I shared a while back what food with Miss H was like at 9 months. She was a very, umm, enthusiastic eater. What I never had the chance to share was that around 10/11 months, everything was hitting the floor instead of making it into her tummy. Miss H wanted nothing to do with food. Finger foods were tossed aside and spoons were batted out of our hands. I can’t even tell you how much yogurt splatted onto the floor. Needless to say, we were worried about her because up until that point mealtimes had never been an issue.

But finally, right around 11.5 months a switch was flipped and Miss H was right back on target with enjoying food. And then 2 days later she came down with a crazy bad cold that caused a huge drop in appetite for a week. And we were back to square one.

A little after her first birthday, Miss H was recovered from her cold and her birthday festivities and was really interested in food again. Not only interested, but she fell in love with any and all finger foods! Now at 14 months, we cannot get food on her tray fast enough. Five pieces of mango? Shoveled into her mouth faster than you can blink. Steamed broccoli? Does a magical disappearing act straight into her mouth. My child is having a love affair with food!

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On some days I still struggle with what to feed her. We opted not to do baby led weaning (BLW) but instead went with the traditional route with purees followed by finger foods. Now I feel like we should be doing more cohesive “meals” vs. a variety of fruits and veggies and protein, but that might just be the paranoid mom in me and in fact what she’s eating is probably a-o-k!

A few of our go-to favorite “entrees” for Miss H are:

  • Turkey meatballs made with a fruit or veggie puree
  • Lentil stew made with potatoes, carrots, and yellow onion, seasoned with cumin and cinnamon (smells amazing!)
  • Beef stew made with potatoes and carrots
  • Pasta with a homemade red sauce (made of roasted veggies and tomatoes)

Here’s an average day of meals for Miss H at 14 months:

Breakfast
Whole milk plain organic yogurt
Fresh strawberries
Fresh mango
Whole wheat toast

Lunch
Steamed broccoli
Turkey meatball
Sauteed zucchini and yellow squash
Steamed asparagus
Steamed carrots or sliced blueberries

Dinner
Beef stew
Steamed broccoli (broccoli is her favorite food, so she gets a lot of it!)
Fresh strawberries or mango

Snacks throughout the day
1/2 of a string cheese
“O” cereal
Apple sauce squeeze pouch

Liquids throughout the day
16-18 ounces of whole milk (sometimes in bottle, sometimes in sippy cup)
Lots of water (in sippy cup)

Here’s a photo of Miss H’s breakfast (minus the toast) and lunch for one day (the yogurt is in the “leaves” of the pineapple). We love our Dr. Sears Nibble Tray for the days Miss H is with her nanny because we can easily pack breakfast and lunch in it. I know a lot of Bee moms had suggested it for an early bento option, and it has been perfect for us.



And, now that Miss H is walking and on the move everywhere, she is even hungrier! Most days it feels like she’s a bottomless pit, but it’s so exciting seeing her eat so well. As a picky eater myself (I cannot stand broccoli!), it’s exciting that she loves her fruits and veggies equally. Now my goal is to do a better job of meal planning for the family so that more often than not Miss H is eating the same exact food at the dinner table that we are.

Is your LO an enthusiastic eater or less than excited with what you serve at mealtimes? How does this impact how you plan meals?