How do you get your toddler to eat and let you change his diaper?

[Dahlea]

My son won't eat! He'll have a few snacks throughout the day but refuses most "real" food. I'm concerned because he used to be quite a big boy (30 lbs at 7 months) and is now around 27-28 at 21 months. Here's what he's eaten today-a few bites of cereal, a handful of nuts and a cookie. He wouldn't eat lasagna (which is one of the few real meals he likes), edamame, veggies or yogurt drinks (which he has eaten all before and likes) this is a pretty typical day as far as amount eaten. He was still almost 100% breastfed at 12-13 months but as my pregnancy progressed i lost my milk and recently weaned him completely.
I've tried making meals fun-special plate, cup etc. Ive tried making his exactly the same as ours. Itried fun shapes, I've tried offering new things every day, I tried offering only old favorites... Help!

Also, he's refusing to let me change his diaper. Finally I have to because it's soaking and it's a total meltdown. I ask him and have tried letting him pick out his diaper and stuff but I can't just let him sit in a wet diaper all day!

[rightkindofme]

In that food situation my response would be to give the kiddo what I am eating and otherwise let it go. I would find some good supplements though.

On the diaper issue, I got very good at standing diaper changes. I can pull down pants, remove a diaper, put a new one on, and yank the pants back up in about 45 seconds. This was mostly possible because during our seriously fighting diaper-changes stage she was pooping on the potty pretty much exclusively. For poopy diapers I would have had to just hold her down and listen to the screaming.

Swaddlebees AIOs with side snaps are the *best* for standing diaper changes in my experience.

[Super~Single~Mama]

Does he like smoothies? Those are easy to make with some pretty nutritious stuff and are super tasty - my lo will drink a smoothie even when he turns everything else down.

Otherwise, I wouldn't worry too much - just offer him whats on your plate (and sit down to start eating before him - then if he see's that you're eating he might want some for himself!)

[haurelia]

What about just putting healthy nibbles on a tray/plate at his level, like on a coffee table? Just give a few choices of small amounts of food. Maybe he'll find that interesting enough to graze a bit. Or do things that involve tactile fun, like dipping a veggie or breadstick into hummus or peanut butter, or some chunks of fruit into yogurt? The smoothie idea is good too, with some yogurt, fruit, honey, etc.

Overall, I wouldn't worry too much about it, as most kids left to their own internal control can determine how much and when they need to eat. Does he sign or say when he's hungry or thirsty?

As far as the diaper change, what works for us is having a special thing he gets to have when he gets changed, like my cell phone, or an old pair of glasses...things that are "off limits" normally. That usually keeps him busy enough to distract him for a minute or two.
Good luck!

[faithsstuff]

hey there, I have an 18 month old with both these issues. he's 24 pounds and 27 inches and just about average. He rarely eats a meal. I keep snacks in a couple places through the house and he grazes. I also pay alot of attention to the texture of food.

as far as diaper chages, we too have mastered the standing change. he's in regular underwear about 90% of the time and that makes things easier.

[djenya]

No advice on the food, but at that age I started making diaper changes "fun" for DS by chasing him around the house, ie, letting him run away from me. I would say something like I'm going to change you now if I can catch you and hesitate so he had a chance to run. He would have so much fun that after a few minutes he'd let me change his diaper with no issues.

[funfunkyfantastic]

I have a 22 month old with both the same issues. She would eat all her food, but ONLY when visiting her dad and his girlfriend and her two kids. She'd see the two boys eat their food and want to do the same. It doesn't seem to matter if i'm eating the same thing or not, she won't eat. She only wants little snacks throughout the day. My doc has been concerned about her weight since she lost weight due to this. She doesn't seem malnourished to me but she still refuses full meals. I try to help suppliment her diet some with toddler formula. She stopped breastfeeding around 14 or 15 months... otherwise she'd be supplimenting with breastmilk.

And yeah... diaper changes are a nightmare... she just runs away and screams if you try to hold her down and change a poopy. Ugh. If it's just wet I let her stand, lol.

