Make Mealtime Fun For Toddlers

Getting a toddler to eat can be a big-time struggle. One day they can’t seem to get enough food and the next day, they want nothing at all. They are at a stage when they are still learning about food- what to eat and how to eat. It is a lot for a developing mind to take in, so making mealtimes interesting can go a long way towards creating healthy eating habits and having a more relaxed meal time for the entire family.

At my home, I try various ways to make meal time fun for my little ones. In this post, I am sharing some of those tricks that have worked well for me.

Tips to make mealtime fun for toddlers

Involve your child in preparing the meal

Let them be your little assistant in the kitchen. Allow them to bring veggies out from the refrigerator or wash them or even mix the ingredients. Most kids love to cook and especially enjoy eating food that they created themselves.

Make food look interesting

Be creative with food. Cut regular paranthas in fun shapes or make a happy smiley with sauce or jam on a sandwich. Kids get excited when a simple dish is presented in a fancy way and they relish it all the more.

Rename the regular dish or serve with dips/butter/sauce

Another simple idea is to give the foods different names. My kids favorite is a dinosaur, so I call broccoli as ‘dino-trees’ or kidney beans as ‘dino-eggs’. Some toddlers also like dips or ketchup. So you can try adding different dips or peanut butter to their meals too.

Make food colourful

You can use pureed veggies to make food colourful. Make green parantha by adding spinach or pink dosa by adding beetroot or orange Idli by adding carrots. This is also a great way to sneak some more vegetables into their diet.

Get fun plates and cutlery

You can get fancy plates, spoons or bowls with your child’s favorite character printed on it. My kids have one with a picture of a lion and everytime we sit to eat, I tell them today we are having meal with lion and they get super excited with the same.

A fun mealtime can encourage a lifelong healthy attitude towards food. Never force-feed your kids and even if they play with food or create a little mess, let them do it. Try to stay calm and relaxed and make your child’s mealtime be happy and easy going.

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