In motherhood, that translates into finding what works and then molding it to make it happen as efficiently as possible (and doing pretty much the same thing over and over again). For me, I planned out Lewis' meals to include 1/4 c. of this and 1/2 c. of that to ensure that he got the daily recommended amounts of each of the food groups. That was working very well for us. Lewis ate like a champ. I (We) felt good about Lewis having a varied, balanced diet. Life was good.
Knowing all of this, what a shock it has been this past week for Lewis to reject 80% of the 'normal' food that we've been giving him for months now. My thoughts have been something like, "Well, shit, what is he going to eat now?" Like no other food exists. Like it's the end of the world as we know it. Somewhat of a panic. Major frustration. Like OMG, he'll only eat Goldfish and Twinkies from now through eternity. (Not that he's ever experienced a Twinkie.)
I should also note that I accept change about as quickly as the Grand Canyon changes (first thing I could think of that changes very slowly). :) Aaaand, geology rocks. :)
Anyway, we are in for a food revolution here at our house. It seems as though he is very anti-anything-on-a-spoon as well as very anti-vegetable. He had been happily eating a Cereal/Fruit/Yogurt puree (by spoon) at breakfast, cottage cheese (by spoon) at lunch, and a Cereal/Veggie/Meat puree (by spoon) at dinner. In addition, we put fruit, vegetables, cheese, cheerios, pasta, etc. on his tray to feed himself.
[And I'm sure it's just a phase and we'll have to keep trying and that he'll eventually come back around, but it's been a lot of refusals, all at once. And it has sent me into a bit of a tailspin.]
So a little Hot and Not comparison:
HOT
- Animal Crackers
- Blueberries (as well as Blackberries, Raspberries, and Strawberries)
- Cheerios
- Cheese (diced string cheese and shredded cheddar)
- Goldfish
- Grapes [which is awesome because they are less $$ than blueberries, and I can quarter one grape (for safety) and turn it into four little grapelets]
- Mandarin Oranges
- Pasta
- Pears
- Pineapple
- Squeeze pouches of fruits/veggies (I had some in the cabinet that I'd bought for traveling a few weeks ago and tried one out yesterday, and he loved it. He tried to suck the fruit/veggies out rather than squeeze, so I had to help, but I think he liked being able to hold it. However, they are $$.)
NOT
- Carrots
- Corn
- Cottage Cheese (because it's on a spoon)
- Green Beans
- Parsnips
- Pasta/Vegetables/Meat/Cheese (as a cheese-y/melt-y 'casserole')
- Peas
- Sweet Potatoes
- Yogurt (because it's on a spoon)
Conclusions and Notes of Interest
Needs More VegetablesSo now that I've listed them out, I see the huge disparity between fruits and vegetables! I guess that's not so bad (at least it's not ALL Goldfish)--I just need to figure out a way to get him to take in more vegetables. I'm going to try broccoli and cauliflower because he has loved those in the past. The sprinkle-it-with-cheese method failed the other day, but I can keep trying.
Protein
I also need to work on getting him to take in more protein--the meat puree we mixed in at dinner was really convenient, but I can plan ahead and boil up some chicken. I'm going to see how he likes hard-boiled eggs. He is kind of 50/50 on beans. Tuna got a big thumbs down. He does love peanut butter, but I only give him a little as a thin coating on toast. I guess he gets some protein from his milk and cheese.
Fruit
I also had a dilemma when shopping for canned fruits...do I want No Sugar Added, In Light Syrup, or what?? I decided the artificial sweetener in the No Sugar Added varieties was probably worse than the real sugar in the In Light Syrup ones, but I still rinsed the fruit to avoid giving him the extra sugar. NOW, in the past few weeks, I'm excited to see that one of the major brands (either Dole or Del Monte, I forget) has come out with In 100% Juice varieties AND, even better, Target's store brand has, too. SO, In 100% Juice, it is. Or whole fruit, of course, if the fruit is soft enough.
I Will Not Be a Short-Order Cook
He is really good at picking out what he likes and doesn't like out of the mix. I sprinkle everything onto his tray (veggies, pasta, cheese, fruit, etc.), and he will very carefully pluck out only the foods he wants to eat. Sneaky sneaky.
I need to find the line between making food that he likes and will eat and not being a short-order cook. I guess I should keep offering him a variety and hope that his tastes come back. I feel like if I let him 'get his way' now on refusing foods, he'll continue to be picky and 'get his way' later on. I obviously can't force feed him, but I also want him to eat a balanced diet. I was just reading in Parenting magazine this morning where they suggested serving things with dip to make them more enticing, so maybe I will try that--vegetables and ranch, quesadilla and sour cream, berries and yogurt, etc. It might just take me awhile to make the adjustments.
