Day 26 - So glad there is only one day 26!

So it has been a trying day. Dominic woke up early today and that set the tone for the rest of the day. He was up an hour and a half earlier than usual. His naps were all over the place (at least he took 3), and bed time... UGH, bed time was a nightmare. He could not settle and would not fall asleep. He has discovered how to stand in his crib, and he pulls himself right up, spits out his binky, and screams his little lungs out.

Dominic started the day off at 6:00. He was up and chit chatting and blowing his lovely little raspberries. We played with the dogs and his toys until 8am when he took a nap until just before 9 am. We had a tree trimming company clearing tree limbs and cutting the brush in the pasture (it sits on an easement with a gas pipeline - which had to be cleared) at around 8 am and it finally woke up Dominic at 9. We then watched the tree trimmer and the brush cutter for a little bit before he had his breakfast. He played some more and got fussy around 11, so I tried putting him down for a nap. While he was lounging in his swing, Nonni was walking across our front yard. Invited her in and we went shopping at Babies R' Us. We picked up the Infantino Fresh Squeezed System that I talked about yesterday. I was so excited to get it home and open it up. But when we got home, Dominic went down for his afternoon nap around1:00pm for about 45 minutes, which was great. Woke up and had lunch. He loves sweet potatoes and apples, so he ate it all up and had a few Pirat'es Booty Puffs after. He played more then napped from 4ish - 6ish. After that, he has some dinner (Peas, lentils, spinach, and pears) and played a bit. Then at 7:30 I brought him up to bed. Typically he'll nurse, fuss, then fall asleep in 15-20 minutes. Well tonight was not a typical night. He did not actually fall asleep until 9. An hour and a half battle ensued, and I won, but it was touch and go for me at points. He pulls himself up to his feet in the crib so quick and starts to scream. It is tough to listen to. I went in 3 times to take him out of the crib, soothe him, nurse more if needed and place him back in the crib. And all 3 times he was almost asleep then woke up screaming and was back on his feet. After the third time, I let him cry it out. He was crying without any gusto, and I knew that he was going down soon. He eventually fell asleep. And that is where we are at right now!

So, I tried out the Infantino Fresh Squeezed system, and I am impressed. I really like it. There are 3 tubes to fill and push into the food pouches. After the first fill up, I decided that I like only using one chamber to fill the pouches. So the system holds 3 pouches to fill at a time. So what I did was move the food chamber onto each tube instead of setting up tubes individually.

I am still learning the amount to fill the chamber to ensure the food pouch is completely filled without having excess leak. I mean, it is my first night of having it, so of course it is a learning curve that I will be on!

I have already filled 15-16 pouches for the next few days. I made 5 breakfasts (cereal with peach and mango), and several lunch and dinner combinations. I let Dominic try using one for dinner. It was great, but I realized that I did not purchase the spoon attachment, and had to try and feed him through the tube opening, which was a bit difficult. He only ate about half of the food for dinner, but he enjoyed playing with the pouch and seemed to enjoy eating the food from the pouch, so I thought that was a positive. I will have to go back tomorrow to purchase the spoon attachment for future feedings.

I will take more pictures tomorrow. I get the cord so I can upload the pictures to my computer, so I cannot put them up until I get that done.


So about the food I made yesterday and today. Yesterday I made spinach and pears, as well as peas, green beans, spinach and pears. I had a bag of frozen chopped spinach that I used. I boiled it until tender, 5 minutes, and let it cool a bit. Once cooled, I squeezed out most of the water and put it into the blender with 2 cut up pears, uncooked and blended it until smooth. I poured the mixture into ice cube trays and did not clean the blender. I then microwaved frozen peas and frozen green beans until hot. I put them into the dirty blender and added 2 more cut up pears (raw) and add several spoonfuls of the spinach pear mixture and blended that until smooth. I called that the "super green" mixture. I then put that into other ice cube trays to freeze.

Today, I soaked dried lentils in clean water for a couple of hours. Once they plumped up, I boiled them in more clean water until tender. I added them and another bag of frozen peas to the blended and blended it until smooth. I put all of this mixture into the food pouches. I put a few in the fridge and the others in the freezer.

I also made some breakfast for Dominic. I heated previously made peach and mangoes. I added some Brita water (we have a well so it is important for me to use clean Brita water when making his food) to the fruit mixture to thin it out and then added rice and oat cereal (Beechnut brand single grain baby cereal) to thicken it up. I make it a smooth consistency. I make it thick enough to mound on a spoon, but not too thick where it will stick to the spoon when it is flipped over.

So I have all those different combinations in bags for Dominic to eat over the next few days. We'll see how the next feedings with the pouches go!

That's all for now. Good night!

