Food for Little Tummies (Baby Led Weaning)

I've mentioned on the blog before that we've decided to do baby led weaning (BLW) to introduce Cai to solid foods. This meant that we skipped purees and rice cereal and went straight to solid foods. In the beginning it mostly looked like Cai shoving food into his mouth, tasting it, experiencing the texture, mashing it around a little bit, and spitting it back out, but as he has grown, it now looks like a small person eating food (and it's super fun to watch).

I just wanted to share a few of the recipes that have worked for us (nutritious and easy for little hands).

 Breakfast Hash
This was a go to meal for me in the end of IVF and the beginning of pregnancy when I was trying to eat lots of protein, but with just a little bit o tweaking, it's been great for Cai too. I made enough for us to share

INGREDIENTS:

• Potatoes, cut into grabbable sticks
• Fresh herbs (I used basil and rosemary and scallions)
• Shredded cheese (I used parm. and cheddar)
• Eggs
• Milk (we use raw milk)
• EVOO
• Sausage (optional depending on your baby. Cai doesn't do well with sausage skin, so I either take the skin off or leave it out)

DIRECTIONS:

• Brown potatoes in hot skillet with EVOO.
• If you're using sausage, add that next and cook until brown.
• In separate bowl, scramble eggs with herbs, cheese, and a splash of milk.
• Add eggs to skillet and use spatula to scramble all of the ingredients.

Farmer's Market Pizza

I won't bother posting a recipe for this, but I was super proud of this recipe. I used all ingredients from the farmer's market, my own potted herbs, and a local farm. Everything was pesticide free. 

INGREDIENTS:

• Brick oven chabatta bread
• Farm fresh mozarella
• Tomato sauce
• Fresh basil
• Fresh rosemary

Strawberry French Toast

Again, I won't post a recipe for this one, because I'm sure you know how to  make French toast, but basically I made French toast and then spread cream cheese on it and added strawberries.

INGREDIENTS:

• Bread (I think I used some of my dad's homemade sourdough bread)
• Egg
• Cinnamon
• Milk
• Cream cheese
• Strawberries, sliced

Sweet Potato Fries

Not only did Cai love them, but Steve did too. 

INGREDIENTS:

• Sweet potatoes, cut like fries
• Coconut oil
• Cinnamon
• Ginger
• Curry

DIRECTIONS:

• Toss cut sweet potatoes in coconut oil and spices to taste (we liked ours with a mix of sweet and savory spices)
• Spread onto parchment paper lined cookie sheet.
• Bake until soft enough to chew.

We have loved BLW (and so has Cai). It can be messy, but it's so much fun to watch your little one explore foods. And so far, Cai loves everything we've given him except artichokes. Yay for not being a picky eater!

End of the School Year Crazy

It's that time of year. The last few weeks of school. I'm sure I'm not the only person with a million things on my agenda. As a teacher, I have a million things here and at home. Don't get me wrong, most of these things are not stressful things. It's just the sheer volume of them.

Some of the highlights so far:

• Our schools's spring program, a production of Esther-Ordinary Faith (the story of Esther). Personally, I think this was the most entertaining program we've done so far, filled with puns, jokes, and even some flirtations. I also think it more clearly stated its biblical message than any of the other ones I've been a part of. I created all of the costumes which was quite enjoyable, albeit stressful. Even the night of, there was lots of pinning and cutting and tucking and tying. Craziness.

• My best pal came to visit! I can't tell you how much I needed this. She lives states away, and this is only the third time I have seen her since spending a week with her last year waiting for her firstborn to be born. Her husband couldn't join her this time, but her little boy did, and it was wonderful to see the two of them. We were able to snag two whole evenings together! It was a much needed time of fellowship. It's hard to believe that these posts were made not so long ago.

• Currently, my house is filled with my mother-in-law, sister-in-law (Steve's younger sister), sister-in-law (Steve's brother's wife), nephew, and niece. It's a little hectic, but wonderful to have family visiting. I only wish I didn't have to work while they're here. Lauren, Steve's sister, will be moving in with us while attending college in the area. She needed to come for the weekend to start getting her room and bathroom painted and go to orientation at school. Everyone else came for the fun of it! Not only is it great to be with the grown ups, but I can tell you how nice it is to snuggle with my little niece (one month old) and watch Steve giggle with our nephew (1 1/2 yrs). I LOVE it.

• My birthday is tomorrow, and although I'm not particularly looking forward to it, we are having a family get together (not directly related to my birthday, but who cares) with my mom's side of the family. There were potato balls, gravy, and children, oh my! YUM!