People ask me all the time, “What does Everett eat?”
The answer? Pretty much everything.
He has always been very interested in food (very much like his daddy) and it has been so much fun experimenting with different things as he has gotten older.
Luckily he doesn’t have any food allergies that we know of yet. He has tried pretty much everything and hasn’t had any reactions –fingers crossed. Eggs, milk and peanut butter have all passed the test.
I think my passion for feeding him healthy foods so far stems from my inability to breastfeed. I was pretty bummed when, after a month of pumping, visiting with a lactation consultant and many attempts at latching on, I decided that my body just couldn’t do it. There was not enough milk. Period. I was sad that I physically couldn’t provide the nutrients for E and that we were then going to have to incur the cost of formula. The guilt definitely set in around the 4 week mark.
Then, Mike just seemed to put it all into perspective. He said, “Well, when you can feed him, feed him well.” So it was my mission that as soon as the solid foods started, I would prepare the best meals that I could. Now, that does not mean that I don’t take shortcuts, but it does mean that he has pretty fresh meals every day packed full of well rounded ingredients with tons of vitamins and nutrients. I decided to make it a challenge to find new ways to incorporate flavor and nutrients into E’s diet and have had a blast doing it.
Because it can get hard to remember all of the things I have tried or things that he likes I made a chart to hang on the fridge when I am at a loss of creativity. Although I have already added quite a few more things since posting my list!
--Things added:
Pancake muffins
Spinach Meatballs
Z Bars by Clif(great for snack)
Black Bean Burgers
Hummus Bites
Tortellini
He hasn’t been too finicky, but I will say that he goes through phases. He used to LOVE scrambled eggs – now not as much. He also loved broccoli, then didn’t love it for about 2 weeks and now he loves it. I would advise those of you noticing the same things with your kiddos is to take a break from whatever they are not loving and then try again in a week or two. Usually they will love it again.
I always pack his lunch into containers the night before and have them ready to go with his (then bottles) cups of milk for the next day. This makes morning packing much easier.
Everett drinks a morning sippy cup of milk (he’s 100% off of bottles and formula) with his breakfast at home every morning and then I pack two “meals” and a snack for daycare. We usually give him a small snack when we get home and some water or a little smoothie to tide him over before his last cup of milk before bed.
No more bottles and he’s even eating off of a plate! So big.
I found great plates and bowls at the Target $1 bin! Score!
To help out those of you with toddlers who seem to be stuck in a “what do I feed them” rut, I recorded what E ate during a whole week and thought I would share a sample menu with you.
Breakfast usually always starts with half of a banana and avocado with other goodies mixed in. His other two “meals” of the day vary, but I try to make them as colorful as possible. One container is usually more savory with veggies and protein while the other container (or meal) is more sweet with fruits and cheese.
Monday:
breakfast-avocado, banana, French toast, strawberries and yogurt
daily meals -
strawberry, kiwi, pineapple, cheese
stew beef, carrots, mushrooms, green beans
snack – Chocolate Banana Smoothie
drinks - milk (4x daily) and water as needed
Tuesday:
breakfast - avocado, banana, strawberry, french toast
daily meals -
peanut butter sandwich, cheese, kiwi, nectarines
cooked carrots, stew beef, green beans
snack - watermelon, pineapple, goldfish
drinks - milk (4x daily), water as needed
Wednesday:
breakfast - avocado, banana, strawberries, french toast
daily meals -
pineapple, kiwi, strawberries, ham & cheese quesadilla
green beans, sweet potato cubes, steak (didn't love), cheese
snack - watermelon, goldfish
drinks - milk (4x daily), water as needed
Thursday:
breakfast- waffles, pears, banana
daily meals-
green beans, cheese, pears, watermelon
ham and cheese quesadilla, cooked carrots, pineapple, sweet potatoes
snack - graham crackers w/ peanut butter, yogurt
drinks - milk (4x daily), water as needed
Friday:
breakfast - French toast muffin, yogurt, pineapple
I had leftover potato hotdog buns from the weekend and turned them into French toast muffins – these were great for weekday mornings!
daily meals -
veggie chicken patty, cheese, black beans
scrambled eggs, peanut butter sandwiches,
snack - applesauce, kiwi
drinks - milk (4x daily), water as needed
He always eats well.
Some of his new favorites are:
Mini Flatbread pizza cut into bite size pieces. I have also recently mixed in a little chopped ham for a bit more protein content.
I love the Arnold’s Sandwich Thins and Toufayan Smart Bagels for making all sorts of sandwich combinations. So quick and easy!
SHORTCUT IDEAS---
Frozen Morning Star Veggie Chicken Patties and Black Bean Patties
Frozen Broccoli
Frozen Waffles (whole grain)
Canned Pears (no sugar added) - convenience
Canned green beans (no salt added) -roasted green beans seem to be stringy for him right now.
Canned mandarin oranges (no sugar added)
Canned black beans (low sodium)
Prepackaged unsweetened applesauce
Yo baby yogurt
We also found these bibs pretty helpful when Everett began eating finger foods. They are from Tommy Tippee (found them at Target) and catch all of the food that doesn’t make it in his mouth – which at that point was a lot! He’s much better now and is even eating off of a plate. Growing up!
While doing research for my own list, I found these as well that could be of great help – good luck!
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