This weekend I was watching a YouTube star’s “What I Eat in a Day” video. (The things I do to unwind during quarantine. 🤷♀️) And I thought, “Now, I could do that!”
Well…not a video. But a blog post about what my 19-month-old daughter eats in a day – with the added twist of her 5 major food allergies.
So here we are: A typical day in the life of what my daughter eats.
And please comment below: What does a typical day in the life look like for you? Then we can all get ideas from each other!
7:30am: Clementines + Play Time with Daddy
My daughter wakes up around 6:30/7:00 each day. (It’s funny how often her schedule changes. Just a couple weeks ago she was waking up at 5am each day, and it felt like it would never end!)
She has some quality Daddy time while I sleep a little longer. (SO THANKFUL.) Around 7:30, she walks over and knocks on the fridge, signaling that she’s hungry. Daddy cuts up a clementine and they share it. Sometimes she eats half a clementine, and other days she eats three of them!
9:00am: Oatmeal + Books with Mommy
They come upstairs to wake me up around 8:30, when my husband has to start working. (Man will I miss that extra sleep when he can no longer work from home! It’s been the silver lining on our COVID quarantine.)
My daughter and I get dressed, go downstairs and snuggle up on the couch. We read books while sharing a bowl of oatmeal. I mix in a heaping spoonful of Sunbutter, a small puddle of maple syrup and about 1/8 cup of plain oat milk. Sometimes my daughter only eats a few bites; other days she gobbles up most of the oatmeal and I have to make myself another bowl.
11:15am: Lunch + Music Time
Somewhere between 11 and 11:30, my daughter starts to seem low-energy. That’s how I know she’s ready for lunch. Some days I give her leftovers from dinner the night before. (I talk about that more in my 5-day allergy-friendly meal plan!)
Our other go-to lunchtime staple is simply this: One over-hard egg, fresh strawberries and steamed broccoli (tossed in olive oil and salt). When I have some ready-made in the freezer, I also include a homemade buckwheat waffle square with Earth Balance Soy-Free Buttery Spread on top. (I’ve tried offering toast when I don’t have waffles, but my daughter isn’t a fan.)
Sometimes she only eats a few bites; other times she gobbles it all up.
While she eats, she sits in her high chair and listens to a Super Simple Kids Songs playlist on YouTube. This is her favorite part of mealtime. My favorite part of meal time is that she’s in her high chair and so I can finally clean my kitchen!!
12:30pm: Pre-Nap Snack
Just before her 1:00 nap time, she drinks a sippy cup full of warm oat milk. I use the plain oat milk, but I mix in a drizzle of pure maple syrup. She usually eats a few bites of Earth’s Best Whole Grain Multi-Grain Baby Cereal as well. It’s organic, non-GMO and super easy. You just mix it into some warm water. She drinks and eats while we read books before nap time.
3:30pm: Post-Nap Snack
After her nap, we have a snack. Some days that’s breastmilk. We’re working on weaning (which has been quite the process, but that’s another story for another time…), and she’s finally down to nursing just once every other day. (Woohoo!! Weaning, I’m coming for you! I can almost taste the cheese!*)
*My daughter is extremely allergic to dairy, so I’ve had to eat dairy-free too. The reason I’m so excited to wean her is because I used to live on dairy and I MISS CHEESE SO MUCH.
On the days when she doesn’t nurse, she has a little snack while we cuddle and watch videos of my daughter on my phone – which is her all-time favorite thing to do. Usually the snack is something like canned green beans or black olives or apple slices. Some days she’ll have some crackers or more warm oat milk too.
5:30pm: Family Dinner
We try to eat dinner as a family, but it doesn’t always work out that way. It depends on when my husband finishes work and how hungry my daughter is. But when possible, we eat together because she LOVES it. It’s the only meal we actually eat at the table in her big girl chair.
If you’re curious about some of the dinners I like to make, check out these blogs:
- 6 Easy + Yummy Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free Dinners
- My 5-Day Meal Plan for Toddlers with Food Allergies
- Our Favorite Allergy-Friendly Salads
- 5 Delicious + Allergy-Friendly Soups
7:00pm: Pre-Bed Snack
My daughter goes down to bed around 7:30 each night, but we start her bedtime routine at 7:00. We used to feed her peaches with coconut yogurt for her bedtime snack, but now she eats a bowl of Earth’s Best Whole Grain Multi-Grain Baby Cereal and drinks water instead.
(I used to give her the yogurt because I felt like she needed more fat in her diet – and to help fill her up before bed, but now that she’s eating so much more real food, I think she’s finally getting enough fat during the day. So I’ve switched her snack to the oatmeal because it has less sugar in it.)
And that’s a typical What-I-Eat-in-a-Day for my allergy baby!
As always, please comment YOUR “what I eat in a day” below. I’d love to hear your ideas for allergy-friendly meals and snacks!
XOXO,
Tiffany Dawn
That Allergy Mama 