Adventures in Baby Food

This weekend marked a rather large milestone in the Szem household...I started making babyfood.


After a bit of trial and error with different steaming methods, I had one that I really liked and was off and running!


So far...our freezer is stocked with carrots, peas and applesauce. Tonight, I will conquer green beans and grinding whole wheat rice to make our own cereal!


The crazy steaming contraption that I've come up with! Small pot of boiling water, C's Gordon Ramsey colander (which he was not impressed about!) and a lid from a larger pot!


LOVE my Kitchenaid blender! It purees so smooth...LOVE!


Voila! Baby food for Owen! 3lbs of carrots will produce approximately 42 servings


1 bag of frozen peas (1kg bag) will produce about 28 servings, while 9 peeled/cut/cored apples (macintosh) will produce about 56 servings of applesauce!


I've been doing a lot of research about the nutritional value in commercial infant cereals, and the more I read...the more I am against them.


First and foremost, the rice cereals are made with white rice. This means that they are primarily sugar and starch...aka...filler. Sure, they're fortified with iron, but Owen can get that from natural sources such as legumes and meat, as well as from his formula.


Rice is also a natural binder, which leads to uncomfortable gas pains, upset stomach and constipation. Definitely things that I'd like to avoid if at all possible. We had some constipation issues when Owen was a few weeks old, and I'd rather not revisit them!


Yes, he will need some grains in his diet to balance everything out, and clearly they're good for breakfast. Therefore, I've decided to make his cereal. We're going to start with whole wheat rice cereal later this week (probably the weekend) to practice with the spoon and things like that, and then will gradually move to oats and barley, both of which I will be making myself as well.


It's also been recently discovered that since commercial cereals hold zero nutritional value, some pediatricians are recommending skipping them all together, and to start with iron rich meats and legumes as baby's first foods.


We're going to do a combination of the two. We're going to start with homemade cereals so Owen gets experience feeding with a spoon, sitting in his chair...sort of queueing him to feeding time. Then we'll move to cereals for breakfast, add in some fruits for flavour and move to veggies, fruits and a meat for lunch. Dinner will consist of the same, and snacks will be bottles of formula.


I guess you could say we're on a roll! Owen's been showing signs of being ready for solids for over a month now, but we've held off to let his digestive system develop fully. Now that he's practically pulling food off our plate...it's time!

Christmas is Coming!

Christmas is coming! Christmas is coming!

I think that calls for....

a Christmas playlist!

Christmas themes and pictures!

a Christmas blog!!

Stay tuned!!

It's Been a Long Week

Wow...this week has about done us in and no three words can describe how we're feeling.

Tired.

Exhausted.

Drained.

Pooped.

A few things have happened to make us feel his way...

Owen is sick. The poor little guy has a cold and was the snottiest kiddo I'd ever laid eyes on at the beginning of the week. Coupled with his teething woes, it made for some very long nights...most of which resulted in Owen sleeping with us in bed.

The gym. Oh...the gym. I had two early morning workouts with my trainer this week, and for a while now (as you've all read about in the past few months) I have been getting a sense of "you're not good enough" from my trainer. Well...we had words and he's no longer my trainer...which was my decision. I stood up for myself, and while I won't go into the nitty-gritty...there will be a letter sent to his superior and to the owner of the gym because no one should ever have to sit through and be talked down to the way that I was on Tuesday morning.

Tuesday night, Owen and I were off to my hometown to go to a cardmaking/scrapbooking party with Godmomma...WHO's GETTING MARRIED!!! Before the party, we went for pedicures and I had a chance to relax as her kiddo, T, tried to babysit Owen (T is 7...so A for effort! He loves Owen!) We were looking for invitation layouts for her wedding, I was getting insane ideas for Sweet Stella's, and having a blast being crafty.

Wednesday, we laid low. Tuesday night was really really rough with Owen, so I went out for cold remedies (which I will write about next week, because we found some really awesome ones that have helped him feel SO much better, and even sleep through the night again!) and got to work on some Sweet Stella projects while Owen napped on my lap for the afternoon. He's such a snugglebug when he's sick!

Wednesday afternoon we had a choking incident. It was incredibly scary and something that I wish on no mother. Owen has an issue with taking oral medicine. He seems to absolutely detest the taste, and will actually let it pool in the back on his throat...and then choke like no tomorrow (I mean, eyes bugged out and spewing from everywhere while struggling to breathe and looking terrified). We had had a choking incident like this last week (Thursday) but this was different. I had to perform Infant CPR/Heimlich...and thank my lucky stars that he has some mighty strong angels looking out for him.

Thursday was another sort of crazy day...and all wedding! We went bridesmaid dress shopping and I think we found the one! VERY exciting, and it's gorgeous! The only downside is the price, so my task for early next week is to call around to the other bridal stores in the area to see what the price difference is from shop to shop.

Today has been crazy as well! Thankfully, Owen slept through the night (soother at 4 and 5:30am, then slept until 9:40!). We went to a naturopathic talk at the new mama-baby wellness centre, Life with Baby, for noon and stayed until about 4:00pm. They run a happy hour every Friday afternoon, with free childcare, to give the mom's a chance to unwind and relax after a busy week with veggies and organic teas. It's such a lovely place, and I will blog about it next week as well!! We're there, at minimum, twice a week and I'm going to be volunteering and hopefully (fingers crossed) running some art therapy workshops there in the future!

