Feeding a Baby

My post about feeding a toddler was all about what Noah eats now that he is 1 year old and how I make sure he gets a healthy and balanced diet at home and at daycare. Noah is just not the picky eater type (have you seen his belly?), but I like to think that it also has something to do with the way we’ve approached feeding him from a very early age on. I did read quite a bit about what’s “normal” and what other parents do, but not all of it made sense to me and we decided to take all that overwhelming information with a grain of salt and trust our instincts instead...

Green Veggie Mini Muffins

Noah and I love mini muffins. For me, they're the perfect snack in the morning when I don't have time for breakfast, and they make a great addition to Noah's lunches as I mentioned in this post. Today, I managed to get out of the office on time and Tony took Noah on a run, which meant I had an hour to myself and decided it was time for some baking (plus, what a fantastic excuse not to vacuum!).

A Ferry Ride to Bainbridge Island

The summer in Seattle is gorgeous this year. We've had a few gray rainy days (that I actually enjoyed), but for the most part, the weather has been fantastic. 

Today, Little Kraut and I went on a beautiful ferry ride to Bainbridge island with two of my German friends. It's been fun exploring the city (again) with them and I enjoy getting away for some girl time every now and then. Noah chased us around on the deck; he was just happy running around, waving at people, and pointing out birds, it was so much fun watching him. Here he is checking out a another boat:

On the island, we took a nice walk along the water and stopped at Bainbridge Bakers for some delicious snacks and coffee/tea.

Sorry to all of you who expected a long interesting story, but I don't want to bore you with the details of the trip. We just had such a good time to day I felt like I had to share my happiness. Hope you're enjoying the summer as much as we are. Now off to an evening run...

I am no Super Mom

After my post about feeding a toddler where I listed all the fun and healthy things I like to prepare for Noah’s lunch at daycare, one of the questions I got was: how do you do all that? How do you find time to work full time, commute to work every day, go grocery shopping, prepare meals, have family time, and not be completely exhausted at the end of the day? My short answer was: One, Noah has a Super Dad and two, it is all about priorities. 

Here’s my long answer. 

The most important aspect in how I manage family and a demanding full time job is that Noah has a Super Dad. Tony spends just as much time, if not more, taking care of Noah. Our days are pretty scheduled these days and this is what it looks like usually (on days that it works): 

5am: My alarm goes off at 5am every morning and I try to leave the house at 6am. Part of the reason is that my park & ride where I leave my car to get on the bus to go to work is usually completely full at 6:30am. Plus, that way I can avoid the morning rush hour. Leaving only 15 minutes can make my commute a lot longer.

7am: On good days I get to work at 7am. I don’t always make it that early, but have plenty of late evening calls and work to do in the evenings that make up for it. Tony and Noah get up sometime between 6 and 7am, have breakfast together, and get ready for the day.

8am: Around 8am every morning, Tony drops Noah off at daycare and starts his work day

3pm: On a perfect day, I leave work at 3pm, beat traffic coming home, and pick up Noah at 4pm. On a realistic day, I don’t make it there until about 5pm. Are you shocked yet at how much time he spends at daycare every day? I know it’s a long day for him, but that is part of why it’s so important to me that we picked a place that we are 100% happy and comfortable with. He loves it there and usually wants to keep playing when I come to pick him up. Yes, he is happy to see me, but he’s also not at the point where he “needs to get out of here”. I still feel terrible when I am stuck in traffic or have to wait for the bus for an hour (!), but Noah is thriving in his new class and having fun with his friends and teachers. And to be honest, there’s just no other option that would make sense (or any of us happier for that matter).

5:30pm: When we come home, Tony is often already waiting for us and we have about 1.5 hours before dinner time. On a sunny day we just spend time outside, or we go running, or we just hang out in the middle of the living room floor, letting Noah play with his toys and climb around on us while we try not to fall asleep.

7pm: At about 7pm, we eat. We usually prepare dinner together and make something quick and easy or eat leftovers. That’s what I love about summer – there’s nothing more quick and easy and delicious than throwing some meat and veggies on the grill. It also doesn’t hurt to have a potato or pasta salad already in the fridge. Today, we had this:

7:30pm: At about 7:30pm we try to start Noah’s bedtime routine, but that doesn’t always work out. I try to stay on schedule, but I don’t force it on us when it doesn’t make sense. Usually, it just turns out to be the time when he is done eating and gets tired anyway, so it works out. I am in charge of bed time most nights but Tony jumps in quite a bit when I am just too exhausted or have to work late. Noah takes his bath, which he loves, we read a book or two in his room, and then go to our bedroom to lay down. We sing songs, or tell stories, or count toes, until Noah (and sometimes both of us) fall asleep. 

It’s usually a process of 40-60 minutes. I’ve learned that trying to speed it up just doesn’t work; patience is the key; the more I try to make him fall asleep the longer it will take.

