Do you offer alternative dinner if baby refuses?

[challengedvertically]

DS is 10 months old and loves to wolf down jars. He tends to refuse my home cooking however, and finger foods just decorate the floor (unless they're fruit or those minging organix wotsit things ). Anyway, so far I haven't offered alternatives when he refuses, and haven't offered a healthy pudding. Is this mean? As he gets older, I only want him to eat what everyone else in the family is having, but for now, is he even old enough to work out that refusing dinner will result in him having something better for tea?!

I don't think he's old enough to make the connection tbh. If he doesn't want what you offer him I wouldn't make an alternative but I'd still give the healthy pudding. 10 months is still about exploring new tastes and textures imo.

How about porridge or wheetabix? That way at least he's getting carbs and milk and not going to wake in the night and demand to be fed.

You aren't being mean, but equally I'm not sure that he really is old enough to be manipulative so I wouldn't worry too much about offering something else. By something else I mean something easy with no prep. I'm a massive softie and was petrified that if my DD didn't eat anything she'd wake up all night so I'd usually offer some yoghurt and/or fruit to fill her up. It's not made her any more or less likely to eat her main meal so far (she's 12months). I've just accepted that on any given day she will either hate or love something, for no real reason, and be completely the opposite the next day.

Thanks for your replies everyone, I'll definitely relax about it then - my parents were a real soft touch with me when I was little, so I think I've ended up too far the other way! My visions of still spoon feeding him jars as an adult are probably a bit unlikely

He'll never get used to what you make if you keep giving him jars. Just give him what you're having!