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my most recent batch of mini muffins: pumpkin/apple/craisin

I wrote a few weeks ago about feeding our family a mostly real/whole food diet.

Since Evy goes to daycare three days a week, I also need to think about real food that I can pack in her lunchbox.  She eats a morning snack, lunch, and an afternoon snack at school. The childcare center provides snacks, but we’ve asked them not to give those to Evy and to instead give her the snacks we’ve sent. There’s nothing wrong with the center’s snacks (and I know it isn’t easy to provide allergy-friendly food to dozens of kids, and to prepare it in a very small kitchen!), but I don’t get a lot of information about the snacks and some just don’t fit in with what we feed our family.

By opting out of the provided snacks we create a little more work for ourselves, but since we already pack a lunch it’s pretty easy to add a few snack items. And, I admit, I have fun coming up with new snack and lunch ideas.

Obviously packing food for a toddler is different than packing lunch for a grade schooler. The food has to be something she can eat on her own, using her still-developing utensil skills or fingers.  I’m careful to cut food into bite size pieces. I don’t send anything too too messy. And I try not to make things too challenging for her teachers, who are helping several toddlers eat at the same time (bless them).

Thanks to the recommendations on 100 Days of Real Food I’ve been packing Evy’s food in an insulated Lands End lunch bag (scored for $7.50 plus free shipping with various coupon codes!) and I use a Thermos food jar to pack hot food. In addition to plastic containers I have some stainless steel LunchBots containers and some fabric zip pouches that I use to pack food. The Lands End lunch bag has plenty of space for several reusable containers.

Right now, here are some of the things we pack for our toddler’s ‘real food’ snacks and lunches at daycare:

Snacks

• Homemade mini muffins (I make a veggie-filled variation on the Weelicious muffins a couple times a month and always have plenty in the freezer). Sometimes I send them plain, sometimes I cut them in half and make cream cheese muffin sandwiches for a little added protein.
•  Rice cakes (Trader Joe’s rice cakes are amazing.) Sometimes plain, sometimes spread with sunflower butter (daycare is peanut/treenut free)
• Grapes
• Pomegranate seeds
• Strawberries
• Banana
• Clementine segments
• Cheese stick (one of the packaged foods I’m ok with – basic, just cheese, and easy. I buy the natural/low sodium varieties)
• Apple sauce (I have intentions of making my own soon, but I sometimes send the individual packaged cups that contain only apples and water- organic/no sugar added. Hannaford has a good generic version.)
• Freeze dried fruit (again, Trader Joe’s). E likes the bananas, strawberries, mangoes and raspberries. The blueberries are still a bit tough for her to chew up at this point.
• Edamame (shelled, sent warm or cold)
• Yogurt (plain with some jam or honey mixed in- enjoying Greek yogurt lately)
• Hard boiled egg
• Dried seaweed (yup, TJ’s. She loves this, but everyone at school probably thinks this is extra weird)
• Homemade cheese crackers (so easy! so tasty!)
• Homemade sweet potato chips or ‘fries’
• Lots of other great ideas here.

Lunch 

• Whole wheat mini pitas with cream cheese + jam or sunflower seed butter + honey or tuna (TJ’s for the mini-pitas — they are a big hit in our house)
• Leftover veggie quesadillas with plain yogurt for dipping (E will eat quesadillas with spinach, so this is a go-to when I’m worried that she hasn’t been eating enough veggies)
• Beans + grain (black beans and brown rice or quinoa, chickpeas with cous cous, etc)
• Sweet potato with beans or cheese
• Scrambled eggs, plain or with cheese and spinach
• Whole wheat pasta or soba noodles (with pesto or red sauce or just a little butter) mixed with peas or corn or beans
• Soup (I was shocked when a veggie-filled soup was a hit)
• Scrambled eggs
• Brown rice/bean/corn/spinach/cheese/whatever burrito
• Leftover homemade pizza (again, she will eat spinach this way, hooray!)
• Sunflower butter and jam on whole wheat bread
• Pita with hummus or pesto or bean dip and cheese 
• Waffle sandwiches (make and freeze the waffles in advance) – with cream cheese and/or jam or sunflower butter and/or honey.
• Pancakes (we freeze the extras when we have pancakes on the weekend – extra points for getting some fruit in there – apples or blueberries or bananas)

Here we are. November 30. I didn’t get a perfect 30/30 on my National Blog Post Month project, but 28/30 isn’t bad.

