Browsing Category Babies and Kids

Antioxidant, Immune-Boosting, Super Food Smoothie for Toddlers (and Adults!)

by on ·Babies and Kids, Recipes

As a mom who swears by her child’s probiotics, I am going to blame my son’s most recent illness on the fact that we went a few days while on vacation without giving said probiotics to said child.  Of course, it could be coincidental, but as I watched my niece, then my sister, my husband, then my nephew all develop the same awful, wet cough and snotty noses, I was sure my son’s built up immune system was crushing that virus and that we were totally missing the bullet… that is, until that same bullet hit him three weeks later after arriving home from holiday, and I needed something to put blame to.  Clearly, the infected populous that we typically surround ourselves with is an obvious answer (not to mention disgusting germs on a crowded airplane), but I can’t go without blaming myself for being lazy whilst vacationing in Hawaii.

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How to Survive Long-Distance Plane Travel with a 1 Year old (or small child)

by on ·Babies and Kids, Lifestyle, Uncategorized

As somewhat of an initial disclaimer:  I truthfully wasn’t even sure if I should write this blog post.  I’ve flown with my son twice now.  Once TO our vacation spot, and once FROM our vacation spot.  And although we did fly quite a distance for the first plane trip, and we did cross three different time zones (for a total of 6 hours gained… and lost), I still cannot be considered any sort of an expert in this field.

On top of all that obviousness, these types of “How To’s” are totally circumstantial.  I mean, think about it:  the age of your child and how their personality type is absolutely factors into the question of how your baby will do on a big metal tube in the sky:

Is your child colicky?  Guarantee that’s going to be something that factors in, and usually not something anyone else writing posts like this tends to consider.

Does your kid hate being stationary for more than 20 minutes at a time like mine? They’re going to be in for quite a surprise when you get aboard your flight.

Is your flight early in the morning?  Is it at nap time or bedtime?

These are all important thoughts to consider. 

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Baby Food Timeline Part 1

by on ·Babies and Kids, Recipes, Uncategorized

When my son turned 4 months old, I knew he was ready for solid (super mashed, pureed) baby food; he had 2 teeth, he was confidently crawling without his belly touching the ground, he was showing interest in the food I was eating and he was almost able to truly sit up on his own without help.  Plus… he was super active, and hungry every two hours - food needed to be added to his diet.  Many forums do suggest that you wait until your child is at least 6 months of age before introducing solid foods to deter any possibility of food allergy, and to ensure that baby is able to swallow and digest the food appropriately.  With my pediatrician’s input, however, we decided that Kaden was ready before that point.

The following infographic visually shows which foods are okay for baby to have, and at what ages.  We have always recommended all organic foods for your child, especially as their tiny little bellies are still developing (nasty pesticides and such aren’t a good mix for all that), but go with your gut and do what you feel is best for your child - we promise, we’re not telling you how to raise your kids.  Remember that all fruits and vegetables should be washed thoroughly (try Honest Company Fruit & Veggie Wash) before introducing to baby.

We do want to remind all mommies and daddies out there that once a new food is introduced, to continue feeding your little ones that food ONLY for a minimum of four days - this way, if your child does have an allergic reaction, you will know exactly what triggered it.

All of these suggestions have been approved by our Pediatrician, but always be sure to talk to your child’s doctor before introducing any kind of food and get their opinion.  You know your child better than anyone else, so also keep in mind the textures, size, and chewiness of certain foods, and how you feel your child will be able to chew or gum these items.  Let Kaytee or I know in the comments if you have any questions at all regarding our food timeline, or about any questions you may have on the introduction of foods for your baby in general!

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Bleeding, Clots and Cramping in Early Pregnancy - Is this a Miscarriage? My Story of Hope

by on ·Babies and Kids

One morning, when I was around 5 and a half weeks pregnant or so, I woke up to use the restroom before work and noticed a couple droplets of thick blood hit the water in the toilet below.  There was a light smear of blood on the tissue paper, and an even smaller amount in the underwear I wore to bed the night before.  I had gone to bed with severe cramping, thinking that it was due to the insanely salty seaweed crisps I had eaten the night before.  I swore to myself as I laid in bed that night that I wouldn’t be eating those again.  The cramping was still persistent that morning, and the blood I was seeing made my head spin and my face go white.  My husband had already left for work that morning, and a million and one thoughts were racing through my brain;  “Is there something wrong with my baby?”  “This can’t be implantation bleeding – I’ve already seen an ultrasound of the baby on my cervix, right?”  “Was I having a miscarriage?”

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Organizing Old Baby Clothes - Free Label Download!

by on ·Babies and Kids, Uncategorized

For the past 9 or so months, I have slowly been stashing all of Kaden’s old clothes into old diaper boxes in the deepest corners of my walk-in closet.  I’ve kept all of them because I plan to have more kids, and if I am lucky enough to have a second, and that second is also a darling baby boy, well, I wouldn’t mind using most of Kaden’s hand-me-downs - given baby boy number 2 happens within the next decade where said hand me downs are still cute.

