Our Favorite 6+ Month Baby Food Recipes

Recipes From Cookbooks

Recipes taken from “Blender Baby Food” by Nicole Young and “Cooking for Baby” by Lisa Barnes

Apple, Apricot, and Tofu

3 Apples peeled and cored

6 dried Apricots Chopped

3 ounces soft silken tofu

Puree after chopping into fine pieces. Add water, breast milk, formula, or apple juice to loosen the thickness.

Lovely Lentils

½ cup onion finely chopped

1 cup carrot

½ cup celery

1 TSP Veg. Oil

¼ cup lentils

1 ¾ cups of sweet potatoes

1 ¾ cups water

Saute onion, carrot, celery, and vegetable oil till softened not browned

Boil red lentils, sweet potatoes, and water. After it hits a rapid boil let simmer for 20 minutes

Puree.

Zucchini and Pea Soup

½ chopped onion

1 tablespoon of butter

½ chopped zucchini

1 medium potato

½ broth or water

¼ frozen peas

Saute the onion, in butter until softened not browned

Add Zucchini, Potato, and broth

Bring to boil

Add peas

Reduce Heat and let simmer till all are softened

puree

Tomato & Basil Pasta Sauce

1 tbs Butter

2 tbs onion

5 ounces chopped tomatoes

2 fresh basil leaves

2 teaspoon cream cheese

Melt Butter in saucepan, saute the onion,

add tomatoes & saute for three minutes until mushy

stir in basil and cream cheese

Puree, then serve with pasta of choice

Veggie and Cheese Pasta Sauce

¾ cups carrot

¼ cup broccoli florets

2 Tablespoon butter

2 Tablespoon flour

¾ Milk

½ cup cheddar cheese

Bring milk, flour, carrots, broccoli, butter to a boil.

Reduce Heat and let it simmer

Add cheese

Puree

Butternut Squash, Corn, and Tofu

1 cup diced and peeled butternut squash

1 cup water or vegetable stock

½ cup frozen corn

¼ silken tofu

Bring squash and water to boil then allow to simmer for for 20 minutes

Stir in corn and cook for 5

Add cubbed tofu, squash, and corn to blender and puree

Summer Succotash

1 Tablespoon Vegetable oil

½ chopped onion

1 cup frozen corn

1 cup frozen lima beans

1 cup diced tomatoes

½ cup water

1 TSP parsley

Cook onion in medium saucepan with vegetable oil till tender, let simmer for five minutes then add corn, lima beans, tomatoes, parsley, and water. Bring to a boil then reduce heat. Let simmer for 15 minutes. Allow the medley to cool. Bring together the mix and tofu and puree.

Asparagus Risotto

1 cup Arborio Rice

1 cup water or vegetable stock

1 TSP butter

2 TSP tarragon

½ cup asparagus puree

Bring together Rice, Water/Stock, and Butter in a medium saucepan to a boil. Stir once and let boil till liquid is absorbed. Reduce the heat, stir in tarragon, then allow to stand for 10 minutes. Fluff rice and add the Asparagus. Puree if necessary for an inexperienced solid eater.

Beef, Potato, and Green Beans

6 oz lean sirloin beef

½ cup potatoes peeled and diced

1 cup water or beef stock

½ cup frozen peas

Brown Beef along with potatoes, drain fat, Add water, let simmer for 15 minutes

Add peas and cook for a minute or two until softened.

Let cool, puree.

Orange Orange Orange!

1 cup (2) peeled diced carrots

1 cup (½) sweet potato

½ cup (½) diced pear

½ cup orange juice

½ cup of water

Add all to sauce pan, bring to boil. Reduce heat, simmer, for 20 minutes. Puree.

Cheesy Salmon and Broccoli

1 cup broccoli florets

1 small sweet potato peeled and diced

8 oz skinned salmon fillet

½ cup full fat Milk (3.5%)

¼ Shredded Cheddar Cheese

Circumcision, Something to Think About.

