When did your LO eat "neatly"

[cricketwife]

I get that kids are messy, they spill, etc.  But when did it become not such a massive mess?  DS throws his good when he is done and/or slides his hands all across his tray when he is finished.  And it's like .5 seconds from eating nicely to throwing.  He is such a great eater so I feel lucky, but I'd like to enjoy mealtimes more. When does it start to shift to being neater/more contained mess ? 

[cjeanette]

I'll let you know when it happens.

Kidding.

Sort of.

E is nicknamed party foul for a reason.

C was probably close to 3.

E will be 7 in a month. Maybe this will be the year?

[antoniamarchette]

We still use a bib but he's definitely much neater. Just a quick wipe down after he eats. He is still in the high chair too, will be 2 in 2 weeks.

[thebreakfastclub]

Personal neatness has improved, but I still sometimes have issues with throwing cups or forks, etc. DS is 27 months. He thinks it's funny, so that's a whole other issue.

[anna7602]

I honestly can't remember. Definitely well before 3.5, my only fixed memory point for things now because that's when we moved. By then, DD was long out of a bib, out of a booster, using utensils correctly, able to go to nicer restaurants with us and sit quietly, etc. But I couldn't tell you how long before then all of those things started happening. When we went on vacation shortly before age 3, she was also eating neatly, now that I think of it. 

[meltoine]

May 21, 2015 20:21:28 GMT -5 cjeanette said:

I'll let you know when it happens.

Kidding.

Sort of.

E is nicknamed party foul for a reason.

C was probably close to 3.

E will be 7 in a month. Maybe this will be the year?

Pretty much this. 

DS1 (4) stopped throwing food off his plate around 2.5, but he still spills his cup 3-4x/week. 

[Deleted]

DS - almost 21 mo- can manage utensils better but he throws stuff all the time with no warning. Sometimes when he's finished but mostly just for fun. Tonight he kept throwing things and saying "uh oh" when they hit the ground on purpose. Uh oh is a relativey new word so I figure that's why. Sigh.

[savan]

May 21, 2015 20:21:28 GMT -5 cjeanette said:

I'll let you know when it happens.

Kidding.

Sort of.

E is nicknamed party foul for a reason.

C was probably close to 3.

E will be 7 in a month. Maybe this will be the year?

I was coming in to say the same thing.  At 6 and 8 they no longer regularly spill milk or throw food, but it's still a battle to get them to use their utensils every time and not wipe their hands and mouths on their clothes.  

[yellowbrkrd]

My kid has been refusing bibs for a long time now. It totally depends on his mood. Sometimes he will eat perfectly fine and won't make much of a mess at all. Other times he is a hot mess, food in his hair, ears, all over his shirt, pants, everywhere. He's so unpredictable.

[cincodemayo]

My kid refuses bibs so we do a lot of laundry.

[ringstrue]

Enjoying mealtime? With kids at the table?

I think they go straight from not making a mess to you having to coax them to eat and doing the airplane with the spoon and/or saying "five more bites! Three more bites!! TWO MORE FREAKIN BITES!! Oh you need it warmed up? 13 seconds in the microwave!!"

[browneyedgirl9]

May 21, 2015 20:09:50 GMT -5 cricketwife said:

I get that kids are messy, they spill, etc.  But when did it become not such a massive mess?  DS throws his good when he is done and/or slides his hands all across his tray when he is finished.  And it's like .5 seconds from eating nicely to throwing.  He is such a great eater so I feel lucky, but I'd like to enjoy mealtimes more. When does it start to shift to being neater/more contained mess ? 

Ugh this is my DS too. The second he decides he is done, he throws EVRYTHING!

[timorousbeastie]

May 21, 2015 20:41:37 GMT -5 cincodemayo said:

My kid refuses bibs so we do a lot of laundry.

DD refuses bibs, too, so she eats naked. Of course, I then need several washcloths to clean her naked self up, so I still do a lot of laundry. 

[sent]

Breathing a sigh of relief that my kid still accepts the bib at meal times. You could have the opposite problem. DD is usually not terribly messy but is also a terrible eater.  Sometimes I have to put on an entire cabaret show to get her to finish her meal.  You should see my rendition of "Be our Guest."

Though today I tried to put one of her baby bibs on her as she roamed the living room and I tried to feed her yogurt. She got so mad at the baby bib.  Toddlers bibs are ok though.  Funny kid.  

[cricketwife]

To all who have replied I say "thanks" and     

[halfpint]

B is almost 21 mos, and we've sort of stopped using a bib for most meals. Sometimes it's a shitshow, sometimes it's not so bad. Like tonight? He rubbed peaches on his nipples for like five minutes, and we're still finding raspberry seeds from yesterday's lunch. But at breakfast, you could hardly tell he'd eaten. He almost looked normal.

[babyrn]

DD is 2 and we still heavily rely on the bib. It is 99% intentional messiness though

[Deleted]

We stopped using a bib around 20 months. But even now at 3 DS is plenty messy. Anything drippy or sticky requires an outfit change. Yogurt, humus, oatmeal, anything with dipping sauce.

[whitepicketfence]

Never?

With my first, I'd say it was probably around age 3 that I could trust her to not make a complete mess at every meal.

DD2 will be 4 soon and usually looks like Pigpen from Charlie Brown after eating. I wish I were kidding. I swear she ends up looking like she went dumpster diving for her food.

[motzie]

DD1 still uses bibs half the time (2.5). Usually with yogurt or applesauce or drippy stuff. She will sometimes decide to eat her yogurt with her hands too, so that's fun. Oh, and MIL showed her how to tip her cereal bowl to get the last of the milk. Wtf. Results in a spill every time.

[gibbinator]

Pretty much from day 1 of solids. Ds1 wouldn't touch food with his hands if it was messy. He was eating with a fork very well by 14 months just because he was so determined to stay clean. We stopped using bibs around then too because he just took them off anyway. Since he was 2 he has a facecloth beside him to wipe off his hands, his place mat, his fork...

[aspentosh]

DD is 3 and we still put a bib on her. It's just easier that way. But she's been fairly tidy eater for about a year now? She's good about getting things into her mouth and she doesn't throw food for fun. She always has ketchup or sauce around her mouth, but rarely anywhere else.

[cinco]

My 8 year old spilled milk all over the kitchen floor this morning, so my guess would be never? The good news is she made that bowl of cereal on her own.

As far as not intentionally throwing food, around 2. DD2 is 3 and I still need to sweep after every meal. She has never used a bib, and is okay to wipe her face herself. My 6 year old is fine, but the 8 year old makes a ton of crumbs (which I make her sweep herself).

[gibbinator]

Just because I feeling like awing photos to prove it's kid dependant.

Ds1 after a full meal of self-fed spaghetti and tomato sauce

And... Ds2 after a few spoonfuls of prune purree. Clearly being neat and tidy is not a priority of his.

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[arch01]

Gosh, we haven't used a bib in at least a year. He's pretty reliably neat, usually if something ends up on his shirt it's because the tomatoes were extra juicy, etc. So I'd say 2.5? Maybe younger?