and as a result she gets very little solids. She is 8 months and 3 weeks and I cannot keep her in her high chair. She takes about two handfuls of food and then shoves her self out by bringing her legs up and squating on the chair and thrusting up. I have tried to re-direct her three times and then let her eat on the floor with the tray of the chair but then she gets sooooo distracted and is off playing in no time. This also distracts her brother. They are both on table foods and self feeding only as they have been refusing baby food for about a month now. We are trying to drop one bottle (the 5pm one) in lieu of dinner and four bottles total but she is making it really difficult. IT FRUSTRATES me to no end. I know it is not that she does not like the food because she eats like crazy when we go out to dinner and I pack the same meals to bring with us. She sits just fine in the high chair at the restaurant and eats and eats away. I am starting to get really frustrated with her. I don't even really know that I have any options besides stick with it and hope she grows out of it. The thing is, I don't see an end in sight as she has always rejected any type of confinement with a vengence i.e. car seat, crib, etc... She is our free spirit which is wonderful; however, the girl has got to eat!!! The only other way she will eat (besides being at a restaurant) is if I spoon feed her yo baby yogurt while she is on the floor. Actually, she kind of will let me spoon feed baby food while she is sitting on the floor also but not for very long. What ever would you do??? I did order one of those attach to the table booster seat things to see if that will be what she is looking for but I am sure that will distract her brother to no end. Amy
Is she strapped in? My girls will climb out if they don't have their seatbelts on. IMO, if she doesn't want solids at this point, she doesn't really need all that much. As far as I know, formula/BM is recommended as the main source of nutrition for the first 12 months, any solids are just practice. Just a thought though, you can buy the restaurant style highchairs at SAMS or any restaurant supply. Would that be an option? QUOTE(ahmerl @ Feb 20 2008, 01:42 AM) [snapback]630144[/snapback] and as a result she gets very little solids. She is 8 months and 3 weeks and I cannot keep her in her high chair. She takes about two handfuls of food and then shoves her self out by bringing her legs up and squating on the chair and thrusting up. I have tried to re-direct her three times and then let her eat on the floor with the tray of the chair but then she gets sooooo distracted and is off playing in no time. This also distracts her brother. They are both on table foods and self feeding only as they have been refusing baby food for about a month now. We are trying to drop one bottle (the 5pm one) in lieu of dinner and four bottles total but she is making it really difficult. IT FRUSTRATES me to no end. I know it is not that she does not like the food because she eats like crazy when we go out to dinner and I pack the same meals to bring with us. She sits just fine in the high chair at the restaurant and eats and eats away. I am starting to get really frustrated with her. I don't even really know that I have any options besides stick with it and hope she grows out of it. The thing is, I don't see an end in sight as she has always rejected any type of confinement with a vengence i.e. car seat, crib, etc... She is our free spirit which is wonderful; however, the girl has got to eat!!! The only other way she will eat (besides being at a restaurant) is if I spoon feed her yo baby yogurt while she is on the floor. Actually, she kind of will let me spoon feed baby food while she is sitting on the floor also but not for very long. What ever would you do??? I did order one of those attach to the table booster seat things to see if that will be what she is looking for but I am sure that will distract her brother to no end. Amy
I was going to ask the same thing...is she strapped in?? It's difficult to know which feeding battles to fight...but IMHO setting a house rule about only eating in certain locations is a good one. I always fed my kids either at the table in high chairs or in their swings with the tray there. I didn't allow them to eat "on the go" b/c if you set up that habit then you'll be fighting it for the next few years with dinner time being a circus. You might not be able to get her to eat when you want her to eat...but you can absolutely establish limits...that if she is hungry she must eat where you want her to eat.... she's only 8 months old! you can train her if you stay consistent enough.
How about trying to feed her a little bit later, maybe a half hour later than normal? Maybe she'll sit and eat more it she's very hungry. I think I would continue to give more formula if she's really not eating enough, and then try again to drop the 5th bottle in a copupe of weeks. I do agree with pp about establishing rules about when she can eat and that she needs to be sitting down. This is good for safety reasona and so that you don't have crumbs/ spills all over the house!
