To think a 3 year old should be able to feed herself?

[timegate]

DD (3 year old) won't eat herself. She constantly needs cajoling, bribing and someone needs to sit and feed her. I'm fed up. AIBU to think a 3 year old should be able to feed herself dinner?

Also consider your expectations of what she needs to eat.
Being a person who never ate much, I was happy to give DS only what he felt like eating. Conversely, my SIL and brother have always overfed their son to the point of him throwing up. Seriously big plates of soup that I'd find difficult to eat myself. He is getting on the fat side and DS is his usual slim self.

We're in this situation with our oldest. When DD2 came along she seemed to revert back to 'babyhood' at the same time that pickiness with foods began to emerge. DD2 feeds herself quite happily, normally with a fork, but older DD who is three often needs fed to get food into her. If we didn't she just wouldn't eat meals.

We have the added problem of not having a dining table so the girls both sit at a small children's table in the living room and there are lots of distractions.

It's driving me to dispair...

If she's not keen on the food I'm not surprised she's reluctant to eat it.

How are you with foods you don't like.

However I'm at the 4 year-olds and over still being fed! How do they get on at school?