11 month old mealtime battles

please help me!

My 11 month old has now made all fun mealtimes into complete battles. shes screams and cries the whole time because she doesn't get what she wants or is frustrated.

she rips off her bib.
she wants the spoon, but just to play with it and make a mess.
she doesnt like her hands or face being cleaned.


i have tried giving her, her own spoon while I feed her. or going between finger foods and pureed. I have tried warm washcloths over cold ones. I have given up on the bib.

Any advice?

is this a stage? how long does it last?

Re: 11 month old mealtime battles

Ugh, I remember this well. DD started that about the same age. She wanted NOTHING to do with her high chair or eating and would scream and cry. I was just giving her purees at the time, so I started giving her only table food and that seemed to help.

And she also hated her face cleaned, but now she is ok with it (14 months). She grew out of that after about a month.

Maybe try giving her just finger foods that she can pick up on her own?

Re: 11 month old mealtime battles

DS did the same thing.
it was an independence issue with us. so i gave in.
yes it was messy. yes it was so much extra work. yes he barely got any food in his mouth.

but it was worth it. he is almost 3 and now sits at the regular table and can eat a meal by himself without any help (minus the cutting of course) whether it's pasta, rice or soup. i have gotten compliments on how well he handles utensils and how well he eats.


it's just a phase that will pass!

11 month old mealtime battles

I'm so glad you posted this. I almost had a meltdown last night over mealtime battles with DS! He is the same. Doesn't want me to feed him, hates getting his face cleaned. He would rather feed himself, but I feel like he doesn't eat enough when he eats finger foods.

I'm hoping its a stage!

11 month old mealtime battles

Let her be messy.

Let her have the spoon. don't clean her up til the end.

My DH hated letting there be a mess and fought with DS. To me its not worth it.

I also gave DS the spoon very early on and let him "discover" it. He is now 19 months and feeds himself with a spoon and fork and does well with it. I think it helps them learn so let them get messy and play.

Re: 11 month old mealtime battles

Re: 11 month old mealtime battles

It's normal. It's getting a bit better at 13 months. It totally stressed me out too. As much as it pains us to do it, we're supposed to let them get messy, drop food on the floor, etc. I've started ignoring the behavior rather than stopping her, and I find that it fades faster.

My DD rarely allows me to feed her anything anymore. It's all finger foods, even rice and couscous . She is interested in the fork now, so if I put food on the end of it, she will pick it up and eat it....or throw it...or drop it....lol

ETA: Oh, and she still screams bloody murder when I wipe her face and hands. I sing a silly song while I do it, and ignore the protests.

Message edited 7/19/2013 10:31:08 AM.

11 month old mealtime battles

I think all babies hate getting their faces and hands wiped. We do it at the end. When DD refuses all foods, I give her Cheerios.