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Looking for inspiration for feeding your two year old? Here is a day of meals with a two year old as well as several other resources for feeding toddlers!

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Now that my little guy is two, it’s like a switch went off for him to automatically become a “big boy.” Honestly, it started a few months ago.

He wants to do everything himself – “my do it!” He doesn’t want to change into pajamas, he wants to wear his “paw patrol” shirt all day and night, he wants to pour his own milk, etc.

He doesn’t want to ride in the stroller, but also doesn’t want to walk the whole way so we are often in the middle of our walk when he voices his concerns for more autonomy, and then asks me to hold him.

I’ve learned that I have to really just be prepared for everything with a two year old tagging along.

Melt-downs, throwing food and things, screaming, hitting, hugging, loving, the whole gamut.

Fortunately, though, I have a great base, thanks to our baby led weaning. I share all of those recipes and tips in this baby led weaning ebook.

Stressed about feeding your baby?
Unsure what foods to offer?

Check out our baby led weaning ebook that has several recipes for every time of day and a sample feeding schedule!

Grab Your BLW Guide

So, let’s talk about what meals for a two year old can look like, how to weather the feeding challenges, and what you can do about it.

Many are just a bit more varied and larger than these meal ideas for one year olds.

Challenges with Feeding a Two Year Old and Toddlers

There are definitely some challenges to feeding a two year old. If you’re on this blog post, you’re probably already aware of that!

But don’t worry, I have some tips that can help with your 2 year old feeding schedule, whether you’re dealing with a picky 2-year-old or a very hungry one.

• Autonomy – Two-year-olds are now aware that they can and want to make decisions for themselves. Obviously, we know they aren’t rational decisions. But, they now understand how to say “no” to something and they like having some power! They may refuse food or meals, or even throw them on the ground.
• More selective eating – Along with the quest for autonomy, two-year-olds often become more selective. And while we are quick to label them as picky eaters, it’s actually quite a normal process. They learn to feel more comfortable with some foods more than others, and don’t understand that “waffles” are typically a breakfast food and will scream for them any time of day, for instance.
• Your toddler won’t sit still – We are still in this phase with my 25-month old. He no longer prefers his high chair (hasn’t for months) because his big sisters sit at the table. When he sits at the table, he takes one bite and is off to the next thing. It’s a challenge of being consistent, holding a boundary and sitting down together with him.

Tips for Feeding Toddlers

While you’re probably nodding your head at these challenges, here is my advice as a mom and dietitian for how to handle them.

• Be consistent. Keep offering foods even if your toddler rejects them.
• Sit down with them at meal time. Eating together as a family has so many benefits, and it really does help if they see you eating the same food.
• Serve food family style. Rather than loading food on a plate for your two year old, keep it in the middle of the table. This helps entice some curiosity and if your toddler watches you make your plate, they may be excited to “make their own” too.
• Let them help you – Enlisting toddlers’ help in the kitchen scratches that itch of “autonomy.” Of course they are more likely to try the cucumbers if they cut them themselves!
• Think ahead – If you find yourself overwhelmed at dinner time, try to make it easy on yourself. For instance, cook extra of a meal to freeze for later in the week or next week. These freezable toddler meals have made our lives much easier!

Common Schedule for a Two Year Old

Here’s what our general schedule looks like.

• Wake up – S wakes up around 7:00 am these days, which is generally right after we get his oldest sister off to the bus stop. He and H will eat breakfast together (see breakfast ideas for two year olds below) and then I’ll throw on a fleece and drop them off at their daycare/pre-K school.
• Snack – Around 10:30am, we’ll have a small snack. This is usually an orange with pistachios, a DIY yogurt pouch, beef jerky, or something else. Nothing too big to spoil lunch!
• Lunch – Lunch is generally around 12-12:30. If we’re eating at home, I’ll usually make leftovers from the night before, or prepare a scrambled egg with toast and veggies, peanut butter toast with fruit and veggies, or a yogurt parfait.
• Nap – S is generally a good napper, so I can usually depend on a nap from 1-2:45ish.
• Play and snack – The afternoon after naptime is generally a time where we’ll color, work on numbers/letters, play with trucks, go outside, etc. I’ll usually offer some sort of snack around 3:30pm, like hummus and carrots, or cucumbers and cottage cheese.
• Dinner – As most families with toddlers, we eat dinner early, around 5:30-6. We use many of these baby led weaning dinner ideas for the toddler stage, too. I’ve conditioned my kids to at least try what we eat and be served the same food. I may add a safe food or something in addition, but they are exposed to what we’re eating.

Breakfasts for Two Year Olds

Here are some common breakfasts that we rotate in our house.

• toddler waffles or frozen waffles with nut butter and fruit
• sweetpotato pancakes
• banana pear smoothie
• scrambled or hard boiled eggs with fruit
• overnight oats
• Banana peach oatmeal

Lunch for Two Year Olds

Lunches for two year olds may feel tricky, but we often do many of the same ideas as breakfast.

For instance, if my toddler had oatmeal at breakfast, I may make eggs and toast for lunch, as in the above picture.

I also include many of these ground beef recipes for toddlers and lentil recipes for toddlers because they are high in iron, which is very important for toddler growth!

Here are some other toddler lunch ideas:

• roasted sweetpotatoes with ground beef, air fryer turkey burger or chopped chicken + broccoli
• yogurt bowl with cheerios and diced fruit
• baby oatmeal cookies (no added sugars) + a smoothie
• cheese quesadilla with black beans
• leftovers from the previous nights dinner
• pasta or sweetpotato mac and cheese
• snack plate with nuts/seeds, fruit, veggies and a fat – for example, sliced almonds, berries, cucumbers and hummus for healthy fats and dipping
• baby chicken meatballs with pasta, rice or another whole grain

Dinner for Two Year Olds

As with all meals, I encourage you to try feeding your toddlers similar foods to what you’re eating, albeit, with foods cut safely and cooked thoroughly.

For example, if you’re serving burgers, you could cut the patty into small bite-sized pieces for your two-year-old, and offer ketchip or guacamole as a dipping sauce.

This list of baby led weaning dinner ideas is a great resource for dinner ideas for two year olds, too!

Here are some dinner ideas.

• Pizza beans or any bean recipes for toddlers
• meatballs – instant pot bison meatballs, toddler turkey meatballs and thai red curry meatballs
• kid-friendly soups – just make sure not too hot or spicy!
• chili – we love this pumpkin chicken chili in the fall!
• zucchini salmon fritters
• air fryer pizza bites
• I love an orzo pasta salad because they are a little thicker than rice! We do this lemon orzo broccoli salad often.
• lemon pepper baked chicken tenders – Plus all of these sides for what to serve with chicken tenders!

I hope these two year old meal ideas help spark some inspiration for you and your family!