Day 25 - Making Food

Today is day 25 of me being a SAHM - Stay At Home Mom (Mother) for those who are unsure of the acronym. Let me catch everyone up on the previous 24 days. The first week home was quick. It did not feel like anything more than a vacation as the second week we spent on the Vineyard with my family. Last week was my first full week home where it felt like I was a SAHM. I have officially lost track of the days. If you were to ask me what day it was, I would have to pull out my phone to look! I am not sure if that is a good thing or a bad thing, but days all seem to blend together.

So my days seem to be scheduled loosely as follows:

6:00-7:00am - wake up
8:30-9:30 - Dominic takes a 35-45 minute nap
9:30-10:30 - breakfast
10:30-12:00 - play time
12:00-12:30 -  Dominic takes an early afternoon nap for 35-45 minutes
1:00-1:30 - Lunch
1:30-4:00 - play time
4:00-4:30 - Dominic takes early evening nap for 35-45 minutes
5:00-5:30 - Dinner
5:30-7:30 - play time
7:30-8:00 - Bed time routine

Dominic still nurses on demand during the day, which changes upon his needs daily, so it is not always something I can schedule; but he nurses every 3-4 hours.

So onto what today has in store. Today, Dominic woke up at 5:00am in his crib and came into bed with us. He nursed and then slept until 7:15am. We then went down stairs and played until 8:30 or so which is when Dominic started rubbing his eyes and yawning, so he went down for a nap until about 9:30. Steve was so great to take Dominic down to eat and play while I got to take a nap until 10:45, which was HEAVENLY.

We had a DirecTV technician come out to fix the cable, which we have not had for 2 days. It was nice not watching the tube but I have to say, and I am a bit ashamed to admit this, I missed the squawk box!

After we played and then Dom took 2 naps. One for 35 minutes, and then another about 15 minutes later for 30 more minutes. Sometimes he wakes up but is still tired, so if he is fussy 10-15 minutes after waking, he will typically nap for another 30-45 minutes, then wake ready to play hard!

After his nap he woke up refreshed, and we had lunch. Today he ate squash and mangoes and then some cheerios and juice. He played in his high chair while I made him some green veggies. I made spinach and pears, and then spinach, pears, peas and green beans. I have some frozen in ice cube trays and then I left some in the fridge for dinners and lunches for the next few days.

I took a few photos as I am always making his foods and am trying to come up with new veggie and fruit combinations for him. Next week I am going to purchase a food pouch system to help make his food quicker and easier, and not have to use the ice cube trays any longer. Infantino Fresh Squeezed System - was introduced to me by Steve's cousin, Karyn, who uses it for her daughter. She also gave me some great ideas for food combinations. She suggested tofu, quinoa, and beans to thicken some of the foods, as a lot of the fruits, and some veggies, can tend to be runny. I have also used baby cereal (rice or oatmeal) to thicken mixes I have previously made. Babies R' Us has a special that if you purchase 3 Infantino feeding products you can get a $10 gift card. They also have a 20% off one regular priced item coupon. I will use the coupon for the $24.99 system, making it $19.99. I will also get 50 food bags for $16.99, spoons for $3.99, and the saver sleeve (to store the bags in the freezer for $9.99, totaling $50.96 before 6.25% taxes, which would be approximately $54.15. When I get the gift card, I will go back another time for more bags. I have to wait at least 6 hours from when I get the gift card to when I can use it.

Making his food has been so cost effective, especially now that I am not working. I also feel great about him eating fresh or frozen fruits and veggies, and not something prepackaged with who knows included as preservatives, colorings, and flavorings. He has tried lots of fruits and veggies so far, but we still have lots more to try!

Veggies:
Peas
Green Beans
Butternut Squash
Sweet Potatoes
Potatoes
Spinach
Beets
Peppers
Carrots

Fruits:
Cantaloupe
Avocado
Watermelon
Bananas
Blueberries
Peaches
Apples
Pears
Mangoes
Plums
Cherries

Beans:
Lentils

Meats:
Chicken
Hamburger

Spices:
Vanilla
Pepper
Cinnamon
Ginger

Other:
Pasta
Cheerios
Toast
Bagels and cream cheese
Yogurt
Rice
Pancakes
Eggs
Crackers

I will be trying to add quinoa, kidney beans, chick peas, black beans, acorn squash, summer squash, zucchini, broccoli, brussels sprouts, cucumbers, eggplant, cauliflower, parsnips, turnips, apricots, blackberries, strawberries, raspberries, papayas, grapes, and honeydew. I am going to wait for citrus and strawberries until he is after a year old.

Ok. I think that is all for now. Help me come up with food combinations, and you can mix fruits, veggies, beans, and other stuff! He likes peas, lentils, and pears. This will help me to make food he'll love for life with new combinations to keep his taste buds happy!