My picky 2 year old eater?! ARGH!

vfem

Yoga...The Chicken Pose
11 Years
Aug 4, 2008
7,324
30
264
Fuquay Varina, NC
I am tired of saying "My daughter is a picky eater". The response I get is that of a typical parent with a picky eater.

"Oh I understand, my kid only wants plain chicken or mac and cheese or nuggets day in and out!"

Oh that would be wonderful. But my 2 year old doesn't like mac and cheese... though she will eat hot dog 'occasionally' she wants honey mustard or peppercorn ranch with them. Pizza? Kids love it right!? Not mine!!! She'll eat it if my nephew is over because he is eating it... but that's it.

As for snacks, she prefers apples (whole not sliced), yogurts of all kinds (but not chocolate pudding apparently chocolate is ICKY?!?!?!), Favorite snack she'll throw a fit for.... Popcorn!!!!!

today I made myself a left over flatbread pizza with tomato sauce and parm cheese only... then I top it with smoked salmon! What does my kid do... comes over and picks off all my smoked salmon and eats it. She made sure to wipe off the sauce first. Why? Pizza icky mama... mmmmm fish!!!

OMG!!!! Do you know how annoying this is!? I made mac and cheese with peas and ground turkey last night... I ended up giving her carrot sticks and celery sticks because she wouldn't eat that for dinner.


Confused I am confused?!?! Who else deals with this strangeness?!

I get that parenting magazine, and I look online for help.... but apparently I must be the only one with a picky eater who has expensive taste. I can't do custom foods all the time. Sometimes I just want mac and cheese you know?!

She LIKES Indian food with curry... but WON'T eat a hamburger from McDonalds. She will pick the meat off and dip some of it... but prefers her french fries only, with any kind of sauce you could think of other then ketchup!!!

ARGH!!!

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ha ha...sounds a bit like my 3 yr. old.

As long as she's getting what she needs vitamins and minerals wise...we even do a the little kids Flinestone vitamins too. If it's the regular kids one...you have to cut it in half because of the iron. If it's the little kids one, with no iron, you can give them a whole one.

Mine loves popcorn as a snack or for breakfast...
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sometimes I just let her have it then for breakfast. and if she follows it up with a whole apple (not sliced or she'll fit)...fine by me. and if she doesn't finish it? guess the chickens get a treat.

So no... I don't think you're the only one.

Mine likes string cheese too. Will yours have any cheese like this?

I wish I could get my kids to eat peanut butter and jelly...but nooooooo.

They like tuna fish sandwiches though. oh well.


hugs,
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I was raised on the, "Eat what the rest of the family is eating or don't eat at all" philosophy. Kids will eat what you're serving if they're hungry enough.
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Well at least it sounds like she likes nutritious foods. My 3yo thinks vegetables are the most vile thing in the world
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. What if you just grill fish or chicken and serve with vegetables (and dip if she wants it)? You could grill a few pieces at a time, too.
 
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I was blessed with two children that ate anything and everything. My son's favorite food at a year old was liver and onions.
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Some old time wisdom that I followed was to offer them a variety of foods and their bodies will know what they need at that time.
I'm one of those people that can't stand the thought of any creature going hungry; especially my children.
Having said that, I would offer your DD a healthy diet and if she eats great. If she doesn't, oh well. She'll be hungrier the next time food is put in front of her.
When DSD visits with the GS she drives me crazy by fixing him a substitute meal when he won't eat what we fix. However, when he's here with just me and my DH he gladly eats what's put in front of him.
IMO, the worst thing you can do is make mealtime a battle. Just set the food in front of her. If she doesn't eat it, excuse her from the table, but DON'T offer substitutes. She won't starve herself to death, trust me. It goes against human nature to starve.
Good luck to you!
 
Sometimes I make her dinners that she think are the 'best'. I however have to keep things cheap and need to buy those boxes of $0.45 mac and cheese.... and whatever meat or chicken and stuff I find on clearance.

I guess its just some of her favorite things are expensive, and I can't do it all the time.

I know she hates canned tuna, but will eat a tuna steak if its off the grill or broiled.

I can't be too mad about it, as she's healthy.... they say she's REALLY under weight being only 25lbs at 27 months old... but she's tiny and she eats... so who knows?!

I think the fact that she ate all my smoked salmon of all things just made me go " WHAT THE HECK?!?!?!!?" You know! Kids really can blow our minds sometimes.
 
Honey, I could write a book on my children and their picky-eating habits!

Until they were teenagers, they would NOT eat ANY veggie that was cooked--they would gobble up--raw peas, corn on the cob, beans, okra, tomatoes, squash, eggplant, carrots and loved raw potatoes BUT if they saw a cooked veggie they would literally gag!


