Need some stratiges to deal with dd (12mo) and her wayward eating habits

[lisismum]

She's driving me mad! We'll have a week where she eats everything you stick in front of her and then a week where she'll eat practically nothing.

This week she doesn't seem to want to be helped out by me and only wants bread and fruit, everything I cook is getting dumped on the floor, if I feed her I'll get maybe 2 spoons in before the arms start flapping and head starts shaking no, my fridge is bursting with leftovers I can't bring myself to chuck. Aaaaarrrrrggggghhhh.

I don't want her to get the idea that if she doesn't eat what's infront of her that's fine, mummy'll just bring out something else, but I also don't want her waking up all night 'cause she's hungry.

Can anyone give me some ideas? I'm getting increasingly frustrated!

Does she wake up hungry? If she does, what about warm milk and a banana or {whispers in case the babypolice are about} a biscuit before bed. If she doesn't wake up hungry I'd just let her get on with it. In my experience, children are quite good at regulating their food intake - one of mine always eats significantly more on some days than others. Don't cook anything too expensive or time consuming because it's so soul destroying when they reject it, serve small portions (with seconds in reserve) and let her eat what she wants (but don't offer alternatives, except fruit and perhaps plain wholemeal bread. And remember, it's a phase!