My Toddler Eats As Much As a Teenager!

Y'all... my kiddo, 15 months to the day and without a doubt, eats like a teenager.

Kay, maybe I'm exaggerating, but this child truly eats more than I do at some meals, and with the exception of his Michelin Man arm rolls, I don't know where he is putting it!

We started introducing Bubs to baby cereal and purees slightly before he turned 6 months. We quickly transitioned to the ever-popular "Baby Led Weaning" (BLW) feeding method and he was living his best life! Our first foods were banana and scrambled eggs, which turned into steam-roasted sweet potatoes and steak! As I'm writing this, I'm thinking, "Man, maybe we're to blame for his incredible appetite now!" LOL

We've always joked that "He is happy when he is eating", and that is so true! I swear half the pictures on my phone are of him eating!

When Bubs was born, we committed to trying baby sig language with him. We started with the basics: eat, more, all done. When he started eating solids, these signs became easier and easier to integrate into our days. Today, he signs to "eat" or for ":more" constantly! Walking past the kitchen, he signs that he wants to eat, he sees a banana in the fruit basket, he signs "more" and has started to say "nana!". I'm afraid we've created a monster!

All of the meals and snacks we give to Bubs, we try to incorporate healthy grains/starches, protein, fat, and veggies or fruit. We are so incredibly lucky that he loves fruits and veggies (for now!!). He is so happy to get a cucumber or some berries to snack on while we're cooking dinner. He even snacked on his cucumber while we handed out Halloween treats! Poor kid looked deprived with his boring cucumber! haha

As a way to try keep him fuller for longer, I have started to incorporate vegan protein powder into his baked goods like muffins, pancakes, waffles, etc. We love Arbonne protein (not sponsored, just genuinely love the products!) because it bakes/cooks into things so easily, it tastes great, and has no gross/weird texture. I also love it because I can tolerate it. Throughout my pregnancy I developed an allergy to traditional protein powders - specifically whey and casein. So with Arbonne being a vegan, pea protein, I am able to tolerate it without getting sick.

We've been adding the protein into Bubs' breakfasts for a few months now and he absolutely loves it! I have lots of fun making him shaped and flavoured pancakes, and have recently started making him mini Bubs-sized pancakes.

This weekend I made him banana stuffed pancakes. So easy and fun to make, he gobbled them up before I could even get a picture!

I just mix up batter using one part pancake mix and one part protein powder. I mix in one egg, some extra virgin olive oil, and water until I get the right consistency. You'll learn, I hate following a recipe! haha

Drop a small bit of batter onto your hot pan, put a slice of banana on the batter, then cover it with a little bit more batter... voila!

Why is everything so much more fun when it's small-size?!

xo.Meg