Finger Food for 14 Month Old & Sippy Cups

Lots of great suggestions already, but I'll add some too.
I don't remember anyone suggesting baby carrots. These are nutritious, and great when the little ones are teething. The Cheerios are a good snack, as well as the string cheese and goldfish, etc.
As far as the cup, I used to use Tupperware, but daughter has one made by Fisher-Price that she likes for granddaughter.

D.

playtex is good that does not leak. What you need to look for are the ones that inside the lid, there is a clear two pronged stopper. It goes into two holes very tightly underneath the lid, they work great. You can get them at Walmart, Kroger, Publix, etc

I would try giving her Cheerios, white string cheese, graham crackers sticks, ritz cracker sticks, teddy grahams, goldfish, tiny squares of ham ( you can buy it cut tiny by the lunch meat), tiny bites of chicken, raisins cut in half until you think she can handle the entire raisin, there are fruit puffs that they sell in the baby food aisle that my kids loved, top shelf of the baby food aisle. They melt in their mouth. HOpe some of these help, they can lead you to other ideas. :o)

W.

We're big fans of the Playtex sippy cups. WE tried the Avent sipper top that fits on the bottles but he couldn't quite get that one. THe first sippy cup we used was the Nubby cups that are about 2.00 at walmart. They're easier to get the hang of but if left on their side, liquid will leak out of the slatts int he "nipple/sucker thing". But Playtex sippy cups (about 4-5.00 a piece) are indestructible and haven't leaked in over a year and a half that we've used them.

Veggies,--- we got the mesh feeders at Target. They are little mesh bags with handles that you can put food in and they gnaw on the bags so they get the taste and nutrients but no big peices. You can put anything in there. Frozen bananas and apples are great for teething.

As far as finger foods - peas, cooked carrots that are soft, corn, green beans that have been cooked to death and arent stringy, tiny peices of broccoli ( you can get the broccoli bits in a frozen bag at the store and boil them til their soft), cauliflour chopped up small and cooked til soft, ground beef, chunk chicken cut up really small (my son wasn't crazy abot the texture ofthis)

hope you find some stuff that works!

Nuby sippy cups were my favorite.

As for foods, cucumbers are great! They have baby cucumbers with very thin skin and tiny seeds at most stores now.
My daughter likes all veggies, especially ripe bell peppers, steamed broccoli, steamed sugar snap peas (really good nutritionally speaking and sweet enough for them to still like them), and carrots. You name it, she eats it. We have tired everything (including one of her all time favorites--BEETS) and we just tell her, "Here is your favorite, ____, Yum! Yea! You get to eat ____! The power of suggestion is a parent's best tool in fostering healthy eating habits in their children.

What about pasta with chunky tomato sauce? We just put it on the tray and my daughter likes to pick it up. But it can be a little messy. You could try flavoring sweet potatoes with cinnamon to see if she'll try that. You can just put pieces of it on the tray for her to pick up. I have disguised some veggies (like raw tomatoes)in plain yogurt. Since she also likes cheese, you could try mac n chees with little pieces of brocolli.

Re: finger foods

At that age my son LOVED the baby pancakes from wholesomebabyfood.com. (If the web site does not still have the recipe, let me know and I'll type it in.) You can use a variety of fruits or vegetables in them and by making them small, they are perfect finger foods. What I would do is make a batch on the weekend and freeze them then pull out a few every night to defrost for the next day. So easy, I really recommend them.

Good luck!