My pregnancy could be summed up as a long stint of research. From searching the internet for car seat reviews to figuring out all I could about breast feeding I became an almanac of baby knowledge. While there is so much I still hope to learn about early childhood development; I feel content with saying any decision I will be making for my son in the first year will be one I made with a clearly educated mind. Now that I am having a son the biggest decision I have to make is circumcision. This is honestly the hardest decision I have ever had to make in my life. I have spent months researching the history, benefits, and even all the negatives about circumcision. While researching and talking to other moms I realized how little we truly know about circumcision. However, what shocked me the most is how much of what we have been told has been proven false or is just a plain myth.


The biblical story of Abraham is believed to be the introduction to circumcision. It is thought that God told Abraham that he and his family, and any people in the household (even slaves) were to be circumcised by the eighth day of life. It was believed that any man not circumcised would never walk in the path of God and should be separated from his people. However a boy that was circumcised held the mark of God and then was destined to live in God’s light. This brought on the tradition of making circumcision a celebratory social event among the Jewish. Today 98% of Jewish men are circumcised. Later on, Muslims began to pass down the tradition of circumcision so their sons could walk the life of Muhammad. Although circumcision is widely known to be associated with the Torah, ancient civilizations, like the ancient Egyptians also practiced the act of circumcising infants. Three out of four circumcised men in today’s age are Muslim.


Many other tribes, villages, and civilizations had begun the practice of circumcision. Although in the east it began with religious intent, circumcision held many other meanings with other cultures. Ancient Egyptians were known to hold mass circumcisions. In taking part you were proving your manhood by withstanding pain while also becoming a man that was “clean” and worthy of potential. Male circumcision in Africa differs with each language group. Among the Gikuyu, circumcision was performed on any boy who had finished the tribe’s education system where he learned about his people’s history. This circumcision was performed in front of all of the tribe’s people. The boy was then taught to show only bravery and strength. If he showed pain, he was then shunned from the community and cast out into the wild. However the Greeks believed that circumcising a man was mutilation. They believed a circumcised man held imperfect form and was a shame to the God’s. It was common for a man to be circumcised publicly as punishment for sexual crimes. That same act is now found in African tribes.
As time moved forward fear was associated with masturbation. In the 1890’s circumcision then became a practice to stop the temptation of masturbating. It was believed that a man who masturbated would develop forms of insanity. Masturbation became known as self-abuse and was treated as body defacement. Clitoridectomies (removal of the clitoris) were also performed to treat a woman who was caught masturbating. Shortly after the procedure was created, it became practiced just like circumcision is today. One of the leading advocates of circumcision was John Harvey Kellogg. He advocated the consumption of Kellogg's corn flakes to prevent masturbation, and he believed that circumcision would be an effective way to eliminate masturbation in males.

"The operation should be performed by a surgeon without administering an anesthetic, as the brief pain attending the operation will have a salutary effect upon the mind, especially if it be connected with the idea of punishment, as it may well be in some cases.”

Although we know now that circumcision does not protect a man from future mental illness; it is still a common misconception that circumcised men are protected from disease. For a long time circumcision was promoted as a way to protect young boys from sexually transmitted diseases. However, now we know that the only way a man can protect himself is using condoms or abstaining from sex completely. Another reason given to medically support the need of circumcision is the prevention of urinary tract infections. This too has recently been proven to be a false assumption. UTI’s among infants is incredibly rare. There are studies from Israel and Canada that suggest circumcision may actually cause an increase in the rate of UTI.

For an article written on the circumcision and urinary tract infections visit;http://voices.yahoo.com/circumcision-doesnt-effectively-prevent-urinary-tract-208991.html

If you are anything like me you will hear that and ask yourself “Why are we still being told to circumcise our boys if there are no medical findings proving it necessary or even beneficial?” Well, many pediatricians feel the same way you and I do. Many will leave the option to you, while never circumcising their own sons. In 2010 circumcision was voted the #1 parenting controversy. U.S. infant circumcision rate is now 32%, down from 56% three years ago, according to the CDC. Every year the rates of infant boys who leave the hospital circumcised are decreasing. Worldwide 82% of men remain intact and uncircumcised. Now plastic surgery’s second most common procedure is foreskin restoration. (Second to the boob job, of course) Why you ask? Many times, too much foreskin is removed during infant circumcision. This causes painful erections and scaring of the penis. So if you’re thinking circumcision will save your son from an “ugly” penis… you might be doing way worse damage than foreskin ever could. (Not to mention when an uncircumcised penis is erect, it’s common that foreskin stretches, and isn’t visible.)

