Toddler meals

[mylittlebuttercup]

I'm asking this question as a mom and I'm really not trying to be hypercritical. DD is not even 3 yet, so those early meals are certainly fresh in my mind, but I have to say I'm a bit concerned by your description of meal time. I mean, at home and out, I've never been afraid she would throw dishes on the floor because DH and I keep a close eye on her. I don't know, if throwing food and dishes is ok at home, more power to you and your cleaning time commitment, but I'd be upset if I saw that. It certainly would contribute to the idea that parents are bad restaurant goers. I just wonder if it might be something to keep in mind at meal times.

In terms of supplies, we always had take and toss toddler flatwear and sippy cups with us for meals out as well as sticky placemats. The dishes for our ease and the placemats to make cleanup easier. Actually, those cups were always her favorite.

I'm not the OP, but I didn't take what she said the way you did. Has my son ever thrown dishes on the floor at restaurant? No. (He has dropped silverware, though.) But that doesn't mean I am not concerned about such an accident happening if he gets overzealous while eating. We watch him, but things can happen so quickly. Kids have accidents. That's what I figured she meant, though I could be wrong.

 

[mylittlebuttercup]

I saw mention of the kids' menus, and to me, they seem a bit limited in their choices. Keep in mind that you can order something off the adult menu for the kid. We will most likely do that and just ask for a smaller portion, as I feel the adult choices are more well-rounded.

 

[nearlyfallinstar]

I would just take some cloth bibs and then pitch them afterwards. Especially if you have some old ones at home that can be thrown away.

 

[DLgeeks]

We just got back from a 7 day on the Fantasy with a 19mo old, and the servers made it as easy as it could have been to get through a meal with a toddler! Cabanas has a ton of good, easy options for breakfast and lunch (fruit, cheese, yogurt, bread, etc) if you've got a picky eater, and you can get whole milk in cartons there or at any of the MDRs if you ask.

DS was on a bit of an eating strike for most of our trip and after the first night the servers had a bowl of grapes and cheese and a glass of milk waiting for him every night as that was all he was willing to eat for a while - so don't be afraid to ask for something even if it's not on the menu! They did have smaller, kid-sized silverware, and plastic plates, lids for the cups, etc - but I would definitely bring a sippy cup if you use one though as the lids come off the cups pretty easily.

We also found that ordering some basics from room service to keep in the room fridge helped as well - especially if we were moving slowly in the morning (we'd order a cheese plate and a fruit bowl/bananas along with water and milk for the fridge pretty much every night!).

The nursery was great and we definitely used it in the evenings quite a few times - they will provide meals/snacks and juice but not milk, but they will store it/give it if you bring it so we'd usually have our servers refill his sippy right as we were finishing dinner so that he'd have a cup for the night.

Have fun!

 

[Sandbtwmytoes]

There are definitely smaller spoons and forks that can be used by littler hands. Out DD just turned 2 and I remember smaller silverware.

As far as bibs go, we always use this one..............our daughter loves it. It is the only ones we use as they can be easily washed, are soft silicone, pocket catches the dropping food and has in imprinted necklace in it for the fanciest of occasions.

This is so cute and a great idea! I realized the plastic bibs we had actually have a fabric backing so they would need to dry out for the day. I picked one up like this today

 

[Trera]

This is so cute and a great idea! I realized the plastic bibs we had actually have a fabric backing so they would need to dry out for the day. I picked one up like this today

well, our little princess loves them better than any other bib and it does a much better job of keeping her clothes clean than other bibs we have used prior.

This is the only bib we use now.

good luck