How much should my toddler eat?

[purpleweasel]

I'm sure I'm not the first one (or the last) but I am sometimes amazed at how much my 16mo can eat. She goes to nursery 3 days & is always hungry when she comes home.

Food for typical day at nursery:

Breakfast (at about 7): handful of cornflakes, about 1/2 a small banana or some fromage frais. Nursery give them breakfast at about 8.30, mid-morning snack, lunch (cooked) around 11.30, mid-afternoon snack & tea at about 4.30 (which is often cooked, eg beans on toast). Yesterday when she came home from nursery she managed a bowl of porridge (2 dessert spoon's worth of oats), 1/2 her Daddy's crumpet with peanut butter on & 1/2 a brioche roll, plus some milk at bedtime. This is about average for nursery days.

On days at home with me she tends to graze more than eat "proper meals" though we will all eat tea together, somewhat later than nursery time.

Am I worrying about nothing? My Mum says she will only eat if she is hungry (which is true as far as I can tell) and I might be posting "help my child is so picky & won't eat!" in 6 months' time. I wondered if I should I ask nursery what their portion sizes are, to see if mine are too small/big in comparison.

[EveryoneTalkAboutPopMusic]

They are busy at nursery and that can make them extra hungry. Is she going growing too?

[purpleweasel]

Not noticeably but she is just starting to walk

[FartnissEverbeans]

Some days 14mo DS surprises me with how much he eats. Other times (like today - he's got a cold) I worry that he's not getting nearly enough! He's tall for his age (high centile) but only around 50th for weight. He's walking a lot now and he's at nursery full time.

He's becoming very fussy though and I feel like he's slowly narrowing his gastronomic range to the point where, in the not too distant future, he'll be existing on goldfish crackers, dry cheerios and garlic bread. Yesterday he started shaking his head for 'no' and a whole new world of possibilities has opened up to him.

Apparently when he's in nursery he sneaks a look into his lunch bag to get a feel for what's on offer then refuses to eat certain items and just points at his lunch bag. Like 'No avocado for me today thanks, but I understand there is a blueberry muffin on offer in yonder bag, be a love and fetch it for me'