Now, you may be thinking that it’s just a flap of skin. However, that just simply isn’t true.


Many have compared the foreskin to a very sensitive eyelid. This is because the foreskin protects the tip of the penis from being dried out. Others will compare the foreskin to the clitoris. This is the better comparison. The foreskin is an anatomically unique structure with its own complex vascular and neural systems and separate attachments to its parts and to the penis. (In English? The foreskin is its own miniature sex organ) At birth the infant boy’s foreskin is almost always fused to his glans as his penis as it is not fully developed and one function of the foreskin is to keep feces and other foreign substances from the meatal opening and the urinary tract of the infant and toddler. That is why the only care for the intact penis is to leave it alone, completely alone. The foreskin is actual a natural protection against urinary tract infections, if left intact the foreskin continues to be a protective barrier until older toddler years. When a man becomes a sexual being the foreskin keeps the tip sensitive as the penis is designed to be covered to keep the tissue soft and moist. Mucous inner lining reduces the need lubricants which impact's on the maintenance of the sensitivity of glans as well as reducing the need for vaginal lubrication and comfort during sex. The foreskin has over 20.000 erogenous nerves that make it a huge part of the pleasure in sex. During sex a man’s foreskin stimulates the woman’s genitalia creating what many women will call a sexual bond. Or pieces that fit together. (This coming from a woman who prefers an intact man.)

This link will take you to watch a circumcision. I urge you to watch one performed before you make the decision. Often, they will not allow you to accompany your son as the procedure is performed. http://circumcisiondecisionmaker.com/watch-circumcision-video/

For those who say it does not hurt an infant, you are wrong. In the procedure he is put in restraints, often infants will return to their parents and have bruises where these restraints were in place. The infant is comforted by curling up his body and recreating the womb like feeling. During a circumcision he has no ways of coping other than screaming. Surgically removing part of a baby boy's penis causes pain, creates immediate health risks, and can lead to serious complications. Risks include infection, hemorrhage, scarring, difficulty urinating, loss of part or all of the penis, and even death. Circumcision complications can and do occur in even the best clinical settings. Most complications are unable to detect until the boy is a toddler.

This will take you to an article titled The Lost Boys infant deaths related to circumcision. http://www.readperiodicals.com//201004/2026622071.html What they do not tell you is that this happens all the time. Circumcision is surgery. Like all surgery it has complications and huge risks.

Often times the infant will appear to be calm after a circumcision. I hate to be frank, but so is a child who was beaten, and then was given sanctuary after. This is a mental mechanism that all creatures have. Once the baby is redressed, swaddled, and return to his mother the horror is over. Often that is all the mother sees, is a baby coping with stress in his safe environment. So they believe the circumcision was not a traumatic event. The baby then will sleep soon after the procedure is done. This is a way of coping with stress. It is all too common for a baby to have a depleted appetite for the remaining day after a circumcision. Infants who are circumcised are known to lose more weight than the uncut baby.

Plan on Breastfeeding? Circumcision affects that too. Currently they are undergoing studies of 2012-2013 babies to prove it. So far what they found in 2012 backs what we breast feeding mommas fear. Due to the trauma of circumcision a baby often with draws from people, has longer fits of (NREM) sleep, and becomes uninterested in eating. La Leche League International (LLLI) first reported problems with breastfeeding by circumcised male infants in 1981. Breastfeeding problems among circumcised male infants have been verified by lactation consultants all across the country. Some saying a mother will have no problems with a baby’s latch until after a circumcision.

Finally, I would like to address the fact that this is the way we are born as human beings. If this skin was unnecessary, our species would have evolved by now to not be born with it. Circumcision is mutilation. We are removing a functioning part of their anatomy for what? A social status? I will leave my son intact, so I may teach him how to accept his body the way it was created. I know there may come a day where he will ask me why I made this decision. I am proud to say this is a decision I will make with confidence. When he asks, I will tell him I made this choice, so he could have one. I decided to leave him intact so his future sexuality would be decided by himself, as it should be. My son’s penis is not for me to cut.

Labor and Birth

Amniotomy Has Risks! 

Let Your Water Break Naturally!

