14 Month Old Finicky at Breakfast

Hi A.,
I found with my one year old that if I gave him the same thing every day just because I know he likes it and will eat it, eventually he will reject it because he is bored with it. He did that with oatmeal and fruit as well. Don't give up on it completely, try the many other suggestions from everyone and then come back to the oatmeal in a few days.
My husband started making him omelettes when he was home or on the weekends, and he got into those because it was a "special" thing.
Hang in there.

maybe he's not hungry yet? and if it's real juice, that's nutritious. I wouldn't worry about it. Sounds like it could be kind of a game for him &/or power struggle. I'd offer him maybe different kinds of fruit. good luck!

That is the age my son began wanting to feed himself. Up untill then, I was feeding him his non finger foods. He would grab at the spoon. I thought it meant he was done untill I figured out, he wanted to feed himself. Is it possible this is the case? Otherwise, it sounds like he is not wanting the sweet foods. Try making him some scrambled eggs. You can add some veggies by sauteing them first, then add the eggs and mix it all up. Try the eggs by themselves first though to make sure he wants that. Some other foods:
rice
rice cereal with or without fruit
tofu scramble
grilled cheese sandwich
pancakes with or without pure maple syrup
peanut butter and banana sandwich
tuna sandwich
cooked carrots, etc...

I'm the same way to this day. Breakfast foods have never appealed to me. I'd rather have carrots, or soup, or a sandwich. A few years ago the APA said it was more important to have something for breakfast rather than nothing, and that arguing or stress about the type of food, which is really just a cultural norm, is a great deal less healthy than say spaghetti for breakfast.
Also, when my daughter teeths she goes off food for a while. She also goes through "protein strikes" when the only way to get protein in her is through an organic protein bar. She likes Lara Bars and Odwalla Super Protein bars. She's serious about it too. No eggs, no beans, no peanut butter, no meat...
Food is like sleep. Just when you think you've got the routine down, the baby changes it. :-)

Hi - My son is 14 months old and is somewhat picky as well but for me at dinner time. Stuff he used to eat, he wont now. For breakfast you might try cold cereal (if he has teeth to chew it) like cheerios. Also could try bagels with cream cheese, or english muffins. I give my son a toasted waffle with jam on it sometimes. Maybe scrambled eggs with some cheese in it for taste.
Hope this helps!

Mine did the same and we got into a routine of "shakes" for breakfast....
1-banana
yogurt
peanut butter
ice
rice milk

Blend and they will love it forever.... Good Luck

Hi, I wonder havent you give your son oatmeal by your own decision or Son's choice? If he still doesnt want to eat oatmeal in the morning. Give his choice that you can offer like dry cereal, oatmeal, fruit, or waffle. Try to offer to choice so your son will decide to eat what is his mood. Same thing to my daughter to choice the foods than struggle or refuse to eat what I made. My daugther still do since toddler. Now my daughter is 9 yrs old. She is picky foods so I can do to offer to choice the foods.

K.

I don't think that eating breakfast is that important to a 14 month old - I wouldn't give him what you consider a dinner (I wouldn't even give him that at dinner time, to be completely honest...) but, try other "breakfast" foods if you care - like an egg with cheese, yogurt, cheese...if he is hungry, then he will eat, and if not, he will wait until lunch!

Also, I would try to avoid giving him juice with breakfast - why eat bland food if there is sweet juice to drink.

I don't know for sure if this applies to you, but I have trouble getting my 4 year old to eat breakfast. It doesn't seem to matter what I feed him during the week - he doesn't eat much of it. However, he eats well on Saturdays. I realized it was because of the time we eat breakfast. He just insn't hungry before 9:00. Maybe try feeding your son a bit later and see if he responds better to the breakfast food.

I would have to agree with the other moms who suggest waiting a little while after he's been up. My husband and I have learned with our daughter that she really isn't hungry until she's been up for at least an hour. We used to try feeding her before we went to work and she went to daycare (family time), now we just sit her in the high chair and give her a toy and some water while mom & dad eat. Occasionaly, she will want a bite of what we're haivng, but if we put food on her tray she plays with it or ignores it. She chows once she gets to her provider's house!

