Baby and toddler eating habits can be super messy. Expect food everywhere. Food in your hair, your baby's hair, the highchair, and food on the floor or the carpet.
Use these clever mealtime hacks and strategies to make feeding a baby less of a disaster. It will also save you time, and that will help you and your family enjoy your dinners more.
Tips on How to Feed a Baby without Mess
Use Lid Containers for Snacks
Foods like crackers and popcorn are great snacks for toddlers because they are small, no-mess, and snacks on the go, but toddlers will be toddlers. So instead, use a lidded snack trap, especially at someone else's house. Your toddler can walk around with it and doesn't have to worry about the giant mess.
Serve Small Portions
If you serve your small child pieces of food on a highchair table, it will not make a big mess like having a bowl of pasta. It can be less overwhelming, giving messy eaters less food to play with. You may want to use a silicone feeder whenever you go out. All you have to do is place fresh or frozen food inside the feeder for your little one to enjoy.
Save Your Floor
You can put your baby in a highchair on a mat that is easy to clean. Vinyl rugs are better than unique baby mats that are too small to absorb the mess. It keeps little food pieces like rice from getting stocked on the floor. It will be easier to clean and disinfect after they are done eating.
Use Toddler Utensils
Toddler-size utensils are perfect because they are lightweight and have short and curved handles. As a result, it makes it easier for your little one to feed himself. You may also serve solid food straightforwardly on the high chair table to avoid throwing plates on the floor.
Use Silicone Pocket Bib
Silicone pocket bib keeps clothing much cleaner than a traditional bib. It is designed to stay put and catch food as it's tumbling down from your kid's mouth or hands. Another bonus is when your kid drops food into the bib pocket, he can still eat it.
Use Suction Bowls and Plates
Meal time could be neater when your baby use bowls and plates that don't slide around and are harder to tip over. These help toddlers scoop their food more neatly compared to regular plates.
Dressing Your Baby During Mealtime
Choose very comfortable clothes for your baby or toddler. Meal times should be enjoyable, and your baby will not be happy wearing itchy fabrics. It might be nice to strip your little one down to her diaper to spare your infant's closet, but it is not ideal during cold weather and outdoor eating. Having ultra-soft fabric clothes that are easy to wash and clean genuinely helps!
The Takeaway
When you are feeding your baby from a spoon, you are pretty much in control of where the food goes, but once you give him his spoon, you need to be ready for just how much mess one little person can create. Feeding a baby without a mess might seem nearly impossible, but with the helpful tips above, you should try not to worry about the mess and enjoy these special moments with your baby.