And, Lastly, Drink
I declared an unofficial War on Sippy Cups a few weeks ago, a quest to find one that was leak, drip, and chew-proof. I am happy to report that I have declared a winner. For milk, the Munchkin Mighty Grip Spill-Proof Cup. For water, the Tommee Tippee Explora Truly Spill-Proof Water Bottle (these names, they assume so much). :) While they all claim to be spill proof, they are not all chew-proof. I was using the Nuby Super Spout Easy Gripper, but that 'super' spout was also super chewable and Lew destroyed 4 of them over the past few weeks. He finally destroyed the last this week, so we are free of them.
Sorry to go on and on. This really has thrown me (us) into a tailspin. Like, "Whoa, there! What have you done with our Happy Little Eating Machine?" I'm sure by next week, we will have a whole new set of food issues. Until then, I'm off to whip up a new, fantastic lunch for Lew. :)
Everytime I catch up on Lew I'm struck by how similar our boys are - even the sleeping. Huck is also over the spoon, unless I'm feeding Del and then he's all over it - so instead I pack all kinds of stuff into a quesadilla and he eats the heck out of it. Beans, broccoli, spinach, rice, carrots (pureed), etc. We use corn tortillas bc they have more nutritional value, but mostly he just cleans the cheese/veggies off the tortilla and drops it onto the floor - it's more of a vehicle than anything else. Also- some brands of Greek yogurt have 23 grams of protein per serving and it's thick so he can grab it with his hands. We also give the boy a spoon and he can get about 40% of it in there.
ReplyDeleteThank you, thank you, thank you. You are the best. A quesadilla sounds doable, even if he doesn't eat it all. Lew has also started dropping food on the floor--very intentionally, he picks up things he doesn't want anymore (or wants the dogs to eat) and drops it piece by piece onto the floor.
DeleteAnd Greek yogurt, who knew? Em had bought some when she last came to visit, but I didn't know what all the hype was about--that is quite a lot of protein. I can try to get him to feed it to himself, although cottage cheese has been a big failure so far (he smears and smacks and paints with it). I'll give it a try, though. And start giving him the spoon.
I hope our boys can meet one day! Does that mean Huck is sleeping better than he used to, I hope? Is Del still a good sleeper? I hope you're all doing well. They are both so beautiful.
Since we started her on solids, we have just been giving Lucy the same food we are eating. That has exposed her to a variety of foods and helped us determine what she likes.
ReplyDeleteOh, and we found that it might take several trials before Lucy decides that she likes something. I think we literally gave her tomatoes 10 times before she liked them, and now they are one of her favorites (at least cherry tomatoes).
DeleteThat assumes that Kevin and I eat well/from all of the food groups. :) My goal is to make that shift to only preparing one meal--it just takes me awhile to get there. I'm starting to give him some main course and then supplement with fruits and vegetables (since Kevin and I don't always eat them). I guess the shift that needs to happen is for K and I to eat more like Lewis! I am working on that.
DeleteAnd I wondered today--it could be that he doesn't like all of the chaos on his tray. I put cheese and vegs and fruits and pasta all out for him, and I'm wondering if he'd do better with just one or two things at a time. We tried dividing it up today, and he seemed to do a LITTLE better with it (he ate more).
Thanks. We'll keep trying and hopefully he'll come back around.
Another option for yogurt I just discovered via pinterest is frozen yogurt drops. Just drop little bits of yogurt onto a cookie sheet and freeze until solid. Lucy really liked them (and so did I) and as long as I only gave her a couple at a time, they stayed frozen long enough not to make a mess. It also helps prevent her wasting a whole container of fairly expensive organic baby yogurt by taking two bites and deciding she is done.
ReplyDeleteOh, great! I remember seeing the pictures of those. I will have to give them a try because I am really most concerned w/his dairy intake. He used to eat yogurt and cottage cheese (like 1/3 to 1/2 cup of each a day) and now refuses them both. I've been 'supplementing' with string cheese, but I don't feel like it is enough. Thanks, MacKenzie! I will do that this week.
DeleteJust remember "This too shall pass." What he hates today, he may love tomorrow and vice versa. There have probably been days (I say probably like I don't know) where Juni's primary diet has consisted of Goldfish and she has so far turned out to be healthy as a horse. Don't stress yourself too much. He will be fine!!! Much love!
ReplyDeleteYou're right, Schwizzle. He will be fine. Love you, too!
DeleteI'm happy to report that he ate corn, sweet potatoes, carrots, and a FEW bites of yogurt today. And he loves strawberries (like his cousin, Juni B) and string cheese. And peanut butter on toast. And pears and peaches. Still need to work on green veggies, but things seem to be getting better.