Until they were college age, they would NOT eat any hot dog that wasn't, bright red and it had to be a certain size and shape! Once we went to a cook out at friends house, dh fixed them hot dogs and set the plates in front of them--I was helping at the drink table and looked up to see all my children, lined up on the bench of the picnic table with big eyes, and looks of fear as if my dh was asking them to eat chicken heads! Pizza had to come from a local --Mom & Pop's place--don't even mention the chain pizza places. NONE of my kids will eat candy bars unless they 'taste right'... has to be 'fresh' . Lord knows how many times they have refused to eat something because it tasted stale.. My dh will not eat a salad if he sees ONE tiny spot of brown on the lettuce..... NONE of them will eat anything that is past the 'best if used by' date!

One eats NO, jelly, jams, syrup, honey. She will not touch a fruit that has been sweetened..but will pick them off the vine and eat fresh...One eats NO tomato products--says they make her mouth hurt, One ate very little meat, said it 'grew' in his mouth when he chewed. One eats no seafood/fish etc. One will not touch sandwich meat but loves Potted Meat! They would not eat but one BRAND of pork n beans, cheese, saltine or snack crackers, tea, mayo, ketsup, bq sauce, spg. sauce..

When they were young and we would be traveling and were eating out ---we had to go to McDonald's for one, KFC for another, Burger King for another and Subway for another... No two liked the same thing... and would actually go without before they would eat it..



THANK the good Lord they are all adults and after college it became a tiny bit better but it still isn't easy on holidays, gatherings.. My children and my dh have been known to eat before they go to their grandmother's, reunions, parties, showers because they KNOW they won't have anything they will eat....
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I couldn't wait for them to have kids and 'pay' them back---but all of the grands eat like me... I can always find something that I can eat, I love different foods, cooked different ways.... I am not picky..at all...
 
I was raised on the, "Eat what the rest of the family is eating or don't eat at all" philosophy. Kids will eat what you're serving if they're hungry enough.

This is my philosophy exactly.

As far as her being underweight (??), can you have your doctor calculate her BMI? My feeling is that as long as she is active, and eats healthily (which she obviously does), she is fine!! BTW, 25 lbs. at 27 months doesn't sound horrible to me. My daughter was 31 lbs. at 24 months, and off-the-charts for height (38"). Now, at 3, she is only 34 pounds... only gained 3 pounds this year.

There are too many overweight kids to worry about force feeding one. If she starts to LOSE weight, that's a different story, but just enjoy your healthy, happy little girl!​
 
I had a picky eater too! My son loves anything green, but when he was two, it was torture getting him to eat any kind of meat or, oddly enough, anything orange. He wanted broccoli and lettuce all the time and, guess what . . . salmon for his birthday! His favorite restaurant is Indian! He has out grown it. Partly because his taste buds matured and partly because he was not allowed to be so picky.

While I don't believe in force feeding a child huge servings of a food that makes them gag, I believe they should have to taste everything. If you can stomach the cure (pun intended) it will work. With my son he had to eat one cooked baby carrot before every meal until he would do it without complaining. It took a couple weeks, but I've never had a problem since. I know it's hard to have a picky eater, but if you can get her past this she will be a happier child . . . when she goes to someone else's house.
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As far as her weight goes, don't worry about the charts! My daughter, who is the least picky eater, was only 14 lbs. when she turned one and her waist size stayed the same from ages 3 to 7! If she is healthy and active, throw out the chart. It will only make you think there is a problem when there isn't.
 
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This didn't work for my children, it only ended in tears and myself going crazy. I am sure it works for many, but not for mine. Children are much more sensitive to taste and texture than we are, some even more sensitive than others. We do force the kids to try one good bite of everything, then decide.

Yesterday my 13yo gave strawberries another go. He popped one in his mouth and made a face, he told me "ack, it's like it can't make up its mind to be sweet or sour, it's just both! That's why I like green apples, they are only sour". He can't deal with complex flavors (he also has sensory issues). But, a few hours later DH put the tiniest bit of sugar on some strawberries and ended up having to tell DS to slow down, he was gobbling them up
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Because he has such a restricted diet, I make most things from scratch and pile as many nutrients in them as possible.

My eldest son has a vary wide diet now, he loves almost anything. We didn't force the issue (except in the beginning) and he grew out of the pickiness. He ended up in the same place as if I'd forced it. I just always made sure that what they were eating was healthy and well rounded. It was just usually very simple (yogurt was always a favorite, as were raw fruits and veggies). Kids each require a different approach, they aren't one size fits all. Just do whatever works for your family.
 

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