Let me start off by telling you, I am NOT BEING PAID FOR THIS POST. I just think we parents need to stick together and be honest about what’s workin’ for us and what’s not, and this bib has been working for me, better than any other bib I’ve ever tried, for eight years, with three children.

Truth be told, I haven’t used the exact same bib with all of them… the dishwasher has destroyed two of my most favorite froggy bibs, but a couple weeks ago I hurried out and purchased a brand new one, because I CAN’T LIVE WITHOUT IT!

This bib washes off in the kitchen sink after a meal as quick and easy as a plastic bowl does. Unlike using cloth bibs, you are never wandering around searching for a clean and dry bib to use. This plastic one is always a quick rinse and paper towel swipe away from being ready to use again.

There are other bibs on the market that are plastic like this, and that turn up at the bottom to “catch” what misses baby’s mouth, but most of those don’t turn up this high. I’ve tried other wipe off plastic bibs with a turned up shelf at the bottom, but because the shelf was so shallow, goop would drip right out and all over the place if my baby leaned forward, or sideways.

I’ve even used this bib like a hands free snack tray while my babies have been in the bumbo and car seat, by placing cereal purposely in the catch all bottom, and letting them fish it out with their fingers and eat. I’ve found it works better than giving little hands a snack cup that is easily and often fumbled, and then becomes unreachable when they are strapped in somewhere.

And there’s more…

This best bib ever does not come alone. It is sold as part of the MATA 4-piece dinner ware set for baby at IKEA, which includes the bib, a bowl with a suction cup on the bottom for staying power on the high chair tray, sippy cup, and spoon, all for $2.99.

$2.99 !!!

Can you believe that?

I was at Ross today and couldn’t find a single bib for less than $3.99.  I sure didn’t see a whole set of bowl, cup, spoon, and bib for anywhere near that price. Seriously… what can you buy for baby these days for only $2.99? You can’t even buy a set of 3 pairs of socks for that price.

And guess what else…

It comes in pink.

PINK!!!

I may or may not currently own six of these sets.

I know I inferred that you only need one because they’re so easy to wash, but…

a. I’m a little obsessed… as you can tell.

b. I’ve been through the trauma of losing this bib twice in eight years, to a meltdown when flipped onto the dishwasher heating tube.

c. You can buy six sets for less than $20 and I use the bowl and sippy cups for all three of my kids, all the time.

I should totally be getting paid by IKEA for this post, but I’m not. IKEA doesn’t know I’m alive.

But YOU do! That’s why you’re here.

And that’s why I love you! And… I love this bib.

Ribbit!

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March 3rd was “National Help A Pregnant Lady Day.” Which now has passed I know… but keep reading!

I learned about here.

There’s even a Facebook Fan Page for it.

So… in honor of such a brilliant day I thought I would try to inspire you with some wonderful things YOU can do for the pregnant lady or ladies in your life.

Although…

Once I got to working on this post I realized that most of these suggestions are just all around great ideas for pampering any lady, anytime.

So husbands, boyfriends, and best friends, take note… The following is a great list of ways to make any woman in your life feel FANTASTIC, any time of the year.

And… several of the items mentioned, can now be purchased right here from the Cosmetics section of the MommyTopics.com store… check it out.

Taking a daily shower when you are a MOM or a pregnant woman is about far more than personal hygene.

It’s warmth.

It’s muscle relief.

It’s a light massage.

It’s calm.

It’s quiet.

It’s solitude.

If there were chairs in showers, pregnant women might not ever come out.

This Ginger soap by Origins just makes mornings better.

The citrus smell wakes you up and makes you feel like living. The scent also stays on your skin after you wash and continues to invigorate the senses throughout the morning and remind you… the shower will still be there to return to tonight. (Available online at Origins.com and at Macy’s)

And, after an evening shower at the end of a looooong day, this fantastic Mentha Body Wash by C.O. Bigelow can make leaving the shower almost as enjoyable as being in one. This body wash contains a bit of Peppermint oil, so after you’ve lathered it on, washed it off, and have stepped out into the cool air, your skin tingles all over. And after you’ve dried off, dressed, and settled down with a good book or to watch TV, it’s still tingling. It’s amazing! (Available at Bath and Body Works)

Also at Bath and Body Works you can find these fantastic sweet tasting Mentha Lip Shines by C.O. Bigelow. They come in several different tinted shades as well as clear.

