What the Baby Ate Wednesday- Addicted to the Squeezie Pouch

When my 3 year old was just making his way out of the baby food stage, my sister discovered baby food in "squeezie pouches." I bought some and kept them in the car for those times when he was hungry and we need "fast food."

Fast Forward 3 years...

These buggers are expensive so I never intended to make them a main source of food for my little guy.

But...

With 4 kids- it's hard to make the little guy's schedule a priority. It seems like while we are at home he's sleeping and then I have to yank him up and toss him in the car to take someone somewhere, leaving little to no time to feed the baby.

Enter- Fast Food- Convenience- The Squeezie Pouch!

Breakfast, is nearly always a squeezie pouch these days. Getting all of the kids up, dressed, fed and out the door is challenge enough without a 6 month old screaming at me because I'm not feeding him fast enough...

And so- Squeezie Pouch it is. On this day it was Carrot and Banana which he "chugged." Yes, Chugged!  I'm amazed at how much this kid eats already!!

He can now suck it from the straw though I do hold it for him. Want to see what happened when I got lazy and tried to let him hold one himself??

I had a really soft avocado so I was able to feed him slices of it for lunch. I just held it to his mouth and he gummed off bites of it.

I realized that after just a week of tempting him and then putting puffs on his tray, he is now able to pick them up and put them in his mouth. Since avocado is a little slippery for him to pick up, I smashed some avocado through the holes of the puffs so that he could pick up some "avocado puffs" as a snack.

Frustrated by the price of the squeezie pouches, I decided to try to create my own for "dinner." I cut off the bottom of a used pouch, smashed some avocado and added extra water to make it thinner, filled the pouch and then taped the bottom closed with packing tape.

It worked, but after all of those steps it kind of lacked the "fast food," element...

What about you? Are you hooked on the squeezie pouch? Any suggestions to break me of my addiction?

Shared at What I ate Wednesday

The Question You Should Never Ask if You Want Your Kid to Eat a Carrot

I know better. Honestly, I do.

And yet, I still asked, "Who wants a carrot?"

Can you guess the responses?

"No Thanks."  "Not me."

I messed up with 2 out of 3 and the third one was on his way into the kitchen. I had to think fast.

Fortunately, it was the boy who eats anything, which also increased my odds. "Do you want your carrot in a long stick or cut into slices?"

"Slices," and from across the room, the one who said, "Not me," just moments ago responded, "I want a long carrot!"

Almost there... one more to go, "Would you like hummus or ranch with your carrots?"

"Ok, I guess I'll have a carrot too. Can I have it with ranch?"

I've found that, more often than not, my success or failure when it comes to getting my children to eat what I want them to eat is dependent upon the questions that I ask.

There are two factors at work here. The first, not surprisingly, has to do with control. This was a lesson that I had to learn early on as a teacher and that I have to relearn every day as a parent. By giving choices (both of which accomplish what I want) my kids are able to exercise some control and are more willing participants.

The second reason is what I call the "Five Star Restaurant Effect." Let's be honest. If you walked into a five star restaurant and the waiter came up to your table and asked if you wanted a carrot, what would your answer be?

My answer would be no. My assumption is that the restaurant has something a little more enticing to offer...

The same holds true with your kids. Their assumption is that if they say, "No," to carrots, there is probably a more enticing offer yet to come.

Therefore, if you want your kid to eat a carrot (or anything else that you want them to eat), the first thing you need to do is to make sure that it is the only option. If they say, "No," don't back it up with something better. Even if you do this consistently, they will still try, "Can I have a cheese stick?" "Can I have yogurt?" The answer needs to be "Carrot (or whatever you want them to eat) or nothing," or you will most likely never get a, "Yes," to the carrot.

Then you need to ask the right question(s).

What Not to Ask if You Want Your Kid to Eat a Carrot.... "Do You Want a Carrot?"