Breaking the Water and the Risks Involved
Many practitioners have started to routinely rupture the amniotic membranes to kick start labor. Many women call this procedure “breaking the waters.” It is formally called amniotomy. This procedure is done when a woman’s cervix is dilated and effaced but she is not in “active labor.” However, many doctors aren’t telling their patients the risks of this procedure.

How does a doctor break your water?

Your doctor will first ask for your consent. Then after explaining the procedure to you, your doctor will ask you to get into the same position you would be in for any other vaginal exam. Your doctor then will then insert an amniohook into your vagina and pass it through your already dilated (open) cervix. An amniohook looks much like a crotchet hook, with a flat handle. From there your doctor with scratch at the amniotic sac until it “breaks.” Many women say when their water is broken they experience a “gushing” sensation. After the waters have been broken you should experience intense contractions. Some women claim this procedure is painful and some claim that they felt no pain until the contractions began.
Naturally your water will break on its own any point after dilation begins. Some women have claimed their water broke at a mere two centimeters, while other women’s water didn’t break until nine centimeters dilated. Your body instinctively will pass the waters when your uterus is ready to make stronger contractions.

What is the amniotic sac?

The amniotic sac is what your baby lives in while inside your uterus. The amniotic sac is often called the amniotic membrane due to its composition of two membranes. The inner wall of the amniotic sac is called the amnion. The amnion holds the fetus and the amniotic fluids which are the “waters” that are released during an amniotomy. The chorion holds the amnion and is a part of the placenta. The amniotic fluids maintain a constant temperature and provide buoyancy. These fluids allow the baby to move within the amniotic sac.

So what’s the risk?

Many practitioners still deny that there are any risks involved in this procedure. However, there have been numerous studies shown that when a woman’s waters are broken artificially her chances of having to endure an emergency C-section, are greatly higher. This is because women are only given 12 hours to deliver their baby after an amniotomy. (The typical time span for a woman to labor naturally with her first child is anywhere from 8 to 20 hours.) One trial study showed a marked increase in fetal distress, that quickly lead to an emergency C section, after an amniotomy was performed.

A study conducted by the Chinese Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology in 2006 concluded with these findings “Risks (of amniotomy) include increase in abnormal fetal heart rate at second stage and possible rise in cesarean section rate.”

Another risk common with amniotomy is infections of the uterus and cervix. These infections are more likely to happen the longer a woman labors after her water was broken. This is why women are given the 12 hour limitation.

Women who are attempting to have a hospitalized natural labor should reconsider amniotomy. Due to the short amount of time given for a woman to labor, many interventions will be pushed to progress your labor. 57% of women who undergo an amniotomy are then given Pitocin to “speed up” their labors.

Another risk to the mother is uneven dilation. If an amniotomy is performed in the early stages labor a woman may dilate unevenly. The fore waters act to equalize the pressure on your cervix. Meaning the amniotic sac acts as a water balloon in between your baby’s head and your cervix. This allows the pressure of your baby to distribute weight evenly over your cervix, causing even dilation. This also leads to more tears to the perineum, as the amniotic sac provides gentler stretching. (Without the amniotic sac acting as a barrier, it’s common for babies head’s to swell in the places that held the most pressure against your cervix. This is the main reason for odd shaped heads at birth.)

Risks to your baby also include umbilical cord compression and prolapse. Umbilical cord compression is when the blood flow through the umbilical cord is obstructed. This often sends a baby into fetal distress and becomes a cause for an emergency C-section. Umbilical cord prolapse happens when the umbilical cord exits the uterus before the fetus. It is an obstetric emergency during pregnancy or labor that imminently endangers the life of the fetus. (Mortality rate of 11-17%) This also leads to an emergency C-section.

So all in all, is it really worth it?

I was induced at 42 weeks pregnant. I had fought induction to the very end even though I was miserable! Even my OB/GYN, the most midwife-like OB was planning to break my water. But I simply refused. In my hospital experience I realized that you're given very little chance to do things to break your own water. No one gave me the risks, no one had me sign a form of consent, nothing. I was appalled! I was given a list of things my OB would do to break my water, like I had no choice. When asked why she would break my water so early in labor no one could give me a practical answer. Truth is, breaking your water doesn't speed up labor. All it does is speed up the time that baby has to come out of your body, which makes for an early delivery by C-section. When I refused I was looked at like I was an alien. Then my CNA dared to ask "Well, don't you want it done and over with so it doesn't surprise you later during a contraction?" WHAT? I nearly slapped her. After that I was on my birthing ball, dilated at a 4, it literally took me ten minutes and my water broke on it's own.