Wow, a mom with the same things I am going through! I have a 20 month old daughter who loves to feed herself, especially cheese. I have to mash up vegtables so they will stick to the food she will eat. I like using lima beans. Try cereal too. It has good fiber that will help her poop as too much cheese can back babies up. As far as a sippy cup, I love Playtex. The cup is very spill resistent. I have seen them in red, green and blue. (nothing pink or yellow for a girl) They have shapes and vegtables on them and also it teaches spanish words. It is sold at walmart for about $5.00, but absolutly worth it!

she sounds just like my daughter! super independent!! she loves hotdogs (of course, they are the #1 choking hazard for kids). i take all the casing off and then cut them up lengthwise and again into smaller pieces. she loves what i call english peas, sweet peas whatever. they come in the shiny silver can, laseurs (??spelling). they're easy for her to pick up. she loves oatmeal. she eats a lot of gerber graduate products. some friends of mine give their kids pediasure to make sure they get the nutrients they need, but i'm not sure of the age to start.
most sippy cups do leak, but some aren't as bad. i love the gerber sip n smile! she also has some dora big kid cups by munchkin that don't leak as bad. good luck! and please share anything u learn about feeding! my little one is soo picky!

Have you tried raw or canned fruits? Raisins? Of course Cheerios & graham or animal crackers make fine finger foods.

About the Avent cups -- they SHOULDN'T leak, should they? If it's at the spout, I don't know what to do, but if it's at the screw-on threads, there's a way I ALWAYS line up threads (on flashlight battery covers, jar lids, hoses attached to spigots, etc).

Set the lid on as visibly straight as you can and turn it BACKWARD til you hear (or feel) a slight 'click'. This aligns the threads. THEN twist it on clockwise. Should help!

Have you tried Hominy? I't pretty good...just use a lot of butter :)
Try the Nuby cups (very cheap) at Wal-Mart. They have a slow or fast flow of liquid depending on the way you position the plastic thing in the lid! Mine haven't leaked yet. But I think they all will leak over time as things wear out from being in the dishwasher. That's why I like to buy the cheap ones!

We were using Playtex two handed sippies at that point in time and they didn't have any leaking problems. As for finger foods, we fed her cheerios (or generic version), goldfish crackers and Graduates cereal and fruit bars. She also liked the little puffs that melt in the mouth (there's a Gerber version and Wal-Mart makes a Parent's Choice version) and still eats the Graduates yogurt melts. The little puffs come in different flavors including fruit and cheese.

My daughter is 14 mos and she loves italian green beens. They are larger so they are easy for her to pick up and they aren't as messy as regular green beans. Gerber makes a lot of easy to pick up toddler foods that taste like the real fruit or veggie. You might try those to see what she likes. I have always tried to feed my girls what my husband and I are eating for our meals so that when they are older you aren't making a different meal for everyone. They learn quickly to eat what they are given. As for Sippy cups, I have found that Gerber makes a good started cup with handles. It is mostly spill proof as long as they don't bang it upside down. Milk spills more than juice. My older daughter uses Playtex and always has. I have some cups that are almost 3 years old and they still don't spill (don't put soft drinks in, they will fizz out the top). Good luck!

Hi J.~
We're starting to feel the wrath of the pickiness as well. My 14 month old likes smoothies, so I make him a toful smoothie. I use extra firm tofu about an ounce, then an orange veggie like carrots or squash, then I put a fruit in like apples or pears, a little milk, cinnamon and a little curry, puree it and he loves it. It's hard to get him to eat his veggies now. He used to love them. You may have to puree the veggies (like the consistency of stage 2 foods) then hide it in let's say mac and cheese or lasagna. She will never taste it and then you get to sneak in extra nutrients. I know there are recipe books that give tips on getting the kids to eat their veggies. More often kids want to eat what they see you eat. Maybe try (if you haven't already) eating the same meal as your little one, this may encourage her to eat if she sees you eating the same thing.
As far as sippies, I used the Gerber brand from day one. It seemed to work for us so I didn't try other brands. I don't use the valve so if my son drops it it does leak from the spout a little, but I haven't noticed leaking from around the lid.
Good luck, P.