What You Should Ask if You Want Your Kid to Eat a Carrot

1. Would you like your carrot whole or in slices?

2. Would you like ranch or hummus with your carrots?

3. Would you like your carrots on a plate or in a bowl?

4. Would you like 2 slices of carrot or 3 slices of carrot? 

5. Which carrot would you like?

6. Do you want an orange carrot, yellow carrot, or red carrot (I recently found multicolored carrots.)

Or.... don't ask any question at all, simply put the carrots in front of them when they are hungry and don't offer any other options.

Or... serve them as part of a fun Bento or Muffin Tin Meal.

First Day of 2nd Grade Bento: Two of Everything...

 (with "double decker" cashew butter and jelly sandwiches.)

Muffin Tin Meal with kiwi, carrots, hummus, Dr. Kracker Apple Oat Krunch Crackers, Strawberries and corn chips with melted cheese

"Snack Tin for 3" Carrots, Pistacious, apples, avocado and pita crackers

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Also Shared at: Refresh Your Nest- Best of Summer

What the Baby Ate Wednesday- Grains for Baby?

So... I've been a little ambivalent about starting grains.

You'd think that as someone who writes a blog about teaching kids to be good eaters and who has even written a post about how to feed babies so that they learn to be good eaters, that I would have it all figured out...

Far from it. And my biggest area of confusion has to do with grains.

Baby #1 hated rice cereal and it caused her to be majorly constipated. She had very few grains at the early stages except for all oat (no wheat) "O" cereal which was her introduction to finger foods.

Baby #2 liked EVERYTHING and ate so much food that I fed him baby cereals with his other food to help fill him up so that he didn't eat us out of house and home.

Baby #3 hmm.... I honestly don't remember, but I think I did a little bit of baby cereal because I felt like I should, but then really didn't stick with it.

I wasn't sure what I was going to do with #4. I knew that I didn't want to start with rice cereal for a few reasons. First of all, I wanted his first food to have flavor. Secondly, I was concerned with constipation. Thirdly, I am allergic rice (which is very uncommon, but so is my brother) so, in my family, rice could be an allergy concern.

After starting foods only a few weeks ago, my little guy is starting to consume large quantities of food! This is a bit of a concern for me...

It's simply not in me to make big batches of baby food, freeze them and then thaw them (though I think it's a fabulous idea if you do have it "in you.") Therefore, I rarely have "homemade" baby food on hand.

Buying lots of baby food is very expensive... so- I decided to give grains a try in an effort to fill him up cheaply (don't judge!) I bought Plum Organics Baby Oatmeal.

Then, I remembered another reason why I don't like baby cereal... this stuff looks like fish food, smells like cardboard....

and when you mix it up, it looks like paste.

Now, I will admit... I didn't try to increase it's desirability by adding breast milk. I intended to mix it with fruits and vegetables. But I tried it on its own (mixed with water) as an experiment.

He ate two bites without "comment" and then gagged on the third.

I then added some smashed banana and he ate a few more bites and he stopped opening his mouth.

At this point, I think I may be  done with baby cereal- I'll need to find another way to fill up my baby!

I gave him a little bit of sweet potato which I had baked, scooped, and smashed the night before...

I added a little bit of warm water to both "heat" and thin the mixture. it

Later he "snacked" on some Plum Organics Super Puffs (these do contain rice, but he's only eating a small bit.)

My goal is to get my babies to finger foods as early as possible and these are part of my "training." They're fairly easy to pick up (though I don't think he can do it yet) and they dissolve easily in their mouths. I start by putting one in his mouth and holding it until it starts to dissolve (to peak his interest), then I put some on the try and let him try to get them.

It also kept him busy long enough for me to get some work done!

Lunch was some more sweet potato along with a little bit of avocado.

I was out running errands when my little guy woke up from his nap and was fussy so my husband gave him a carrot and apple "squeeze pack" for dinner.

He ended up really constipated that evening, which I'm attributing (perhaps legitimately perhaps due to my bias) to the cereal. He was crying in pain- poor guy.

