Feeding time blues

(From the Nov. 12 issue of the Citizen)

My daughter Cheilin is officially a toddler. Gone are her infancy days of doing nothing but sleeping, eating and pooping.

Now I have a headstrong, temperamental, picky, active little girl running all over the place and keeping me super busy.

One thing that has been the most difficult lately is feeding time. Cheilin used to be so easy to feed, eating pretty much whatever I fed her.

Since she was a little late teething, not getting her first teeth until she turned 10 months old, I had to mush up everything I fed her.

Up until about two weeks ago, she would eat porridge with a variety of vegetables and chicken breast blended together. It was homemade, usually made by my mom, who babysits.

She must have gotten bored of it, because now she refuses to touch the stuff.

At 14 months old, she still only has six teeth, four on top and two on the bottom. So even though she is ready to venture into more solid foods, I am afraid to feed them to her because I am still trying to figure out what she can and cannot chew.

So I have tried a variety of other foods for her to taste. It is tough because she loves snack foods, but I need her to eat meals. She needs nutritional foods and meals to get her through the day, not little crackers and yogurt.

And that is my dilemma. I do not know what to feed her. She is too old for pureed baby food and too young to eat regular table food.

I have read on various mother networking sites that many mothers feed their children whatever they happen to be eating.

I have tried that and it does not work with Cheilin. She likes her veggies and I think they make great snacks, but I cannot seem to find the right meals.

I have tried rice, pasta, mashed potatoes, Vienna sausages and many other foods, and she pretty much stops after a few bites. To make matters worse, she is determined to feed herself. Trust me when I say that does not bode well.

I guess it is still a learning process, even if she is my second child. I have been through this before, yet I am stumped.

Feeding Cheilin used to be something I looked forward to, now it is something dread. The fighting, screaming and the mess all take their toll. If she does not like something, she spits it out or she throws it. I am surprised I do not have food hanging from my ceiling.

So I guess I will continue on this little journey of finding the right food for my little girl. In the meantime, I am not too proud to say that I will welcome all suggestions.