If your 1 YO doesn't eat dinner...

[widdle]

Do you give them something else?

Yesterday I made tuna avocado pasta but DS just picked the cheese off it and left the rest. To be fair I had the same meal and it was pretty minging I had a beef stew in the oven so tried him with a bit of that - again he just picked at it so I got him down from the highchair. He wasn't whining but I felt bad that he had only had a few strings of cheese for dinner so I got out a jar of baby food and he gulped down the lot!! So he was obviously hungry just didn't like my dinners

So what do I do? I keep on giving him homemade stuff and will continue to do this but if he doesn't eat it should I give him something he likes? (Generally cheese on toast) Or if he doesn't eat do I give up?

He is a tall and skinny boy but not failing to thrive. I don't want him growing up on cheese on toast but I don't want to starve the poor lad either!

Depends!
If its something new (or I think I've done some dubious cooking!), I'm generally more free with other stuff.
If its usually a favourite, I'm more tough on eat that, or nothing.

Snacks offered shortly before bed if limited dinner eaten would be porridge, banana or toast.

I dont do sustitutes.

At one,I wouldn't worry either way. If he only fancies some strings of cheese for tea, let him be. If on the other hand he seems hungry after strings of cheese, I'd do/get something else.

Once they're a bit older you can be a bit more strict with the whole 'it's this for tea or nothing else' IMO.

Just keep persisting with your home cooked, normal food that you like to eat and don't be afraid to go with the flow.

Yes because my other option is that 15mo DS2 breastfeeds all night long. And feeding a newborn-level breastmilk obsessive who is actually a toddler is not good for my own sanity.

Depends what else she's eaten that day. Never worried on a nursery day because she's had a cooked lunch. She still has a bottle at bedtime so as long as she eats something I figure we should make it to at least 4am when I don't mind her having another bottle.

Definitely don't substitute and don't feel guilty. They will learn to accept the food you find them - it is about familiarity and trust and that takes time and perseverance on your part.

If you start substituting now, when will you stop? When they are two, three, thirteen? It is really hard to undo a fussy eater so stay strong and stand your ground.

And 1 is old enough for them to learn that if they protest they will get what they want. You really don't want to be that type of parent. It will be a living hell.

I don't substitute, I try a meal twice on different occasions and if it's clearly not liked (because sometimes the first occasion is just down to feeling off or teething) I stop making it. I might try it again further down the line. But if DS doesn't eat something (nearly 1), I just move on to fruit pot / yoghurt. He's generally a great eater so I don't worry. DD is nearly 2 and I took the same approach, although at first I was very upset when some home cooked meals were rejected . DD hated chicken aged 1, so I stopped offering it but now she eats it. DS is just the same, so I don't give it to him but figure he'll enjoy it in a few months.

I tend to have a list of sure fire meals they enjoy and batch cook and freeze to save me cooking a meal for them each day that might be rejected, things like cheese sauces are great to batch cook and freeze as I can add fish, pasta, veggies etc on the day.

What odyssey said.

If I give dd2 something new or something she's not been keen on in the past I make sure there's something else on the plate that she does like so I know she's had something, then I offer fruit or yoghurt as normal for pudding. I don't ever cook a second meal. She's 22mo now and getting less fussy than she was a few months ago.