The last friend I recommended this to said she put it on for the first time when she got in her car right after buying it and… it changed her life.

I swear.

That’s what she said.

“It changed my life.”

Speaking of changed lives…

This little item changed mine.

Most the time I have a nice long debate in my head while putting on my makeup if I should even bother putting on any lipstick because after all, my lips will be bare again within the first half hour of wearing any.

Not with these babies!

These are the Pro Longwear Lustre Lip Colors by MAC. It’s a two step application with a brush on color you let dry, and then a shiny gloss to apply on top. The gloss does wear away like any gloss does, but the color hangs on all day and into the evening. I’m always startled by my reflection in the mirror come mid afternoon when I have this on. Hours and hours after having put my makeup on, my lips are still colored. What a novel idea!

I will say that the magic of this lip color staying on your lips does have one draw back and that is how dry it makes your lips feel. Really, really, dry. But, it’s so worth it.

And as long as you keep a gloss in your pocket like one of the Mentha ones I mentioned earlier or this pocket size MAC Longwear Gloss Coat, to reapply here and there when you feel the need… you’re golden.

There’s also this lip primer by MAC that helps condition your lips and make them feel fantastic under any lipstick. (MAC products are available online at maccosmetics.com as well as at Macy’s and Nordstrom)

Once again… something that has changed my life.

This little pot holds within it the answer to tired, baggy, puffy, circles under the eyes. Pregnant women have this little issue called insomnia which contributes to the under-eye problem but the Eye Doctor by Origins will fix it instantly.

You know those magazine ads and commercials that show you a face with a line down the middle dividing the side that looks incredible because it supposedly has had a miraculous cosmetic applied to it and the other side that is all droopy and blotchy because it doesn’t have the miracle creme on it. When are advertisers going realize we all know how Photoshop works and they just aren’t fooling anyone?

Anyway, you can play that divided face game in the mirror if you have this creme. Once you’ve applied the creme under your eye on one side, you can immediately see a huge difference between it and the eye you haven’t applied it to yet. It’s fantastic. (Available at Macy’s or Origins.com)

And while we’re talking about eyes, let us not neglect the brows.

I’m obsessed with eyebrows. I love them. Especially really well shaped ones.

This is the Brow Tech by Smashbox. One half is filled with a tinted brow powder to brush on the brows and highlight them. The other half of the pot is filled with a colorless pomade WAX that you brush on the brows to hold them in place. AWESOME. No more clear mascara on your eyebrows.

The Brow Tech comes in 6 different colors to match your hair and brow color perfectly.

You’ll also want to get her this Angled Brow Brush by Smashbox. It’s stiff bristles and slanted angle make it the perfect tool for applying both the powder and pomade to create the perfect brow. (Both Smashbox items can be found at Macy’s and Sephora or online at smashbox.com)

A gift certificate for an eyebrow waxing at a Day Spa would be a great gift too.

In fact…

While we’re on the subject of Day Spas…

A pedicure is always a welcomed gift by most any woman, but a pregnant woman in particular.

Once that pregnant belly pops out there, painting ones toenails becomes an impossibility.

And while full body massages are a “No – no” for pregnant women unless they are specifically a “Pregnancy Massage”, a nice facial or a good long scalp massage are a welcomed treat.

Now I realize… you may adore the pregnant woman in your life, but you might not have the money to pamper her with gifts and trips to the spa.

No problem.

You can make a pregnant woman’s day, with any of the following thoughtful gestures…

- Arrange a time to come over to fold clothes and put away the laundry and dishes. If she has kids, offer to watch them too while she goes and takes a shower, a nap, or simply watches a movie or reads a book in her bedroom.

- Pick up her kids and watch them for the day or a couple hours so she can have the house to herself.

- Come over and watch her kids so she can go out to the spa or the mall without busy little ones tagging along.

- Drop off a Newly Released rented Chick Flick and her favorite candy and pick up the movie the next day to return it.

- Drop off some yummy baked goods, like cupcakes, or cookies, or the Pioneer Woman’s Cinnamon Rolls, some hand picked flowers, and a nice card or note, telling her what a great friend or wife she is. You could also include a nice copy of this poem.

