how do i get my 1 year old to eat less baby food and more "table-food"?????

Question

Does anyone have any tips on how i can get my almost 14 month old son off of baby food!! I don't want to say he's a picky eater, he's just not very excited about trying new things! We don't force him to eat things either, i'll try something and if he doesn't want it, then that's it, I won't force it on him! I have even tried to let him play with the new food first and then try to offer it to him the next day, and sometimes he wont' even touch it, (but then he'll try to eat fuzz or other crap off the floor) I don't get it, maybe it's the texture he isn't used to, b/c he'll something like bananas out of the jar if it's babyfood, but then he wants nothing to do with the real thing!!
Thanks for the advice!!!

Answer 1

save your money and make dinner smaller for him. Chop it up or blend it but leave a little bit of lumps in it. Then slowly add more lumps and less blending.
You will notices that they willnot see the differents as much. And they will notices that they can eat the same things that you are eating.
Or you can do it the old school way like my grand mother did me chew it then give it to me. I think baby like that way the best til they can really eat on their own.

Answer 2

I have a 14 month old with the same problem. He's not on babyfood anymore (although it was easier to feed him), but I have a hard time finding a good variety of food for him. He didn't want to eat by himself, just play with his food, until I gave him a fork. Now he tries to eat with the fork but usually ends up eating with his other hand instead. I feed him a lot of pasta, peas, hotdogs, green beans and fruit. It's easy fingerfood. But I end up making two meals everyday because the rest of us get sick of the same thing. And if I try to feed him what we eat, then he can't eat it well and doesn't get enough. We limit snacks and his sippy cup and that helps with him wanting to eat. I'm really not giving much advice. Sorry.

Answer 3

I'd start him off on easy things like mashed potatoes and meat cut up in small pieces, same with veggies. My grandson is 15 months old and they almost never feed him babyfood anymore. I keep a supply of those Gerber meat sticks at my house, because he likes them. Last night I took him to a German resturant and he ate more of the German brown bread than anything else. Unless he isn't eating enough, I'd just let him "pick" for a day or two. One other thing, how many teeth does he have? That will make a difference on biting and chewing.

Answer 4

When I was trying to get my daughter off of the pureed baby food I would start by cutting up our food so it was really small to get her used to new textures. Or if I made pasta for dinner I would make the small pasta like orzo or alpahbet pasta for her. Maybe I had an easier time with the transition since I made all of her baby food for her so maybe for example baby food carrots taste a bit different than fresh carrots that you make. I was always amazed that on the rare occasion that I did have to use a jar food she did not really like it and always wondered why? A carrot is a carrot right? maybe not to them? Also you may want to not season his food. Baby food is pretty bland and if you try to give him something that has salt, pepper spices, maybe it is just not pleasing to his palate right now.

Answer 5

I saved a few jars boiled them to make sure they were clean. Then use a food processor to puree the table food and added it to the jar. I set the jar on the high chair and let him eat it. Then after a few days started to put it on the plate. etc... then i would let him help put the food in the processor. and help him push the button. Zack will not eat darn near everything lol. Except green beans. Still can't get him to eat those and he's 9 yrs old. Good Luck

Answer 6

Try the gerber 3rd foods first to introduce him to the lumpier texture. Or there are even plenty of table foods that are already pureed. Like applesauce or cooked frozen winter squash. That would be a start. Also toast and jelly, or boiled carrots cut into bite size pieces. My daughter loves mashed potatoes!

Answer 7

I waited too long to transition my first child from baby food to real food. She was around 1 when I started trying and she refused, point blank to eat. She cried and acted like I was torturing her. I did NOT return to baby food to appease her. She was healthy and it is perfectly safe for a child to skip a meal or 2. Finally, hunger won out over stubborness and then she would NOT go back to babyfood. In fact, she looked at me like "why have you not fed me this stuff before, its so much better." I did, nowever, feed them

Your son is being stubborn - that's normal. As the parent, it is your job NOT to give in to him and give him what he wants (babyfood). He wants it because it is easier than chewing and its what he is used to. But you know that a 1 yr. old should be eating real food. Giving in to his cries and tantrums will only slow down his acceptance and teach him that he can avoid things he does not want (like listening to mom) by just crying. You are not doing him any favors. Pick one meal a day to put real food on his plate and if he won't eat it, say "sorry buddy, this is all there is, if you don't eat it, then there is nothing else for you." He will quickly catch on, although he will be visibly and loudly upset for a few days. During real food training I used real food for lunch only and baby food for breakfast and dinner. No snacks. Once she took to real food for lunch, then dinner was a snap and breakfast just a natural extention.

There's a reason my children love carrots, brocolli, all kinds of fruits, eat well, and will try all kinds of new foods. We taught them to have a healthy diet and they love trying all types of foods because from early on we did not give in to their cries. Yes, it hurt to see and hear them, but I am their mother and it is my job to make sure they have healthy diets. And, all in all, it only took about 1 week of them being upset. Afterwards, they would not return to baby food because they liked the real stuff so much better.

Answer 8

ive never given my kids bought baby food, ive always steamed and mashed my own vegies for them. baby food from a jar tastes nothing like the "real" thing, and it doesnt look like it, so its no suprise he wont have a bar of it. my son (3 year old) looks at new foods like they r poison, and i refuse to have fights about food - so i dont force him to eat anything he doesnt want to either. apparently its very common for new foods to be "presented" to some kids around 15 times before they will even touch it. so what i do is, serve up dinner (chicken, potatoes, peas, corn, carrots, broccoli for example) and i want him to eat a new vege - maybe beans. so i put some beans on the plate, then i say in general conversation - ooo, try the beans they r sooo yummy! and he will go - NOOO YUK! and i just dont respond. and dinner rolls on. i continue to serve beans every meal until one day, he will just eat one himself. i never comment - that just draws attention and thats never good! lol
so my advise is to keep serving him the bought baby food, but also offer "normal" food at every meal - let him discover it himself. it will take time, but he will get there!

Answer 9

Just cut up regular food in small bite size pieces. Feed him when you eat so he gets the hint that this is dinner time. Just stop giving him the baby food. He's a little old to be still eating it.

Answer 10

i steam vegtables then puree them. when he got older i blended them less so it was a little more lumpy untill i started mashing them then giving him chunks when he was old enough. i would suggest if you think it's a texture thing to cook his food and puree it then gradually make it lumpy then start mashing it. i hope this works for you! sometimes it takes babies over 10 times to eat a new food before they decide they like it. be patient and calm at meal times and your beatifull boy will be calm too (as calm as a 14 month can be ha ha)