What to Feed a 13 Month Old...

Updated on July 07, 2013
A.Y. asks from Cape Coral, FL
17 answers

I took my daughter to the doctor the other day and i was asking what I should be feeding her. She is 17.5 lbs...a very petite baby and has five of her front teeth. The doctor really just told me to feed her anything but that didn't really help much. I'm looking more of how much to feed her and what foods to feed her. She still needs softer foods because she doesn't have many teeth. I'm just wondering what your meal plans for your kids are and some ideas on what to feed her. She loves to eat but when it comes to getting her food I draw a blank. I know cut up soft fruits and veggies...she eats puffs and cheerios and goldfish...ive been giving her the chunky baby food and oatmeal but I want to start giving her more table food. As far as breakfast, lunch and dinner i want to make sure i'm feeding her enough. I just need a meal plan to figure out how much and what i should be feeding her. I just don't want to leave her hungry. I tried scrambled eggs and she hates them. I just don't know what i should try with her.

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D.D.

answers from Pittsburgh on

I think you are over-thinking this. Babies have tough gums, they can eat almost anything even without teeth.

Pasta, green beans, cooked carrots, pieces of chicken or beef cut very small, ground beef - with the exception of something like a raw carrot or an apple, I'm having trouble thinking of things a 13 month old can't eat.

As for how much to feed her, put a variety of foods on her tray and let her feed herself until she's full. When she stops feeding herself and is just playing with the food instead of eating it, she's full.

5 moms found this helpful
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J.G.

answers from Chicago on

By 12 months they should be eating what you eat, just in a form they can manage.

Why do you eat? Just give her some.

No honey.

Try some cheese on eggs. All, it's takes 12-15 times for anyone to acquire th taste for something, so jus keep on giving her the eggs. She will eventually eat them.

3 moms found this helpful

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B..

answers from Dallas on

She doesn't need softer foods. Babies don't even need teeth to eat most things. Your doctor is right, feed her whatever you are eating. Just be careful with salt. Don't add salt to her food. She doesn't need the sodium. She will NOT feed herself until she pukes. Babies are very good at self regulating. Give her food, and when she starts throwing, playing, or seeming uninterested...she is done.

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L.A.

answers from Austin on

We fed out child mini versions of what we ate.
Rice, Spanish, Chinese , brown...., beans whole, mashed..., salad vegetables, cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, lettuces, I made sure these were small pieces... cooked veggies (steamed in the beginning). Carrots, asparagus, green beans..

Our daughter never had a canned fruit or vegetable until she was in school.

Taco meat, pieces of grilled or roasted chicken, fish, tortillas, fresh cut up fruit.
Sweet potatoes, squash, spinach, grits, scrambled eggs, potatoes, black eyed peas,
I did not give her ketchup, mayo,ranch dressings.. I wanted her to like fresh foods. As she got older, she still liked simple foods.. But at least she was not dependent on sweet or fat sauces or toppings.

I made some baby or toddler food, just in case we were eating something too spicy or she did not care for something..I froze then in ice trays, so it was easy to pop out. And let defrost or heat up lightly in the microwave,,

As a toddler. She loved bagels with cream cheese, onions and tomatoes.. We would go to the state Capitol grounds and have picnic breakfast with these bagels.. She still talks about how fun that was..

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J.☯.

answers from Springfield on

When your doctor said you could feed her just about anything, he/she was serious. Just feed her exactly what you are eating. Be sure to cut it up for her.

You don't need to give her softer foods. Do not worry about the fact that she doesn't have back teeth yet. Babies can gum most foods. True you need to avoid really hard foods like apple pieces and raw veggies. But you can give her most other foods.

For the most part, you really can give her exactly what you are eating. I used to make a little extra of whatever I was having. Then I would put a little bit of everything on the tray and let them have at it. If I noticed a food gone, I would put more on the tray. Once they started playing or throwing food, I knew that meant they were done and I would get them down.

Don't worry about how much to feed her. Let her eat until she's done. She will let you know. Also, at this age she probably needs breakfast, snack, lunch, snack, dinner and maybe one more snack. Now, when I saw snack, that doesn't necessarily mean unhealthy. It just means generally speaking, she'll need to eat every couple of hours.

Try not to over-think this. Let her take the lead, and you will both do great!

ETA - Bug said it well. I stink at short posts!

3 moms found this helpful
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M.H.

answers from Chicago on

As long as it did not have too much salt, or seasonings (spicy) we gave it to our kids.

Yogurt,
avacado
turkey burger_cut small
soup.
eggs made different ways. My daughter is just now getting to them.
We make pancakes, put yogurt on them instead of syurp.

Just about anything.

I am not sure what type of eating you do, We do fresh/frozen veggies and fruit. Some people do canned, I am not a fan of that since there is so much salt in it.

My daugther loves diping sauce also.. if she can dip it..

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G.B.

answers from Oklahoma City on

A child this age should be eating the same foods you are eating.....

You just chop it up until it's less than 1/4 inch for each piece. She can eat all veggies that are cooked, all meats but I'd probably make the pieces even smaller and make sure to give her much smaller bites. She is on the same diet as you are if you are eating normal food.