Now…

If you do have some money to spend you can always mix and match the gifts above with the thoughtful gestures, but if you really have some money… I mean really, really have some money to spend on a dearly beloved pregnant woman, you can get her everything mentioned above… or…

Send her and her hubby or her best friend away for the weekend for some much needed relaxation-before-the-storm, to a beautiful Inn like this.

To stay in a beautiful room like this.

With a breathtaking view like this.

And Spa Treatments that sound like this…

Pumpkin Enzyme Facial

Get your glow back with this 55 minute facial, ideal for dry or dull skin. This extra strength enzyme treatment is a great choice if you need to restore glow to tired skin. The advanced exfoliation is followed by a custom mask, toner and moisturizer. Your skin will look and feel revitalized. This treatment ends with our signature Peppermint Scalp, Neck and Shoulder massage.

Now that would seriously be Helping Out a Pregnant Lady!

And pregnant ladies… you’re welcome. Make sure to send a link to this post to EVERYONE YOU KNOW! Post it on your Facebook page, your blog, and all your emails. QUICK! …THERE’S NO TIME TO WASTE.

And tell your best friend to send it to everyone you know also. Tell her it’s how she can fulfill her duty to you for “National Help a Pregnant Lady Day,” and she doesn’t have to do anything else. Just as long as she makes sure everyone in your life has this post!!!

Here’s one last idea…

You could find a fantastic Photographer like this and purchase a portrait package for the Mommy-to-be. Many packages include pictures of the pregnancy as well as the baby once he or she is born.

What an extraordinary gift that would be!

Nikki, from Bumps and Giggles Photography is offering a promotion for the month of March to readers of MommyTopics.com. When you reserve your photography appointment and pay for the portrait package of your choice in full, mention MommyTopics.com and she will wave the sitting fee ($150). She serves the areas of San Diego County, Riverside County, and Orange County in Southern California.

That’s a great deal! Visit her website and check out the many portrait packages available.

If you have a great gift idea or thoughtful gesture for a Pregnant Mom please share it with all of us by placing it in the comments section of this post.

And if you are a pregnant lady who receives some extra special lovin’ on March 3rd because word got out that it’s “National Help a Pregnant Lady Day” leave that in the comments too. We’d love to hear your story.

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I’m ready to tell you why.

This last Saturday, the day before Valentines Day, I had a miscarriage.

The blog slowed way down in January because I was dealing with the first trimester of my pregnancy and a whole lot of morning sickness all day long. Food was not my friend thus the lack of recipes and creative cooking posts. As with most pregnancies during the first trimester I was exhausted all the time, nauseous, and just plain old didn’t feel able to keep up with the posting pace I had set in the previous months.

And then things came to a screeching halt last week as I began to experience some complications in my pregnancy which resulted in the horrifying experience of a miscarriage this past weekend. An experience which no one prepared me for, including the Emergency Room doctor I saw Friday night who I begged for details so I would know what to expect.

I expected the emotional difficulty and not much can prepare you or lessen the sorrow of the loss of a baby, but I had no idea how physically horrifying a miscarriage can be and it wouldn’t have been quite so scary if I had just been more prepared by someone explaining to me the details of what was going to happen next.

For this reason I am planning to eventually share some details on this blog about my miscarriage experience and offer some information that may help others who have to go through the same difficulty.

Because miscarriage experiences can vary from one woman to the next, I am asking those of you – my readers – whom have experienced a miscarriage and would like to use your experience to help other women, to write and submit your story for posting in a new section I will create on the subject.

My intention is not to share a bunch of morbid stories to scare pregnant women, but rather on MommyTopics to have an archive of personal stories containing important information as well as comfort and encouragement that women know is there if and when they need it.

I am asking that you write about your physical experience, the emotional experience, and the stories of reflection, growth and new hope that followed. All the stories will be posted as “written by an anonymous contributor” unless the author requests their name be given.

If you have a story to share please email it to me, or contact me if you need more info at rachymommy@mommytopics.com

For now, there will be more silence on this blog as I’m just trying to take it easy and recover.

My husband and family have been a treasure through all of this. They’ve been working to make me as comfortable as possible, preparing places for me to rest and recover, cleaning up everything, bringing me my food and fluids, taking my blood pressure, and all this while also taking care of my three children and keeping them oblivious to what’s been going on. My husband has been by my side through every horrifying moment and has been loving me, holding me, and crying with me as we both deal with the pain of this tremendous loss.

