Food for 1yr old DS abroad???

[mumoj]

We are planning our 1st family holiday in Portugal this June. My DS will be just over 12 months old. He isn't a fussy eater, eats lots of fruit & veggies & I cook all his meals myself & freeze for convenience. I am concerned about what he will be able to eat when we are in Portugal. We are staying in a villa & there is a supermarket near by, but I was hoping I wouldn't have to be cooking batches of food for him while we are there. My main concern is that I havent even given him childrens restaurant food yet, becasue I'm concerned about added sugar & salt & I'll have no control over this in a Portugese restaurant.
Has anyone else taken a similar aged child abroad & if so how did you get on with the food?

I think the key to this is to relax. If he doesn't eat as healthily as normal for one week it is not a major trauma. By then he should be eating normal family foods. I don't think the portugese go for childrens meals in the same way we do in terms of nuggets and chips, fishfingers and chips etc. The salt and sugar content is not going to do long term damage for one week. Just order him a small portion of what you are having or let him have some of yours. We went to portugal with a 15 month old (not mine, daughter of a friend) and she just had a bit of everyones. We didn't order her a childrens meal. By the time you have had a starter and main course and pudding you have plenty to give a bit up for a small child. They have lots of bread with everything and she ate that along with everything else.

I found the Portugese diet a lot healthier thena the British one, when we have taken our DC's on holiday at that age they just had some of what we had.

Thank you. I think you're right, I need to relax & 1 week of different food isn't going to do him any harm in the long term. In fact it'll prob do him & me some good, to be in a situation for his meal times, that I'm not so in control of. I'm also going to take a few Ella's organics sachets with me for emergencies.

took a nine month old abroad to third world countries for six weeks of travelling. i took some jars with me, even though at home i never ever gave him anything that wasnt freshly prepared, not even the homecooked and frozen thing. whilst abroad, i just made judgements on the meals we were eating. often he got fed whatever we were eating, and at other times the jars. i did notice that i ended up giving him far more formula than he was having at home. two cans a week rather than just the one .

the thing i came home with, was that it would have been a zillion times easier had i been breastfeeding. so if you are still breastfeeding, then trust me, it will be a doddle. he will just have more mmilk for a short while

found with both my DCs that in the hot weather and unfamiliar surroundings, they slept more and pretty much drank milk and had barely any food.. but if they did they had bread, a few chips, bits of chicken etc... babies in other countries do tend to eat and be fine

DD (3) has high cholesterol and we try to give her a healthy diet.

As such I was rather embarassed to admit to her dietician that on a two week holiday to Majorca with family for had lived on chips, crisps and ice-lollies for a week, as that is what her cousin was eating and I didn't have the energy to fight on holiday. Her dietician looked at me for a minute or so and then said, "And I bet you ate more junk than normal and drank more alcohol than normal too." When I agreed that this was so she just said, "Well, that's how it should be - you were on holiday, so was DD, so why shouldn't she have a break foodwise".

I guess what I am saying is don't worry about it too much. I know, believe me, how hard it is not to, but it is just one week. Besides, the Portugese serve lots of fresh fish and fruit, so she'll be better off than in Majorca.

Have a lovely holiday.

There will be plenty of grilled fish and chicken, rice, stews with potato and veg - you'll be fine. When in doubt offer a banana or half an avocado. Just avoid the Piri Piri!

she, not for

I would always have one breakfast in and a second breakfast out to a cafe. Lunch was generally a miss - bread and icecream being mainly consumed. I tried to always give dinner at home and then go out again afterwards. At least I knew DD was having two decentish meals a day.