There are many ways to getting your waters to break with out a long crochet hook ladies. Simply try walking, a birthing ball, a warm bath, a shower, simple stretches, or just simply giving it time! Do not rush this early part of your labor. This is the foundation of a long stretch ahead of you. This is the easiest part of your labor! Enjoy it. Use it to get to know your birth team and get some grub if your OB or midwife still permits it.

Happy Pushing Ladies!

-The Tickle Monster

ALIENS HAVE INVADED!

....My womb? 

I am so glad I recorded these, 

I almost forgot how much he used to move. 

Awh, I miss this...
I do not miss him being up in my rib cage though!

Oh Man! Sometimes I really miss being pregnant. Yes, there is the hunger, the achy body, and nonstop exhaustion. However, there were so many perks! Baby is hungry? No need to wake up mamma, your body can handle it, you just get your rest! I still have my moments where I touch my belly expecting to find a baby belly. I remember the morning after I gave birth I woke up and nearly panicked when my huge belly was there. (Maybe I was still loopy from the epidural and the pain medication)  And then there was my beautiful baby boy, sleeping blissfully in the bassinet next to my bed. I thank my lucky stars nearly every night for my good sleeper. It's crazy to think that just six months ago I was big and swollen all over. Some days it feels like just yesterday, other days it feels like years ago. Oh let's reminisce being pregnant shall we?
As you may have gathered from previous posts I am a breast feeding mom so I still get cravings like a nine month pregnant woman. The only difference is people were more keen to cater to my cravings when I had the belly. (I see how it is people.) My biggest cravings were hamburgers with warm pickles and ketchup, plums, chocolate shakes, Sonic cream slushes, Braums frozen yogurt, and man did I love steak!!!
My favorite pregnancy products were the Boppy body pillow, Bath and Body Work's body butter, Motherhood's maternity pants, and Scentsy wax burners.
I loved taking Epsom salt baths the most. Hot chocolate was my alternative to coffee. My favorite baby clothing store to shop in was always Carters, and still is. I got most of my prenatal exercise walking my apartments and around a city lake. Foot rubs from Silas' Nonna were the best ever. Silas loved listening to classic rock while I drove. He kicked the most when I laughed or was eating any kind of berries. He kicked the flashlight when I held it to my belly. Silas had hiccups ALL the time. Silas was also two weeks late. I had gained 40+ pounds when I was pregnant. I was a research maniac. Anything pregnancy, birth, nursing, or early childhood development related I was all over it. I retained information like a sponge in water and would squeeze it out on any one any chance I could. Yes, I was THAT woman. You know the one, that annoying baby obsessed crunchy mama.
Okay.. So that's still is me. Don't judge.
While we're on the topic of pregnancy a big thank you should be said to my beloved, not sure if I should name drop here, so I'll just call him K. Thank you for being so supportive. Listening to me cry and then making me laugh when it was time to stop. Thank you for reading me so well and knowing when I needed to take a breather. Thank you for being there when I gave birth... even though I kicked you out of the room when it was time to push. Thank you for listening to me freak out so much when I was panicking about giving birth. Thank you for being considerate of ever changing emotions. And thank you most of all for the back rubs! Oh god those are good. Haha, I love you K, forever and always.
I had the most amazing OB/GYN for sure. She was so kind and sweet. She helped me handle my Prenatal Depression and made sure I was talking to some one when my anxiety peeked. She was super courteous of my issues with being examined. She followed my wishes, pushed me to make a birth plan and explore my options. She was amazing throughout my labor and helped me have the best nurses to handle my anxiety. She knew my hesitation with induction and waited with me as long as we could with out giving me guilt. She was very gracious to my requests and did not question my beliefs. She was the most Midwife like OB I have ever met, and for that I want to thank you Dr. Amanda Levine. I wouldn't go to any other OB and I wouldn't have allowed any one else to birth my son with me. A million times, thank you.