We have tried several different kinds of sippy cups, but now we only use Nuby. They are great!
My little granddaughter, who is 13 months, loves things she can feed herself. Her favorites are tiny cubes of turkey, peas, and carrots. Get the deli department at your grocery store to slice a piece of turkey about 1/4 in. thick, and then take it home and cut it into tiny cubes. We get the frozen mixed peas and carrots. You can steam them until just tender, and then she can eat them with her fingers. Happy eating!

Dr. Brown's sippy cups are fantastic. I have 23 month old that used them until just recently. Dr. Brown's is also a good company. I called them once to ask if we could just get replacement lids and they sent me 2 new cups. They have great customer service. We just switched to SIGG aluminum bottles and my son loves them. They have different lids, fun bottles, and accessories. You can get carrying straps and coozie type insulators. Luckily, we don't have a picky eater. At times, he is sporadic and I have just had to learn to not worry quite so much. If I make him a sandwich or something and tell him "it's like mommy's" he will usually eat it. Maybe try chex mix, cereal, softer cracker with peanut butter, raisins, mini bagels (cut up), etc. Keep trying veggies, too. Green beans are easy to eat with tiny fingers. I hope this helps. Sincerely, T.

Playtex sippy cups are the best imo.

Hi J.,
I have a 17 month old who is picky when it comes to veggie's too. My son loves eggs and cheese so I sneak in veggie's by making quiche. I've made brocoli/chicken and spinach quiche for him and he loved them both. Also, I've cut up steamed brocoli in really small pieces and mixed it up with macaroni and cheese...he doesn't even notice the brocoli.
The only veggie that he eats plain is sweet potatoes. I bake them and aprinkle a little cinnamon...he loves it.
Also, have you tried avocado? My son loves it!!! But, technically it's a fruit.

I like steaming carrots so they are softer to chew for my little girl. Also I am sure you have tried fruits, but they are great for picking up.... like pears, pineapple, watermelon, cantelope, peaches, mandarin oranges, tangerines--just make sure seeds are out, etc.

Good luck :)

Sippy cups, I feel like give them all a month or two--including Nubby! and they all leak. I am just looking for a sippy cup with more of an opening than three tiny holes to get the drink out.

Does she eat oatmeal? If so I used to mix fruits/veggies into my daughters oatmeal when she was little. This seemed to work. Now we have a rule that she is older, she must try everything atleast three times before deciding she doesn't like it. She hasn't really decided lately she doesn't like anything. She has turned out to be a really good eater. Good luck . M., Durham

I've have the best lot with the large Gerber sippy cups for not leaking. The small 2 handle ones all seem to eventually leak around the lid not the spout so ended up tossing all the small ones. I've never had this problem with the bigger ones though.
By this age my son was eating what we ate for the most part, set aside before seasoning etc was added. He also enjoyed the gerber toddler meals. The veggies were the right bite size for him. He loved the ravioli best.

Keep offering a small amount of new foods, but offer the same new food at least three days in a row, as well as trying again at a later date. Little ones prefer familiarity, and it takes numerous tries for it to become "familiar" to them.

I have used the First Years Insulated Cups since my son was about 10 or 11 months old and he is still using them. I only had one problem in the last 8 months with one lid that my son poked his finger through the sippy hole and ruined it. But they are great! I just throw them in the dishwasher to clean. As far as a picky eater, most days I feel like I have the worst even at 18 months. He will eat grilled cheese, mac & cheese, club cracker sticks, Jr. Lunchables (which I usually break the meat and cheese up even more for him), fruit cups ( I get the ones with no sugar added or the 100 calorie by Del Monte), sweet potato fries, Gerber cereal bars, Eggo French Toast sticks....maybe those are a few ideas. I haven't read the other responses so I may be duplicating. Also, on days where I feel as if he has not ate anything of substance, I give him some V8 V-fusion or Green Goodness from Bolthouse Farms (which someone from Mamasource had recommended to me.) The Green Goodness is found in the PRODUCE section at the grocery store. Wal-Mart carries it and you can look on their website to find other stores that carry it in your area.