HELP!!!! 2 YR Old who is extremly picky

[poochie]

My sweet GD who will be 2 and 1/2 on our July trip has turned picky eating into a art form. She will eat crackers cheese, cheese pizza, PB&J sandwiches. cookies pancakes and waffles. Fruit and veggies she will not touch. She gets her vitamins from fruit juice with verggie juice inside. Also yougrt, cottage cheese and ice cream. Oh yes fruit cereal bars. We are on the DDP so at the buffets this might not be a problem but counter service and table service resturants this may be a problem any suggestions. I think on the plan they plan on the young kids to share your meal?? I need helpful suggestions and voices of experience please.

 

[gabriellyn]

My older DS is a lot like that, unfortunately. He does eat chicken nuggets/strips too though. I have found that home he is much pickier than when eating out and when he happens to be really HUNGRY. He will eat when he is hungry and I can't make him eat if he is not. It is frustrating for sure, but I have learned to just take it like it is. If he doesn't eat at one meal, he will at the next. Luckily, most of the WDW children's menus had options he liked. Good luck!

 

[TheDizMom]

The kids menus are pretty bland everywhere in the parks. In fact they are so boring my DS quit eating from them halfway through our first trip. I think you should find enough for her to eat. You could however bring along some food with you you know she will eat in case she won't eat what is on the menu. They have a lot of the smuckers uncrustables, nuggets and mac and cheese, and if I remember they have applesauce (will she eat that) You will be fine at buffets for sure. The good thing is that if she just won't eat her alotted meals on the DP you can utilize them for some other meals since you don't get 3 meals a day. They'll have to be from the children's menu, but they're extra meal and even the kids meals are a lot of food. Oh and one pointer. If you try Pizzafari at AK keep in mind that for some dumb reason they don't have pizza on the kids menu only the adult menu. So if you go there share an adult pizza with her. They are pretty good sized so you should be ok, especially since she is only 2 1/2.

 

[karemore]

I don't know why they work the dining plan that way. I can't imagine a child over 2 not needing their own meal.

You are going to have to factor kids meals for her into your budget. You'll have no trouble finding her some of those items on the kids menus.

And you never know, she may surprise you on vacation!!

 

[thegrimdwarf]

I don't have any advice, I just wanted to say I feel your pain. My 2 year old is absurdly picky, but not the usual kind of picky, where he'll eat the kid-friendly stuff like hotdogs, burgers, chicken nuggets, fries, etc. Noooooo.....he wants asparagus and some dressing to dip it in, hummus and Wheatables (and only Wheatables), grilled cheese sandwiches are fine as long as it's sharp cheddar or muenster cheese. Puh-lease. I should have named him Frasier.

The only thing keeping me sane is the fact that he'll happily eat yogurt, applesauce, and Cheerios - very portable, so I can carry a meal for him into the parks if he chooses to be, ahem, difficult.

Good luck!

 

[pyrxtc]

the only thing I ever figured out from being around icky children, is that they will eat eventually. If they don't like what's in front of them right now then later they will eat wheatever you give them since they are starving by then and won't starve themselves. Just show the kids what is offered and let them pick. If they don't eat then they wil the next time so long as your not giving them snacks all day. If my DS doesn't eat what we give him, we leave it out for when he is hungry and gets nothing else til he eats what we gave him.

 

[thegrimdwarf]

the only thing I ever figured out from being around icky children, is that they will eat eventually. If they don't like what's in front of them right now then later they will eat wheatever you give them since they are starving by then and won't starve themselves. Just show the kids what is offered and let them pick. If they don't eat then they wil the next time so long as your not giving them snacks all day. If my DS doesn't eat what we give him, we leave it out for when he is hungry and gets nothing else til he eats what we gave him.

No doubt they'll eventually eat, but nobody wants to travel through Disney with a kid who's overtired and hungry. How'd you like to sit next to him on a ride?

 

[snowglobe girl]

I was so happy when I saw your post!! I'm in the exact same boat as you. My DS is 2 and will be 3 months short of 3 when we go in September. We also have Dining Plan, which won't cover him either. He's really stubborn if he doesn't want something and will cover his eyes and shake his head no. He won't hardly eat anything at restaurants. I don't have any advice and would love to keep hearing what others are doing too. Last year he was picky, but not this bad. I carried ziplock bags of Cheerios which was a savior on several occasions when he'd eat nothing else. The only plan that I have devised so far is that DH and I are going to start taking DS out to eat dinner at least one night per week to get him used to eating in restaurants. I'm also going to take some things with me to the parks that I know he'll eat. If he won't share anything we're eating on the dining plan, then I'll just buy him something off the kid's menu that I think he'll eat and pray that he will. I agree with several of the other posters though, if he gets hungry enough, he'll eat. I also just don't want him to be the cranky kid in a show or ride that everyone gets annoyed at - I'll leave and go back to the room by that point and eat cereal if we have to!!! Good luck - I need it too!!

 

[Schmeck]

I think the US is pretty much the only country that has such a wave of picky eaters - I doubt there are many picky eaters in Ethiopia...

We used to bring a few favorites for my daughter with the gag reflex when she was little - but now she just has to make do with what is offered. It's amazing how much stuff she will eat now! There is hope for all picky eaters!

 

[Zeebs]

the only thing I ever figured out from being around icky children, is that they will eat eventually. If they don't like what's in front of them right now then later they will eat wheatever you give them since they are starving by then and won't starve themselves. Just show the kids what is offered and let them pick. If they don't eat then they wil the next time so long as your not giving them snacks all day. If my DS doesn't eat what we give him, we leave it out for when he is hungry and gets nothing else til he eats what we gave him.

Oh I am so glad I am not the only one, sometimes I feel like the meanest Mum in the world but I do not run a restaurant at my place you eat what you get or you wait until the next meal. (I do serve up different meal at next sitting UNLESS it is a meal that has previously been eaten and loved.)

Now I also agree with the other poster that said that you don't want to have to deal with a tired hungry child at WDW so unless you head off tomorrow you have time to work on the situation at home.

Kirsten

 

[poochie]

Does anyone know if they serve grilled cheese sandwiches in the resturants on the children's menu? That might be my only hope.

 

[Princess Roo]

I agree with other posters that starting at home to work on non-picky eating would be the best solution, but that's not your question So, one tip is that most places will let you get yogurt as a dessert on the counter service if they have it there. You can also get it as a snack credit. It may also be possible to buy just the uncrustables PB&J instead of the whole kids' meal for less money, but the kids' meals are only $4, so it isn't too bad. For non-buffet table service, there didn't seem to be much of an option for under-3 that your GD likes besides paying for a $7.50 child's meal. (We would usually just order an extra side of vegetables or mashed potatoes for <$4 and DS would share the regular adult meal with me, but he likes everything.) Maybe bring a small soft-sided lunchbox cooler to bring her juice and cheese to dinner, since she's under 3?

 

[jessica52877]

When DS was little I would always bring along cheerios to start out with, he loves them and then a fruit cup, usually pears for table service meals. That way it gave him something to eat before my meal came. He was happily able to share with me since he isn't big on kids food items and the portions are more then plenty for myself and DS (even at 5 most of the time we could still share).