This wasn’t easy, and it certainly didn’t bring about 28 beautiful posts. But it got me here, writing, and it helped me begin to figure out what my approach should be. I hope to stick around, but I’m glad to give up the every day posting for now.

What next? NaBloPoMo, despite it’s terrible name, has pushed me to maintain this blog. Unfortunately spewing out a post every day has consumed time when I should be doing other things, like talking to my husband and working on Christmas gifts.  Every day is too much, but never is too little.  So, blog, let’s make a deal. I’ll see you 2-3 times a week from now on, ok? Cool.

Thank you to Heather for sparking my participation in NaBloPoMo. 

I am a big NPR/public radio fan. (Are you? You’ve made sure to watch Sh*t Public Radio Listeners Say, right?) So of course I have our local public radio station, WAMC, as the default on my car radio and listen for the 12 minute drive to and from work every day. Those 24 minutes are among the only time I’m listening to something other than our tolerable-but-still-kid-music Music Together CDs.

My commute apparently coincides with the time frame when the latest installment in that month’s important but very depressing and/or gruesome series is aired. First it was the series on human tissue donation. It’s a very important topic, needs to be known, but oh my word, the descriptions of tissue harvesting were too much at 8:20 in the morning. And 4:45 in the evening. Somehow the timing worked out so that every day for a week all I heard on the radio was the tissue donation stories (or, not really, because as soon as the descriptions of cutting ligaments started I changed the station).

And then last month it was the stories on polio. Again, important, should be told, of course. But somehow my commute worked out so that every morning and evening I heard a story about polio in Africa. It made for a tough start and end to the work day.

I’m a total snooty jerk for complaining about the timing of NPR stories on my drive to a job, I know. But look! I wrote something here!

So what’s in store for my commutes this holiday season, NPR?

I wrote something tonight that isn’t ready for prime time. So in place of any real writing tonight I’ll share some links:

Neil Patrick Harris Dreams in Puppet

On these late November days the sun is setting fast when I arrive to pick her up from daycare. I get out of the car and head in behind a few other parents, all of us shaking off the workday, hurrying in to greet the little faces we love. I notice the bright moon that is rising, excited to show Evy when we leave the building together.

When I walk into her classroom her body wiggles and dances with excitement. She runs to me for a quick kiss before darting back to show me what she’s playing with: today, a feast of fake food, “soup” in cups that she’s serving her teachers and shares with me. Her sweet teachers (whose patience and enthusiasm is the stuff of heroes) tell me how she’s been “cooking” all day and ask if she helps in the kitchen at home. They tell me stories about things she said and did during the day, she gives them hugs and blows kisses. She points to her artwork on the walls, studies the photos of her friends and tells me who they are – she can name all of her buddies, loves talking about her “frennns!”

As I gather her coat, lunch box, and report of the day’s activities she sneaks in one more minute in the play kitchen area. I talk to her about going home, seeing Calvin, starting dinner, and Daddy coming home as I slip her arms into her coat and start the zipper, letting her pull it up to her chin. I put her hat on and we say goodbye to her teachers – she gives out more hugs and kisses. As we walk down the hallway she talks about the babies she sees, points out the art projects and photos on the wall, and waves bye bye to everyone we pass. They all grin, wave back, know her by name. She helps push the door open as we step outside. I lift her into my arms and point out the moon. She smiles, points, “moon! clouds!” and we walk to the car. When I buckle her into the carseat she waves bye bye to the moon.

Our ride home takes less than three minutes. We talk on the way. At 20 months old, her language continues to explode, and this week she has started telling me stories about things before I ask. Tonight she told me about the play doh she played with, and about how cold it was when they went out to play.

