Vegan night

My husband came to me a bit ago and said he wanted to be a vegan. I of course laughed because he is your typical southern man: he loves his meat and he loves it smothered in BBQ sauce. Nevertheless, I opted to take him seriously and try slowly introducing him to a meat free night of tasty food.

I made black beans and rice with corn tortillas. These were delicious, simple and even I didn't miss the cheese.

Vegan black beans:

2 cans of vegan black beans
1 cup of red, orange, yellow or green bell peppers diced (I used a combination of all four)
1 /2 cup of onion, diced
2 tbsp garlic powder (you can adjust to your desired amount of garlic)
1 tsp lime juice
salt and pepper to taste

Mix the above ingredients together in a pot. Let heat on medium for about 10 minutes, stirring often.

Take a corn tortilla and spread with your favorite hummus. Top with rice and black beans. Add guacamole.

You can also add salsa if you prefer.

A little outing in Boston

Every year we go on a vacation for our anniversary and this year we opted to go to Boston. We spent three wonderful days there and got to see a little history, a little culture and have a little relaxation.

Our first day there we went to the aquarium. Dorian loved looking into the tanks and watching the fish swim around. Since the Bruins had just won the Stanley cup the other night everyone was showing their support. As you can see the scuba diver in the fish tank had his Bruins Jersey on. 

We went to Faneuil  hall and Quincy market after the aquarium. We were lucky to see this man who made an amazing living statue. Something I had never seen before. Both Jay and I were very fascinated with how lifelike he looked.

 The next day we walked around Boston Commons and happened upon the Old Granary Burial Ground where Paul Revere was buried. There were so many cool headstones.

We drove through Cambridge and got to see Harvard University. 

And on our last day we enjoyed a relaxing morning before heading back home.

As you can see my darling child is practicing to be a plumber. But I would much rather look at his cute little tooshie than some big old fat dude with his hairy dingle-berry infested crack hanging out.

Carrots!

We started carrots yesterday morning and again some funny looks to begin with but he warmed up to them in the end. At lunch time he was much more interested in the taste.

You will notice that we start our new food introductions in the morning. I read that this was the best time to introduce a new food so that if there were any allergies, or stomach upsets that baby wouldn't wake up through out the night.

So far we have done pretty well and there seems to be no intolerance.

I am pretty sure he was thinking that if I fed him carrots his curly little fuzz head was going to get more orange. He doesn't seem to approve.









My smiling little gummy bear. I have never met a more happy baby. I am the luckiest mom in the world. <3

I know that some parents aren't for the early introduction of solids and I was one of those before gummy bear came along. My original plan was to breastfeed until at least one year and do baby led weaning at around 8 or 9 months. Of course we had to divert from our plan and start formula and this has left me with a baby who seems more ready to start on purees. So we opted to start a couple weeks before the 6 month mark and I am following his lead in determining his readiness.

"Wholly" Guacamole!

We did Avocado at the beginning of the week and my little man doesn't seem too enthused. I pretty much get this face every time!

Avocado recipe:
1 slice of avocado, mashed
A bit of formula to thin to desired consistency

You can also add a little mashed banana which is what we added at the end of the week.

For avocado I mash at feeding time. The way to cut down on browning is to slice the avocado into slices and freeze.You don't even need anything else to keep them green. You can also add a drop or two of lemon juice in pureed avocado to keep it from browning.

I love making my own baby food because I feel like he is getting much more variety. Perhaps it is just my grocery store but the first stage purees have very little options. I don't want to limit his taste buds and hope he can be a little foodie someday who loves all the wonderful fruits and veggies out there.

And we are off!

Do not stop. Do not pass go. Enter directly into the land of solids. There is no turning back now!

My number one goal as a parent is to do the best I can. I am not perfect and as many plans as I may have I understand they will not ever go as such. I have learned to deviate, accept, and travel anew. My path is always changing as a mother. But I am doing my best.

As circumstances would have it I was not able to breastfeed my child and so as much as I hated to do it we had to start formula. I opted for an organic formula made from a 100% BPA free can and without the added DHA made from scary derivatives. I struggled with guilt for months and kept trying and hoping that my outcome would change. It did not; that was out of my control. Since then, I have decided that if there is one thing I can control despite whatever may come it is what I feed my child.

I aim to feed him 100% organic fruits and veggies, especially in these crucial first years. I would hate to expose him to unnecessary chemicals for my own convenience. (Though it is no big surprise as I am pretty crunchy elsewhere in life too). I have opted to make my own baby food for these first few months, some of which will come from the garden we are growing this year.

We are following the four day rule: feed one fruit or veggie alone for four days in case of reaction. So far bananas are a-okay! I am sticking with mostly veggies to begin with but will alternate between fruit and veggie as we go along.

So last week we did mashed bananas. If you haven't seen one the Annabel Karmel masher is genius! I love it. It is just the right size for baby portions and for traveling. I can pop it in my bag and take it with me wherever I go. It works amazing for avocados too! But we will save that for another day.

