Hey Grandma, Look What I Can Do!

Oops!

Let me try that again.

Well, I guess I'll keep practicing.

I love you Grandma!

Why I am Feeling Proud of Myself

As I recall (from when Katelyn was a baby) a good deal on baby food is about $.50 per jar. Am I right? Well, ever since I read that that tiny little jar of food is often watered down with up to 50% water (can that really be true??), and factor in all the creepies out there who tamper with the jars--and who knows what your beautiful babe is actually slopping down?! So this time I decided that I would try my hand (or blender) at making only homemade baby foods for Littleman Zach. Thanks to this dandy little book I found: "Baby and Toddler Meal Planner" by Nicola Graimes, it's been pretty easy going.

I love this book because it teaches you exactly how to prepare a variety of purees, how much to make, which ones can freeze, etc.
I love it because it has organized and detailed weekly meal plans with easy recipes for every day of your baby's life from 5 months to 4+ years.
I love it because it is British and they say things like "Weetabix", which I think really means "Cream of Wheat".
And I love it because I found it in the bargain books bin at the grocery store for only $3.99 (retails at 7.99 British Pounds, thank you very much).

So far we have made homemade rice cereal (I love the smell of the cooked rice), pureed carrots, and homemade applesauce (which smells even better than the rice, and afterwards you can drink the water you boiled the apples in--so yummy). We make a big batch, then portion it out into Ziploc baggies and keep them in the freezer. The portions are so small that they thaw out quickly when it's time to use them. Not to mention, you will feel like one of those moms who've "got it all together" (whatever that means). So...remember that $.50 that I used to spend on baby food jars? Well I just bought a bag of apples for $.69 per pound and made six servings of applesauce for Zach out of that one pound. Did I mention I love my book?



Now if I could only solve the mystery of this little book. It will be a beautiful day when Katelyn starts loving her veggies, too.

I'm Crazy For the Cullens

Day: Sunday

Time: Noon

Status: Driving home from church.

Thoughts: I'm hungry. What can we eat for lunch?

Answer: Pink frosted pumpkin birthday cupcakes. Of course! (I ate two)

Castles In The Sand

Lately it seems I can't get through my blog list without coming across a cutesy post about the leaves changing and the bundling up to go outside and the warm fires inside with hot cocoa and marshmallows. These are all things I love...along with warm scarves and coats and mittens--even earmuffs on occasion. And I'll admit that as I've sat in So Cal, sweating in the above 90 degree weather, I've been a little green-eyed. I've even tried to create an artificial Autumn for myself. Some Fall decorations here and there, bottles of Trader Joe's Spicy Cider (which I heat and sip from my favorite mug), cinnamon air fresheners (which I hope will give my house the illusion that some sort of pie is baking). Well, I've been trying real hard. But then I wized up and remembered that we have something that none of y'all have--The Beach!! We spent an afternoon watching Kite Surfers and building Castles In The Sand. We bought chocolates at the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory (my fav!!) and watched a beautiful sunset over the Pacific Ocean. Jealous much?
The best part about building sand castles is demolishing them when you are done!
Katelyn thought so too.

HAPPY AUTUMN!