Is He Full?

A friend anxious to become a mommy herself was feeding my son some avocado when she stopped to ask when he's had enough. I told her that he'll stop when he's done. She was a little skeptical of my answer and hesitated giving him more food, but she understood a few minutes later. He simply stopped opening his mouth when he was done.

I have observed babies of different ages and personalities express their fullness in different ways. My niece used to throw her food at the dogs when she was done. She had observed her grandma giving leftovers to the dogs, so she was doing it too. A friend's two-year-old would yell "Help baby!" when she was done eating, because she wanted out of her high chair. If you didn't help her fast enough, she would squirm to stand up and get out of her high chair herself. Younger babies may spit out food, push the spoon away, turn their heads away from the spoon, or simply keep their mouths closed when they are done eating.

Some people may think that because young children cannot talk, they cannot communicate. This is not true. All babies are able to express hunger, such as chewing on their hands. All babies old enough for solids are also able to stop eating or to stop expressing hunger when they have had enough food. Of course, understanding your own child is much easier than understanding a child you are watching temporarily. Don't let communication failure with other children's babies discourage you from having children of your own.