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see all the previous links. at 2 he should be eating regular food-not any kind of baby food.
the most important thing to remember is avoid commercial, processed food and never leave a kid unattended-even for a minute to check the laundry, etc when eating. it only takes a second for something to get lodged.
I have twins. Boy and girl. I REALLY need some ideas. I am good on breakfast, but lunch and dinner-seems like they eat the same things all the time. (Not a great cook. AND dh and I really don't eat things they can eat, such as steak...)
Been a long time since I have had to think about food to feed my now grown son but I can remember some of the things I would feed him when he was a toddler:
Mashed potatoes with carrots cut up or mashed in them....along with a hamburger broken up into tiny pieces. Depends on how many teeth the toddlers have.
Spaghetti and meatballs...either homemade or in a can..like spaghetti-o's. Again, depending on how many teeth they have I would be careful about chopping stuff up for them.
Any kind of fresh veggies mashed up with a little butter.....along with skinless all beef hot dogs mashed or cut up.
Fresh fruit also cut into small pieces with perhaps a little cool whip mixed in..my son loved this.
Basically, I think all you have to worry about with toddlers is being sure their food is cut up or mashed so they don't choke and also be sure you don't feed them foods that are too high in fat content. Kids don't need a lot of meat when they are toddlers but I would definitely concentrate on vegetables. You can get the frozen veggies that you can nuke/steam then mash them up afterwards..all kinds of them available.
Good luck..think healthy and give your kids a good start!
I always fed my babies what we ate, progressing from puree' to chunky to diced. Babies' taste buds are not spoiled, so I never add salt or sugar to our food. My husband and I add a little salt to our portions after the kids are served theirs. Having little ones in the house encourages us to eat healthier ourselves. The best way to teach good eating habits is to model those habits yourself.
It takes some babies longer to get used to courser textures, so don't worry if yours wants to stick to baby food. Just gradually make your baby's food a little chunkier.
My first I fed baby food..cause I didn't know any better.
My second I went straight from Formula..added Cereal..then added table food minus salt/sugar.
Never had any sort of eating problems.. just feed them real food, not kiddie junk.
A great book to read about introducing foods is "Baby Led Weaning". Follow the guidelines in this book and your children will be eating what their bodies tell them they need. This book puts to rest alot of the myths surrounding babies and eating!
I know this is an old thread, but I wanted to make a couple of points.
Feeding no matter what the age of the child should not become a struggle. Offer, but don't insist if a child does not like a particular food. Also small portions are a must for toddlers. Their stomachs are very small. Offer meals frequently (5 to 6 times per day) and expect them to eat only small portions.
Often we underestimate what children will enjoy. Some children actually love spicy food from the very beginning. In some cases, this is cultural. My grandchildren actually loved their other grandmother's spicy Indian food even at two years old.
Self-feeding is also important, so starting off with finger foods is often better than commercial babyfood, imo. Introducing foods one at a time is important so that you know if a baby has a reaction, that this may be a food to eliminate until they are older.
By one year of age, a child's digestive system is normally mature enough to for him or her to eat the same foods as the rest of the family. You should make sure the child is getting enough water and fiber--which is found in fruits, vegetables, and whole grains--because this will help prevent lower GI problems. Breast milk is still a great food, and may be continued along with complementary foods. If the child has been receiving formula, it is considered safe to substitute whole milk after 1 year of age (and then low-fat milk after 2 years). Note that children who drink too much cow's milk to the exclusion of solid foods can develop iron deficiency, as the milk is iron-poor and displaces foods that would provide iron.
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