We also discovered that she's really ready to feed herself, and as messy as it is--we have to let her practice with her toddler fork and spoon. She's 16 months old and has been having lots of luck with feeding herself yogurt, oatmeal, pasta with sauce (rotini works well with the toddler for), etc. Ikea sells a great long-sleeved bib that has been a blessing during this very messy time!

Good luck! Just think, one day he'll be all grown up and you'll look back on these messy days fondly!

I would withhold the sippy of juice if he is not eating. This way he is not filling up on juice instead of food. (Juice should be limited to 4oz. a day). Don't press the issue, offer a small variety of options, if he isn't interested, then he is fine until snacktime. Does he drink a cup or bottle of milk prior to breakfast? That could be filling him up also. I think the biggest thing is not to stress about it, unless your pediatrician is concerned. At 14 months, milk is still a large part of their nutrition.

A.,
This is VERY NORMAL behavior for this age!! No fun for us moms who have to pick it all up off the floor, make different things etc etc, but normal for them. I make different egg combinations, pancakes, oatmeal with yogurt, organic flax waffles (no syrup), fruit, yogurt, toast...thats about it for us for bfst. hang in there!

My son loves pancakes with either peanut butter or syrup. My son is a very picky eater and one way to make sure he gets his nutrients is I make him a smoothie every morning with frozen fruit, tofu, yogurt and milk...sometimes I even add oatmeal or sweet potatoes and he likes it.

Good luck!
K.

Hi there, I have a 13 month old son, who was doing the same thing a while back with his cereal & fruit. I think he just got burned out on the same thing! I've been buying the frozen waffles, pancakes and raisin/cinnamon bread. Toast up one of those with butter and half a banana sliced up when he's done with a sippy of milk and he seems to love it. : ) P.

i learned with my first that after about 16 months he didnt like eating until he had been up for about an hour. Then i could get him to eat anything. Maybe he isnt interested first thing in the morning?? Now I have one that wants to eat right when he gets up and one that likes too wait, its alot of fun. Also, maybe his taste have changed he may not like the toast but maybe he is over the oatmeal?? It cant hurt him either to give him the lil entrees for breakfast so if that is what is working for him now you may just want to stick with that. maybe try giving him brealfast for dinner if he wants dinner for breakfast. thats about all the advice i have though. I would wait to give him the juice until the end of the meal though if that is allhe wants.

My 20 month old loves Multigrain Cheerios for breakfast. When he was that age I would put them, or regular Cheerios, in yogurt. You could also try french toast with a little pb&j. But, my son also doesn't like to eat in the morning. Often breakfast doesn't happen until 3 hours after he wakes up, even when I eat earlier. If we have to go somewhere I give him a multi grain Eggo in the car so I don't worry about him starving, and try to let him eat when he's ready.

Howdy A., I am a massage therapist, EMT and firefighter. I have studied food and nutrition for years. Find out what his blood type is. Then go to the health food store and get the book, eating according to your blood type. Then get the book Fit for Life by Harvey Diamond. This is about food combinations. Little ones know what they need for their bodies and avoid some foods while eating others. This is because of their blood types. We were always taught to get all the food groups at one time and at every meal. And that all fruit and veggies are good for us. You should never mix fruit with anything but fruit..it will ferment in their tiny tummys and upset their stomaches. Never mix proteins and carbs together...they will cancel out each of the juice in our stomach it takes to digest them...What makes an O+ crave proteins and a vegaterian never want meat? It is the blood type. Some foods our blood cannot break down and others we can. I learned this late in life but it is so true...The lil entries probably have more Food value in it for him and he needs that. He doesn't know why but his body does. Fruit and oatmeal is not enough to sustain him. Call me anytime and I will explain this more...If we start the kids out eating right for their own blood types it will save them a lot of problems down the road. That is why some diets work for some and other's it does not. The brain burns sugar, as in fruit. The organs and tissues of the body burn protein and we need carbs for energy. But if we feed the body the wrong types of food we starve the tissues and later in life they get autoimmune dieases where the body eats itself to get what it needs...I know this may sound crazy to you but you have to look at the bigger picture. I help my clients understand these ideas and when they change they wished they had done this years ago...so with our kids if we start them out right they will feel better, not be so cranky, nor have colic, better sense of well being, act better. They will be calmer and you will be feeding their bodies as they should be...my name is J. McCrite...my phone is 1-###-###-####...my business is Compassionate Hands Mobile Massage so if you get that on the answering machine it is me. I am 52 and still have a 13 year old at home an a hubby...hope this helps...please take a look at those books..you will be amazed and it will change your life and your families as you look at food in a whole different way...let me know how it goes...J. sounds like to me he is an O+ he likes his protein over carbs...