There is always a part of me that frets about whether we’re doing the right thing by sending Evy to daycare three days a week (or, truth: there is always a part of me that frets about everything). I wonder if there are other options, if this is what’s best for her, if she likes it, if I should be home more, and all of the other doubts that fill the minds of parents everywhere.

But for this particular kid, I think daycare is a great thing. She’s done well there since starting at four months old. At eight months she earned the nickname “the mayor” – smiling and waving to all the teachers and kids, all day long. She’s social and very verbal, and it’s clear that she loves being with a group of friends all day. She spends her daycare days playing with a collection of fun toys and does more interesting art projects than we could do at home. She has fantastic playgrounds and outdoor spaces to explore. She does better with naps at school than at home. And she is with wonderful, loving caretakers.

Daycare probably isn’t right for every kid, and her needs will change as she gets a bit older and we start thinking about preschool (I have dreams of Montessori…), but at this point in toddlerhood it is a great thing – and that moment at the end of the day when I walk in the classroom door and see her face is pure gold.

Things I’ve Taken Away from My Toddler Today (And Why)

      Object                                               Reason for Confiscation               

• Empty coffee container                  Standing on the top. Logrolling.

• Rolling pin                                     Putting it in her mouth. Refusing to remove it from her mouth. 

• Dry pasta                                       Sprinkling it over the kitchen floor, fairy dust style.

• Armchair (closed via ottoman)       Standing/jumping on (very proudly).

• Plastic shopping bag                      Attempting to put on head.

• Reusable shopping bag                  ”    ” (forbidden due to the scary bacteria I’m told coats the inside)

• My hairbrush                                  Throwing, boomerang-style, across the room

• Dryer sheet                                    Attempting to wash face with it   

• Cup/bowl/spoon/fork                     Banging punk-rock-drummer style on the high chair tray (new vocab this vacation: bang bang bang! Dad was doing demo and installing insulation in the attic…)

I feel a little guilty that we haven’t done anything very exciting with this four-day weekend. With some house projects in the works along with the cleaning/organizing that’s always on the to-do list, we stayed close to home yesterday and today. Many of our usual playmates were busy with their own holiday weekend travel and events, so most of the time it was just us three.

Sunday morning, making apple pancakes.

Maybe Evy would have had more fun if we were out and about more. Or maybe she doesn’t mind some time at home. For her, these days have been full of playing with her toys, reading her books, helping me cook, snuggling with dad, napping in her crib, coloring, playing in the yard, rediscovering her pile of stuffed animals, watching snow flakes fall outside the window, dance parties, eating apple pancakes, and spending hours in her jammies. I’m pretty sure she doesn’t have any complaints, aside from the fact that we won’t allow her to climb and jump on every surface in the house. I hope the wild dance parties have made up for any lack of couch bouncing or chair climbing.

Evelyn, 1 week old, giving her opinion on not being held.

March 26, 2011 kicked off my harrowing journey through being a first-time mom to a newborn. That experience transformed me in an unexpected way: I’ve become a cheerleader and supporter of everyone I know going through (or about to go through) new parenthood.

Before I had a baby I had this idea that the early weeks with a newborn would be cozy and glowing, full of napping and snuggling. All the photos I saw were of cozy sleeping babies!

Instead, I felt like I was hit by a truck.  I was crying at the drop of a hat as my postpartum hormones went nuts, I was sore, overwhelmed, sleep deprived, and wondering why the hell anyone would ever have a second baby.

At the same time, I was falling in love with my daughter. I loved the feel of her little body sleeping on my chest, I loved the moments when her eyes were open and looking around, I loved studying her fingers and nose. The emotional highs and lows were making me motion sick.

