Why does my toddler feed me?

Toddlers are beautiful creatures to be around. Having to take care of a toddler is the most exciting job you will ever have. There is just a lot to learn when bringing a baby up. You get to learn about their reactions to different situations, their unspoken language; you get to differentiate their interests at different times, among many other kinds of stuff. Does your toddler feed you? If no, you should know, sometimes toddlers try feeding their mothers or baby sitters. The article will take you through reasons as to why a toddler may want to feed you. Please read it and expand your knowledge of toddlers.

1. Your toddler might be imitating you.

While at around eight months old, toddlers can mimic simple expressions and actions by the surrounding people. Therefore, as you feed your toddler, he/she will monitor what you do, and the next time he/she will surprise you. From time to time, he or she will try feeding you as well. He/she might even mess the food you are feeding him or her trying to get some to feed you. Some try grabbing the whole dish or the spoon having in mind they will manage to feed you as you do.

2. Your toddler doesn’t want to eat.

A baby might not want to eat due to many reasons. Such as; he or she does not like the food; he or she might not be in the mood to eat anything. The baby might have his/her mind focusing on a different activity like watching. So, once such distractions occur to the toddler, he/she becomes reluctant to eat. The toddler has no option of saying no by the use of words. So the toddler might try feeding you as well, to show you he/she does not want to eat.

3. Your toddler wants to play.

We would never get to tell what a toddler is thinking. In most of the cases, toddlers make moves we did not expect. When in a good mood, he or she will play with anything at reach. The reason as to why you will try feeding him or her, but the toddler would not lie there and eat. Instead, he will try to reciprocate. Which means he or she is trying to find a way to get you playing with him or her. Then the toddler considers feeding you part of the play, hoping you will find it fun too. You may realize when you stop, the toddler might start crying because he/she is hurt.

4. Toddlers may grow curious about the feeding process.

We all can agree toddlers are curious creatures, most especially when they start being able to move around. May it be by crawling or walking. You will find them busy at different parts of the house doing a lot of stuff all by themselves. It is because they are trying to figure out how something works. The same case with them, trying to feed you. It is because the toddler wants to know how the process of feeding another person happens.

5. The toddler is not hungry.

Having a full stomach is a great feeling. The toddler might be full already, and all he or she wants is to rest or maybe sleep. So when you come to get the toddler to eat more, the toddler might decide to start feeding you as well. By doing so might be having two meanings. The toddler might want to feed you, for you to get the great feeling of a full stomach. Or, the toddler might be sending an, “I have had enough” message to you.

6. The toddler might be idle.

Usually, toddlers do not get to move all their bodies at once. As they grow, different parts of their bodies become active at other times and stages. In most cases, hands are among the first body parts to become movable in a baby’s body. All the toddlers want to get the active organ of their body, doing something. So when he or she starts feeding you, it is because the hands are idle. He or she has nothing else to do with his or her hands ending up keeping them busy by feeding you.

7. Feeding you may be your toddler’s way of saying, “I love you!”

Regardless of their tender ages, toddlers display a particular connection between them and their mothers. So, toddlers care for their parents or the people around them. Trying to feed them, means he or she is finding a way to express love and care for his or her people. The toddler is trying to make sure the people around him or her, receive the care and love from him. Therefore he or she tries reciprocating the feeding.

8. Your toddler obsesses on the feeding activity.

Due to the inability to move the whole body at once, toddlers end up having few activities they can engage in. The reason why you will find them obsessing one of the activities they can carry out. Your baby might obsess on feeding you since it is the activity they can carry out comfortably.

9. The toddler wants to be in control of the feeding activity.

Leave alone wanting to understand how a specific activity takes place. Toddlers also love being in a position whereby they can initiate a process of an activity taking place and make all the decisions. A toddler will feed the mother or the baby sitter in order to be able to monitor the whole feeding process and all it entails. The toddler will stretch their hands to grab the spoon or the dish in which you have put the food. If you are getting the toddler drinking water, the toddler will stretch the hands to reach the glass or cup of water to have it in his/her arms. It is all because the toddler wants to feel like they are in control. It is especially true considering they have seen you feeding them and controlling the whole process hence they want to do the same thing.