1 year old throwing food

[WineandDine]

DS has just turned 1 and has always been a bit of a thrower. It seems to be getting worse however and most meals time end up in a complete mess with very little food being eaten.

Any tips for how to deal with this? We do a mixture of spoon feeding and finger foods and inevitably all the finger foods end up on the floor. Even when it's a complete finger food meal (ie cheese and tomato on toast) it often just goes straight on the floor after one bite. He also often spits out the food being spoon fed. I give him a spoon most mealtimes now but he's quite far off being able to feed himself. He likes to tap the bowl and push the food around but doesn't get much in by the time it reaches his mouth!
I know sometimes it can be a sign of them being full but it often happens after the first bite and when he hasn't eaten for hours so he must be hungry? I end up putting the food back on his tray and he may or may not have a few more bites and the cycle begins again.

I know I should ignore the behaviour but wondering if there's anything else we can be do encourage better eating.

Or is this just very normal stuff for a 1 year old? He's my first...

[FabFiveFreddie]

It's very normal.

Put a clean plastic sheet under the high chair and pick the food up and give it back to him. Also, each and every time he throws food around say "no" sternly (leave some gap between the no and picking up to give back to him else he will think it's a game). He'll get the message eventually. Won't take long.

As for spoon feeding, you should do the bulk of it then leave him a couple of spoonfuls and the spoon at the end. He needs to learn how to use it but you can limit the damage and make sure he's full.