 Breakfast is sometimes the most difficult meal of the day. Kids are hungry, time is short and it's easy to get stuck in a rut. We created this free Family Meal Toolkit - Breakfast Edition to help you navigate the first meal of the day with a little less stress. Head to the link below to download it for yourself! In this toolkit you'll find:
   Photo by: Melanie Meurer with Meurer Image (used with permission) Judy here! I’m an Occupational Therapist specializing in feeding therapy. It seems like there are so many ideas on the internet for how to keep toddlers and kids occupied while we shelter in place. But…how do you play with a baby? Guess what? As an OT I work with play in each of my sessions! How does this relate to feeding? Well, infant development and play skills are essential in setting the foundation for gross and fine motor development. They also develop vision and cognitive skills. Eventually all of these things piece together to promote successful feeding! (And learning!) In short, play helps promote feeding. It's all connected. We've created a free printable for you to reference if you're in need of some ideas that I recommend to my private practice clients. You might be doing a lot of these things already, but we just wanted to offer some inspiration for easy ways to play with your baby that can help promote development, bonding and fun for both of you.
       How are we doing, friends? We know this can be a really challenging time for everyone, and we wanted to help in our own small way. Click on the link below to download our free Family Meal Toolkit - Dinner Edition! In it you'll find:
Click on the link or image below to download the Toolkit now!
   Whenever we post about favorite salad toppings we get questions about how/when kids can eat salads, too - this post is very long overdue! The biggest issue with salad is the safety of the greens. If we give a toddler soft leafy greens before they have a good rotary chew pattern established and a lot of teeth they may just swallow it whole. Lettuce leaves may be soft, but they do require lots of great chewing with teeth to break down (unlike many other foods that can be chewed successfully with gums). Here are some simple guidelines:
  A few additional tips:
  One big question we always get is, “How do you keep lunches cold?” (Shown here are Bentgo boxes that we love! You can find them in our Amazon shop under Lunch.) Here are some tips from USDA:
Don't forget that these safety guidelines apply to any food out of the fridge, even snacks you send with your preschooler or diaper bag snacks.  When life changes, so does eating. Having a new baby definitely changes everything in your house. If you also have a toddler or older kid at home, don't be surprised if the addition of a sibling causes disruption at mealtime. You may find yourself serving crackers and milk for lunch. We want to be the first to tell you this: it's ok. How can you make mealtime a little better with a newborn and an older kid - or multiple kids?
  Do you have a kiddo that needs a little help in the growth department? Perhaps you’re pregnant and are struggling to gain weight yourself, or maybe you’re breastfeeding and are losing weight very quickly. We all have unique nutritional needs! Sometimes we need to add Calorie Boosters to foods to help each bite count. One simple strategy we use with our clients is adding a layer of fat/oil underneath other toppings on toast, pancakes, waffles, rice cakes, sweet potato spears, etc. It helps each and every bite count a little bit more. How do you know if your child needs this? Talk to your doc first! Are they worried about your kiddo’s growth? Can their growth trajectory be explained by genetic/environmental factors? If you’re doc’s not worried, keep doing what you’re doing! On the other hand, if your provider has expressed concern in your child’s growth it may help to try these strategies.  Nut allergy? Use sunflower seed butter or tahini (shown on top right toast). Dairy-free? Try the Kite Hill Foods cream cheese spread with coconut oil or avocado oil underneath for the third toast option. This is just one of the many techniques we’ve outlined in our new Calorie Boosters handout we just added to our Infant and Toddler Courses! It includes so many unique ideas and has allergen-friendly options. We also have included some tasty recipes! (If you already purchased either course you have access to this handout! Head to Step 5 in the Infant Course and 13 in the Toddler Course!) We also added an entire handout for constipation in Step 4 of the Infant Course and Step 13 of the Toddler Course. Our courses are live, meaning that you’ll always have the most updated version (and they don’t expire - as long as we’re hosting them!). Go back and watch them again and again.  Let’s talk DIPS! Did you know that the use of dips is something I use all the time in feeding therapy to help reluctant eaters learn how to eat more foods? There are so many dip options - these are just a few! Kids also enjoy ketchup and ranch (obviously), as well as olive tapenade, broths and soups (including bone broth), gravy, dressings etc. As an Occupational Therapist specializing in feeding therapy, I find dips really helpful for the following reasons:
I recommend offering them as early as 6 months (stick to the less salty ones in infancy like yogurt, smashed avocado, fruit purees, olive oil). Start by dipping strips of food into the dip and handing them to baby. By 14 months, your child may be able to dip on their own. You don’t have to use dips all the time, but it is fun to try them out when your kiddo isn’t into eating a specific food. We hope you enjoy trying dips with your child! Don't forget to connect with us on Facebook or Instagram if you're struggling with your child's eating.   Foodie Judy here! Yesterday a member of our Feeding Littles Clients Only Facebook group asked how to teach a child how to swallow a pill, so we thought we’d give you a tutorial here! Why do some kids need to swallow pills? Some medications only come in pill form or kids may not like/tolerate the liquid or chewable version. Sometimes important medications cannot be crushed or cut. Teaching your child (age 4+) to swallow a pill can be a very helpful skill, especially if they are dealing with a temporary or chronic illness or if they need to take a supplement and it doesn’t come in a palatable liquid, powder, gummy or chewable. (See our blog post for more on supplements.) Here are our steps for helping to teach your child how to swallow a pill:
Remember that we all develop differently. Some kids are not ready for this at age 4. A few additional points that we want to add:
 Homemade energy bites are my kids' favorite snack, hands down! We have been making these for years and they’re so tasty for mama and kiddo alike - please make sure read the safety information below before serving. These are also awesome for pregnant mamas as some data suggests that dates may help with cervical ripening before birth. Best of all, they are a nice balance of protein, fat and carbohydrates (read: energy) that taste amazing. I loved having them on hand when I was pregnant and breastfeeding, especially because they’re a quick, satisfying snack that can be eaten with one hand! You can make a large batch and keep them room temperature, in the fridge or frozen - you (adult) can eat them frozen, but make sure to thaw for younger eaters.  These energy bites are similar to commercially available energy bars and are simply equal parts Medjool dates and nuts or seeds of choice. Make sure to use a high powered blender or food processor to blend. If using the Vitamix, use the tamper. Vary the nuts you use: each one provides different nutrition! For non-allergic people, regular exposure to allergens is important for allergy prevention. A few tips for success with these:
SAFETY INFO:
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AuthorsMegan and Judy, co-owners of Feeding Littles, bring you helpful info on food, nutrition, picky eating, and feeding young children. Megan McNamee MPH, RDN is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist based in Scottsdale, Arizona. Judy Delaware, OTR/L is an Occupational Therapist specializing in feeding therapy with children 3 and under in Boulder, Colorado. Megan and Judy are both moms of two and love helping families develop a healthy appetite for all foods!
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