Re: Feeding toddlers on the ground

Thanks for replying, @Trismagistos .

I wonder how can I have access to these interactions, since without the highchair, the giving food/drink interactions are disabled for parents, nor can toddlers ask for food/drinks. In The Sims 3 toddlers can be given bottles on the ground.

Thanks.

@agirlove I just tested it with a small family of two. Young adult mother and her toddler. I still had this family in my library. I had the toddler pick her own food (portion) and she just sat on a chair in the living room.

There is a highchair in the kitchen as you can see on the screenshot. I guess that when there is no low chair available the toddler will sit on the ground.

So, you can select the toddler and click on the food. Then you will be able to select get a portion. The toddler will pick up a plate and search for a suitable place to eat.

Edit: I found another thread that also includes the difficulties with the highchair. Maybe you are interested in this thread too. @PugLove888 has the same experience in Solved: Sims 4 toddlers controlling adults - Answer HQ (ea.com)

Have fun playing. 😉

@agirlove , yes like @Trismagistos  stated Toddlers will usually go to a chair if is is available. 😊 Just set out the food (either individual serving or the whole platter) on a counter or table and the toddler will pick it up (even if it seems to high for them to reach) and take it to the nearest empty chair that isn't pulled up to a table.  If family is in another room of the house , the toddler will often eat in that room, even sitting on a bed!  😄

I've been doing this method since shortly after toddlers were brought into the game because the highchairs are evil!  They result in lack of sleep and increases hunger because all the teens and older Sims in the house all try to put them in the highchair at the same time, then when one of them is getting them their food, another teen or older Sim will take them out of the highchair because the toddler is tired.  So you keep having to try over and over until the toddler is at exhaustion, and near starvation! 😠😭  I know @SheriGR  does the same as I do because we both have talked about how impossible the highchairs are😓, but we both love playing families! 🥰

Also, if you have the Movie Hangout Stuff Pack, there is a popcorn machine that keeps the popcorn fresh forever (until you grab a bowl ) making this an excellent source of food for toddler Sims!  So if you have this pack and have a busy household, it is always nice to pop some popcorn and let it sit in the popper and then have your toddler grab a bowl when your Sims are too busy to cook! 😉

Thanks for replying, @Trismagistos @PugLove888 ,

Preparing regular foods on the counter and let toddlers grab them is what I usually do to feed the toddlers. However sometimes I want my toddlers have toddler foods and sippy cup drinks, it seems that highchairs are required.

I also found that when adults using check toddler interaction, toddlers are brought to highchairs when they are hungry. When there are no highchair in the house or they are in public lots, adults cannot feed toddlers. Highchairs sometimes are inefficient on feeding toddlers and end up a ravenous and exhausted toddler.

I still hope that EA can make toddler foods and sippy cups non-highchair-exclusive in the future.

Thanks for the suggestion about the popcorn machine, @PugLove888 . I'll try.

@agirlove , yes, I agree ... the sippy cups are so cute!😍  And I love the idea of the highchair, just not the implementation!  So I too wish they could fix this somehow.  Especially if you take your toddler out to the park or to a festival! 😎  With the upcoming Cottage Living EP there will be picnic baskets... it would be wonderful if we could pack our baskets with sippy cups and toddler food!🥰 But I don't know if that feature will be included or not. 🤷‍♀️

@agirlove Another helpful way to deal with feeding toddlers that may help in 'on the go' situations for you, as a backup, is to drag foods that don't spoil into their inventory. A bowl/s of popcorn and fruit/veggies work for this. Also, @MapleSimmer pointed out to me that there's actually a buff for apples (maybe it was making them happy - which is always helpful for a hungry toddler). You can also leave them around the house. Then, when your toddler is hungry and the household is in chaos or whatever craziness is causing an issue, you can open the toddler's personal inventory, click on and queue up one or two of these items for the toddler to eat, and they will feed them selves, so to speak.

I have occasionally used a high chair in a household with only one adult/teen (to avoid the musical chairs torment @PugLove888 mentioned), because it's true, it is nice that sometimes the adult will autonomously stick the hungry toddler in the chair and feed them for the reasons you mentioned. If you do, though, I would still keep a close eye on it. Good luck! 🙌

@SheriGR , thanks for giving the information on keeping fruits and veggies in the toddlers inventory.🙌  I was going to mention that, but i sidetracked myself with mentioning the popcorn and forgot! 🤦‍♀️😅
@agirlove  the only problem with keeping produce in the toddlers inventory is that occasionally it will "spill out" onto the floor and you will have to pick it up and put it back in the toddler's inventory.  Not a big deal, just something to look out for! 😉

@PugLove888 and @SheriGR I tend to fill toddlers' inventories with all sorts of fruits, grapes, strawberries etc. They can eat all that food. I hardly prepare special meals for toddlers. Their great, great, great grandfather (who is still alive and kicking) is a master chef and only prepares the highest quality fresh food so, it is no problem. The food will not decay. The only problem is that occasionally the inventories of toddlers are emptied by the parents. That can be a nuisance when the toddler is also a spellcaster.  The glimmerstone can end up in fathers' or mothers' inventory and can't be culled.  But hey, who cares. 😎

The issue with fruits/veg going on the ground was supposed to be fixed in Patch 1.75.125/ 1.42 and I’ve not noticed it happening since then.

I have never noticed toddlers misbehaving when you feed them without a high chair. I had noticed them misbehaving the few times I’ve used a high chair in the past (the toddler throws the food on the ground).

I pretty much never use high chairs because of sims taking toddlers in and out of them. I just put seating in the kitchen /dining room area for the toddlers to sit on while they eat. I often pull a chair out from the table and they’ll sometimes sit there and eat with the others. I just keep family meals in the fridge, drag them to where the toddler is and tell them to grab a serving and put the food back in the fridge. As others have suggested I also keep fruit and veg in my toddlers inventory and have the toddlers eat them when they get really hungry, at least enough to tide them over until they get a meal. I did the same with the grilled cheese ready to eat from Jungle Adventures, but they are pretty pricey and awkward to get, so I stopped. Even though I don’t use high chairs, my toddler sims sometimes get a hold of sippy cups anyway, I find them annoying as it can interfere with them eating real food (something I especially notice in my Drifter Challenge where I usually can only control the main sim), though I’ve noticed sippy cups at least fill them up now, they didn’t in the past.  😊

Best regards,

Jennifer

@MapleSimmer , thank you for reminding me of the update that fixed the toddler's inventories! 😇 I haven't played much with toddlers since that update, since I've been experimenting with the newer packs' gameplay, and not much of that is geared toward toddlers, so I actually forgot all about that fix in the update! 🤦‍♀️😅  I always like to keep produce in their inventories since it can curb their appetites, and I've found it to be extra helpful in large houses where it might take them a long time to make it to the kitchen, especially if they have to go down a staircase! 😉  Sometimes I do drag the food from the fridge to where they are, but if I want them to eat in the kitchen area with the rest of the family, I might give them an apple, or parsley, or grapes to tide their hunger over until they can make it downstairs to eat with the family! 

I've also never noticed toddler misbehaving from not eating in the highchair... in fact, like you, I have only noticed them misbehaving while in the highchair by throwing food or tantrums just like you stated. 😅