Making Babyfood

I'm linking up at Teach me Tuesdays and Gluten free Wednesdays. You can find the linky below the post. I still haven't figured out how to get it to work in the post.

My sweet daughter has been having some tummy issues for the past month or so. She went from being an AMAZING sleeper (read this as 2 naps and sleeping at least 9 hours straight at night ) to being a HORRIBLE sleeper. (read this as no naps, and waking up several times during the night) She started crying everytime she had a bowel movement and they went  from the normal solid to very very watery. ( I know TMI. Sorry) She started spitting up after every meal.  I've heard of food allergies doing this, and I already have a gluten intolerance, so we decided to try cutting it out from her diet. After a few days of just formula to clear out her system, her poos were normal again, and so was her sleep schedule. She was back to her normal happy self.

How can you not love her scrunched up smile?

I gave her a jar of baby food that had pasta in it, and she threw most of it up. She hadn't done that in days. She also had watery poo again. So, we gave her one more day of just formula and I set out to the grocery store to pick up a few items. I looked originally at already made baby foods. It is very hard to find ones with protein in it that don't have some sort of pasta in it. Even the "breakfast" baby foods are made with oats or some other gluten filled grain.

I've been interested in making my own baby food since Linnea started eating solids. For lunches she normally eats whatever I'm eating for lunch (great way to start eating healthier). Dinners and "breakfasts" were harder since she is normally asleep when I start making dinner, and I eat a bowl of cereal for breakfast. As much as she wants me to share, I don't. This requires having baby food available.

  I started looking at the types of foods I had been giving her in the past. All were well balanced protein-carb-veggie wise. All had low or no amounts of sugar and salt. And all had some sort of grain in them, pasta, oatmeal, etc. I realized how easy(effort wise) it was to make my own baby food. I started my baby food making journey this week with what I think are simple recipes. I made them up as I went along. =)

For her breakfast food, I made applesauce in my crockpot, added pureed raspberries, and rice cereal. I'll post how to make applesauce n a crockpot later this week. I need to make another batch. The cool part about making applesauce at home, is that you decide how sweet to make it, aka how much sugar you add. I didn't put any in Linnea's applesauce, but did in mine. I think I'll add a little juice to hers next time. The raspberries made it a little sour.

For her dinner food I made a mixture of ground chicken, sweet potato puree, quinoa pasta, carrot puree, and bell pepper chunks. Linnea loves bell peppers. =) This mixture was put through my food processor until it became kinda chunky, but soft. My sweet girl has 7 teeth and loves "grittier" foods, so it was the perfect combo.

For next week I am going to attempt to make my own tomato pasta sauce, since all of the store bought ones have LOADS of sugar and salt.

Blessings.

22 weeks

Woo this pregnancy is flying by. My hubby and I got to get away this past weekend for a few days. It was really nice ( I got to sleep in past 6:30 AM which really helps with the whole morning sickness thing) but I totally missed my daughter. (including the whole 6:30 AM thing) My parents watched her so my husband and I could have a babymoon. We went to Hood River, in Oregon, which is about a 4 hour drive from where we live in Washington. It was amazing! We went to the Oregon Zoo in Portland(I LOVE zoos.) Hit a quilt store in Portland where I got some fabric to make Tobin's quilt, went to a Starbucks( I wanted a Portland mug to go with my Seattle one), went wine tasting,( I was not the only pregnant woman at several of the wineries, which was unexpected)  and just hung out together. We needed this trip by ourselves. My husband is an awesome provider and has been working two jobs, and going to school full time, besides paying attention to our daughter and me. I am VERY blessed by my husband.

Anywho, on with the pregnancy stuff...

How far along are you? 22 weeks exactly today according to the doctors. I'm thinking 23 weeks. But hey, in the end, Tobin will come when he is good and ready.

What scripture is speaking to you this week? 1st Corinthians 10:31 "So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God."
 I have been having a hard time feeling motivated to clean my house (read do laundry) or cook( read dinners I can't just throw in the oven) these past few weeks.I've been so tired and have felt really lazy. (Who really wants to do much when they're exhausted and can't get comfortable?) I realized that it is my job and what God has given me to do as a homemaker. He has given me an amazing task, that everyone isn't cut out for and it is exactly what my husband needs me to do as his helpmeet. Having a clean house and making nutritious dinners help my hubby feel less stressed. And with everything else my husband is doing to take care of us, why can't I put forth a little extra effort to make sure I respect him, as God has called me to do.