I recently began organizing a lot of our items as we get ready to move into a new house, and those diaper boxes overflowing with baby clothes reminded me that I really needed to work my way through all those tiny onesies, layettes, and little newborn socks and hats - as well as all the memories.  It’s amazing how quickly your little ones grow up, and it’s even more amazing how much stuff is accumulated in less than 10 months during the first year of your tiny human’s life.

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My Guilty Sleep Tactic

by on ·Babies and Kids, Uncategorized

I will start off by admitting that my children are on the WORST sleep routine ever and my husband reminds me of it every time he is off (work that is). I know he is right. I know he is as frustrated as am I. I need my mommy time, too. I have stuff to clean, clothes to fold, blogs to write, and I know deep down in my heart this would all be easier if my children went to sleep at a normal time. Sometimes I am so tired, I am just angry and irritable. I say to them “WHY?! WHY?! Can’t you just go to bed!?” and “Ugh, Please Lord let them go to sleep!” Sometimes tears form when I try the sleep tactics that don’t work for me, and I know that this is my fault.

I should be more consistent.

I am with dinner. I sit down with them every night at 6pm even if I haven’t made myself food and just talk to them.

I am with bath time. We get those bubbles going and start playing around 6:30pm. We always make time for a splash party.

I am with jammies. We usually chase each other around the house and laugh a lot.

I am with turning down the lights to set the bedtime mood around 7:20.

I am with books. I always give in with “one more, Mommy.”

I am with prayers. We always pray together.

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Favorite Store Bought Organic Snacks for Baby – 8 mo+

by on ·Babies and Kids, Lifestyle, Uncategorized

If you haven’t noticed by now, I opt for organic foods when it comes to my family, especially my son.  His breakfast, lunch and dinner are all comprised of natural, non-gmo, organic produce, poultry, yogurt, etc., so naturally, the snacks I give him are no different.  Granted, several of these items can be given to your babes as early as they are crawling, they still make their way onto my list of favorite organic snacks even now that Kaden is 9 months old to take with us whenever we are on the go – they are convenient, nutritious, and equally as important - my son enjoys them.  Remember to always use discretion when choosing foods for your specific, special, little person – you know better than anyone else just how well your child can chew (or gum) different foods, and these snacks are no different when choosing which to feed them.

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The Best HONESTLY All-Natural Deodorants to Use While Breastfeeding

by on ·Babies and Kids, Lifestyle

At my son’s 4 week checkup, our physician’s assistant and I exchanged our typical question and answer dialogue beyond Kaden’s physical exam - as was the norm given my paranoia as a first time mother.  “Is he gaining weight appropriately?”, “His belly button is still kind of dark – is it okay?”, “…Is that much spit up normal?” It’s an endless barrage of questions that our sweet PA very sweetly and patiently answers for me at each visit, although I can often tell she is biting at the bit to run out of the room to her other waiting patients.  At this particular checkup there was one subject we were discussing that ultimately ended in her uttering the following words: “Well, of course you should be using all-natural deodorant if you are breastfeeding”.

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Organic Coconut Flour & Almond Butter Baby Pancakes - 8 months +

by on ·Babies and Kids, Recipes, Uncategorized

The other morning my son woke up just like he had the day before.  He smiled at me with that 6 toothed grin, reached for me with immense anticipation to remove him from his four-poster prison [crib], and even snuggled my shoulder like he did every morning before.  I changed his overnight diaper and walked him downstairs to play with his toys in front of the TV glaring Disney Junior – a daily distraction while I made my necessary morning coffee – just like I had the morning before, and each morning prior to that since I could remember.  And like every morning since Kaden turned 4 months old, I popped a frozen, organic pear mold from our silicone food container, mixed in a tablespoon of his oatmeal, added in a couple drops of Vitamin D, his probiotic and a dash of cinnamon and proceeded to set up my little man in his highchair and bib.  Only something came to a crashing halt in our otherwise daily ritual – my child refused to eat his food.  Breakfast was always a meal he successfully ate in full, but not that day.  Weird.  Then at lunch he refused to eat his favorite pureed butternut squash.  And at dinner… I don’t think I need to go on.

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Ikea Hack Easel

by on ·Babies and Kids, Home Decor

I love Ikea. Usually I get overwhelmed with so many choices, but Ikea is laid out so well that it’s easy for me to say “yes” or “no” to specific items. Ikea “hacks” are super popular since it’s so easy to take their items and upgrade them. I have done this to multiple pieces in my house.

We posted in our Holiday Gift Guide for One Year Olds that one of our top picks was the Ikea MALA Easel. For $14.99 it is an AMAZING deal, especially when you compare it to the Land of Nod’s  Artist Portrait Easel at $149.00 or Melissa and Doug’s Standing Art Easel at $52.99. Neither one is customizable to fit your little one’s room, or your house. I honestly can’t say that the IKEA easel is much better; however, at $9.99, the customizing you can do with this piece to make it special is well worth it.

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