It was all very confusing and not one bit like what anyone told me it would be like, or what people seemed to think it was like. Even people who had gone through it said things like “Enjoy this magical time!” and “Isn’t it so wonderful?”  No! It wasn’t. It was hard, it was taking every ounce of my determination to get through. Establishing breastfeeding was tough. I was getting no more than three hours of sleep a night. I was recovering from surgery. It required a support team of an amazing husband and family to get through those early weeks. Eventually, the balance shifted and the wonderful moments came more frequently, the impossible moments became old hat, and little by little I slept more than two hours a night. But whoa. It was intense, for all of us.

And so I tell my new mom friends that it is totally normal to feel like new parenthood is insane, that it will seem glowy when you look back on it but in the moment it is full of constant nursing, worrying about poop, exhaustion, and crying on the part of everyone. And despite what people try to make you think: babies wake up a lot at night. That’s normal. And for many babies, it’s normal for many months. Everyone will ask how your baby sleeps at night, they’ve just forgotten that their own baby never slept either.

In the first weeks home with a baby I did a lot of reading books and websites- looking for reassurance of what was normal, what to worry about, and when things would change. I was determined to breastfeed, but the only person I knew who had recently nursed a newborn was my best friend in Michigan. I was lucky enough to get connected with the local La Leche League for some much-needed support regarding nursing. The support and help from our parents was incredible, but in a lot of ways my husband and I were going it alone – the first of our local friends to have a baby, we really didn’t know what to expect.

Below are some of the best online resources I found for new parents seeking good information, support and reassurance (I’m writing this post mostly to give myself something to link to when emailing those new mom friends of mine):

• KellyMom – In my opinion, this is the best breastfeeding website out there. Science/research-based, it covers all kinds of topics. This is the place to go with questions about the early days of breastfeeding, what’s normal, when to worry, what to do about issues that come up, etc.
• JanetLansbury.com – Janet Lansbury’s approach to parenting is one that we’ve really identified with. I wish I’d discovered her sooner, as I really like a lot of what she has to say about parenting an infant. This site is a great resource.
• AskDrSears.com was bookmarked on my phone in those early months. Lots of good stuff about soothing a newborn, babywearing, sleep, and breastfeeding.
• Squint Mom and Science of Mom offer research-based info, which is reassuring in a world of not-so-researched-based opinions on parenting.
• La Leche League – Every new mom should find their local group and attend meetings. I can’t push this enough. A supportive community is so so key to breastfeeding success – these ladies will have your back, help you out, get you through. The website also has some good resources. If you’re in the Albany area I highly recommend attending the East Greenbush group’s meetings. They are welcoming, friendly, and the support is so crucial.
• 12 Things Your Crying Baby Wants You to Know  This is the kind of thing overwhelmed new moms need to read.

Thirty Things I’m Thankful For – part 2 of 3

1. Today – dinner with not one but two wonderful, fun, and crazy families. A family walk outside on a crisp and sunny day, watching loved ones dote on Evy, being inside houses bursting with loved ones, catching up, sharing abundant meals, and getting down with toddler-led dance parties – it was a wonderful day.
2. Tomorrow – another family day of home improvements, snuggles on the couch, walks, and maybe – just maybe – venturing out in public.
3. Health – mine and my family’s. Things can change so quickly. I’m thankful that we are all able to fully enjoy each day as it comes. 
4. Carmex and Crabtree & Evelyn lotion for dry dry winter lips and skin.
5. Wine and beer!
6. Evy’s laugh. Evy’s hugs. Evy’s kisses. Evy’s songs. I could go on. Obviously.
7. The opportunity to watch my friends find love, grow families, and create happiness.
8. The internet for helping me stay connected with faraway friends, reconnecting me with old friends, introducing me to new friends, giving me a place to write, blogs that support/entertain/inform/are ridiculous, providing a way to share photos and stories between friends and family, and giving us all the gift that is awkwardfamilyphotos.com. 
9. Family – today made me especially grateful for the family I was born into and the family I married into. I feel undeservingly lucky to be surrounded by their love and warmth. Watching our child beam (and dance) amid that love is a dream I’ve had for a long time. 
10. All of it. I am full up with gratitude for this life. Thank you, universe.