Please google foods that are choke hazards. The list is pretty long but if you feed your child these foods they can choke to death. If you print off the list and put it up where you can see it when you're cooking then you won't forget one and feed it to her.

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T.H.

answers from Kansas City on

Yes, agreed that at that age she can eat it all! At that age my kids were eating whatever I made for dinner. For breakfast, lunch, snack, etc. you can do toaster waffles, biscuits, fruit, toast, sausages, dry cereal, oatmeal, lunch meat, hot dogs, cheese, bagels, olives, beans (just out of a can, rinse them and they are fine cold or warm), pasta, peas, hummus, crackers.

That list was my sort of go-to when my kids were that age. But honestly they can eat just about everything as long as you cut it up. Also start giving her utensils to use. She will need practice of course but should be able to master them by 2.

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D.N.

answers from Chicago on

My son is 19 months. He does not like scrambled eggs. But if I make a quesadilla and put a spoon of eggs in it, he will eat it. He also likes eggs cooked with hot dog or sausage or scrambled eggs made with beans. I buy turkey hot dogs and he loves them. He will also eat eggs in a frittata with veggies. He loves pasta and would probably eat only that if I gave it to him. Introduce her to a few foods at a time and see how she likes it. For serving size, half cup of noodles with about half cup veggies is about the serving my son eats.

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C.B.

answers from Orlando on

By the time my kids were 12m, their meals completely matched the rest of the family. I made no special cooking preparations except to cook their food a little longer if it was something that was tough or hard to digest. Whatever YOU have for breakfast, lunch and dinner she should have too. Smash it with the back of a fork or give it a quick pulse in the food processor if she doesn't have much experience with solids and finger food yet. My youngest got teeth very late...teeth actually aren't necessary for babies to eat a good diet. :)

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D.K.

answers from Pittsburgh on

We fed DS whatever we were eating - cooked until soft if necessary. So breakfast might be cereal, milk and berries, or whole grain pancakes with melon, or scrambled eggs, whole wheat toast and banana. Lunch might be hummus with veggies (carrots, broccoli, pea pods) and fruit. Dinner might be grilled fish, a veggie and fruit for dessert.

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A.A.

answers from Tulsa on

When my son was starting to eat solids, we would frequently give him the sides of whatever I was making for dinner if the main course was something that he woudn't be able to mash. Most of the time, cooked veggies and fruits, rice, small pieces of bread, shredded cheese (or small cubes as long as it's soft), etc. If we were having pasta or something with ground meat then he got that too. After he got his first set of molars we added shredded or very small pieces of chicken. For lunch he also has always been a fan of lunch meat, I would rip it into little pieces and he could pick them up and feed himself. Favorite fruits include peaches, mandarin oranges (get the kind in 100% juice if you buy canned), pears, bananas, applesauce, blueberries (although I'd wait awhile before trying these), mangoes, plums, and strawberries. He also loves hummus with crackers or pita bread. I've never been one to prepare a whole different meal just for one kid! As long as you make sure that it is in small enough pieces and is soft enough for her to eat without molars she will let you know what she can/likes to eat. As far as how much, you just give her a few pieces at a time, if she eats those and wants more then give her some more. Listen to her cues, she'll let you know when she's had enough! If she doesn't like something, give it another shot in a few weeks.

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M.F.

answers from Houston on

When my kids were that age for breakfast I would feed them sliced bananas, cut up strawberries, blueberries, Cheerios, scrambled eggs, yogurt or a whole waffle. For lunch would be applesauce, fruit, sliced cheese stick, sliced turkey deli meat, a baby food pouch, or crackers. For dinner whatever we were having. Usually pasta with veggies or shredded chicken. Oatmeal is also good, I also bought organic cereal bars(they have Sesame Street on them) for a snack. Hope this gives you some ideas.

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P.K.

answers from New York on

Anything you eat she can eat. Eggs, pancakes, French toast, fruit for breakfast. Lunch, cream cheese and jelly, PB and jelly, pasta, leftovers from dinner night before. My granddaughter is same age and she eats everything. Just cut it up, and put it in front of her.

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M.R.

answers from Seattle on

I used a baby food grinder for all my kids and they ate what we ate. I usually had to add a little extra water/milk/ soy to make it mushier.

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M.C.

answers from Chattanooga on

Wholesomebabyfood.com is a great resource. It has all sorts of recipes for baby foods, goes into nutritional detail of what individual foods have, when they should be introduced, how to transition to table food, recipes for biter biscuits and other toddler meals, etc. etc. etc.

My DD hated scrambled eggs too. I think it was the texture. Lol.

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K.C.

answers from Norfolk on

"Super Baby Food" by Ruth Yaron could be a great resource for you. It provides ideas for what to feed your child on a monthly basis. It also includes information about every fruit, vegetable, grain, etc., even how to prepare them. I would caution you to take what you want from the book and ignore what doesn't work for you, though.

Otherwise, a few other ideas are tofu (my kids LOVE it! and it's an awesome first food), yogurt, cheese and bread. Also, I would encourage you to give her whatever you are eating. Just chop or mash it into tiny pieces.

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