On that note, I'll end this post.
Please let me know if you would be interested in more pregnancy related blogs or if you have other requests in the comment section below!
Thank you for reading
-The Tickle Monster

Baby Bullet Reviewed

So here is where you can find this lovely product.
 https://www.babybullet.com/store/orderindex
Mine was gifted to me, but purchased at a Target I believe.

In the picture you will see the very cute little smiley faced storage containers, yellow storage container, two blender jars, two different blades, a spatula, the base, and two booklets. So, I have been itching to use this product since I was about 4 months pregnant, before I ever owned one! This product is amazing to any mom. Now, I'm not one for kitchen products. I'm no chef, baker, or kitchen genius. After this my favorite kitchen appliance is the microwave if that tells you anything about me. However I am a crunchy mama who loves convenience and often those things do not go hand in hand. For instance, cloth diapers. but that's a whole other story.

I use this product about once a week multiple times in that one sitting. I'll go through my process with you to give you a good idea as to how awesome this thing is.

First I make rice cereal. (Yes, you can do that too!)
I usually make a whole bunch of it to last me a week.

This chick makes an awesome "How To"
http://www.littlemissmomma.com/2013/01/how-to-make-baby-rice-cereal-from-scratch.html

Rice Cereal
So I use what the baby bullet has named the "Milling blade" that is actually made for rice and oats. So I portion out how much rice I need for the week and divide that in thirds to make it easier on the machine. (it actually is faster that way) I usually do the opposite of Little Miss Momma and leave my rice powder in an air tight container so I can make the perfect serving size when needed since I am also mixing rice cereal with baby food. Once I am then done with this weeks rice cereal I wash out both the blade and small blender piece to use later.

The picture above was taken from littlemissmomma.com

This week was Pears, Bananas, Avocados, and Sweet Potatoes.
*Note, I am currently making baby food for a friend of mine*
Pears
One pear made six servings. I used a vegetable peeler to peel off the skin first. After my pear was skinless I cut the pear to avoid the core and seeds. After discarding the center of the pear and it's stem I began to cut up the pear into small pieces. While most foods require you to add water, breast milk, or formula to get the right consistency pears don't require any. If this is a first food you introduce to your baby I recommend adding an ounce or two of breast milk or formula. Then I add it all to the blender hit the locking position and get the yellow storage container ready. The neat thing about the yellow container is it is best used for freezing. Once frozen the baby food pops out in these perfect one serving cylinders. The best way to get them out is filling each one a little over 3/4 of the way. By leaving a little space between the food and the top of the container some how helps for an easy slide out. It takes less than a minute for a whole pear to become perfect mush. (: After washing the parts I used I then moved on to Bananas.
Bananas
I know that with the right amount of patience I could easily have made this with out the baby bullet. But why do the work when it takes the baby bullet mere seconds? So I used about a banana and a half plus four ounces of breast milk (you can substitute water or formula) to make about 6-7 servings. Now I used the cute storage containers that will sit on their stand in my fridge to hold my "naner mush." (you can not use these for frozen storage like the yellow container.) I really don't know the shelf life for bananas but common sense tells me it's not very long.

http://www.target.com/p/beaba-multiportions-green/-/A-13680944#prodSlot=medium_1_9

I recently bought a set of baby food storage containers from Target that I am able to freeze. (Picture above) Before I had bought the new containers I would normally take an intermission to allow the food in the yellow containers to freeze all the way through. This way I could pop them out and put them into a labeled freezer storage ziplock bag.  I would wash that container out and begin veggies. However, my new containers allow me to "keep on truckin" as they say.

Avocado
Remember the small blender cup I used for rice cereal? Well this is what I am going to use again. I remove the peel from the avocado and begin to cut t into slices around the pit. (Save that pit for later) Cut your avocado into very small chunks. Then divide all of the cut chunks into thirds. Have six or so ounces or breast milk, formula, or water on standby. For every third group of avocado add three ounces to blender cup and get going. Now, this is the last time I will be using the short blender cup. I will have a bowl ready to pour in the first two thirds of the avocado but the last third will remain in the cup. I will then add the first 2/3 and the pit we saved. The pit helps the avocado stay fresh and keep it's pretty bright green color. However, if you were to freeze the avocado it would make around 4-7 servings depending on size and the amount of liquid you added to it.

