Mom Photographer and The Gang

A few months ago I read blog post @ Classy Chaos, where it was mentioned that spoon feeding isn’t a common parenting practice in the United States. American moms don’t do that? Is that right?! So, what’s not American in feeding your baby with a spoon!? Is it about how to teach them to be independent right from the start? Do American infants bake chocolate cookies and apple pies, as well?! I know that’s pain in butt to unteach them to not to be fed by the  parent anymore… but still… what do you feed your baby when it’s a few months old, and you don’t use a spoon?!

I’m just curious because these day’s I’m going through really tough times of teaching my daughter how to use a spoon and not to play with the food.

I’ve spoon feed my daughter since she was about 7 months old. She is almost 15 months and I still do that. She can eat by herself when she wants to. Most of the time her feeding style looks like that, though:

or that:

When I put plate in front of her she eats from it for a few minutes, after that she moves the food on the table and starts to eat from the table instead the plate. After a while she starts splashing and smashing and doing everything else but not eating it. All the food lands on the floor, on our dog, on me, sometimes on the walls. For the last two weeks I’ve tried to let her feed herself with the spoon. She doesn’t get that. I’m so frustrating every single time I sit to feed her. I used to work as a nanny for TWINS. From what I remember when they were 15 months they could feed themselves pretty good, and I can’t remember how I did that!!! I taught them how to use the spoon, but I can’t do that with my own child!!! Almost every single time when I let her use the spoon me and her end up in the shower. We are both covered from head to toe in food. Literally. If that’s not enough my husband just asked me when we should start teaching her manners. You know… like… when we should start teaching her that it’s not ok to play with her food, and it’s not ok to throw plates on the floor, etc. I know I let her to do that, and now I’m going to pay for that. I let her play with food thinking it’s cute and funny. The answer to my husband’s questions is… we shouldn’t let her be doing it right from the start.

But after a few times I got tired of saying: No, No, No… Don’t do that… No… Don’t… Nooooooooooo…. Pleaseee…. Nooo… .

Now we are both tired of her being such a messy eater. I mean he is tired of WATCHING her being such a messy eater. I am tired of cleaning the floor, table, myself, and my daughter 3 times (or more) a day. On the other hand the only thing I want to is to take the spoon in my hand and do not let her touch anything what looks like a spoon, or food until she is 10!!!

I don’t want that post to be so depressing and all about how tired I am of my Little One. I am, that’s for sure but which mother is not at some point?!

I just keep remind to myself that not so happy messy feeding times happen only 3 times a day. Happy dancing times and “yoga poses” times happen almost every hour or so. 🙂

Those happy times make up for those not so happy and frustrating times. When I watch her playing and dancing all the frustration and anger goes away, and I do not remember it anymore… until the next feeding time (sigh!!!)

Oh… parenting…