Posts Tagged ‘all-natural’

All Natural / Organic Belly Butters & Oils to Prevent Stretch Marks During Pregnancy

Being that I am well into my second trimester of my second pregnancy, my little bump has decided to make its appearance MUCH earlier than it did during my first.  I was more tone, athletic, and busy with my first pregnancy, so my growing baby didn’t really become noticeable until I was almost 7 months pregnant.  This time around has been a completely different ball game, and with a rather noticeable baby bump and extra itchy skin, I looked to an all-natural belly butter and oil to soothe the itch, and help prevent stretch marks this time around.

It’s important to note that it has been said that genetics plays the #1 role in whether or not you will develop stretch marks during your pregnancy: “If your mom or sister got them while they were pregnant, chances are you will, too.”  Heard that one?  Yeah, I’ve heard it enough as well.  It has also been noted that staying hydrated while pregnant (something we are supposed to do anyway - and, I am ashamed to say I am quite bad at) allows your skin to stretch easier.

I also believe that not gaining too much weight too quickly is also an important factor in whether or not you will develop stretch marks.  Unfortunately, that isn’t always in our hands when it comes to morning sickness, cravings, and, well, being pregnant in general - a girl gets hungry!  

In any case, a soothing belly butter or oil that is made to help prevent stretch marks, as well as ease itching discomfort, is well worth the extra effort in my opinion.  If not for the stretch marks - then definitely for the itching.

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

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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The Best HONESTLY All-Natural Deodorants to Use While Breastfeeding

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 +

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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Organic Pasta, Mixed Veggie & Sweet Potato Puree – 8 Months +

According to my pediatrician, the average 6- to 10-month old should be eating at least 4 tablespoons of grains or cereals each day.  Admittedly, upon entering his 8 month birthday, I had only been feeding my son a tablespoon of his Earth’s Best Organic Oatmeal Cereal each morning and the occasional Happy Baby Teether when we are on the go.  Although I am aware of how important whole grains are for an adult, I naively prepared my child’s meals without taking into consideration just how important the absent food group was; whole grains and cereals are critical for sustaining your infant’s energy levels.  They contain important B complex vitamins, zinc, magnesium and fiber – important not only to maintain a healthy digestive system and prevent constipation, but also a necessary component to build a healthy immune system.

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Top 4 Favorite CERTIFIED Organic Red Wines

As Christmas quickly approaches, and everyone is losing their minds over last minute gift shopping, dinner preparations and the like, there is yet another aspect of the holiday season that most adults have no problem remembering: the bar menu.  Most of us have already decided on what our holiday cocktail will be, and while many will be sipping Winter White Cosmos, Cinnamon Whiskey shooters or a bit of bubbly, my favorite Christmas dinner drink is typically a delicious glass (or 2) of red wine.

As a mother, I choose only all-natural and organic items for my son.  In doing my own research for my child, I have also learned quite a bit about my own health and well-being, and I was surprised to find out just how good and good for you organic wine is (in comparison to the conventional variety).  Do I still indulge in non-organic wines every so often?  Yes… but the more I learn and taste different organic wines, the more I opt for them when choosing a bottle at the store.

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Fool-Proof, All-Natural Diaper Rash Remedy (Plus our Favorite All-Natural Diaper Rash Creams)!

When my son was 5 weeks old he developed his first really awful diaper rash.  As a mother, it is very heart wrenching to see your child squirm in pain each time you go to clean their little, perfect bums due to red, sensitive skin and blisters (if it gets that bad).  Without sharing too much information—and safe-guarding the future relationship I hope to have with my son should he ever read this post—I knew that the reason he developed the rash was his overactive, uh, digestive system.  We were constantly changing diapers and rubbing his delicate baby skin, and the evidence of such reared its ugly head in the form of a painful rash.

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Chicken, Apple and Sweet Potato Puree

When my daughter turned 9 months old my mother suggested that I give her chicken in her baby food. My first thought was “oh that is so gross.” I had seen the gerber baby food on the shelf that had chicken in it. A white puree of mystery meat that I just could not stomach. With my daughter I relied a lot on organic store bought baby food.

I worked over sixty hours a week and felt baby food making would be  too time consuming for me and my parents, who took care of my daughter. (I will blog later on the best store bought baby foods because in no way am I opposed to them.)  With my son I decided that I needed to be home with my kids. I now had time to make my own baby food. My son is an EATER and sooner than expected he was ready to have animal protein in his food. I had to suck it up and do my research. Organic chicken and egg yolks seemed to be the best path. I had tried store bought chicken baby food and the only ones he really liked were the Sprout foods. He was going through them like crazy, and it did get a tad expensive. So here I am creating my own recipes and my son loves this one. 

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Carrot, Peach and Apricot Baby Puree

This baby puree is a no brainer: It’s full of health-beneficial ingredients, sweet enough for baby’s developing taste buds, and best of all – it is delicious and silky smooth for your special guy or gal (maybe both!).  I originally started giving carrots to Kaden when he first turned 6 months, as my pediatrician had me stick to the main three single-foods from 4-5 months of age (those being butternut squash, apples and pears).  Since carrots are one of nature’s sweetest vegetables, and they offer a silky texture when pureed, it was an instant hit for my little man.  Adding in a little cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice – well that made everything even nicer.

Once I started giving my son combination purees (around 6.5 – 7 months), I knew I wanted to incorporate these orange veggies into a blend that would give him added nutrition, but that would still be sweet and be used as a lunch or snack option.  Thus the combination of carrot, apricot and peaches was created!  I particularly like to give him a fruit and vegetable combo at lunch time, as breakfast is typically a fruit (pears…) with baby oatmeal and dinner is a more wholesome, protein and veggie time of day; giving him a mix at lunch is a more sure-fire way of ensuring he will enjoy his meal and make it more appealing.  This puree is an easy first to try with your infant, given that it is in fact so sweet.  It may take baby a couple spoonfuls to get used to the flavor of the apricots, but you can always downplay those in your first batch by using less if you prefer.

The addition of apricots and peaches in this puree add extra health benefits, including offering gut-healthy dietary fiber.  Most important to your little one: they add extra sweetness to this yummy lunch alternative!

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How to Make Wild Blueberry, Pear and Spinach Baby Puree

When I began looking for baby food options for my son once he moved out of the single food purees, I really wanted to incorporate some healthy nutrients for him from leafy greens, in addition to continuing to make his food palatable.  The most effective way of doing this was to integrate those greens into a yummy mixture of super delicious fruits.

Not only is this baby puree yummy and nutritious, it is also incredibly beautiful – making a gorgeous purplish-blue mixture [does this really matter? No, of course not.  But I like marveling at my hard work, and it’s an added bonus that this food mixture ends up being my favorite color].

You might have seen a similar puree which used apples instead of pears - I originally used apples in this puree, but after having several failed attempts with applesauce and other apple-included items, I realized that apples were just too tart for my son.  It didn’t matter what kind of organic apple I chose, he always made one of those super adorable, yet obviously annoyed lemon-faces after each spoonful.  That’s why I decided to swap the apples for pears.  Kaden already eats pears every day at breakfast with his cereal, and since I know he absolutely loves those, this was an easy substitute.  If you know that your child loves apples, go ahead and use those… either way, this puree turns out delicious.

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