Sweet Potato

To prepare a sweet potato, it will first need to be peeled. The cut up into small chunks you must steam your sweet potato to soften it enough to puree. I do this by letting water boil as I peel the potatoes. After cutting up the sweet potato you will then add them to the boiling water with a dash or two of salt.

Picture was taken from eatlivepaleo.com

Boil until the sweet potato chunks are softened. a good way of testing their readiness is extracting one from the water and mashing it with a fork. If it mashes easily you're ready to move on to the next step. The baby bullet has a capacity limit of about a third of a large sweet potato. There is a marking on the large baby bullet blender cup that states MAX --- with a fill line. Use this to judge how much sweet potato you fill in. With sweet potato you will need a minimum of six ounces of breast milk, formula, or water to add into the bullet. 

One sweet potato usually makes any where from 6-8 servings 

And that usually makes for a week of baby food in my home. (: 

My only negative comments is the lack of storage. Honestly, I wish the baby bullet's freezer storage container was a unit of twelve instead of six. Once you start using this you will never want to buy baby food ever again. So, thank you baby bullet for ending my battle in trying to find uses for those little baby food jars!

Sincerely, 

The Tickle Monster

Dear Baby,

I hope one day you'll look back on the days we spent together and smile. I hope you know it wasn't always easy raising you alone, but I loved every day of it. You are nearly six months old know and I can't stop thinking about the day you were born. To be honest I didn't know what to expect. I didn't know what it would be like in the future for us. I had nothing to my name... except you. I had no clue how much joy I would feel when we first met. I remember my first look at you. Head full of hair and little toes. I remember you fanning them out right before you let out your first cry. I can remember that sound perfectly to this day. My god son, you are beautiful. Here I am praying you'll forgive me for the days I had to leave you and go to college. I pray you don't remember all the moments I was gone but remember all the times I was. I know you wont have any memories of now... but the guilt still overflows in me.
You should know that as of August 6, 2013 you are approximately 23 pounds. You have a full head of hair and have already had your first haircut. You love to go swimming and splash in the bathtub too. You hate the sound of people sneezing and men with full beards. You love sweet potatoes and bananas. The sound of piano puts you to sleep and the sound of guitar makes you smile. You love to go on walks in the stroller and handle public places very well. You are still nursing like a champ and sleeping in my bed like you always have since you were born. You can now roll over and even at this very second you are trying your hardest to crawl! You love your bouncer chair and have a best friend a month older than you. The sound of other children crying makes you cry too. Your armpits are ticklish but you haven't figured out if being tickled is funny or not. You love to play with my hair and giggle when it brushes across your face. When first picked up you wrap your arms around my neck as if you are hugging me. You wake up happy from a nights sleep but very cranky from a nap. Car rides put you to sleep, so yes, we do lots of road trips. For the fourth of July, you got to see your best friend, and try what it was like to sit in a "Bumbo" chair. No, you didn't like it.
My baby, I love you. You are my world and the reason I breathe. I promise my son, I will give to the world to you. I will teach you the ways of people and the joys of the simpler things. I will teach you to look under rocks and between blades of grass for this Earth's magic. We will spend Summer days together with sand in between our toes and Winters making snowmen. I will teach you how to make sugar cookies and let you ice them. We will create our own stories and make our own puppet shows. I'll watch your soccer games, attend every boy scout meeting, and be on the PTA. I promise I will give you all that I can. You will know love and feel it's warmth everyday. You will have the parent I always wanted, and more. My son, just because I am the only parent you have does not mean you will be loved any less. I will be the father and your mother. Teacher, healer, giver, and greatest love. My son, you will flourish and grow to be the greatest of all men.
My son, you are loved.
The Tickle Monster

My sweet baby Si-bean was born February 21, 2013 at 4:48 pm weighing seven pounds and ten ounces. 

Si, just a few days old.

Call me granola because I am a crunchy mama! I am a breastfeeding mother of one. At the current time my son is five months old. My son is a beautiful multiracial blessing. My son's father is not in the picture. I often joke that I am a single patent because I didn't want to share the love of my life. I will be making posts about my son's milestones, making baby food, ethnic baby hair, breastfeeding, and the life of being a mother.