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Before I get started, let’s clear the air. Just say it with me: “Feeding tiny humans is ROUGH!” Before having kids, all of us (yep, ALL of us!) were all “Oh, I will never let my kids eat that!” Guys. If you don’t have children, never ever make the mistake of saying that!
See, I had grand plans of baby-led weaning and an all-organic, non-GMO diet. But? Life happens. And? We’re all human. Life isn’t all organic, free-range, child-rearing. Trust me… I learned the hard way! 😛
1. Add powder vitamins and probiotics directly to their baby food! Our babies often need a little ‘boost‘ to their tiny immune systems. I don’t know about your baby, but mine isn’t great about taking those liquid drops. So I just mix in powdered infant vitamins and probiotics! PS. Did you know that if your baby is on any antibiotic they should be given probiotics, just like adults?! As a mom of a newborn that had several UTIs, it’s super important to keep their ‘healthy bacteria,’ well, healthy!
2. Utilize kitchen gadgets like a blender and pressure cooker. If you don’t have an electric pressure cooker, go get one ASAP. It’s not just for baby food! It allows you to cut your cooking time down to just minutes — which means quick, healthy meals for the whole family!
3. Don’t be afraid to make mealtime easier with pouches. Ditch those jars and use a Gerber pouch with a Smart Flow™ spout! The Smart Flow™ spout makes it easy for toddlers to control the mess! It’s great for hand-eye coordination and teaching them how to feed themselves! Bonus? Hands-free feeding means more time for yourself! Hahahaha! Just kidding. More time for other things you need to be doing! 😛
4. Try, try, again. Babies are fickle little creatures. One day they love bananas. The next day? Bananas are the worst! WORST! Seriously. So if your baby scoffs at bananas? Try, try, again.
5. Relax. Your baby will not starve. I promise! They will eat when they are hungry. They will fuss at foods they don’t like; they will throw food they ate yesterday onto the floor; they will scream at you until they give you a different banana; but they will not starve. So give them — and yourself! — grace and patience. Take a deep breath, Mama. You’ve got this! 😉
I never thought about any of these. My kid eats good but he could use more veggies thats for sure. Plus he needs more vitamins and he cringes when he sees the syringe for that! I am going to add it in his food for sure thanks for sharing!!
Great post and tips! We use smoothies or hide them in sauces many times!
Great advice! Feeding kids can be so frustrating sometimes!!
Great advice! I think consistency is key when it comes to getting little ones to try new food!
Powdered baby vitamins is such a great idea! And I agree – present them with healthy foods over and over until they like them!
Those pouches were life savers!! I sprinkle probiotics in my daughters food, we use a liquid multivitamin though that she loves the taste of.
These are great tips! We love these pouches – especially when we’re on the go!
After watching my youngest try to steal (and squirt it everyhwere) my older guy’s pouches I tried one of those smart flow pouches on him and I am SOLD!!
My daughter makes smoothies and sneaks in protein and of course fresh fruits and even spinach. She also makes all her own baby food.
Smoothies and pouches are a staple around our house, these are great tips!
These are great tips mama! Matea went through a difficult stage when she was teething and feeding her was so frustrating. Love how you sneak in the good stuff in smoothies 🙂
Baby food pouches are a lifesaver! My toddlers still enjoy this and I’m happy that they are getting fruits and veggies. The spout is pure genius!
The last photo cracks me up! This is so good. I actually just bought these pouches for my two-year-old because the struggle is real!
Oh I never thought about adding vitamin powder to their food. Smart!
Thanks for sharing all these great ideas! I can’t wait to try them on my two very picky eaters.
Wow, never thought of using powdered vitamins before, what a great idea!
That drama picture is amazing lol. Toddlers are crazy! These are great tips especially the one to keep trying.
Such great ideas!! I had the same grand idea when we started BLW too! Oh, but life happens.
I totally agree on the bananas! My youngest loved bananas for like 2 weeks and now she hates them! lol!
I am a big fan of the blender trick. Right now this is saving me with a preschooler who has been having some serious digestive issues. I’ve been blending flax seeds into his smoothies and it has been doing wonders.
Grace and patience. I have to remember those. Trying to feed an 8-month-old could test the patience of Job!
messy-mommy.com
Great tips! My guys aren’t babies anymore but some of this still holds true! Loved those pouches when mine were babies!
Great advice! I was always a picky eater so my parents would let me eat whatever as long as I was eating haha.. the 90’s yanno? But I think I’ll try some of these tips with my future kiddos! 🙂
Soooo true. We all have grand aspirations for how we’ll feed (and generally parent our kids), and they all go straight out the window when it comes down to it! We are alllll about the pouches when it comes to getting veggies into my toddler… it’s the only way!
Great advice! Pouches are my go to for the kids! They’re so easy and convenient!
We use a lot of pouches. We are adding things to milk too.
Pouches are essential! I did jar foods with my first child, until I discovered the ease of pouch feeding.
What fantastic tips! I don’t have kids yet but my aim is to feed them as healthy as possible when I do. I used to work in a nursery where the kids were fed on site and I used to help plan the menus – I loved it, finding ways to sneak more vegetables into the little monsters!
The baby not starving is a key thing to keep in mind. Patience and persistence have helped our little person grow to love meal times.
We love pouches!! 🙂 Sometimes its the only way I can get my kids to eat their veggies…
these are great tips! so many times I have had to think, is she was starving she would eat it! We have also loved pouches to get those nutrients she might not otherwise eat!
Wow, such great tips! As an aunt to two nephews who won’t hesitate to try just about anything, I can say that I have never officially experienced the “picky eater stage”. But, for those currently going through it..I’m sure the vitamin powder trick will be a game-changer!
I was big on making homemade baby food. My daughter eats mostly finger foods now but I have kept her going on prunes and lentils! Not together. The lentils though I add spices, puree half and then mix with half that are not pureed and I add veggies. She loves them and they are so healthy! The prunes I usually mix with pears and oatmeal – so overall it’s also pretty healthy for her! Instead of butter on toast I use coconut oil. I have also spread avocado on toast or pumpkin puree.
Yesss! My kids don’t even know what butter is I swear! We use only coconut oil!