My daughter did the same thing. It doesn't matter what they eat when as long as it is nutritious and that they eat. She asks for chicken with bbq sauce one day and broccoli or frozen peas the next. She is two now and I am trying to get her to eat what we are eatting, so I serve something that I know she will eat (fruit, sausage, chicken) and she can have it if she has two bites of eggs, and then she gets more of sausage if she has 2 or 5 or 3 bites of eggs.

My experience has been to wait a little longer after your child gets up. Two of my four children won't eat before about 10am. Not a good thing during school or church. However, we do offer a healthy option to send with them for when they are ready to eat. KW

Studies suggest that most children will end up with a pretty nicely balanced diet when allowed to choose from a variety of healthy foods. We grownups have our ideas about what foods are appropriate or traditional for breakfast, but that's something we've learned over time. Why not let him eat what appeals to him, as long as it's balanced? He will eventually learn what "breakfast" is. Pretty funny, when you think about it.

And as other mamas have suggested, some folks just aren't hungry for awhile in the mornings. Then food would seem more like amusement than needed nourishment.

Try to let his eating stay as natural as possible for as long as possible. Once our ideas start making the decisions about what, when, and how much to eat, we start to lose touch with our actual needs, and eating disorders can take over.

Lately I have been giving my son a choice of what he wants for breakfast. He is older...2 1/2. and sometimes even let him stir the scrambled eggs. and the "lil entrees" may not sound good to you for breakfast, but if they are healthy at least he is getting something into his system! my son also eats more after he has been up for a bit.

A.,

Have you tried the fruit flavored yogurts? That is about all my daughter will eat in the mornings. We get the store brand that is usually on sale for around 10 for $5. She loves them. Those, and anything she can feed herself. Scrambled eggs are a favorite, diced fruit on pancakes, pancakes on the floor fruit in the tummy, diced piece of toast, Quaker instant oatmeal on the tray (use a dropcloth and check the walls when he's finished). That's all I can think of right now. Give him some sensory stuff that he can equally play with and eat. The oatmeal was a favorite because she could squish the food between her fingers, but also (sort of) feed herself. She's 13 months and all about being able to do things on her own.

Hope this helps,
Melissa

With my diet restrictions I have found that although breakfast is the most important meal of the day, it is also a lot of the time the most unhealthy. Of course the burst of sugar gets people awake but, do we need carbs and sugar in the morning? Feed him fruit and veggies, some sort of protien doesn't matter what, as long as he eats.
My kids favorite breakfast, even now at 14 and 11, is peanut butter pancakes. Make your pancake mix as usual and add peanut butter that has been warmed up. That way it blends into the pancake batter. My kids eat this without anything on it. They roll it up and take it out the door. Soy butter or almond butter would work too.
Don't stick to what is considered "Breakfast food" after all, it's the nutrition that matters most.
Good luck.

My daughter was the same way - ate everything at first then gradually got pickier and pickier. We have had good luck with carbohydrates - homemade pancakes and muffins with lots of extra goodies in them, or sometimes toaster waffles or french toast with some yogurt on the side. Even when my now-19-month-old dd is pickier than ever, she will almost always eat one of those foods, especially first thing in the morning.

Also, I would eliminate the juice. They don't need the extra sugar, and the liquid may be filling him up. I put out fruit with breakfast and offer milk, but if she doesn't want those I save them for snack or lunch.

Good luck!

K.

I have a daughter that is 15 months old and I've found that the mini pancakes and french toast sticks (both frozen) work well in a pinch! Gives her the chance to feed herself as well as get something in her tummy. Maybe give it a shot?

Try waffles - most kids like those and my kids decided they loved muffins - the little ones or regular ones cut in half. You can load them with good stuff - wheat germ, etc. and make them healthy. We also give our kids Morning Star sausage and they like that on occasion. They change the things they like from week to week so part of his behavior sounds normal - unfortunately =)