When Your Kid Won't Eat

HI Jen,
He probably just wants real food. Simply blenderize what you have had for supper and give him some of that. I used to put this food into ice cube trays and freeze it so Icould make a quick lunch or breakfast for him.. Ihope this helps!

Clare Willis
Helping families build a second income
www.WorkAtHomeUnited.com/Arizona

Hi J.,

My son is 3 and is an insanely picky eater. He didn't even start on baby cereal and food until about 6-7 months. And he drank a bottle up until he was 2.5...then he took himself off it and hasn't asked for it since.

I wouldn't worry about your son not wanting baby food. Let him tell you what he wants...as long as he's eating something...I wouldn't worry about it...that would be my advice.

It may have to do with teeth...it may not. He may simply be more comfy taking the bottle...Keep us updated! :)

And when you have a chance, visit me on the web at www.daniellebuffardi.com

J.,
I think your baby is telling you that he wants more grown up food. I would start offering him things like couscous, mashed potatoes, andscrambled eggs etc. My son started to dislike baby food around that age too. Your baby may be wanting more. I used (and still do) this great cookbook called First Foods to help you with the transition to "adult" foods and it has great options. I just made a pasta sauce packed with veggies that my 4 old and 1 year old love! I would look to cookbooks for options/suggestions. But I think baby food is behind your little guy now. Hope this helped. Good luck!

I remeber this well. My daughter started on foods by herself @ 6 months. She actaully grab a chicken leg off the table and began chewing. Oh boy what a surprize. She has only been having babyfood for 1 month.
So I calle my Pedi and asked him what to do. She was not eating any baby food by this point.
He told me that I should chew up her food first them begin to give her a little at a time. I know this sounds like a Momma bird feeding her babies but it did work.
The MD said the she may not like to blandness of the baby food. Which did turn up to be the truth.
Whenever her drool increased I just gave her softer foods first.
BEWARE: she now eats anything from OLIVES to LOBSTER which makes her very happy.
GOOD LUCK

We're going through the tail end of the exact same thing. Our son used to be great with eating jarred baby food, but at 10 months or so he refused to let us put a spoon in his mouth. We thought it might be because of teething, but we soon learned it's his independence shining through. He wants to feed himself, darn it!

We started giving him finger food of different types -- diced veggies, fruit, tofu, cheese, cereal, scrambled egg, etc. It took many tries, lots of effort and some wasted food (which hurts my Yankee soul!) before he would eat what he had gobbled down before, such as peas.

I had really worried that he wouldn't get the nutrients he needs, but after a couple months he's starting to eat a well-rounded diet. Our pediatrician said it is normal and to keep offering small amounts.

Hang in there!

I would try small pieces of soft foods rather than the jars of babyfood. My son is almost 8 months and much prefers the real stuff to the mush. I can still get him to eat some of the babyfood, but only if it's between bites of real food that he can pick up and feed himself.

My son did this too. He seemed to all of a sudden dislike being fed with a spoon! We started giving him food he could feed himself like small vegetables and he ate them up. Good luck!

Hi J.,

Perfectly normal. By nine months baby's physical growth slows some, at the same time his interest in exploring his surroundings grows. He turns from being a little eating machine to interacting more in his surroundings as his brain develops.

Naturally, nutrition remains important, but caloric intake slows. Continue with breast feeding or formula for at least one year. Nothing but formula (some water if it is really hot is ok) in the bottle (or a cup if he is ready to wean). Continue to offer small nutritional snacks (soft cooked veggies, ground meats, etc.) He'll get enough.

J. L.

Around this age you can start feedings with babyfood and then an hour later give the formula. That is what I had to do or my son wouldn't eat anything. He is two and still prefers drinking to eating. Start with food then formula and this should help. He is also still only 9 months old so don't worry about the nutrients, he should be getting enough with his formula. My son would go in spurts and it would definitely coincide with him teething. I think one time his mouth hurt so bad he would barely eat anything and would only drink formula for a week or so and this was around 9 months or so. So keep trying. Try some tylenol if you think it may be his teeth and even give him cold babyfood. He might like it on his gums. Best of luck.

I would start regular food in soft, little pieces. He sounds ready... my two girls loves eating "real" food early!

I agree with the other responses; find things he can feed himself. Shred fresh apple, shredded cheese, mushy cooked veggie cubes (my kids liked the ones that were cooked in a soup all day, banana, give him a spoon and let him try. toast cubes with applesauce on it. i could go on and on with ideas. my daughter was very independent at 6 months; refused to eat from a spoon. (she's still frustratingly independent at 2!!)

I agree with most of the other posts - my little one did exactly the same thing and it turned out that she wanted to feed herself. So we did soft foods - ripe avocado, ripe pear, oatmeal cooked so that it's dry and can be "cut up"into pieces that she can pick up, of course cheerios, really overcooked pasta so that it's mushy.

GOod luck! THey just grow up so fast!!