Homemade baby food 101

I have had several people ask me about how and why I make all of Elsa's baby food. First, I don't at all claim to be an expert on infant nutrition. But, over the past year and a half I have done a TON of reading on nutrition (both for us and for Elsa). I have always been a big promoter of organic foods due to less pesticides and I like the fact that it is helping the local farmers. We recently watched Food, INC. and it further reinforced my views. I highly recommend this movie! Although, it will probably make you never want to have a fast food burger EVER AGAIN!! I know thats how I felt after watching it!! Will definitely be starting my own garden when we get back to the US...and join a local CSA!!

So, I decided to make Elsa's food primarily based on it being more nutritious. Second, it is so much cheaper! I bought a dozen carrots from the local farmer's market for $1.50. It made 32 cubes of food!! The organic canned variety was $1.21 for two containers. People always comment about how "I don't have the time to do that". It is really not that time consuming. I make it in batches all at once. While the vegetables are steaming, I cook the chicken and get the food processor and ice cube trays all set up. I use the water the vegetables are steamed in for the liquid in the puree since it contains nutrients. Then, I get creative with the "recipe". At first, I used a single ingredient in each of the cubes to monitor for food allergies. Now, I create mini "casserole". Her favorite seems to be Chicken, leeks, and sweet potatoes. The batch I am making today is chicken, lentils, and broccoli. After it is pureed to the desired consistency, I put into the ice cube trays and cover with aluminum foil and place in the freezer for 24 hours. After that, I snap them out and put in a labeled zip loc bag. SO EASY!! Pure, wholesome food without yucky added ingredients.

Depending on what I decide to make, the whole process from cutting vegetables to putting in ice cube trays takes about 30-40 minutes and makes enough food for the month! And, it is really interesting to look at how the cubes of homemade food compare to the store bought kind. It looks like and tastes like REAL food!

So, there you have it. Two books I highly recommend are Super Baby Food by Ruth Yaron. Not only does it talk about making your own baby food, but it truely is a crash course in nutrition. I really like the recipe for Super Porridge. It is jammed packed with Super Nutrients (made with Brown Rice, Millet, Steel cut oats, and lentils). It also talks about money and time saving tips with regards to raising children and there is a large section on Arts and Crafts (the good old-fashioned kind!!). The other one, First Meals by Annabel Karmel, was a gift from my friend Mora. This talks about age appropriate foods and has great recipes for the entire family!

I heart four day weekends!!

Thanks to a goal day (a free day off from our base commander) and Martin Luther King I am enjoying a four day weekend. Aaron and I have been able to get so much done this weekend with regards to researching additional areas to look for an OMS practice, baby-proofing our house, organizing, etc. So, today I am enjoying a day off from any sort of "labor". Actually, that is one of my new years "resolutions". To embrace the Sabbath Day. It really falls under a broader category in which I really want to focus on my Spritual/Christian development not only as an individual, but as a wife and mother. I am blessed to have a believer for a husband and, with rare exception, we go to church every weekend. However, lately, I have neglected my daily scripture time. For a while there, I was waking up an extra 30 minutes early and doing my "Bible in a Year" daily reading and spending quiet time in reflective prayer. It was remarkable how serene my life became on a daily basis with this "me and God" time. Unfortunately, after traveling back to MN for my mom's surgery and the US for our business trip, I have been neglectful of this. So, I am bringing it back in.

My other resolutions involve making healthier choices for my family with regards to eating less processed foods. We have greatly improved on this since I started planning a weeks worth of meals each weekend and going shopping once. I started doing this when I returned from work after my maternity leave. Not to mention, it greatly cuts down on all the "What are we doing for dinner?" thought/energy. But, my sweet tooth too often makes decisions during the day...LOL. In addition, I want to get my body back to "half marathon shape" by running 4 days a week and doing my nightly core exercises.