Symptoms? The same old stuff over her. Fatigue and nausea. Though my hubby and I did get food poisoning on our trip. If you ever go to Hood River, DO NOT eat at the Crazy Pepper. We weren't the only ones to get sick while we were there. Some of the other couples at the B+B we stayed at got food poisoning from them too.

Cravings? Fresh fruit- mostly berries and melons. Though I did make applesauce and that has been pretty sweet. I've been craving lemons again too. haha.

Sleep? Always can use more of that. What pregnant woman can't?

Gender?  It's a boy. His name is Tobin James (Insert some 2nd middle name my sister hasn't decided on yet here) Manchester. I like being prepared, so we found out. Nesting always seems to hit me early on, so not knowing would probably stress me out more, aka I've had all of his clothes washed and put away since we found out. I'm also in the process of making crib bumpers and a matching crib skirt. =)

Movement?  Not much. If I stretch, I'll normally get a pretty good punch or kick, but he seems pretty content to move every once in a while and keep his feet in my left rib and his head in my rip hip.

What I'm looking forward to....   Hopefully finishing the crib bumper this weekend and starting on the crib skirt. Also, more baby proofing. My daughter (10 months) figured out right before we left how to pull herself up from her belly to her feet, so nothing is safe anymore. She has been walking everywhere in our living room(holding onto our couches or coffee table)

What I need prayer for this week is patience. With myself- I'm 22 weeks and don't really look pregnant. I get that it's because I haven't gained any weight yet. But I would love to be in maternity clothing. My pre-pregnancy jeans are what I'm currently wearing(comfortably) with a t-shirt. I honestly look a little pudgy, and not pregnant. With others- When people talk to me when I'm with my daughter, and they hear I'm pregnant, they normally say "Oh you are going to have your hands full." Or "Oh they're so close together." I know that my kids are going to be close together. They will be 14 months apart if Tobin comes a few days late. I need to be able to give these people more grace and not a biting answer.

21 weeks!

I hit 21 weeks today. This pregnancy has been going a lot quicker than my last one. I am very very thankful for that. =)

This past week I met with my midwife for the first time. She listened to Tobin's heartbeat and measured me. I am measuring a week ahead of my due date, so maybe our sweet boy will get here a little sooner. *fingers crossed* She also told me that I need to double my calorie intake. That statement made me laugh. I have HG, so adding extra calories to my diet, that I can keep down, is already a struggle, but I think I've been doing a LOT better this week. I've been throwing up a lot less, which I am VERY thankful for. I'm still uber tired, but that kind of comes with being pregnant. haha

I am planning on delivering Tobin in a birth center. Home births kind of gross me out. Birthing is a messy and wonderful thing to do, but I don't want to do it at home. I rather leave he mess somewhere else, so I don't have to stress about it with a new baby. Plus, I want to do a water birth. Our tub in our place is tiny. The birthing center has an amazing tub. It's giant and pretty, and when I have my own house some day, I want a tub like it.

Why I don't feel guilty about failing

I'm linking up at Monday Musings. You can click on the link below the post. It won't let me link up in the post)

I'm not perfect. Let me be the first one to admit that. I fail on a daily basis. I fail my husband by not asking him on a daily basis how I can pray for him. I fail my daughter by not always understanding why she is crying. I fail not taking care of my home by not always having a made bed. But you know what? I'm okay with that. I am a sinner... and guess what? So are you. 

Romans 3:23 says " For all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God." 

 

 Now I'm not saying that because we are all sinners, that we should be okay with constantly failing. It should be quite the opposite. We should strive towards being more like Jesus on a daily basis. 

Philippians 3:12-14 says" Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do:Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead. I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."

I have not obtained perfect righteousness. A few years ago, there was a speaker at the summer camp I was helping with, and he said that the path to righteousness, is like going through the alphabet. You start on A when you accept Jesus into your heart, and you don't reach Z, until you meet him in heaven. I LOVE this illustration. It shows getting nearer to Christ as a journey and a process. It's not going to happen overnight. 