[tangledblue]

Maybe check for anemia--low appetite can be a sign.

[treeoflife3]

assuming he has no health issues that might cause lack of appetite, I'd probably just set him up in his chair during meal times with food but not worry about him eating. If he isn't hungry then he isn't hungry (again, if there are no medical issues involved) and besides that I'd probably just keep some snacks very easily available to him so if he DOES get hungry he can have something without feeling the pressure/control of having to eat because you want him to.

For diaper changes, the only way my little one will let me change most of the time is if I let her play with something I normally don't allow her to have. I offer her the tube of diaper cream or a (closed and locked) pin or a snappi or something similar and she'll come take it and let me lay her down to do the job. Usually she'll let me clean her up and then get up before coming back (to a new offering) and laying down again for a new diaper. Sometimes a wet cloth wipe will work too or a tooth brush. rarely, a book will work. In the worst cases if the diaper is only wet, I just take it off while she is running around. Usually the freedom of not having to lay down for that step and of being naked will make her happy enough to oblige to a new diaper.

[PatchChild]

Standing up diaper changes were the only thing that worked with DS for a long, long time. Made poop changes really exciting, but I'd wait until he was engaged in something he really like, such as his train table, and then he barely seemed to notice the change.

30 lbs at 7 months?!?! You must have the richest milk ever! It took my son until slightly after his third birthday to reach 30 lbs. Nice nursing mama!

[Dahlea]

Originally Posted by PatchChild

30 lbs at 7 months?!?! You must have the richest milk ever! It took my son until slightly after his third birthday to reach 30 lbs. Nice nursing mama!

Luckily he will poop in the potty so I don't have to worry about that so much!

And he was the fattest little thing-lol he was like an overstretched sausage. I think that's what makes me worry a lot now-he looks SO skinny compared to then (of course, now he is running 18 hours a day!) He's still wearing the same clothes he wore then too, no joke-he was in 2T/3T then lol.
around 7 months
more recently

I'll just keep offering like I have been. And I'll definitely try smoothies-he loves yogurt drinks (those little liquid ones?) so I bet he would like them, especially if I made them thin. Thanks everyone.

[Lillypop]

have you considered getting him back on the boobie? my DS nursed through my pregnancy and still breastfeeds as much as his infant brother at almost 27 months old. He will have days where he literally only eats 2-3 bites of food at each meal/snack (sometimes less than that) but I know he's getting the good stuff so I don't stress about it.

diaper changes ... I do require that he lay down and allow me to change him (well, not anymore, he's potty-learned and goes on the potty all the time, no prompting) but before, I did. It's just what works for us. We let most things go, but do stick to our guns on some issues. and I refuse to change diapers standing up, or on upside down, or runaway children. it isn't a fight, I am just quietly firm about my expectations.

[Dahlea]

I plan to offer him bm again once the baby is born-but his weaning was definitely mama led. I couldn't take the negative feelings nursing was making me have, so it's not an option until the baby is born. Thanks!

[RomanGoddess]

No advice for food. For the diaper, he's 21 months. Why not see if he will go on the potty? There is a good window between 18 and 24 months when toddlers are interested in potty learning.

[Dahlea]

We are working on the potty-he's been pooping on it for months now-we just can't get him to recognize pees. I usually let him run around naked and just clean up the mess but if we are going somewhere or going to sleep he needs one and hates it.

[Super~Single~Mama]

Mama he's gorgeous!! He looks totally healthy to me!

I recently got my lo to eat scrambled eggs - he HATED them before! I just made some for myself, and sat down to eat. THen he got mad that I wasn't sharing, climbed up in his high chair (yeah, he's a climber! we put it away when its not mealtime) and he demanded that I share! Try just making food for yourself, and then having enough on your plate to share. Also, my little guy is pretty adamant about doing it "myself!" at meals - he won't let me feed him at all anymore! It's messy, but really cute!