We have been trying lots of new things with Jane, and I have been getting books from the library about what you can feed babies and toddlers, but I'm really craving more ideas - especially practical ones. The books I got are nice, but some of the listings have over 15 ingredients! Or they include weird things like barley (sorry if you are a big barley eater. I have never even seen it at the store even though it's probably there somewhere). Jane is able to pick up small pieces of food and swallow them okay, but I feel like I'm repeating the same things over and over and I want to branch out (cheerios and bananas anyone?).
I'd love any ideas for quick easy finger foods that Jane could pick up off her tray and eat. I'd also love any ideas for foods you can give your kids that you also incorporate into a larger family meal - i.e. what everyone else is eating. I've been wanting to give Jane the foods that I make for dinner, but I'm always afraid that something I've prepared wouldn't be right for her - like what if I've put in too much salt? I have no idea.So what do you guys do? What's your favorite finger food to give your toddler? What do you give them from your family meal (or what do you hold back on giving them from the family meal)?
8 comments:
Collin is a little younger than Jane, and he only has a couple of teeth, so these might be too basic for Jane, but it is a start.
For finger foods, Collin likes goldfish crackers, vanilla wafers, graham crackers, green beans from a can, mandarin oranges, diced pears (they come in little cups).
As for meals, Chef Boyardee and the like are good. Collin scarfs down Spaghettios and Ravioli. I was worried, because he doesn't chew meat well, but the meat in the Ravioli is ground up into mush and it is fine. Those are the easiest options. Ravioli even has veggies mixed in.
I haven't been able to incorporate his meals in with ours completely yet...but sometimes he can eat what we're having. He can handle most pasta. He likes baked potatoes with a little bit of cheese and sour cream on it. Soup works well, too. He loves all forms of bread, and was really excited the other day when I put some jam on some toast for him.
I can hardly wait until he turns 1, so we can try scrambled eggs. I think he will like those.
Hope that helps!
I remember that we ate a lot of steamed vegetables when Sam was little (perhaps a little older than one? I can't remember now). It was easier for him to eat the softer vegetables, though. He also could eat peas, canned green beans, etc. I seem to remember that we held off giving him corn for awhile - it's rather hard to digest.
Sam was a big fan of applesauce about that age. As for finger foods, he also liked grapes (I had to chop them up into smaller pieces so that he wouldn't choke).
Happy eating!
Pizza! It's finger food and everybody likes it.
I'm a little rusty on that age, but I remembered a couple things that you may want to avoid: whole corn kernels, raisins or any fruit or juice that is very acidic like organges, kiwis (too many always gave Kathryn a super red bum and diarrhea). and even too much tomato sauce can do it too. Things that aren't very easy to digest will likely make their poop more irritating to their skin. Hope that helps.
Taylor: I really liked all of your ideas! Especially the diced pears - Jane loves pureed pear and I didn't even think about getting it diced. I just gave Jane toast the other day, too, she thought it was cool but it was so dry she had to go really slow. She also likes scrambled eggs, but more to squish between her fingers than to eat!
M: Steamed veggies are what I think I should be giving her but I've only tried steamed broccoli so far, which she ate but not much of it. I never thought of canned green beans, and Taylor mentioned it, too. Do kids really eat canned green beans? I will have to look for some grapes, too!
Dad: you so silly.
Adrienne: I'll have to pay better attention to Jane's rashes and think if I've given her anything acidic the day before. My doctor mentioned sugary things can end up really irritating their tushes, but I should have thought about acidic stuff, too. Thanks!
Breanne, your sis Erika sent me a book called "Mommy Made" about making baby food. I ignored that overachiever part but they had a great reference for introducing foods gradually. But I think by one year most anything goes. Two tips: a pizza cutter quickly cuts up softer solid foods like sandwiches, casseroles, pizza, etc., and I had a mini food processor (wedding gift) I used to decimate cooked veggies because I don't like canned vegs and usually do frozen. They're not as soft, though. Give Jane what you eat, within reason.
Hi Breanne! I was a nanny for over 2 years, and when I started, the baby was only 4 months old, so I did the whole toddler food thing at the age Jane is now. Here's what I remember feeding him:
Jarred peaches (He loved these to no end, and they bought the ones in the water, not the syrup... just dice them up ... like the pears others suggested)
Cut up chicken breast (I think this depends on how many teeth she has, but they normally bought the rotisserie cooked chickens and I would cut him up some breast into cubes, which he loved. You may want to just cook your own chicken though, as I'm sure the pre-cooked ones are loaded with salt.)
String cheese or other cheese
(Another big hit with him, but again, this may have been when he was just a little older.)
Veggie chips
(These were a treat for him and had less salt and fat than regular potato chips, but he loved the crunch once he had lots of teeth, and when he didn't, he'd suck on them until they were softer.)
Baked potato cut into pieces with no skin
Spaghetti (He had tons of fun with this one)
Hummus (I know it's weird, but that kid loved hummus! He'd get a little blob and dip his chicken into it or we would give him a few baby crackers)
Also, Gerber makes these awesome little snack cracker things that I can't remember the name of, but they're in little asterisk shapes and come in different varieties. I remember he especially liked the sweet potato ones. These were a good alternative to Cheerios to add some variety. If I can think of anything else, I will let you know. I hope this helped! Your daughter is absolutely adorable, btw. :)
Rachel - thanks for all of these great suggestions! I especially appreciate the chicken idea, I've been afraid to give her meats so far, but rotisserie chicken would be pretty soft if I cut it up small enough. Thanks again!
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