I am working on becoming a more respectful  and serving wife. I am working on becoming a more loving mother. I am working on becoming a more organized homemaker. I am working on becoming more consistent with my Bible readings, and letting God lead me where he wants me. I am working on having a stronger relationship with God and worshiping him with all of me. I am working on having an attitude like my Savior. I am working on following God joyfully. 

I'm working. But more importantly, God is working in and on me. =)

20 weeks!

I am terrible about keeping up with this blog apparently... and writing this post for the link up. Though I do like being able to put whole weeks instead of weeks and days. I'm weird like that. Anywho...

How far along are you?   I am 20 weeks! Woohoo! I've hit the halfway point!

Prayer requests: I have hyperemesis gravidarum and it really has hit me hard this week. I've been trying really hard to not take my anti~nausea medication, and use more natural remedies like tea and potatoes, and mint, but I've had to use my anti~nausea medication several times this week. =( Prayers that I can keep food down and hopefully gain some weight this pregnancy would be amazing! Also prayers for my mom to have a good reaction when I tell her we are using a midwife instead of my OB would be very much appreciated.

Scripture that speaks to me this week: Zephiniah 3:17~ The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing.    This was one of the scriptures in my bible reading this week. I thought it was so cool that God would sing over me. It made me start to wonder what God's voice would sound like. It also made me think of what my angel baby is experiencing in Heaven. She gets to hear God's voice and see his face. What an amazing thing!

Symptoms: Still the normal nausea and vomiting. I've also had my carpal tunnel come back. Currently it is only in one arm. I hope it stays that way. I'm anemic, so my carpal tunnel normally comes back pretty quickly during pregnancy.

Medical Stuff:  I meet with my midwife on Thursday for the first time! I am really excited, and really nervous. I get to hear Tobin's heartbeat then, so I'm really excited for that. Nothing horribly interesting has happened since last week. 


Weight gain (or loss)?  Loss. I stepped on the scale and I was another 2 pounds lighter. Woohoo... If I wasn't pregnant, this amazing amount of weight loss would be awesome. I am hoping to put on weight within the next few weeks.

Discussion question: With my last pregnancy, my mom, my dad, one of my sisters, my husband, and about a dozen doctors and nurses were in the hospital room when I delivered. This time, it will be my husband, my mom, dad, and mother in law hopefully in the birthing room at my midwife's center. I'm hoping to have the other family members stay home, and then come over to our house the next day. For other mommies trying to decide who to have in the birthing room, I would suggest, go with how you feel. I feel that birth is a very important and special event. I only want those closest to me, who I feel comfortable with  in there with me. My daughter's birth was very stressful with the amount of people pressuring me to let others into the delivery room.

19 weeks!

How far along are you?  19 weeks 1 day

 

Baby's Growth:  The baby is the size of a mango. (Man that sounds really good right now) He was measuring a week ahead of schedule as of Monday at our last ultrasound. =)

 

Symptoms:  Restless legs and leg cramps.

Cravings?  Food Aversions?  Lots of frozen fresh fruit. And Frozen yogurt. I've also been craving fish and chips.

Maternity Clothes?  Most definitely. I "popped" according to my mom. To me this just means that I can't see my feet and that nothing is seeming to fit. UGH.

What I'm looking forward to....  Our daughter is getting dedicated on Sunday! (What an awesome Mother's day gift) My husband is the worship leader at our church, so he gets to announce the gender of our baby to the congregation then. =)

Medical Stuff:  I had the anatomy ultrasound on Monday, and the baby is growing really well. =) We also found out that we are having a boy. I feel kinda proud that my "hunch" has been correct for both babies now.

Discussion Question:  I talked to my doctor and found out that she and the hospital I was planning on delivering at don't support natural childbirth. I felt so out of control with my daughter's birth (I had an epidural and a really bad reaction to it) that I don't want to experience it again. So I am using a midwife this time around.I have never had a natural childbirth, so I'm a little scared of the pain, and that I won't be able to handle it. I've been praying for peace, as I know this is the path that the Lord wants me to take for this pregnancy.