8:30pm: I start prepping Noah’s food for the next day, which can take about 20 minutes, depending on how I feel. By the time I’ve taken a shower and got ready for bed it’s usually 9pm. Sometimes I just go to bed, and sometimes Tony and I enjoy a quiet moment on the couch downstairs and watch an episode of our favorite show.

10pm: Tony and I go to bed.

I mentioned priorities as another factor. Notice how I didn’t mention laundry, the dishwasher, grocery shopping, etc.? That’s what weekends are for these days. Don’t ever come visit us on a Friday, I promise you the house will be a mess. 

That’s how we do it. It may not be the best way, but it works for us. Thankfully we both have flexible jobs and can jump in and help each other out when needed. I really don’t know how single parents do it. So – If you think I’m a Super Mom it’s all because Tony is a Super Dad and we make a great team.

Feeding a Toddler

Little kraut's daycare sends out a daily report at the end of every day that includes activities for the day, as well as nap, "bathroom", and feeding schedule. They also include notes for the whole class. Yesterday's read:

PARENTS: We have been seeing more and more "pouches" in children's lunches. They should only be used as a snack, not as a meal replacement. Please let us know if you'd like to give you the nutrition guidelines for this age, as well as some ideas for fun lunches. We are here to help!

His teacher mentioned that one of the kids had 4 of these food pouches for lunch. That was it. It makes you wonder what these little ones have for breakfast or dinner. Daycare also offers a school snack in the afternoons, in part to show parents: yes, your child can handle real food, and to give them some ideas for lunches. 

To be clear, little Kraut doesn't get these pouches. While they're great for traveling, I agree: they're not a meal. First of all, the kids in his class are 12-18 months old. Kids that age need to experience food by touching and tasting it, feeling different textures and getting used to different flavors is so important. Not only does it teach kids about food and help them develop fine motor skills, for me, that's really the own way to make sure little Kraut gets healthy food that is not loaded with empty calories and sugar.

I'm no super mom and it takes a lot of time to prepare food for daycare sometimes. So I look for shortcuts as well. Every once in a while I wonder through the baby/toddler food section and I'm shocked to see lots of sugar and little nutritious value. And I'm often already looking in the natural/organic/hippie section expecting better quality. I think it's just really sad for those kids who don't have moms that read labels. So, I sometimes get bunny crackers as a snack when they're on sale, but usually leave the section empty handed.

So - what does little Kraut get for lunch? First of all, I must say, he is a really good eater and will at least try most things (I like to think the way we've been offering him different kinds of food from an early age on has something to do with it).

Here are some examples of what he usually gets (5 items/day typically, in 4 oz. containers):

- fruit (bananas, watermelon, cantaloupe, blueberries, strawberries, peaches, grapes (cut in half), etc.)

- cottage cheese or yoghurt mixed with quick cooking oats and either fruit, apple sauce, or some fruit spread

- sandwich with cream cheese or sunflower seed butter cut in bite sizes

- pasta (he doesn't like them plain anymore and we often eat pasta for dinner anyway so he gets leftover mac & cheese, pasta with tomato sauce, pasta salad, etc.)

- vegetables, roasted, steamed, or boiled (in chicken broth for extra flavor): carrots, zucchini, potatoes, broccoli, sweet potatoes, peas, etc.

- meat: chicken, brats, hot dogs - we usually just make a little extra for dinner

- I bought tofu for the first time last week and he didn't hate it. It's all about the right seasoning and I'm still figuring that out

- mini muffins are also a great snack. Every once in a while I will make a big batch on weekends and freeze them. Just pop them in the microwave for 5 seconds and they're ready to go (they don't usually last very long because I love them for breakfast too)

- crackers/pretzels are usually added at the end of the week when we start running out of things too.

Goodbye Facebook & co., hello Life with my Little Kraut

Welcome! I’m glad you stopped by. I have been thinking about this move for a while now, and decided it is time for something new. I have been reading lots of blogs lately and realized I want to give it a try. I like sharing my thoughts and stories but don’t want to do it on Facebook. So now I’m signing my life away to Google. Not sure it’s the better choice, but at least it will feel more like my own. 

Part of the reason I decided to get away from Facebook (the moment this blog is up and running I will uninstall my Facebook app on my phone) is because my commute every day is long and I don’t make the best of that time. I used to read a lot, but haven’t felt like it for a while. And while browsing on Facebook, Pinterest, Webfail, and hellobee.com is fun every once in a while, to be honest, I’m wasting a lot of my time. 

So here I am, being productive, creating something that’s mine, something that you will all hopefully care about as well and that I can be proud of. Hope you enjoy reading this. If you do, please let me know by leaving comments (or any other way). I know that will inspire me to keep it up. Wish me luck on this journey, let’s hope it will last a while.