I’m sleeping a lot, watching movies, a little bit of Olympics here and there, drinking lots of fluids, eating peanut M&Ms (my favorite), taking it easy, and using the moments where I feel good to hug my kids, look into their eyes and marvel at the miracle that each of them is, and appreciate every little thing about them and every moment I have with them.

Life truly is such a precious gift and one that should never for a second be taken for granted because we never know how many more moments we will have together… or wont.

Thank you for your prayers and love.

God is good, our faith is strong, and Lord willing there will be better days ahead.

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There is so much to learn about becoming a parent.

Isn’t this a great book? So helpful. There are lots of books like this that really help prepare you for parenthood.

Here’s another great one. Again… so helpful.

But guess what.

There is something you need to know that isn’t included in any parenting book.

This is a well kept secret… a deep, dark, difficult secret to deal with.

What I’m about to tell you is not easy for most expecting parents to hear.

Are you ready?

Here it comes.

Along with all the new preparations you are making to become a parent, along with all the things you are trying to learn, there is something no one else has shared with you, that you are going to have to learn…

You are going to have to learn to draw!

Now take it easy, take it easy… I know what you’ve been through.  We’ve all been there.

We all believed we were artists when we were five. Our mothers told us our drawings were amazing and hung them on the refrigerator with pride.

Then one day, in the sixth grade, we were asked to draw our shoe.

Ta-daaahhh! We thought as we completed the assignment.  Piece of cake.  Just wait until the teacher makes an example to the whole class of this beauty.  I even included the details of the tied bow and the little holes that the laces go through.  This is AWESOME!

And then, as you looked around the room your pride rose even higher because you saw a couple of students still working on the assignment when yours was already done.

Not only talented, but quick too.

You decide to get out of your seat and meander over to a best friend’s desk and chit chat until it’s time to turn in your work.

And then… you see it.

The drawing of a shoe that your friend has created, which in one quick and jolting moment alerts you that… your entire life as an artist has been a lie!

You stare at the shoe. You know it is a picture of a shoe. You can see that. But for the life of you, your brain can not in any way, shape, or form figure out how someone… namely your goofball friend… found those kinds of details and shading possibilities by looking at their stinky, old, STUPID shoe.

It’s ok.

You see… you’re among friends.

We’ve all been there, and we’re going to get through this together.

It’s simply time to come to terms with the fact that the art you abandoned at age twelve, now must be picked back up again and pursued.

How do I deal with this?

I practice.

You’re going to need to start practicing too.

Pull out those Disney DVDs, flip them over to the backside, and start copying the characters. Memorize the methods… you will most certainly be tested on your skills when you least expect it.

When you’re new little one reaches the age of two or three is when it’s going to happen.

One day, when you’re out to dinner with your sweet little family and you’ve just handed the waitress your menu after placing your order, your darling little angel is going to flip over her child’s paper placemat, hand you a crayon, look at you with those big beautiful adoring eyes and say,

“Mommy… draw me a picture.”

or

In my case with Remy it was,

“Mommy, draw me Lightning McQueen.”

Now you might get lucky and instead of a favorite Disney or Nick Jr. character, your little darling may ask you to draw a house, or a tree…

But if this is currently what your trees look like… this is not going to cut it.

Your very small child whom has admired you and your husband as infallible heroes up until now, will no doubt find the first crack in that facade, if she asks you to draw a tree, and this is what you produce for her.

And trust me, it’s going to get far more complicated than trees.

It’s only a matter of time before she asks you to draw a, “Beautiful Princess.”

Again… this is not going to cut it.

Luckily however you have stumbled upon this website, and I am here to help you… ALWAYS.

This is a fantastic new book Remy and I have been using.

It shows you how to draw and paint all kinds of princesses and ballerinas.

It even shows you some neat figures you can make by gluing on embellishments using different textured papers.

It’s really a fun book.

I believe the book is intended for eight or nine year old girls to begin learning how to draw princesses and ballerinas themselves. I’m telling you though, this book and others like it are wonderful for parents of babies and toddlers. This will prepare you for that moment at the Macarroni Grill when your munchkin expects you to start creating a castle on that paper table cloth they so thoughtfully provide you with.

Yes, the book includes instructions on how to draw a castle.

Wonderful, fantastic, step-by-step instructions.

