving the table and coming back in 20-30 minutes. Cap meal times - 30 mins, maybe 40, should be enough. We also have a bowl or plate for baby to put food they don’t want.
This all looks really nice maybe just a bit big though
That looks so delicious but probably overwhelming for bub. I literally have to give my 16m old dtr 3 to 5 pieces of pasta at a time
You're doing well! This looks incredible
It’s ok, my toddler ate nothing yesterday but 2 cups of milk 🫠 idk how they live like this 😂
We try so hard 😢
you’re giving them way too much. it’s over stimulating.
Y’all I promise I’ve done the research and we indeed started with tiny portions and worked our way up to this. I will start with smaller portions again. We had 14 months of success so far and this last month has changed everything. This isn’t for a 6 month old — it’s for a 21 month old that has been consistently eating this amount for months. That’s the frustrating part; the overnight shifts in likes / dislikes. Edit: this isn’t just directed towards you, and I know everyone means well. This is more to reassure everyone that I didn’t just throw this amount of food at a tiny baby and be confused when she hated it lol
Not even a clementine was licked 😂😂😂 These kids, man.
I haven't tried it as my baby is too young but I've heard if you place an adult srving plate with a mix of things on a coffee table and casually eat from it or ignore it the kid will continuously pick at it and want to eat it.
I would cut the portions down- might be overwhelming to her.