Most of my resolutions involve my spritual/physical health. Before Elsa, I was in really good physical shape (thanks to my bff and running buddy Jessica, who has now moved away :( ) and was able to spend time daily reading the Bible, various Christian non-fiction, etc. I felt unstoppable. Now, I think I would collapse if I ran over 2 miles and let's just say my Bible has a layer of dust. However, my life is more rich today than it has ever been. Raising a daughter with a man I adore is an incredible experience I would never trade. However, I want to make sure we raise her in our Catholic faith and that we are healthy enough to keep up with her!

Here are some pics from this weekend. Being overseas and away from family and friends is hard. But, thanks to technology, our families can check in on us and see Elsa when ever they want. Elsa is alreay more technologically savvy than her paper planner owning and old school flip phone using mom. We put our macbook on the floor so the grandparents can see her crawling and she loves to crawl up to the screen. The only problem is that she loves pushing all of the buttons!! Here is her talking to Grandma Anderson. Everytime we load up Skype, she gets excited when she hears the noise the program makes as it is loading.

Here is Elsa this morning at Mass with Father Max. He will be leaving this summer when we move too. He baptized Elsa.
Daddy and his little girl. I must say we don't always dress Elsa up this much for Church. She is wearing a dress Aaron bought for her before she was born. He wanted it to be her Easter dress. However, it is 6-9 months. Let's just say, she won't probably be wearing it on Easter if you know what I mean. It barely fit her today. I love that Aaron thought of her wearing it before she was even born! It melts my heart.
And, we are all changed and ready to watch the Vikes hopefully beat the Cowboys!!

Have a great rest of the weekend!!

7 Months Old

I seriously want time to SLOW down!! She is getting so big...but, at least she is still a cuddle bug. Due to our traveling in Dec, we had her 6mo appt more at 7 months. Her stats are:

Weight: 17 lbs 11 oz (70th percentile)

Height: 27 1/2 inches (95th percentile)

Head: 45 cm (100th percentile...gotta fit all those brains in somewhere :)

Since I am writing this now, she is really starting to move. She started by spinning in circles on her stomach on the floor to sliding along on her belly (around her 7th month birthday), to now getting up on all four and rocking back and forth. We definitely need to start childproofing as she is starting to open the lower drawers in our kitchen and explore shelves!

Unfortunately she doesn't realize how fast the drawers open and has been bumped in the face a few times.

And, exploring under our desk....

As I said in the previous post, she loves sitting in the high chair. We enjoy pulling her up to the table and having dinner as a family. She has started to get the hang of self feeding and utilizing her pinching grasp to eat the Gerber Puffs. It was entertaining at first because, although she could pick the cereal up, she couldn't quite figure out how to get it into her mouth. They would get soggy and stick to her hands and sleeve...then she would get frustrated. But, after about a week she is starting to get the hang of it.

We started putting her in the tub all by herself rather than in her infant tub or with me. Being the wiggle worm that she is, she likes to practice swimming! She is still a little wobbly in the tub sitting. Now, if I can just teach her the flutter kick!

She must have learned it from watching the swim meet the night before. I took Elsa to watch the team I used to coach and she loved watching the swimmers in the pool. It was fun to see the kids swim and they all loved Miss Elsa!

I had to dust off my military Service dress uniform yesterday. I was summoned to testify as an expert witness at a Court Martial hearing. It involved the trauma case I treated a couple of weeks ago. My first time inside a court room...it was kind of fun!

And, nothing beats the comfort of daddy's shoulder!

I have been taking ALOT more pictures lately. My old college roommate, Melissa, gave me the great idea of capturing a year of our life in photos. My goal is to take one picture each day. She is much more creative and organized than I am...you will have to check out her blog to see what I mean. My plan is just to post at least once a week with the photos from the week. Then down the road, I will have my blog published into a keepsake book.

Tomorrow, I am going to try to update my blog and share a bunch of other blogs I follow. Blogging has turned into such a hobby for me...more like a guilty pleasure I guess. I started by following a few blogs...some of other women who were also trying to conceive and some Christian blogs that were so insightful. Well, they would have other blogs linked on their blogs and on and on it goes. I have "met" some incredible people who have inspired me with great ideas (homemaking, parenting, decorating, etc), great wisdom, and incredible strength.

