Enough is enough... when will my 1yr old DD eat some proper food?

[MammyShirl]

I breast fed her until 8 months and she only started eating round that time as all she wanted was breast milk as soon as i start weaning her off she slowly accepted food... still slowly... she only like a few jars of the pureed 4 MONTH Heinz bloody "Mums Own". She turned one last week and is looks very healthy with lovely chubby legs etc so people always say not to worry.

Daily Intake:
Breakfast: Cereal, toast juice/water
5 ozs of formula milk at 10.30am and sleeps for two hours
Lunch: Jar of food, banana mashed with natural yogurt, 5 ozs of formula milk
Snack: chedder cheese stick and raisins or farleys biscuit/satsuma
Dinner: Jar of food and pureed fruit
Bedtime: 7 ozs milk

I have been on here before complaining about her and I know they can get by on small amounts, I just want those small amounts to be healthy and nutritional as possible and those jars are not. They have something stupid like 8% meat and are so watery. I wish she would eat some mash potatoe,fresh veg and meat. I have tried to copy the jars she likes, mix in my my food in the jars or just not give them to her but each time she just refuses to eat anything else.
Also I know I have become lazy as I wasted so much time and money trying out different recipes, steaming, pureeing, freezing... then forgetting to defrost the bloody ice cubes that she is not going to eat anyway!!!!!!!!!!!!!
So in the end I give into the watery crappy jars. My dh gets in late from work too so she cant eat with us. I know she has not been eating as long as most babies her age but surely this cant go on for much longer.
Is there any mothers out there who have been in similar situation? Any advice?
She hates the consistency of potatoe even if i make it runny or mix sauce into it.
I've tried, butternut squash, sweet potatoe, cottage cheese etc... she spits it out.
She does like finger food like cheese, fruit, bread. I have tried giving her lumps of fish, chicken... Did not work, she likes everything to be sweet.
Any suggestions are very welcome.

Thank you !

Yes, the Hipp one are great and lots of flavour!! Have you tried the lamb moussaka or the paella...mmm yummy!!!

I think the Organix ones are the best - the 7 month plus jars are much more like real (grown up) food and might make the transition to home cooking easier.

Mammyshirl, I haven't got time to read this whole thread so appologises if I repeat anything.

My ds used to be like your dd. He used to refuse my cooking (most people would!!lol) he would only eat jars - and the jar food had to be pureed! I basically had enough one day and decided that if he didnt eat his homecooked dinner I would not give him a jar.

My dh works late too so we eat late without ds. I make 3 portions of our dinner and put a meal for ds in the fridge and that is his dinner for the next day.

At first he would pull faces, spit the food out and refuse to eat it. After a couple of days (he sussed that I would win!) he started eating what I put in front of him and gradually over a couple of months he eats most things.

He has the odd day when he plays up - but as a whole it has be great.
I just decided one day that if I gave in to him - and then had more children (planning a 2nd) I would be doing different meals for everybody - which would be a nightmare.
Dont get me wrong if he really did not like a food I wouldnt force feed him it!
I hope this makes sense and I know how hard it is. Good luck

MammyShirl, my dd, 18 months, doesn't eat any jar food now but she used to and there were only 2 kinds she'd eat. Like you I tried everything to no avail. She was also breast fed but wasn't even really a big milk drinker. Anyway what I wanted to say is that you may find soon enough that the mushy stuff you give her now, whether it's from a jar or not, will soon be a thing of the past so if I were you I'd concentrate on her finger feeding skills and expand those. Some children just don't like mushy food with lumps but they're very good eating drier finger foods. Why not give her some pasta (a big hit with my dd and they usually eat it in a sauce of YOUR choice) or pieces of cooked potato. As she's eating cheese and drinking milk I wouldn't worry about her not taking to meat yet and fish is a very strong flavour - you could 'wean' her onto it with some healthier brand fish fingers maybe. I was always told that up until 1 year old they still get the majority of their nutrition from milk and milk products and everything else is a case of learning and expanding eating techniques and tastes.

I tend to agree with Evita here about concentrating on the finger foods. I was letting my dd at 10- 11 months eat the same as us but cut into very small pieces so she could pick it up herself. She liked the fact that she was independant and could eat her dinner herself without me having to spoon feed her. And it was easier for me as I could get on and eat my dinner in peace!! It saved an argument. Then when she learnt to eat with a spoon, I reverted back a bit and gave her mushier things that she could manage herself. I made sure she had a combination of saucy and drier meals so she would get used to both. She is now 22 months and still eats a lot of the time with her hands even if she has a spoon or fork available. And even though she is very good at using them. It doesn't worry me as "hands came first", and she rarely makes a mess. As long as she's eating reasonably well I wouldn't worry too much!

Agree with the last couple of comments (and the rest actually!) My ds is coming up 10mo and is showing preference to finger foods rather than mashed food, but still loves pureed stuff. If your dd enjoys cheese and raisins then it may not be a texture thing but a mushy thing. I tried a spoon myself and found it yucky (sp?), puree or whole food being much nicer than something half & half.

Really like the idea of steamed carrots/broccoli and to let them have some of 'yours'. May start doing that ourselves! I also find cheese sauce a hit (especially if your dd already likes the flavour of cheese, she's bound to like veg/chic/fish in a cheese sauce). Also savoury dishes with fruit, eg. pork and apple sauce, sweeten things up. Strangely enough ds likes the 'real' ham/chicken slices I put in my sandwiches as finger foods (pulled into small strips). I was doing that before he would take my homecooked dishes with protein. Lentils are also very good if she won't eat meat.

HTH and let us know how things go!

Mammyshirl - just reread your original post. Your DD is actually eating quite frequently so maybe she doesn't build up an appetite. I would stop the 10.30am 5oz formula and the 5oz formula at lunch time to be honest. You could give her food that has milk in it but milk drinks can fill babies up IMO. She could be on straight cow's milk now anyway. My kiddies liked things like cheese on toast as finger food. They liked fromage frais and yogurts - ordinary ones not baby ones. Loved rice pudding and custard etc.
Apart from that really I wouldn't beat yourself up about jars - I used lots of them because they are really convenient. I have 4 very healthy kids aged 10-17yrs now. All breastfed and all good eaters once solids started. I don't think breastfeeding has much to do with it (despite recent evidence which is actually old news!) Do not let her pick up on any anxieties you have about it - that is what they play on from an early age

Kids don't starve themselves. I've always given mine whatever is convenient (sometimes finest home-grown organic, sometimes dehydrated packet stuff). If they don't eat their dinner they aren't going to die before breakfast time. I suspect you will find life easier if you get the kids used to eating whatever you are eating (within reason. I still haven't got the baby used to vindaloo!) than if you spend hours cooking stuff that they may well not appreciate anyway.
I remember ages ago seeing an article in the paper about cooking for very young children. It included a recipe for canneloni arranged to look like a row of people in a bed. I can't imagine how much time the author must have had on her hands to spend her days arranging pasta.

Hi Mummyshirl, I haven't read through the other posts, but just wanted to say that mine were both brought up on those jars. I have to this date never cooked a meal for my children and never will. I can do pasta, but cooking and pureeing is not for me. I have got happy and healthy kids, so I am sure your DD will be fine. Don't worry as long as she seems healthy. I am sure she will start wanting other foods soon. Is she going to nursery? My experience is that nursery is a great place for picking up mre varied eating habits. Kids normally do what the other kids around them do....