Anyone else think cooking for a toddler is a waste of time?

[Sallythesloth3]

Today my 15mo DS has poked a banana pancake, looked at some
toast, had one bite of tortilla wrap, licked a slice of avocado, and sniffed some refried beans.

We did have a win at lunchtime where he ate 4 oven chips.

Lighthearted as I know it’s normal and not a waste of time but it’s getting frustrating that he is turning his nose up more often than not and he had been an enthusiastic eater since starting solids.

Agree! Keep going

It’s a phase. Everything is. (Thankfully.)

Yeah, it's the worst. I no longer make anything aimed at her - she just has whatever we're having, or if that doesn't go down well, peanut butter on toast. Ok, there are some weeks she has peanut butter toast five dinners out of seven but it saves me losing my mind

No, it is not a waste of time. It feels like it, but you are laying the foundations for the better times ahead.

When your child fell over all the time, you never said it was a waste of time trying to walk - this is the same process, they are learning. You are teaching them that food is very important, and delicious, and also showing that they are loved by preparing it.

It is a good thing to do!

Some times I just chuck the food on the floor myself. Cuts out the middle man.

Still having this battle and my kid is 3 next week! Sometimes a few oven chips or bites of peanut butter on toast is a win, and you're still so early on in your weaning journey. Don't stress about making separate "instagram worthy" meals and just give your little one some of what you're having, it will definitely save your sanity!

I freeze a bit generally of whatever we make into pots and he picks at that. At least I didn’t make it specially. He might lick a piece of toast as well. Annoyingly, at nursery where the food is probably much less nice than mine I’m assured he ‘eats loads’.

Bamboo Instagram plates can go fuck themselves anyway. You are supposed to oil them for pity’s sake 🤣

Thanks all!

We definitely don’t do instagram-worthy
plates and he does generally eat whatever we have, although I try and include things he likes or increase the nutrient value by adding different ingredients that I might not do if he weren’t eating it.

@houseargh that makes me feel loads better as peanut butter on toast is a staple here too.

@carefulcalculator such a lovely point that preparing food shows them
that they are loved, I’ll hold on to that thought ☺️

He just gets small amounts of what we are having, that way there’s no waste. I don’t offer alternatives and certainly won’t be introducing chicken nuggets or the like.

It defo feels like a waste of time..but it does pay off in the end. Easiest way to do it is as far as possible cook them what you're having or a less salty version of it so that you're doing less work. I have DS3 and DS6 and I can tell you it does get better. I'm always suprised now when they even ask for seconds lol

What everyone said. Just feed them what you're having.

YES! Ungrateful little darlings

Just give him whatever you want to eat - I knew they'd eat so little I wasn't even too fussed on salt content

Who has the time to cook every two-tablespoon toddler meal from scratch?! And how wasteful of fuel that would be! No way. Sometimes our toddlers had food batch-cooked and frozen in portions. Usually leftovers from our meal would be their meal the next day.

Sometimes, when they were being particularly primadonnaish, I would put my their home-made food into shop jars. 9 times out of 10 the little drama queens would them eat it without any fuss.

@Jingleoverthatway this made me laugh as my 19 mo loves nothing more than to toss the rejected food items onto the floor and push everything of thehigh chair table.
And OP your post is at least reassuring that we are not alone! I too tear my hair out over mealtimes for my LO whose mood around food changes daily, and most of whose meals end up in the dogs bowls. No advice but lots of empathy!

Well you have to cook for yourself anyway so ...

Yes - I used to spend ages making my kids their own dinners and lunches and breakfasts. Now they just have exactly what I'm having and if they don't like it or eat it then tough 😂 I've always got yoghurts and fruit etc in they can have instead but 9 times out of 10 they eat it. Making purées was a total waste of time 🤣

So glad I'm not the only one who's automatic alternative is peanut butter on toast if they don't eat what we're having. Although I do add banana to it too to bulk it out a little....and I think my LO may be playing the "don't like it" card because they always like peanut butter and banana on toast 😂

banana pancake
toast
tortilla wrap
avocado
refried beans

what did you have?

Mine doesn't have what we're having as my husband often isn't home for toddler tea time so I'm never sure how people do this. Plus he better than we do! He will eat lots of veg mashed into potato/sweet potato plus chopped up meat so I do a variation on that usually. Will generally only eat cheese on toast for lunch but eats lots of fruit and veg too so I'm too worried.

I didn't do baby led weaning nor am I worried about him trying lots of different dishes yet. I can't afford to be throwing food away if he doesn't eat it. He'll get there, I'm an adventurous cook and it'll all come as he gets older.

I did eat all of that too…

Banana pancakes for breakfast, last nights leftovers for lunch, enchiladas for dinner.

Some nights DH doesn’t get home until after DS goes to bed, so tonight if I had known DS wasn’t going to eat much, I wouldn’t have cooked until after he went to bed - much easier to give him something quick to put together than try to cook the family dinner with a one year old tearing apart the house/wanting to be held.

Also DH doesn’t like refried beans so I definitely wouldn’t have given myself another pan to wash up if I had known I was going to be the only one eating them!

So glad to read this!
I have 13 mo twins and they've gone from being fabulous eaters where I could pretty much get them to eat anything... to being eternal fusspots!

I can't keep up. One day cucumber and peanut butter is their favourite, so I stockpile... the next day it's all on the floor and they're screaming when I dare to offer them yesterdays favourite.

I worry because some meal times I end up giving them a bag of baby crisps (to share) and toast because it's all they'll eat.

If the adults usually eat later, then the baby/toddler gets their portion saved to be reheated the following day, or you cook it to be ready for the toddler then reheat it later for the adults.

We always went with giving whatever we were eating too. Saves time and doesn't feel awful if it's rejected, as you had to cook it for everyone else any way!

Depends on the toddler. DS loves food and from 5 mths (after the 2 week tasting period) was eating 3 meals with us. From 16 mths he was eating big bowls of porridge for breakfast, proper lunches, dinners; and he loved (and still does) trying new stuff. But he was eating a lot - Nearly adult portions so I stopped all snacks. He’s 3 now and still loves his food to the point where we have to make sure he gets his exercise in everyday.

Yesterday my toddler had 3 helpings of brown rice
Today she said NO NO NO and swept it to the floor

There is no rhyme nor reason to her decision-making
When she rejects food she has fruit and yogurt and we leave it at that