Until then....

The True Meaning of Christmas

This Christmas, minus the fact we were away from family, was by far the best Christmas I have EVER had! The true meaning of Christmas was revealed--that the best gifts in our lives can not be wrapped under a tree, can not be purchased, and that Jesus is the true gift of the season...and, ELSA! It was so incredible to experience Elsa's first Christmas. She could have cared less about what was in the boxes, but she was so interested in the noise wrapping paper made when crinkled. Unfortunately, she spent a majority of the day laying naked under the tree--she had the worst diaper rash from diarrhea (I blame it on all the traveling and my poor diet on the road).

This photo was also taken on Christmas...had to change into different pj's after Elsa peed on me!

We went for a walk that afternoon (mostly to burn off all of the cookies we consumed...LOL). It was a brief walk because it was sooo cold (alright, it wasn't as cold as you guys had in MN, but we froze!!)

Chicago and interviews

So, I am already neglecting my resolution of being a better "blogger". But, between work and family, there is little time for "other" things. I am going to try to get all caught up in posts today and tomorrow.

As many of you know, I am committed to the military until July 2011. We have been busy researching practice opportunities and trying to get a feel as to what is out there. Aaron and I have had an aggreement since we started the military: Since he has allowed me to freely explore my career in Dentistry, and now, Oral Surgery, that once I get out of the military, he gets to pick our destination. This is proving harder than we initially thought. We have a whole list of requirements: I need to be able to find a job, it needs to have an abundance of outdoor recreation opportunities available, good Catholic schools, hopefully allowing us to live in a house with some elbow room (2-5 acres), etc. Unfortunately, the areas that have most of these, are saturated with Oral Surgeons. Go Figure. And, until recently, we have had our minds set on getting out of the military. But, then we found out that since they are critically short on oral surgeons in the military, they are going to approve what is called a Critical Skills Retention Bonus...a very LARGE bonus. It makes our decision even harder. I think our decision about what to do changes on an hourly basis. We are losing sleep. This decision will ultimately affect the rest of our lives...and it needs to be made soon. Whether I accept the bonus or not (stay in the military or get out) will determine where we move to this summer. We have been praying very hard for God's guidance with what to do.

In the beginning of December, we embarked on quite a trip back to the US (Elsa's second transatlantic flight!!). First stop was Chicago where I attended a Dental Implant Conference. While I was busy at lectures, Aaron and Elsa were exploring Chicago. Elsa even saw Santa...on the 94th floor of the John Hancock tower! I loved looking at the pictures Aaron took of Elsa around the city.

After 5 days in Chicago, we jetted off to Spokane for a week of interviews. Spokane was such a beautiful area and I think Aaron covered every square mile of the area while I was interviewing! Then, we flew back to MN for 4 days. I interviewed with Maplewood Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery. They have offices in Forest Lake, Maplewood, and Woodbury. I would be replacing a retiring partner. I absolutely love the practice and all the partners, but we aren't sure if we want to settle down in a metropolitan area. Again...BIG DECISION that needs to be made.

We had fun visiting (albeit, briefly..) with family. Here are some pics of Elsa with her Grandmas and Godmother, Lindsay.

After a whirlwind trip, we returned to England absolutely exhausted! Elsa, once again, did a great job flying. Can't say it was much fun as she adjusted back to reality!

After almost three weeks of traveling, we came home to snow and a mailbox full of packages. Here is Elsa exploring the box of wrapped presents from Grandma Anderson.

And, she loves her new high chair from Aunts Taunya and Andi and Uncles Steve and Corey!!

Abundant Blessings

I figure I better post some pics of Thanksgiving and Elsa's 6 month before we leave tomorrow for the States. Otherwise, it will be after our trip...after Christmas...and, then may never get done.

We enjoyed our first Thanksgiving as a family of three!! We are blessed beyond words and thank our heavenly Father for the gifts of our marriage, our daughter, our families and friends, our health, our job security, our lives in a free nation.... our cup is overflowing. Life is so good!