Here is the one Remy and I created.  I drew and Remy colored. And after I had created all these sweet little princesses, Remy said,

“Mommy, draw a big scary dragon.”

This is not in the book, but remember… my firstborn is a boy.  I’ve been through all of this before but from the male perspective which requests dinosaurs, aliens, robots, monsters, and of course… dragons.

And please remember also… one of my goals in life is to become an author and illustrator of children’s books. I’ve been practicing drawing my entire life.

After that sixth grade shoe incident instead of abandoning art, I committed to practicing, practicing, practicing. I see the same passion for art now in Remy.

So after I drew that monstrous dragon attacking the castle, there was just one problem.

The princesses all looked way too happy to be dealing with an attacking, ferocious dragon.

I quickly came up with a solution to the problem.

The two most important keys to parenting:

#1 Be prepared

# 2 Be flexible

And don’t worry… if you have little boys, there are lots of books just like this princess one, to help you learn how to draw robots, aliens, and Star Wars characters.

These books make great gifts for families of all ages.  I especially like them for families with very young children so that kids and parents can grow in skill with the books.  I would even be so bold as to include a book like this in a gift basket at a baby shower with a note to the parents that it’s time to, “Start practicing.”

You can find “How to Draw Princesses and Ballerinas,” and other books like it, for sale below.

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I am so glad to have found this rice cereal for baby.

My first two children didn’t have any gas or digestion problems, but Llany did.  He started with really bad gas at about 2 months.  I tried changing my diet several times to see if it was something coming through into my milk that was affecting him, but I never had any success pinpointing what it was.  When I looked online to see what foods might be upsetting his stomach, it seemed like the possibilities were ridiculously endless – could be: meat products, milk products, wheat products, tomatoes, cabbage, broccoli, beans… and on and on the list went.

Even when I cut my diet way back and stuck to the simplest foods I could, he still had the gas and from cutting back calories and nutrients in my own diet, I started to lose my milk supply.  I ditched changing my eating and started giving Llany Mylicon drops after feedings to help with the gas and help him sleep.

There are a lot of moms who swear by Gripe Water which seems better for baby because it is all natural.  Llany hated Gripe Water.  I think perhaps because of the taste, but also because it was so cold since it has to be kept refrigerated.  It was impossible to get him to consume two dropper fulls of Gripe Water every time he had gas.  He would just dribble it out of his mouth, all over himself, and cry.  Whenever he saw the Mylicon drops coming his way he responded anciously and seemed to really enjoy the taste of it.  So that’s what I stuck with.

Around 4 months, because Llany still was not sleeping through the night… EVER… the doctor suggested that I start introducing rice cereal into his diet.  I started giving him basic organic rice cereal made by Earth’s Best.  Adding the rice didn’t help or worsen his gas, nor did it help him sleep through the night.

At 6 months I added apples, bananas, and sweet potatoes to Llany’s diet.  I added them one at a time, one per week, and at first he seemed fine with all of them.  However by 7 months Llany’s gas had worsened and it seemed he was needing Mylicon drops after every meal, all day long, otherwise he was in pain. It got so bad that at times, even the drops wouldn’t work.  Not knowing what else to do I took him completely off of all solids and went back to breast feeding alone.  This caused the gas problems to go back to their normal state and he only needed drops after nursing before bedtime to help him sleep comfortably.

So now, at eight months of age I knew I needed to get solids back into Llany’s diet and progress with adding a variety of foods, but I didn’t know how to do it without upsetting his stomach.  I was afraid that my son might have food allergies or digestive problems which were causing his system to react both to my breast milk, as well as the solid foods I was trying to give to him.

Then… finally… while expressing my frustrations over this dilema with a dear friend, she told me about Happy Bellies Cereals with pro-biotics.  She told me that the pro-biotics assist with digestion.  So I headed out and bought a can and found this written excerpt on the back.

Happy Bellies cereals are organic and include DHA for brain and eye development and Iron.  They also include pro-biotics which are the live micro-organisms that aid in digestion which you may have seen advertised in yogurts like Activia and Dan-active.

At eight months I started slowly adding Happy Bellies cereal into Llany’s strict diet of breast milk only.  After a week of no gas problems at all, I started to add in apples, sweet potatoes, and bananas mixed with the pro-biotic enriched cereal, and still there were no gas problems.