At 4ish, Owen and I walked a few blocks to pick up C at work, and visit the ladies in the office for a little while. Then, we were off to a restaurant to have dinner with my friend, her hubby and kiddo...and then we were off to the Lighting of the Lights at the park, which we missed by a few minutes. Awh well...good intentions right?

We capped off the night with some cider back at Life with Baby, and then headed home to work on Sweet Stella Christmas orders with C and Owen watched the hockey game.

Are you tired yet?

Exhausted?

Drained?

Pooped?

I am!

Cup of Tea Photo Cards

I met this wonderful gal, Synchrosally, on The Bump what seems like eons ago now, but was really only last summer.

We got to talking, and quickly realized that we lived not far from one another! Both Ontarians, and both due on the very same day! (the boys were born 6 days apart!)

One thing lead to another, and I found myself going to Andrea (she has a real name) for help with scrapbooking, card making and all things graphic design related. Little did I know that she was a complete wiz at digital art!

After some nudging from e-friends like myself and our beautiful ladies on facebook, she decided to open up an online digital art store...creating invitations, announcements, holiday cards and even art for your nursery! Her store is called Cup of Tea Photo Cards.

Quickly, she designed our birth announcement once we had our newborn photos done, and she also was kind enough to design our baptism invitation.

Here are some of the samples she sent me!

We sort of told her what we were looking for, sent her pictures of Owen's nursery and the fabric from his quilt, and voila! We had tonnes of designs to choose from!

Her slogan? We design, you print! She sends you the order electronically, and then all you have to do is take it into (or send it online....us mom's like doing things from the comfort of our own homes for sure!) the store where you get your digital pictures printed, and print them either at a kiosk...or for better results, at the photofinishing desk. SO easy!

Have a first birthday party coming up? (I know most of you readers do!! I'm already planning O's party!) Valentine's for your kiddo's classmates? Art for your nursery? Birth/wedding announcements? Shower invitations? Give Cup of Tea Photo Cards a try!

Plug Pals

A very good friend of mine, Paige (remember Owen + Eliot from a few months back...the very best of friends? Paige is Eliot's mom!), recently started a business after much encouragement from her sister-in-law Steph, her wonderful husband, and a little gentle nudging from yours truly.

Her business is called Plug Pals

Funny, eh? Well...funny and practical! She creates whimsical and super cute handpainted soother clips in a variety of styles. You name it, Paige can do it!

What makes her Plug Pals unique? Not only are they handpainted, making each one different from the next, but they fit any soother and can be made to reflect the individuality of your child's style.

What else is in store? Nursing Buddies. Simply put, something for your kiddo to grab and hold...saving you from having your antique necklace damaged by the almighty grip of your baby! I personally love these necklaces because they are gorgeous and funky. I'm not a breastfeeding momma, but I do have a little one who likes to grab and tug at my necklace...and chew on everything, so this is a highly attractive alternative...and it'll go great with a pair of jeans!

Paige is a friend, a fabulous mother, and a mompreneur with a passion to create cool and funky accessories for kiddos. Stop by her site and see what she can dream up for your little guy and gal!

Twirlie Whirlies

Part 2 of the mompreneur posts for the week, and I thought I'd kick it off with a gal who I greatly admire...and stumbled on via twitter!

She's a Shan as well, so clearly I'm a little bias, but she's very talented!

Her business is called Twirlie Whirlies

How cute are these?!

Not only does she handmake these fantastic pinwheels, but she also creates the adorable little treat bags, party hats, banners, paper balls and tiny little envelopes.

They are incredibly cute, and could get a momma like me, who loves all things handmade, into alot of trouble...or at least it could get my VISA into alot of trouble.

What I find extra amazing, is that Shan has been featured by Amy Atlas...the event guru. This is a huge honour, and to any of you out there who know who Amy Atlas is...you understand completely what I am talking about. Ah-mazing!

I highly, highly recommend giving Shan over at Twirlie Whirlies some love. She is incredibly talented, has a very keen eye for design and is a an amazing supporter of other mompreneurs.

Whether you need something for your next party...or perhaps your kiddo's first birthday party (this is where I'm totally going to get into trouble...!!), Twirlie Whirlies is your place for fantastically fanciful handmade items!

Savvy MOMpreneur

A couple of days ago, this wondrous woman named Cynthia featured Sweet Stella's on her blog. Our traffic has gone through the roof, and for that...I am very appreciative.

You see...Cynthia is a mom of two kiddos, wife to one, and a mompreneur.

I'd never heard of this term until I was directed to her facebook page, and later her blog and twitter account.

I guess I would dub her the ultimate mompreneur. She blogs, tweets, and updates her facebook page like no other with incredible tips for how to increase the traffic flow to your site, innovative marketing tips such as including business cards in your Christmas cards, and she even hosts great contests.

When I opened Sweet Stella's, I sort of did it on a whim and to see what would come of it. Connecting with other mompreneurs and such valuable people like Cynthia is a huge huge bonus.

Check out Cynthia's blog, twitter account and facebook page for incredible tips from an incredible lady!

All this coming week, I'll be blogging about fellow mompreneurs. It's such an awesome thing that they're all doing, and many of them are finding success in doing what they love.

I hope that you'll find them engaging and entertaining, and will show them some love by going to their pages!