kid food

Home Sweet Home

Posted on March 14, 2010 Written by Tonya

I was either a saint in a former life or the universe felt like it owed me one because you were just awesome on our trip to visit your grandparents in the Bay Area. You are a super traveler and I couldn’t be happier.

I was so nervous because we haven’t made that trip since before Christmas; my stomach was literally in knots before each flight. I know it’s only an hour and a half gate to gate, but that can seem like an eternity to a new mom. Plus, you are a very different baby now than you were three months ago. Thankfully my worry was for not and you were a champ. Well, until halfway through our flight home when you reached out for the cup on the tray table of the poor girl sitting next to us and dumped her entire drink in her lap. Luckily, she was a great sport about it and forgave you almost instantly. Those baby blues come in very handy!

Our visit was nice, but a little stressful. You barely ate a thing while we were away. It seems as though all that delicious homemade baby food (Bon Appetit) has turned you into a foodie and you wouldn’t touch the Earth’s Best, even though it was the same stuff you devour at home (peas, sweet potatoes, rice and squash). Apparently it tastes a lot different.

The other stressful thing about our trip was the fact that my in-laws have recently put their home on the market and with viewings happening at any given moment (with notice fortunately), the house has to be kept pretty much immaculate. A lot easier said than done, especially with a nine month old… you come with a ton of gear! We made it work, but it wasn’t fun.

I just realized that I didn’t take any photos (other than a couple not-so-great iPhone photos) on this trip of you at the park, or with your great aunt Judi or cousins, or in the loving arms of your grandma. Next time.

I love traveling almost as much as I love coming home!

Here’s to a great week…

The best is yet to be.

Day 19/100

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Tipping Point

Posted on March 2, 2010 Written by Tonya

I used to cringe when I would see a family get up from a table at a restaurant leaving behind what looked like a bomb went off. I thought, how rude or I hope they left a big tip because someone is going to have to pick that up.

Ever since you started eating solid foods and can be kept mildly entertained by munching on Cheerios and biscuits while your dad and I try to enjoy a meal out, after we are done, I get down on my hands and knees and pick up your crumbs. I also apologize profusely to our waiter, but that should be a given. Is this what is expected of me or am I just being neurotic? Don’t get me wrong, I’m not armed with a slew of cleaning products or anything, but I do pick up food thrown/dropped on the floor, mop up spills, and just generally try and keep the mayhem under control.

I really don’t know what the protocol is on this. I have never worked in food service, but I certainly appreciate how hard wait staff and bus boys work. My question to all of you moms out there is, what do you do? Do you clean up after your kid or tip more when your tot makes a mess? Perhaps it depends on the mess and the type of establishment and how often we frequent it, etc. A handful of Cheerios isn’t really a big deal, but if it’s a entire bowl of peas and carrots, maybe so? I don’t know, you tell me.

The best is yet to be.

Day 7/100

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Innovations For Modern Parents

Posted on February 13, 2010 Written by Tonya

Now that you are eating solid food and enjoying three meals a day, I have found myself immersed in baby food feeding supplies and I am loving Boon products!

The Boon tag line is Innovations for Modern Parents. I don’t know that I would call myself a “modern” parent and I’m not particularly wild about modern design per say, but I do appreciate cool products with a creative edge and modern convenience.

Surprisingly, I found Boon products at my local grocery store. Not the usual place for innovative, sleek, modern baby goods.

The baby food dispensing spoon is one of the very best baby product discoveries I have come across. On-the-go, one-handed feeding….genius! I also love the sphere-shaped snack ball. Seriously, who comes up with this stuff?

After visiting the Boon Web site, I learned that they also make great toys, bath gear and organizational items. I am really digging their Flair highchair too, but not quite ready to pull the trigger on that yet (AKA fork over $230!).

The best is yet to be and I am liking the feeding phase. Never thought I’d say that!

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Bon Appetit

Posted on January 30, 2010 Written by Tonya

I’m convinced, homemade baby food is the way to go and it is so easy!

Making my own baby’s food gives me total control over what is in it i.e. no additives or preservatives or any other chemicals that I can’t pronounce, and if I can do it, so can you (see my previous post, Creature of Habit regarding my lack of experience and comfort when it comes to the kitchen).

I love that I didn’t need to buy some fancy contraption, like the Beaba Babycook Baby Food Maker for $150 or the industrial strength Vita-Mix 5200 (whatever that is?!). Everything I needed was already in my kitchen…a wire steamer basket, a Cuisinart and muffin tins. Have I mentioned how easy it is? The directions are simple: steam veggies and fruit, or boil meats, puree the heck out of them and then freeze. Depending on your appetite, I have at least two months of brown rice, acorn squash, sweet potatoes and pears on hand.

I recently heard journalist and author, Michael Pollan* say “you can feed your family fast food cheaper than you can buy fresh produce as a result of federal agricultural policy”. That statement is just sad. The average American family eats fast food four times a week. Not this family!!

I believe that healthy eating habits begin at home and I was thrilled when our nanny enthusiastically agreed to help me take the plunge into making baby food at home. To be fair, she did most of the work.

Once I was Desperately Seeking Baby Food/Feeding Advice and now I am all about homemade goodness! I am committed to making high quality, healthy, organic food for you and you seem to love it! Bonus. 🙂

The best is yet to be.

………………………………………………………………………….

*In his 20 years of reporting on food, Michael Pollan has picked up a number of rules to eat by. They’re now collected in an eater’s manual, Food Rules: An Eater’s Manual. His guidelines to good eating include:

1: Eat food .
2: Don’t eat anything your great-grandmother wouldn’t recognize as food.
7: Avoid food products containing ingredients that a third-grader cannot pronounce.
13: Eat only foods that will eventually rot.
39: Eat all the junk food you want as long as you cook it yourself.

“It’s not that hard to eat well if you’re willing to put a little more time into it, a little more thoughtfulness into it and, yes, a little bit more money,” Pollan says.

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Desperately Seeking Baby Food/Feeding Advice

Posted on January 11, 2010 Written by Tonya

We are seriously struggling with the solid food thing. We are talking about pursed lips and gagging. I’m not sure what to do. This kid would rather eat (chew on) anything but food!

Today we tried a banana mushed up in cereal and it was quite the struggle. Of course, that is an empty bowl in the photo above, so it couldn’t have been that bad, right? Trust me, it was. I had to be very sneaky; singing to him, waiting for him to smile wide and then slipping the spoon into his mouth.

We have tried organic brown rice cereal, stewed carrots, sweet potatoes, butternut squash, Granny Smith and Red Delicious apples and Gerber Graduates Puffs and have had very little luck with any of those. Actually, of all of those, Granny Smith apples and plain cereal are his favorites, but he’s eating anything on a regular basis. I just can’t seem to find anything Lucas enjoys as much as the bottle.

I am using the Guide to Feeding your Baby on the BabyCenter Web site, which has been very helpful, but for all you moms out there, please recommend a baby food book or Web site that you turn to. Any any tips and tricks you have when it comes to making meals and feeding your children would be most appreciated too. Thanks!

The best is yet to be.

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In Denial

Posted on November 18, 2009 Written by Tonya

I’m in denial. Although our pediatrician told me not to start feeding you solid food until you were six months old, I think you might be ready now. I read in my baby development books over the weekend that babies can start solids between four and six months, which is exactly where we’re at. There are other signs too, such as: the fact that you can hold up your head, you have outgrown the tongue-thrust reflex and you show great interest in what’s on my plate.

I also read that a five month old should be introduced to the sippy cup! I’m freaking out. I am not ready for you to be drinking out of a cup, let alone eat real food. We don’t even have a high chair yet!

Choosing the perfect high chair aside, there are other decisions to make and things to consider when starting solids, like; should I be making my own baby food and how exactly does one do that or if I don’t, which store brand is best? How do I know when it is safe to move on to a new menu item? What if you are allergic to something? Does solid food mean solid poops, and don’t get me started on the messes and dishes that come with it all or the logistics of traveling with baby food. Ugh!

I am excited for you to eat, I really am, but honestly a part of me wishes that you could just stay five months old and that I could feed you from a bottle forever. I know that is more than slightly unrealistic and as your dad said, we need to relish these changes and your growth. He’s right and I suppose I could try, but I’m going to need to take baby steps. Two days ago, I bought a box of organic baby cereal and it is still sitting unopened on our kitchen counter…stay tuned.

The best is yet to be.

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Got Milk?

Posted on November 9, 2009 Written by Tonya

I have always enjoyed drinking a nice tall glass of ice cold milk, but lately I feel like my life has been consumed by the stuff! I spend an inordinate amount of my day dealing with milk or more appropriately, formula. Formula is nasty! It is sticky, stinky and gross, but boy, does my baby love it.

Several times a day, I scoop powder out of a purple canister that has become a permanent fixture on our kitchen counter to make bottles of milk. I make three eight oz. bottles at a time, chill them and then feed them to you almost every three and a half to four hours. While feeding, I dab milk off your chin and try to catch it before it rolls into the tiny cracks and crevasses of your neck. Talk about stinky and gross. I wipe milk residue off my shoulders, sleeves, toes (!), couch and even floor. It’s true what they say about not having anything nice anymore once you have a child….spit up, drool and your basic baby muck get everywhere! I shutter at the thought of the Cheerios stage and nearly break out in hives thinking about chicken tenders, bananas, and macaroni and cheese ground up into our carpets. I know it’ll happen sooner rather than later.

I also spend an obscene amount of time washing bottles in scalding hot water. So much so that I can’t even wear my wedding or engagement rings because my ring finger is so irritated by all the water.

Does having teeth now mean I have to start feeding my baby real food? I’m clearly over the milk stage, but not quite ready to start solids. I honestly don’t think I can handle the mess yet.

The best is yet to be? Hmmm…as long as I’ve got my Dyson and a can of carpet and upholstery cleaner on hand.

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