I am happy to say that ever since I started using the Happy Bellies cereals with Llany at the age of eight months, I have never again had to give him Mylicon drops or any thing else to help with gas.  His digestive problems seemed to disappear overnight once he was eating the cereal and now he eats anything and everything with no problems.

I can’t say that the cereal caused him to start sleeping through the night.  The solution to that issue came after he turned one and I stopped nursing him.  Since he couldn’t have milk in the middle of the night anymore I guess he decided there was no more reason to wake up.  Each of my three kids have started sleeping through the night at entirely different stages with different solutions (that is a whole new post in itself… maybe I’ll work on that one for another time.)

What I can say is that I really believe Happy Bellies helped improve my son’s digestion and may have eliminated some intolerances he was developing towards foods.  With the huge increase in food allergies amongst children these days such as reactions to peanuts, lactose, and gluten, I highly encourage parents to try starting their children on pro-biotics in their infancy to help strengthen their digestive and immune systems.

Check out the array of Happy Bellies cereals and products…

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In two months of making my own homemade baby food instead of purchasing it ready made in jars - I have saved $228

Here’s how:

Llany is now one year old.  He has been eating more than one jar of baby food per meal.  Typically he can eat two, stage 2 jars per meal which was coming out to a consumption of six jars per day.

I had been buying Earth’s Best organic baby food which ranges in price from $.74 – $.99 per jar.  For the sake of this comparison I rounded up to $1 per jar because in my state there is also added sales tax to consider.

So at $1 per jar, consuming 6 jars per day – I was spending $6 per day on baby food.

To keep this up, in two months time, this would cost me:

$360 for a two month supply of jars of baby food.

Since making all my own baby food, and providing even more than the portion equivalent of two jars per meal, it has cost me:

$132 for a two month supply of homemade baby food ingredients.

The following is a shopping list of products I used to provide TWO MONTHS of meals for baby:

(Not all items were purchased in one shopping trip.  Some of the fresh produce was purchased separately each month.)

Fruits

2 Bunches Bananas             Costco             $4 ea.               $8

2 Flats Pears                          Costco             $6 ea.               $12

1 Frozen Strawberries       Costco             $10 ea.             $10

2 Flats Apples                       Costco             $10 ea.             $20

I also picked up a couple cans of organic pumpkin and sweet potatoes at Trader Joes.  I’m not sure the cost, but it was only a few dollars and 1 can lasted me for a whole week mixed amongst all these other options.

Veggies

1 Orgn Frzn Grn Beans       Costco             $6 ea.               $6

1 Organic Frozen Peas       Costco             $6 ea.               $6

1 Organic Frozen Corn      Costco             $6 ea.               $6

4 Bags Avocados                 Costco             $6 ea.               $16

Base Mixers

4 Cans H.B. Cereals – Albertsons       $4 ea.               $16

8/32 oz. Org Yogurts    Wal-Mart          $4 ea.                $32

You can also use scrambled eggs, pasta, and rice that you already have for bases to mix with purees.

From the above shopping list I’ve been able to mix and match ingredients to create meals like this:

Breakfast: Fruits and Yogurt or Cereal

Lunch: Fruits, Veggies, Yogurt and/or Cereal

Dinner: Veggies and Cereal and/or Meat from family dinner – pureed fish, turkey, chicken, or beef

Snacks: Finger food fruit pieces, crackers, dry cereal

To find out more about how I prepared and stored my homemade baby food, click here.

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• Would You Be Willing to Eat a Jar of Baby Food?
  Have you ever felt guilty about the food you feed to your babies?  I have.  All the time.  As I would sit there giving them scoop after scoop from a jar, some times forcing them to finish it I fel...

Have you ever felt guilty about the food you feed to your babies?  I have.  All the time.  As I would sit there giving them scoop after scoop from a jar, some times forcing them to finish it I felt guilty because there was no way I would ever eat, or even taste much of the baby food I was making my little ones eat.

There was also no way I was ever going to make my own baby food.  At least, that’s what I thought.  I had two kids just fine who always ate their food from jars until they were old enough to eat with the rest of the family.  I had heard about people making baby food, but I thought that was reserved for Martha Stewart types with nothing else to do but twiddle their thumbs and make baby food.  Show offs! Huh. Not me.  Too much time and too much trouble.

