What does your toddler eat? HELP!

Hi Guys!  I hope all is well with everyone! :)

I'm running out of ideas as to what to feed my almost 16 month old.  I dont think that I cook the healthiest so sometimes I'm reluctant to give her what I make.   I'm just running out of ideas.
Can you guys share what you like to give your little ones?  Like, what do you pack when you go to the park? Peanut butter and jelly? What do you make when you come home exhausted from work and dont feel like cooking?  Or, can you recommend any good books for toddlers?

I dread dinner time :)
Thanks for your help!

Erin

[GNicole]

I hear ya Erin! I am so tired by dinner time!! Avery loves grilled cheese. She also likes soup (I try to give her vegetable soup), chicken nuggets, hot dogs (I know not the best) and she loves vegetables and pasta. I am glad she loves vegetables because she doesn't like many fruits. I think she doesn't like the texture.  She also likes yogurt and of course cheese! I think she would live on cheese! I am looking for new ideas also-I am glad you posted this question.

P.S. How is the job going? Thanks for the pics you e-mailed awhile ago. Soraya is getting so big! Avery is 27 lbs. and 32 1/2 inches. :)

[jenstam]

Brody is nearly 14 months. This is the list of things I give him. Cheese cubes, grapes, mandarin oranges, pineapple, peaches, blueberries, bananas, string cheese, yogurt, scrambled eggs, cheez its, goldfish, graham crackers, any kind of cereal, NO veggies-he doesn't eat any of them except potatoes and corn (on a good day)! The rest get thrown on the floor. Hot dogs, corn dogs, chicken nuggets, tater tots, grilled cheese (his favorite!), mac and cheese, spaghettios, PB & J (yes, I know the guidelines and yes, I gave him peanut butter).

He also loves any meat that we cook for dinner and sometimes rice or pasta. It depends on the day whether he will eat most of the above!

[GNicole]

Avery also loves mac & cheese and rice. And of course french fries.

[NANIS77]

Juliana loves everything we eat.I mean everything! I would buy her the Gerber graduates but yeah right she wanted what we were.So I also give her PB&J,Pasta her favorite.Noodles,chicken nuggets (cut in cubes) cheese,veggies,cereal,pancakes,waffles,grapes (also cut in half)oranges,bananas,fries.Grilled cheese.I would recommend cutting everyhing bit size.Its more easy for them & more appetizing.She also drinks everything in a sippy during the day.Water,milk,juice.

[110279hld]

my pediatrician says no peanut butter till after 24 mos.  my 16 mos old eats everything that we eat!!  Loves all veggies and fruits.  We give her whatever meat we are having with dinner and she eats it.  You would have thought she was born with a fork and spoon in her hands - she's a pro.  Its so funny to see this tiny thing eating with a spoon and fork.  She also doesn't like when I cut up her food - nuggets, etc. She wants to bite them - she's like a t-rex. LOL

[Logan206]

So glad to see this post as I'm always looking for suggestions too!  My kids (14 months) eat a lot of chicken (usually baked, they esp like honey mustard or teriyaki-but not too often b/c so salty).  They do like vegetables, but not as much as meat, so I usually serve the veggies first.  They also love cottage cheese.

As a working mom, my favorite 'easy' meal is tacos (I make with ground turkey).  They don't eat it like an adult would, but I take the meat and mix in peas and other veggies along with a little rice or pasta, and sometimes a little marinara sauce and/or cheese.  It makes great leftovers to pack for daycare too.  It's terribly messy, but they gobble it up!!

[cantwait4baby]

Hey Stranger - how are you?  Eva does not eat anything so the Junk that she may put in her mouth is Pizza, Grill Cheese.  But the doctor started her on vitamins and recently she has started to eat pasta, meatballs, potatos and even a couple peas.  She is a horrible eater.  She is only 20lbs still

PS.  We were in Cental Park on Sunday. OMG if I lived there I would be in that park everyday.  Eva loved it so did I.  There is so much going on in there.

[newbie2b]

AWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!!!!

You should have told me :(

[newbie2b]

Thanks everyone for all your input.  Not only do I feel better, I got some good ideas from you guys :)
Soraya loves: Toast, Pizza crust, all fruits, peas, carrots, calliflower (go figure), chicken fingers, nuggets, oatmeal, rasins, turkey meatballs, pb&J (yes I gave it to her), annie's homegrown bunny cookies, pasta, sand (although i try to limit her intake..lol), cheese, yougurt, smoothies, rice &  beans.
Hates: Soups, grilled cheeses, eggs (no matter how you prepare them), pancakes, beef (to chewy)

Do you guys think that smoothies made with yogurt, milk and fruits are ok for breakfast?

[GNicole]

I think the smoothies are fine. I can't believe she hates grilled cheese! Avery could live on it!

[cantwait4baby]

wow you are so lucky she eats like that - and I will def tell you next time I go we need to have a playdate with these girls.  Are you there all the time?  Times Square was too crowded as usual I took her pic but then left I did not want all those people breathing all over her. haha

FAO Schwarts - she danced on the piano that was fun.

[newbie2b]

Haha... Now you know what I deal with every freakin day of my life..I hate times square.
If you would have walked up like 4 block, theres my building :(

Anywho, she eats well, but I feel so guilty giving her some of the foods I've been giving her. Like if I give her nuggets, I feel like I'm giving her crappy food. Even though she loves it. I make a good bean salad but, I'm afraid she will choke on the chick peas.
And god forbid if I give her something that is not organic (which happens very often), I feel so bad.  I try but it's tough.

[cantwait4baby]

wow you guys are good mommies I have to admit I dont do anything organic and after watching John & Kate Plus 8 I want to I just dont have the time to do all that stuff.  I will have to work harder at it.

[GNicole]

I don't do anything organic, so don't feel bad!

[tiredbuthappy]

dd is 13 months.
she loves tortellini, pasta, macs n cheese. i like the tortellini because it's easy to slice into little pieces and the cheese stays in it. DH will often make casserole-like dishes that she loves (ex: noodles, ground turkey, chopped spinach in a cheese sauce- only he mixes a pureed squash in with the sauce for extra veggies). i'm too busy to be bothered with cooking, so when i'm on dinner duty she gets peas, cheese, pasta and a leftover meat. it seems she'll eat anything if i put the Ragu Cheddar cheese sauce on it.
she also LOVES turkey coldcuts. shredded cheddar cheese is more fun to eat than American. eggs are hit or miss depending on the day.  

she also has texture issues with fruit, but she is improving slowly. so often, instead of fresh fruits, i offer raisins. she eats LOTS of raisins. we also discovered freeze dried strawberries yesterday. she inhales those! we have started to dehydrate fruit for her. i found dried cherries and golden raisins in the store the other day- she loves those too.

she loves to eat my cereal- honey bunches of oats with strawberries. i get nervous giving her a flake cereal, but she does very well. she got tired of cheerios. also likes yogurt smoothies, gerber yogurt melts, animal crackers, etc...

as for organic, we do organic milk mostly. sometimes her yogurt is organic, but that's a coincidence. and a lot of her trader joe's snacks are organic. Trader Joe's is great- i love their wheat crackers, and she'll eat them too.

[shy_violet]

My son just turned two.
He loves Green smoothies - it sounds gross but they are actually really good.  His favorite is Spinach, Orange Juice and Blueberries.  Another favorite of his is a 'Pumpkin Pie' smoothie made with cooked (and cooled) sweet potatoes plain yogurt, pumpkin pie spice,vanilla extract or agave nectar and some milk.   I make fruit smoothies sometimes too, but not as often since it is a lot easier to get him to eat fruits than veggies.  

He loves eating any sort of rice dish - brown rice with lentils cooked in chicken broth is his favorite.  He also loves lasagna (he had it smooshed up when he was just starting on real foods), oatmeal with fruit,  french toast with cinnamon and agave, Sunflower seed butter and jelly sandwiches and veggie pizza.

He goes back and forth on a lot of foods.  He used to love macaroni and cheese and now he will not touch it.  Same with grilled cheese sandwiches and any meats.

Also, he likes zucchini bread, pumpkin muffins or whatever else I am baking as long as I bake it in a mini muffin tin.  When I give him a whole muffin, he is not interested, but for some reason anything 'mini' is  appealing to him.  He also loves to snack on mozzarella string cheese and any kind of fruit.

[newbie2b]

Pls dont feel bad.  We were all raised on regular food and we are all fine.  Which is exactly what my mom tells me when I get mad at her for giving her regular milk..lol
I dont cook organic at all. It's just to expensive. But I do buy her milk organic, rasins, cookies/crackers, peanut butter, juice, apple sauce, cheese and eggs organic. Groceries are expensive by me no matter what I buy so I figure, with a few cents more, I'd buy organic.