What are your experiences with babies and grains? Did you feed your babies "baby" cereal? Did you give your child grains in another form? If so, at what age. If not, how did you fill your baby up? (And what about the "iron," concern?)

What the Baby Ate Wednesday- Eating on the Go!

We just got back from a three day trip to visit friends. This posed a bit of a challenge since I find feeding a baby to be difficult at home. Feeding a baby who only ate a few foods and made a terrible mess doing so, did not sound like fun to me.

He's only been eating solids for two weeks, but he seems ti be ravenous and can't seem to get enough of solid food...

Before we left, I bought a few squeeze pouch baby foods. I thought that this would be easier than having to use a bowl and a spoon and might allow me to give him a quick meal in his carseat. (Although I KNOW that we aren't SUPPOSED to just squeeze them into the baby's mouth or let them suck on them, let's be honest. Would anyone pay more for that packaging if they PLANNED to just squeeze it into a bowl and then use a spoon anyway?)

Needless to say, he couldn't quite figure out how to suck the food out of the pouch and with me squeezing it out, it was all over him- so breakfast consisted of bananas and pumpkin squeezed into a bowl and then spooned into his mouth.

I ran out to the store late in the afternoon to pick up supplies to make dinner for our hosts. While I was there, I tried to buy some avocados since the whole "squeeze" baby food thing wasn't working out as I'd hoped, but they didn't have any ripe ones, so I bought ripe bananas.

When I put him in the car as we left the store, he started fussing so I opened one of the bananas, smushed pieces of banana between my fingers and fed him. This seemed to satisfy him.

By evening, I was afraid that all of the banana might start to constipate him so I opened the pouch of prunes and fed him about a fourth of it. I was worried about feeding him too much.

Whether it was the prunes, too much banana, or something I ate, he did seem to have an upset belly that night.

This one seems to have a pretty touchy stomach so I'm having to be extra cautious about what I introduce- even baby food pears made him spit up. So far avocado seems to settle the best and fills him up so that he sleeps well.

What foods have you found are easier/ harder for your baby to digest?

What tips do you have for feeding a baby when you're not at home?

Sorry, no pictures this week... I was on the go!

What the Baby Ate Wednesday- Week 2

After a few days of sweet potatoes, we introduced one of my favorite foods- avocados!

Avocados make a great first food for a number of health reasons, but my favorite reason is that they are SO EASY!

I'm a little lazy when it comes to baby food. I'm not really a "making my own baby food" kinda mom. To be honest, it's just a little more pre-planning than I'm up to.

Typically, I don't think about feeding the baby until it's time to feed the baby- so, as long as I have a ripe avocado on hand, I have instant baby food!!

I was worried that he was getting a little constipated after several days of avocado, so I also wanted to introduce pears. There weren't any organic pears at Whole Foods and I no longer live close to my favorite "Healthy Food Store," so I bought a few jars of Earth's Best pears.

Today the baby ate one meal which wasn't until 4:30 (busy day!) and it was avocado (raw, mashed, cold) and pears (about 1/3 jar). (FYI notice the seed still in the avocado? If you want to keep the avocado for a few days keep the seed it and it will keep it from getting brown.)

Do you make your own baby food? What do you like/ not like about it? What are your favorite quick and easy "go to" foods for babies?

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What to do When You Have Too Much Zucchini

I used to tease my mom about the year that she put zucchini in EVERYTHING. Anything she made or served we would ask, "Is there zucchini in this?"

It tends to happen this time of year. If you grow zucchini yourself, your garden seems to be overflowing with the stuff. If you know someone with a garden, they are likely trying to unload some of their zucchini on you. Or, if you're like me, you just can't pass it up because it's such a good deal at the market.

Which begs the question... what to do with all this zucchini?

Zucchini is one of my absolute favorite vegetables. It's so versatile and can be served in savory or sweet dishes. One of my favorite things to do with zucchini is to make either zucchini muffins or sausage and zucchini soup. It's also a great addition to turkey burgers.

A few days ago, I wanted to make zucchini muffins, but I couldn't find the shredder attachment for the food processor. I didn't have the patience to shred 3 cups by hand so I improvised and made banana zucchini muffins using my pumpkin/ banana bread recipe. I must say, they were AMAZING!!

Banana Zucchini Muffins

1 cup whole wheat flour
¾ t. baking powder
¼ t. baking soda (a very generous ¼ t.)
1/3 cup butter- melted and cooled
2 mashed ripe banans
1 cup grated zucchini
2 large eggs
1 cup sugar
1 t. cinnamon
½ t. nutmeg
½ t. salt
1/2 t. vanilla

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Beat eggs, add mashed banana, butter, sugar, and vanilla. Then mix in the zucchini. Combine dry ingredients and then add to the wet ingredients. Mix well.

Coat muffin tins with oil. Fill ¾ way to the top. Cook until firm (about 10-15 minutes for mini muffins and 15-20 minutes for full size.)


My other favorite thing to do with zucchini is to use it to stretch ground meet.

I try to buy high quality ground meet so I stretch it by adding a bunch of vegetables (not to mention that it makes it healthier and I think it tastes better!)

I usually chop 1 yellow onion and one zucchini. I start to brown the ground meet and as it begins to release the fat, I cook the onion and zucchini using the beef fat. (If you'd rather not, you can also drain the fat and cook the vegetables in olive oil.) I then add 1 can or approximately 1 cup of black beans.

This mix can then be used in a variety of ways. I use it in enchilada pasta or enchiladas (like the pasta except put in tortillas rather than using it to top pasta.)

I also use it in my cheesy mac,  or as a filling for tacos (or taco muffins), or a topping for taco salads using homemade taco seasoning.

To be honest... I've now used up all of my zucchini, but writing this post is making me hungry. I think I may need to go buy some more tomorrow!

Do you have too much zucchini? What do you plan to make with it?

What The Baby Ate Wednesday- First Food!!!

It was clear...

I couldn't put it off any longer.

Just short of 6 months and the baby was pretty much begging for food. He was staring us down. I'd look into his sweet little face and when he looked back I could swear he was saying, "Feed me!!"

I wasn't ready. I planned to wait until at least 6 months, and although I knew what I had done in the past and have even written an article about feeding babies so that they learn to be good eaters, I didn't really have a plan yet.

Though it didn't last long, even go particularly well, I still started with rice cereal with my other kiddos (well, at least the first two, I honestly can't remember what I did with the last one!)

One of my friends was really dreading "baby food," with her fourth a few months ago and I found a blog post on Amy's Finer Things asking what people fed their babies and when they started solids. I was surprised to discover how many people bypassed rice cereal, and how many people basically followed the baby's lead.

I wondered if this was a new trend, or perhaps a trend among "bloggy moms," so I went straight to the source and crowd sourced my Facebook friends.

It turns out that most of my friends tossed the so-called "rules" out the window (including one who said that her baby's first food was wings and chili dogs... I assume she was kidding??) But the thought buzzing around in my mind is that people have been feeding babies for thousands of years. And for most of that time, rice cereal, as well as, all baby food as we know it, did not exist. (For an interesting article about why rice cereal may not be the best first food, check out First Food for Baby.)

So... here I go, off on the adventure of feeding an all new eater. Inspired by "What I Ate Wedensday," and so that you can follow my journey, I'll be posting once a week about what the baby ate.

We started with sweet potatoes, lunch only (baked, refrigerated, and then boiled in a little hot water and cooled.) He LOVES them but I'm afraid that I created a monster because he cries if I don't feed him fast enough!!

Oh... and in the interest of full disclosure... it's not really his first food. Last week I tried watermelon a few times. He seemed to be teething and I thought that some cool watermelon would feel good on his gums. I tried it three times and all three times he acted like his stomach was upset. I didn't believe it the first few times because it was just a little bit of juice really, but think I'll wait a while before I try that again.


I'd love to hear your thoughts. What were the first foods that you fed your baby? Do you think that how they ate as babies relates to how they eat now?





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