Mamas of really big LOs who hardly eat anything?

[JessieBird]

Maybe this is a weird question but I am fascinated by my son's metabolism (or whatever it is that makes him this way)... he has always been pretty big - 95th percentile for both height and weight and lots of chubby rolls but he eats like a delicate little bird. He didn't get interested in solids till about 10 months and even now at just over 12 mos, he eats hardly anything. He likes everything, it's just the quantity he takes in before losing interest is miniscule (like 2 steamed broccoli spears and 3 noodles for dinner). He still nurses before bed and twice in the morning. I make sure he always has snacks available but he rarely touches them, or will carry them around and nibble them sooooo slowly. Thankfully he really likes veggies so what he does eat is quite healthy. He is always happy and never appears hungry, and has also never been sick, so I am not worried at all, just really in awe. He is also a very busy little guy, always racing around from one thing to the next so it's not like he's sitting on his calories or anything.

Anyone else have one of those big kids that hardly eats? How do they maintain those chubby thighs? Should I expect him to start eating more soon or will he trim down?

[lyterae]

My dd is now almost 4, she has been in the 95th percentile for height and weight since about 3 months. Here is the rough pattern.

born : 7 lbs 7oz
1 year: 27 lbs
2 year: 33 lbs
3 year: 40 lbs
current: 42 lbs
_______

In the past year she's really slimmed down, I think we might even be able to wear the same summer clothes again (provided we don't hit another major growth spurt) for the first time.

She still has weird days of not eating at all and then days where she cleans out my cupboard.

[physmom]

Seriously, I could've written that exact same post. When we last weighed her at 9 months she was almost 25lbs! She's been in 24 months/2T clothes for awhile (she's 11 months). She's very, very, very energetic and is always running/climbing on everything so I seriously have no clue where she gets her calories from. Plus this kid never sleeps

She does nurse quite a bit still and would eat bread and cheese all day if she let her . But besides that her favorite foods are oranges, apples, avocados, carrots, and yogurt with fresh fruit. She's always been a picky eater, though, and I can't even say how many times we've put food on her high chair for her and she'll very carefully pick it up piece by piece and throw it on the floor (black beans seem to be a favorite for that). It wasn't until about 9/10 months that she would really eat any solids at all and even then she's waaaayyyy behind all the other kids I know. But she's still super chunky and is constantly getting comments about her rolls and chubby cheeks.

We have, actually, been giving her some jars of organic baby food (we normally let her feed herself with a spoon but DH gets tired of the mess and feeds her sometimes) and it will take her about 3 days to finish one jar.

ETA: Most of the weight is in her head, seriously, it's HUGE. But she's always been in the 95th+ percentile for everything. Most people thinks she's at least 1.5 years old...

[terrainthailand]

I also feel like I could have written your post. Although, I suppose she hasn't gained much, if any, weight in the last month or so. She is still right up there as a 23lb 1 year old. She likes most food, especially veggies, eggs, and oatmeal, but looses interest after only a few bites. She is also nursing before naps, bed and a bit through the night. I assume she is maintaining her figure through the milk!

[hannybanany]

My first dd was like that. 33 lbs, 33 in at 1 year. HUGE! She didn't start eating more than a tablespoon of food per day until she was 16 months old. She did nurse a lot, though.

My second dd is a peanut at 21 lbs @ 1 yr


It's amazing how their bodies work.

[Llyra]

DD1 was and still is like that. She's 5 now. She was always consistently in the 90th percentile or above for her height, and almost that for weight. Her weight has leveled off to about 75th, but she keeps getting taller and taller. And for the life of me, I can't figure out what fuels that growth, because she's 41 pounds but if she eats a quarter-cup of food a day it's a miracle. At 2 years old, she consistently ate less than a few crumbs of food a day.

I think she somehow metabolizes oxygen. Or something. No other rational explanation.

[Dea]

My DD while not huge, or even big, she's less than 50% for weight at her 15 mos check up, she's 22 mos now, and still around 50% I would guess, she's not small enough to worry a ped into scaring me into feeding her solid butter. Anyhow she's a light light light eater. I say that she eats a good meal about every 5th meal. I offer her food but she's happy with a couple of bites. But she's happy and healthy, good skin, hair, nails, growing. I don't worry about it.