Babies Love Vegetables

I am not a supermom, but I do think one should find time to make their own baby food. This is why: 1)You know what is in it. and 2)You can introduce your child to your cultural food. Just remember the food mill or processor is your friend.

This is one of the best ways to insure that your children will eat vegetables later in childhood. It really does not take long once you get setup. You will need a food processor or food mill. I like the  Kidco electric food mill sold at Babys R US and Burlington Coat Factory.  Ice trays or Kidco freezer storage trays.  I preferred the storage trays because they are a lot easier to use and more sanitary. It is a little investment, but think about how much baby food costs. Now, you are ready to steam and puree, away,or freeze for later use. The Kidco trays are pre-measured in 1 ounce servings. You can decide how many of these serving your child needs for a meal. My kids are big eaters.  I ended up pureeing everything. Brown rice, lasagna, casseroles--they are it all.  I pureed so that they could eat the same food that my husband and I ate sometimes. For all of you superfoodies on a budget, I really felt good about buying the highest quality meat for puree. One pound goes the distance. My oldest daughter went through a texture hating phase. I pureed green beans until she was 3 years old. 

That leads me to what I think is one of our biggest food mistakes Moms make. Not only do we want our bigger babies to eat, but we want them to eat the same way we do. It's OK to puree vegetable until your kid is 18 if that makes him eat it. They may not eat a sandwich, but they will eat the bread, meat and cheese all separately. Let go of the box and listen to why they are saying NO.

Additionally, you can mix vegetable purees into dishes for a veggie boost. I really like Deceptively Delicious by Jessica Seinfeld. I felt so empowered by a simple chicken nugget recipe. It sounds like a no brainer, but I honestly never thought of making homemade chicken nuggets before I bought that cookbook.

Happy eating

Will a 3 year old eat her veggies? Yes she can!

I cannot remember where I got this tip, but it is working. My three year old asked me today if I liked for her to eat fish. I said yes. She went on to name several other good foods. 

Here is the tip. Whenever you give your child vegetables, fruits or other favorable foods, tell them what is good about it. I was shocked at how fast she started to eat carrots when I told her about her supervision. Yes, I fudged a little.  X-ray vision to be exact. I told her how strong spinach would make her--an old Popeye trick--I know. That salmon patty goes straight to your brain, I said, and demonstrated how nice and squishy it would become. It's fun for me and them.

Just get the taste in their mouth. Soon, they will not be able to refuse an old favorite if a friend tells them it's yucky.  Or better yet, they can tell their friend why they like to eat it.

rBST-FREE DAIRY WINS

I am totally against the industrialization of our agriculture.  I wish I could buy all of our food from organic and local farms. Currently, that is not an option. I frequently scan the grocer aisles to see if the food industry is responding to consumer concerns. With all of that said, I have begun to see several companies indicating the use of non-rBST cow in their dairy products. That means that a recombinant growth hormone is not used to make cows produce more milk than is natural. It is the next best thing to organic dairy

Cows are not cars. You should not make them artificially more efficient. They are living animals that produce young and in response produce milk. I apologize to the little calves, but I love diary.  Below is a list of products that I have found without rBST:

Any product that says "Organic"

Braums products 

Bordens milk

Mountain High Yoghurt

Kroger brand dairy 

Starbucks Coffee shops

Brown Cow Yogurt

Tillamook Cheese

Lucerne milk

http://www.nwrage.org/downloads/ORPFSR_rbghConsumerGuide.pdf

If you are on the lookout for healthy substitutions for old favorites, I have two. I still love sandwiches, and I am always looking for affordable options without the nitrates. Hormel has been making its "Natural Choice" brand for a year or two. The price keeps dropping--currently $2.98 for 9 oz at my neighborhood Wal-Mart. There are no nitrates, and they say that the animals are not given hormones. That makes me feel less guilty about sharing this family tradition with my kids.  Salt content is a negative with 490 mg sodium per serving.  I use to buy a brand from the Whole Foods Market before the kids, but it was rather pricey for a family.

 

Agave nectar is another favorite. It is a sweetener made from a plant.  It looks like honey but is less viscous. It tastes like sugar but richer. It can sweeten any drink, especially tea. I use it on oatmeal and to make cinnamon toast that taste more like a cinnamon roll. This all-natural, organic product also has a low glycemic index of 32 out of 100. Honey has a favor that overpowers whatever you mix it into. Agave nectar does not have its own strong flavor. I cannot use fake sugars because they give me migraines. This was a great find.  Here is the brand I usually get www.madhavahoney.com/agave.htm.

With hurricane season in what appears to be full swing, families need to remember emergency preparedness.  What does that mean to you? Let’s start with money. Keep a couple hundred dollars in small bills around the house in case of an emergency. I was one of the thousands fleeing hurricane Rita and found it hard to find cash since ATMs were all empty. Second, keep your vehicles at least half full with gas at all times.

Don’t feel silly about keeping a little extra food and water at the house. I have seen grocery and hardware stores empty out in a matter of hours. If you have the room, keep a week’s worth of canned goods on hand. If there is a problem with supplies getting to your area, you will have a nice cushion.

Gone are the days that we can wait until the last minute for everything. Get together as a family and prepare several command stations. For example, we have family in California and Texas. The Texas people need a singular family member to notify in California. The California members need a contact in Texas. Everyone has the contact numbers and knows what to do in a disaster right down to the children. Remember to get the number of the church contact information for elders to make sure someone has accounted for them.

Sometimes children get separated from their parents. This borders on paranoia, but I keep sharpies in different areas of the house. For what do you ask, to write important information on your toddler before you hand them to some stranger to save their life  (Sorry—Katrina freaked me out.)  Also with small children, it is a good idea to keep a small supply bag in each vehicle.

The 1993 flood in Iowa, the 1981 & 2007 floods of Gainesville, Texas, Hurricane Rita, Tropical Storm Allison, and a host of tornados have personally affected me.  I want everyone to be as prepared as possible.