So one half banana with a little formula in the masher and voila you have the perfect consistency for baby. I won't say we were without a few funny faces but once he got over trying to bite the spoon he was going in for more. He really likes to try and feed himself and though he is a little clumsy with the spoon and he gets  more on me than in his mouth we still have fun come breakfast time. Because what is better after breakfast than a nice warm bath or shower?

Oats are not just for horses.

My little gummy bear is not so little anymore. He is ready for solids so we opted to start with a little oatmeal in the mornings. This has made him SO much more happy. We have less screaming between bottles and he seems to enjoy playing with his bowl and spoon. I think he may even love his bath or shower that he gets when he is finished a lot more than the actual eating.


In any case oatmeal went great. We use Earth's Best baby oatmeal for the time being until he can eat the regular stuff and he loved it so much he was digging in with fingers and spoon!

My favorite picture:

I wish I could capture every single second of every day. My little boy amazes me more and more every time I look at him. He is such a happy, giggly, smiling little bundle of wonderful. His personality is really coming out and he is such a little ham already. He laughs a lot and it is such a cute little baby laugh. Every day is a personal struggle with post-postpartum depression and anxiety but having him around makes every day better. 

Milestones baby

We have a sitter! Last week we thought we would see if baby could sit up and voila he did! He is still a little wobbly but he does great for a few minutes at least. I cannot believe how fast he is growing. We got the go ahead to start solids in a month. What an exciting adventure that will be. The mister and I plan to make our own baby food from whole organic vegetables and fruits. This way we can control exactly what is going into his little body.

He is talking more and screeching a lot. He sounds like a little raptor. He is teething so he chews on everything. He loves to jump in his jumperoo and he moves his chunky little legs side to side like he is doing the river dance. It is the cutest thing!

He is such a flirt with the ladies. His chubby cheeks and gorgeous smile make them all come running to check him out. I think I am going to have a heart breaker on my hands!

My little boy is 4 months old!

My baby boy is going to be 4 months old tomorrow. I cannot even believe how fast time has gone by. He laughs and smiles all the time now. He is honestly the worlds happiest baby ever. He knows how to stick his pacifier in his mouth and he is now starting to try and put it in other mouths. He loves his toys and he looks so darned cute in overalls. Where time has gone I do not know, but I am trying so hard to enjoy every second while it lasts.

Be back soon!

Moving! I will return soon.

In the meantime, send some good vibes over to Japan, especially to the power plant workers who are trying so hard to do their job amidst such stress and terrible conditions.

Cellular Memory

I won't get into the whole story but my labor was rough, long and almost killed me. I had to have a blood transfusion and it wasn't fun. I have to say the idea of ever getting someones blood is kind of gross. It definitely always made me cringe. I would have liked to have gone the route of always having only my blood but that just wasn't an option. Receiving blood is pretty rough in and of itself. It is cold and burns your arm like you wouldn't believe. The worst part is sitting through it knowing that any moment you could have a reaction to the blood you are getting and die. Even though it is pretty rare it doesn't leave your mind and you sit there in silence hoping that you make it through. You always read about people who get transplants and cellular memory, makes you wonder if on the same level you can get something similar from a transfusion.

It could always be a product of changing tastes from pregnancy but things are different.

I can't eat pickles anymore. I didn't really eat them while I was pregnant but now I just can't do it and I used to LOVE them. My sweet tooth has gotten ten times worse. All I crave now is Mcdonald's vanilla ice cream cones. Prior to this I don't think I had ever had one. But I wanted them like a man lost in the desert wants a drink of water. I would eat them every day if I could; probably multiple times a day at that. All of a sudden I like chocolate; I have never been a fan.

Life is funny sometimes. It doesn't work out how you expected and it certainly throws you for a curve quite often. But the greatest thing is that I have my life. Even if I can no longer eat the things I love and want things I never really cared for before.

Funny Valentine

There is no greater love than that of a mother to her child. You can never possibly imagine how full your heart can be until you look down upon that little being you created. Those little eyes staring up at you, tugging at every emotional fiber in your body. Everything changes with one look at the most beautiful thing you have ever seen, your little baby. I have always been emotional; I love with everything I have. I never imagined my heart could expand so much or be filled and overflowing with the most immense feelings as it is now that I am a mother.


My best Valentine:

Winter Wonderland

Winter is bitter in New England. Cold and chilling; it pinches your cheeks and leaves them blush with numbness. It is fleeting and yet lasts what seems to be an eternity. The snow piles on top of more snow until all the world is white and dingy around the edges from sand and dirt, plowed up and strewn about. It ends sweet with maple scenting the air and billowing out from the doors of barns and floating upon the last remaining snowflakes of the season. Catch it on your tongue and you freeze still for a tiny moment, trapped in the mystical moments of life lived simply and wonderfully. There has never been a place more magical. A place that stops still and silent the moment the first snow dusts the ground. 

Some pictures I have taken this winter: