Product Review: Beaba, Baby Cook

Beaba, Baby Cook. This is how I make all of Sophia's food. I love it! First of all, I have peace of mind that it prepares properly because it was created for this one specific reason. Secondly, it is light and compact. I keep it in the box and pull it out once or twice a week. I make the food in bulk, so I don't need to use it every day. Also, it cooks, purees, defrosts and reheats. Most people recommend a food processor or the magic bullet, but those products only puree. Who has time for the extra steps. It is available at William-Sonoma with a beautiful cook book for $149. I highly recommend buying this product. The holidays are coming. You may want to purchase it for someone special who has a little angel of their own.

Making Homemade Baby food

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I am making all of Spphia's baby food. It is so enjoyable and satisfying to know I can be at home making pure, organic food from scratch for my little peanut. What I have come to discover is that at five months, the menu is quite boring. I have made her fresh apple sauce with a splash of cinnamon, fresh sweet potato, fresh bananas, and fresh butternut squash with a hint of cinnamon as well. Sophia is eating like a champ, and she really enjoys meal time. For breakfast she has mashed bananas with her rice or oatmeal cereal. Lunch is usually one or two selections of the fruits and vegetables mentioned above. Dinner is commonly one vegetable or warm applesauce. I will be sure to post recipes when the menus get more exciting (probably in a month or two). Just some tips for those of you who are interested:

Wash everything, even if it will be peeled.
Buy organic when possible.
Cook vegetables with steam.
Puree very fine.

Product Review: Graco Bumper Jumper - Little Jungle

Wow! I have been waiting to use this with Sophia since we registered for it when I was pregnant. You see my niece and nephew loved this toy when they were babies. We used to laugh so hard watching them bounce and spin. Now we are enjoying Sophia's dance moves in this wonderful Graco toy. It hangs in any doorway that has molding or trim work. While baby bounces, the device stays still so no paint is rubbed off on the doorway of choice. It took Sophia one day to figure out the cause and effect motion that when she pushes down on the floor with her feet, she goes bouncing up into the air. It has vinyl straps that won't irritate their hands or face. It comes with two attachment toys in some models and a padded seat. The only thing I recommend is placing a support blanket around baby if they are younger than 6 months. They may tend to wobble back and forth in the seat while on the wild bounce chase. I have noticed Sophia's sleep improving since we introduced this toy. It is a great way to get their legs strong and burn some calories. It is easily moved from one doorway to the next, so a busy mom or dad can bring baby around the house as they tend to their important chores. This is one of those age old toys all house holds with babies must have.

Great Night's Sleep

Yesterday Sophia took three amazing naps and two of them were in the crib. Ahh:)
Last night she hit the hay at 7 pm and slept until 2 am. She woke shortly for a diaper change and feeding and off she went to dreamland again until 5:30 am. GREAT NIGHT!

Anybody who thinks less day sleep equals more night sleep is not correct. Dr. Weissbluth says in his book, "Sleep begets sleep."
All that means is the more regularly a baby sleeps, the better they will sleep, as seen in Sophia's example above.

Product Review: Graco Baby Einstein Discover & Play Activity Center

I was very excited when Sophia turned 4 months. Her head and neck control was awesome, and she was getting quite tired on lying on her back. I knew it was time for the exersaucer. I must admit that it took Jeff no time to set up, and it is constructed very well. But I am a little disappointed in the toys available for Sophia's entertainment. My niece calls this her "Rap Station". Sophia will have one hand on the spinning wheels while her other hand is on the buttons that light up and play music. Honestly, other than that, the remainder of the accessories are boring. The dragon puppet annoys her. She eats the felt tower of shapes and completely ignores the seventies, psychedelic sun. Other exersaucers have accessories that detach and can be replaced so babies attention is always enticed. With this Graco exersaucer, it's what you see is what you get.

After seeing her torso control improve and her enjoyment with the few select toys, I am convinced that an excersaucer is a must have for all babies. I am not convinced that this is the one to buy. Careful shopping friends.

Daylight Savings Time: How to Get Baby to Adjust?

So we all had perfectly sleeping babies and toddlers, then we realized... "What time is it, really?"

Last night we actually were able to get to bed early when all of a sudden I said to Jeff, "It's not 10 pm, it's 9 pm." We realized that this could effect Sophia's sleep, but this morning I realized it would only effect my sleep for one day. Sophia woke up this morning at her normal time exactly. 5:30 am. Normally I breast feed until 6 and then go downstairs to start the day. But it was really 4:30. Oh no. Too early. I knew I had this one chance to train her. I took her out of her crib as if it was a normal morning and I breast fed her for about 30 minutes. Once finished, her body language was saying, 'I'm up, Mom.' So I kissed her on the cheek and placed her in the crib until the clock said 6:30 which meant it was really 5:30. Ahh, I did it. No I didn't let her cry. I put the night light on and she played and talked and ate her toes while I rested my eyes. I took her out of her crib this time at her new normal time. I quietly left our room with Sophia in one arm and Dr. Weissbluth's sleep book in the other hand. In the book, there is one paragraph on daylight savings time. The only instructions he gives is to continue putting your little one to bed the same time every night. If last night she went down at 6:30, tonight she does the same. Don't worry that it's really 5:30. When the clock says 6:30 that's her bedtime yesterday, today and tomorrow. Your cues and actions will tell her it's quiet, sleep time.
Now we are sitting downstairs watching Dragon Tails. Good morning all:)

Product review: Fisher Price Jungle Gym

This soft activity gym is Sophia's favorite toy so far. We have had her playing on the mat since she was about three weeks old. It is ideal for everyday use, but it is easy to pack up and take with us on day trips. We are bringing it to our niece's house today. It plays fun music, captures any baby's attention, and stimulates baby's senses. Sophia loves that she can now reach up and play with the dangling toys. We are amazed at her great coordination skills. It includes plush jungle characters, but what I love is that you can change any character out with a new character or toy from anywhere. The new dangling toys that I can add or change keep Sophia interested every day. Since Sophia's drool is constant, I love the machine washable mat.The manufacturer's recommended ages: Newborn and Up. I received this at my shower from my registry, and I must say...I highly recommend every newborn + should have one. This is where Sophia learned to eat her toes, roll over and grab moving objects.
3 C Batteries (Sold Separately)
Dimensions: 32.5" x 32.5" x 20.0" "

Happy Halloween

Yesterday was Sophia's first Halloween. I must say I don't think I could be any prouder. My mom (Mommom) bought her first costume. She was a mama Kangaroo with the baby kangaroo in her pouch. Really she was absolutely precious. We went with my sister, her daughter, her friends, an old student of mine and many parents. After about two hours of trick or treating, we were off to Sophia's first Halloween party where she stole the hearts of all. But this is the informational part of the post. Even though it was nice to be out and about, and even though Halloween is one of my favorite holidays, we still stuck to her schedule. One thing that all children need, school age or babies, is consistency. It's no fun to through them off. Everyone suffers. So Sophia was bathed and fed and in bed by 7:30. We went a half hour past the "schedule". Because of our careful timing, we even had a good night of sleeping after her very over stimulating day. Thank goodness. Pictures to come.