Recently however I’ve been affected as so many of us have, by the economic downturn. I started paying attention to every penny spent because I was running out of pennies so frequently and needing to figure out where I could cut spending in order to spend elsewhere. I noticed that I was having a really hard time making my grocery budget each month and then I realized it was all due to baby food.  That’s right…. baby food!

All of a sudden I saw homemade baby food in a whole new light. I no longer considered it a ridiculous gourmet luxury created by well-to-do stay at home moms who wanted to show off. Instead I saw it as the only hope I had left to get my monthly grocery spending back in check. I had no idea if I could really save any money by making my own baby food, or how much I could save, but I knew I had to investigate it, because I couldn’t afford to keep buying the jars.

If I had kept buying those jars of wonderful organic baby food, I would have been spending $360.00 every two months just to feed my one year old.

No matter how great the savings, if I was going to make homemade baby food, it was going to have to be quick and easy to do.  I’ve already got way too much on my plate with home school, home making, church, three kids, a husband, and laundry.  Oh don’t get me started on the laundry!

Now that I’ve given it a try, I’ve learned that I can save a TON of money and I’ve learned that it is VERY easy to make your own baby food.  It has fit into my busy life VERY EASILY!  I am also starting to enjoy being in control of all the ingredients.  There are no chemicals or preservatives being snuck  into the food I’m making.  Everything I’m feeding my baby is stuff I would eat myself.

Bye bye guilty feeling.  Hello fresh affordable ingredients!

You don’t usually think of saving money and going organic as two things that work together. Usually you have to sacrifice one for the other.  AMAZINGLY… when it comes to baby food… I’m getting both.

Here’s is what one of the Costco bags of frozen veggies looks like.  I haven’t run out of one yet.  I know each will last for at least 2 months… maybe longer depending on how many different food options you are using each day.

Now the way I see it, depending on your personality type or the amount of time you have available, there are two ways you can prepare your baby food.

- You can take an afternoon and prepare all of it for the coming month.  For this option you will probably need about 4 hours, a large food processor, and several containers, ice trays, or muffin tins to freeze food in.

or

-  You can do like I’ve been doing, and each night when you are already in the kitchen preparing dinner, as you make green beans, peas, or corn to go with dinner, make the batch extra large. After dinner puree and freeze the left-overs, creating your baby food.  For this option any small food processor or blender will do, and you will only need one or two cupcake tins to freeze the food in and about fifteen extra minutes after dinner, twice a week.

(A lot of people use ice cube trays or Tupperware to freeze their baby food in.  This might be fine, however I have heard that there may be dangerous chemicals released from plastics into food and water when frozen, so I chose tin cupcake pans instead.  I also like the portion size of the tins better than ice cube size portions.)

Scoop the puree from the food processor into the cupcake tin to create your serving sizes.

Make sure to cover your tin or tray with plastic wrap to prevent freezer burn.

The next morning set your cupcake tin of baby food on the counter to thaw for about 5 minutes.  Then using the tip of a sharp pointed knife, slide the frozen food up and out of the tin.  This is very easy.  None of my food stuck to the trays at all, they just slid right out with no problems.

Next label and date a bag and fill it up with your servings sizes of frozen baby food.

I made my first batch of green beans on the same night when I made spaghetti for dinner.  So after dinner when I pureed and froze the green beans, I also pureed and froze some spaghetti.

By the next morning I already had enough Green Beans and Spaghetti frozen and ready to serve baby food dinners for two weeks.

All the meats and protein Llany has been getting have come from my regular dinners.  I’ve pureed chicken, turkey meat, ham, and spaghetti and given it to him at dinner time mixed with some of his frozen veggie purees.  I haven’t tried freezing any of the meats, but I’m sure at some point I will.

This is a website that I’ve found really helpful in giving tips about what kinds of things freeze and reheat well when making baby food, and what doesn’t.

The next night I made peas at dinner.

By the second morning after my first shopping trip for baby food ingredients I was well on my way to having plenty of healthy, organic baby food stored and ready to serve.

My favorite Rice Cereal to mix with fruits, proteins, and veggies is Happy Bellies.  You can learn more about that here.

