Eating Habits - Englewood,NJ

I just wanted to mention here that my 2 yr old twins (boy/girl) do the same thing ....My twin daughter,by comparison, has much better fine motor skills and clearly does much better with utensils. However, even she will grab that macaroni-n-cheese by the fistful.... I think they realize it is more efficient: "more food in the mouth and faster."
But my daughter is more interested in practicing her fine motor skills... even with toy choices. So, where I originally wondered if my son was behind, I then realized he is just prefers to focus on different things.... He will try new things first, but then master the skill over a longer period of time. Whereas, his twin sister will watch him do it long before trying something. So once she tries it ... she masters it pretty fast.
Just keep pushing the utensils.... it gets better between 2 and 3. my 3 1/2 year old boy was the same way.... but now he just asks for bigger utensils... Seriously, he wants to eat his mac-n-cheese with a tablespoon these days!!
Good luck.

Those "What to Expect..." books are good for developmental milestones. Once he can be expected to do something, the next step is for you to decide how important it is to you. Once you are clear about that, then you can enforce it. If you don't care, he'll know and if he doesn't want to do it, he won't - whether it is go to sleep on his own, use a utensil or get potty trained. Kids have an incredible honing beacon - always be clear of your boundaries, goals, limitations before heading in to battle. You are the adult and he wants you to be clear and consistent - but he'll put up a fight anyway.

i wouldnt worry too much, there are some cultures that never pick up a fork or spoon(india) so much so they will not perform certain activities with their right hand, because that is the one they eat with, and some cultures have hard to use utensils, and many faux pause sourrounding their usage (china)

soon enough he will want to mimic you and your husband, in accordance with his culture.

I would give him your utensils, but I wouldn't worry about it too much. My son also likes to eat with his hands, but knows how to use utensils.

My son is 3 1/2 and sometimes he uses a spoon and fork nicely while at other times he eats like a complete and total caveman!

He is actually eating what we're having as a family (last night it was turkey sausage and green beans, the night before it was chicken pesto pasta, before that was salmon and asparagus)...so I figure if he's going to eat the healthy stuff partly with utensils and partly like a savage, I don't care - he's eating!

My son is 4 and he still prefers hands ... some say it is an issue, some say not there could be worse things, I think you have to look at your son and see if there are any other areas he may be delayed in before you make a big fuss.

At less than two, this is quite normal. Be happy if he's a good eater (as in, eats a variety of healthy food). You don't need to do anything and you do not need to spend money buying "other utensils." He needs a fork and a spoon. Eat meals at the same time as your toddler so that he sees the rest of the family eating with their forks and spoons. He will catch on.

My 17 month old, has always preferred adult forks and spoons. They are much easier, for him to use. Maybe, you could give him the same utensils you use? I'm not sure there is any set age for using utensils regularly. I think some kids would just rather use their hands. I can't imagine that means they are behind.

I agree with the other moms here! My son is about two and a half and will sometimes use his spoon and fork and sometimes just his hands! It will be a new thing for him to learn for quite a while! As some foods are trickier than others to pick up with a fork he may become frustrated and just use his hands. When this happens with my son I will get his next bite ready for him so he just needs to pick up his fork and eat the bite- he's more apt to give it another try then!

I wouldn't worry about it! All in good time I'm sure!

I wouldn't fuss about it. He'll get it eventually. My kids would often hold the fork in one hand and eat with another at that age! Now at 3 and 5 they're doing fine. Although, sometimes they still need reminded to use their fork...