I made a turkey dinner for Aaron and I (mostly so we could have left over turkey sandwiches) and then we were joined by our friends Jim, Jean, and Linnea in the evening for some appetizers and good company.

She likes the green bean casserole as much as mom and dad!! LOL

And, today Elsa turned 6 months old!! I know I have said this many times before....but, I can't believe how time flies! She is getting so big!!

We are going to wait until we return to England on the 18th for her 6 month check up, so no stats to report.

At 6 months, she is starting to scoot on her stomach around on the floor. She loves rolling from one side of the room to the other.

*Favorite toys: Exersaucer, cloth blocks, still likes her floor mat, anything with tags (it is amazing how I try to hide them, but she is able to find them--it turns into quite the game), the tupperware toy with all the shapes you put through the sides--she doesn't know how to do that but it makes for a large rattle!

*Favorite games/activities: Peek a boo, mom's dance moves (part hip hop, part two step, part New Kids on the Block), going for jogs

*still no teeth, but they are on their way...at least I keep telling myself that since she is a drooling machine and EVERYTHING goes in her mouth!!

*I am still nursing, but we started giving her a bottle of formula during the day this past weekend. That was such a hard transition for me!! Breastfeeding has been such an incredible experience and, luckily, has gone extremely well. But, I don't want to drag the pump on our trip and probably won't have a lot of time to pump during my inteviews. I still plan on nursing in the am and evening for a while. I really enjoy the bonding and am not quite ready to fully quit. I wanted to do it at least for 6 months, but will probably continue until she is one year (or gets a tooth :) )

*We really enjoy her curiosity at even the simplest objects! It is fun to see her enjoy something for the first time.

*I still can't get enough of her smiles in the morning (or throughout the day for that matter).

*She is starting to get "mommy separation anxiety". If I walk into the other room she starts to fuss .

*She is now eating: rice cereal, bananas, pears, avocado, sweet potatoes, peas, and carrots. Elsa is quite the healthy little eater! I have been making all of her baby food and freezing it in batches.

Well, I better get back to packing. Please pray for a safe flight and for guidance in making some big decisions about our future in the next few weeks.

Elsa is (was) 5 Months Old

We have had a hectic couple of weeks, but we thought it would be a good idea to place some new photos of Elsa (never mind the other two Andersons) growing like a weed and having fun with Daddy at home during the week.

Elsa continues to amaze us and make us laugh on a daily basis. She is such a joy! She is rolling around like a champ now and we have to keep a close eye on her to make sure she doesn't get away. She is finding all kinds of new ways to entertain herself much to the amusement of her parents. One of her new discoveries are her toes and how she can jam them in her mouth.

And when she isn't sticking her fingers or toes in her mouth, she is trying new solid foods all the time! We started with rice, then moved to sweet potatoes, and recently we have added bananas, carrots, and peas. Feeding time is always good for a laugh. She wears half the food we give her while we hope to get the other half in her mouth.

Another milestone (of sorts) she has started recently is to tighten up her cute little face and make her "snorting face". She seems to make this face when she gets a little excited and she starts to breathe hard. Whatever the case, its pretty darn cute and a little funny at the same time.

Elsa has also received some new toys from Grandma Anderson that she is really starting to enjoy. Her crib mobile entertains her for a while when she is going down for a nap or waking up in the morning. She enjoys the music and looking at the farm animals.

She also does some serious play time in her exersaucer. Her favorite toy on the exersaucer is probably the swinging monkeys.

While Mom is off working during the weekdays, Dad and Elsa are spending some quality time together. One of our favorite activities has to be going for walks around base. Elsa loves the scenery but doesn't seem to enjoy the fighter jets flying over head occasionally. They tend to shake the ground and the stroller so this is understandable. We have to dress her up in some heavier clothes now as it is starting to get quite a bit cooler around this part of England. Here are a few hats and outfits Dad made her wear on some recent walks.

Well, that gets us up to date with Elsa and her new accomplishments. It won't be long before we do Elsa's 6-month update and head out on our big trip back to the States. We are looking foward to our trip and visiting Chicago, Spokane, and Minneapolis!