Now I realize this probably isn't the best solution- but you asked WWID?? I'd buy a high chair w/ a 5 point harness! :blush: Maybe give her something to play with in the chair- something to focus on IN the chair vs. a reason to get out. I agree w/ the prior suggestion of maybe delaying meals a little bit, making her more hungry? Do you always feed them at the same time? Maybe you may need to feed them one at a time for awhile- so you can give her undivided attention during meals. Good luck! I hope something works!
My little Athena is the same. That little girls just can not sit still for a minute. So what I do to make sure she gets enough to eat, I leave fresh fruit and veggies out for her to nibble on rather than get her to sit in one place which is a mission and has left me in tears already. when she is bigger she will calm down and eat at the table. Victoria is like a real little missy and sit and feed herself till she is done.
:hug99: I don't know Amy. Maybe another highchair with a 5-pt harness or the booster that hooks to the table. Or feed them separately (I don't know if that is practical though). Or get her used to sitting in the high chair without food, but with toys (like while you cook dinner or clean the kitchen). Just for a few minutes a day... so she sees that just because she is in it, its still fun. GL with this.. its definitely a tough one.
I agree with Susanna. You can teach her that meal time is in the high chair no exceptions. Personally what I did was put them both in the high chairs at meal time. If they ate, great! If not, they still sat until mealtime was over. It doesn't take long for them to learn. If she's getting out of the buckle, make it as tight as you possibly can so she can't get her knees under it. If it doesn't go tight enough, you can sew the straps so they are shorter or get a seat with a different harness. This is a battle of wills that you as the parent need to win. GL!
My older one was like this -- waaaaay too busy to eat. I hate to tell you this, but it's just now better, at age 4. Until now, we mostly beat our heads against the wall. Seriously, though, I did a combination of things -- chased her around the house with food, let her come and take bites from me while she was playing, put the TV on as a crutch (I don't suggest this unless you're desperate, because it really becomes a bad habit fast), etc. I was sneered at by several people, who couldn't believe that I wouldn't just make her sit at the table -- but seriously, my kid would have starved to death if I hadn't been flexible about this. Of course, I only had one child, so it was a lot easier to cater to her....and she's finally grown out of it, thank God. Anyhow. At Lily's age, I'm thinking either a 5-point harness that she can't get out of, or maybe a wooden restaurant highchair, since she seems to like those -- you can just push it up to your table. Hope you figure out something! You definitely have a little spitfire -- she'll give you a run for your money now, but think of the wonderful woman she will become, with all her determination and persistence!
I'm certainly no expert like the mommies on here, but I do know that DD's boys ate very little solid food at 8 months old. They are 10-1/2 months old now and just starting to show interest in some finger food. They will eat baby cereal and jarred baby food now but as with any baby their attention span is pretty short! I agree with using the high chair strap, 5-pt harness if possible. That's what my DD has on her FP booster seats and there's no way the boys can get out of them. My grandsons would much rather get down and play but they are strapped in and stay until dinner is over (unless they're really howling! ). Most of the time they go with the flow though, even if they're not that interested in eating. I agree that you need to be consistent as well but gosh darn it, it's so hard to strike a balance between consistency and being flexible, isn't it???? All you twin mommies have my utmost respect, it's hard work! Good luck to you!!
We bought the Ikea high chair (only $25 plus $5 for the tray) and my boys can't escape from it. James is a very distractible baby and will rarely sit still in my lap to finish a bottle. But the Ikea high chair contains him well. You can't beat the price. http://www.ikea.com/ca/en/catalog/products/30069724 (plus the tray)
I'm assuming she's strapped in and still escaping, and in that case I'd invest in a 5-point harness high chair. I am a believer in teaching them early that there is a certain place for eating, and it isn't wherever they want to eat. Mine only ate in their high chairs, and now only in their boosters. Always at the table.
I agree with all of the pps, get a different chair! We have Peg Perego high chairs that have a five point harness. I used them from 4-6 months and my little wiggle worms could never get out. Then we switched to the Safety 1st boosters (to save room in the kitchen) and those are also VERY difficult to get out of b/c the tray goes right up against their tummies. GL!