One afternoon, Remy, my preschooler asked for some apples slices.  While I was cutting up her apple, I set the oven to 400 degrees and cut up 4 extra apples into slices, tossed them into a casserole dish, and popped them in the oven for 20 minutes.  I left the skin on them because that is where so much of the fiber is, and even with the skin, after they were baked they pureed just fine for a one year old. If you want to make pureed apples as a first foods for a 6 month old, you might opt. to leave the skins out of it for a smoother texture.  Also when making baby food for younger babies just add water to your purees to make them even smoother.

Apples were the only fruit I had to prepare ahead of time and make into a puree, freeze, and store.

For breakfast I usually give my baby fruit.  I take out two store-bought frozen strawberries, microwave them, mash them up, and add my favorite organic yogurt.

I also mash up fresh avocado, pear, and banana at meal times and add it to yogurt and/or rice cereal.

Another thing that has been easy to do is to take a few scoops of pumpkin or sweet potatoes out of a can and add it to yogurt, pasta, rice, or cereal.  I just store the leftovers in their can in the fridge with plastic wrap over it until the next time I need it; up to a week.

I would definitely consult your pediatrician before giving a vitamin to your child, but my kids have all been borderline anemic, so making sure that they get plenty of iron is a must.  In addition to giving lots of whole organic milk to drink and at least a serving of some type of green vegetable with dinner each day, I give Llany a dropper full of these baby vitamins with Iron.  This is available in the vitamin section at Wal-Mart.

Whenever I try to take on some kind of change in my lifestyle it seems far less daunting and intrusive to start out small.  All of this is just the beginning.  I’m hoping to add an even wider variety of ingredients to my baby food repertoire in the coming months.

And please don’t get me wrong!  I am in no way against jars of baby food.  I’ve still purchased a few from time to time to take with me on day trips or out to restaurants for a more convenient option.  I particularly like Earth’s Best organic baby food because it comes in glass jars instead of plastic, contains pure healthy ingredients, and comes in some great food combinations.

I just wasn’t able to afford jars of baby food as my only option anymore, and I’m so glad that I’ve discovered how inexpensive and easy it is to make homemade baby food.

I highly encourage you to GIVE IT A TRY!

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My little baby boy Magellan just turned one last month.  He’s done now with nursing and today he started trying to run… not walk, with his entire baby-turning toddler, might.  It was a precious first year with him rocking and snuggling, cooing and cradling.  It is amazing how quickly we have reached this new stage.

There are so many books and theories these days on the market about:

How to properly run nursing schedules

Whether to rock or not rock

To let baby “cry it out” at bedtime, or to “appease” him with cuddles and nursing

To co-sleep or not to co-sleep

And the list goes on and on

It’s enough to make a mother’s head spin trying to figure out what is best for her baby. Each home is different; each child is not the same, each technique not without its flaws, for some.

For all the first time mommies out there, experienced mommies of little ones just born, and mommies waiting with expectation for a birth coming in the next few months… Whatever you choose, however you raise them…

Cherish the season of baby!

When you’re feeling frustrated because schedules are off and nothing is getting done…

When you’re at your wits end struggling to nurse, and exhausted from lack of sleep…

When you just don’t know what that crying baby wants or when she’s going to stop…

Stop!

Pause.

Breathe.

Realize this season is so very short in the grand scheme of the life of that child and your time with him.

Look at that baby and call her precious.

Look up to God and be grateful for having received this blessing.

Start this moment over with a new attitude and a willingness to lose more sleep, and do more cuddling, to try new things, and to keep on praying.

Just for this season, just for this moment, just for this gift… this baby.

Babies Don’t Keep

By Ruth Hulbert Hamilton

Mother, O Mother, come shake out your cloth,

Empty the dustpan, poison the moth,

Hang out the washing, make up the bed,

Sew on a button and butter the bread.

Where is the mother whose house is so shocking?

She’s up in the nursery, blissfully rocking.

Oh, I’ve grown as shiftless as Little Boy Blue,

Lullaby, rock-a-bye, lullaby loo.

Dishes are waiting and bills are past due

Pat-a-cake, darling, and peek, peek-a-boo

The shopping’s not done and there’s nothing for stew

And out in the yard there’s a hullabaloo

But I’m playing Kanga and this is my Roo

Look! Aren’t his eyes the most wonderful hue?

Lullaby, rock-a-by lullaby loo.

The cleaning and scrubbing can wait till tomorrow

But children grow up as I’ve learned to my sorrow.

So quiet down cobwebs; Dust go to sleep!

I’m rocking my baby and babies don’t keep.

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