How to Make your Own Baby Food

I received a baby food maker as a baby shower gift when I was pregnant with Brody and I was certain that I would make all his baby food for the first 6+ months.  Let's just say I made one batch of sweet potatoes, forgot to peel off the skin, he hated them and I never made another batch!  They made those easy baby food pouches that you could pick up at the store and he loved them, so that's what we did. 

I swore when I was pregnant with my second that I was going to give it another try.  I'm so glad that I did.  I actually started having fun with it and she was enjoying what I was making.  It became a very rewarding experience.  I'm not going to go into the details of how much money this saves you compared to buying baby food, but I promise you it saves a lot.  

These baby cookers are definitely not mandatory because you can cook your own food and then throw it in a blender to puree; but I will say, I love having the steamer and blender in one to make mine.  Just register for one!

So this is all you need to do:

1. Pick your fruits and vegetables and chop them up. 

2. Steam one vegetable at a time in your cooker.

3. Puree steamed food.

4. Place pureed food in ice trays or baby food trays (I shared my favorites at the end of this post.)

5. Place Trays in Freezer.

6. Once frozen, place each one in a zip lock bag and label with name and date.

When I first started making the baby food, I used to mix together a few flavors before I froze them, but I decided I much prefer to freeze all the foods separately and then I can pick and choose what I want to feed her for each meal.

:: Favorite Foods to Puree :: 

Sweet Potatoes

Butternut Squash

Corn (I mostly use canned corn)

Carrots

Cauliflower

Broccoli 

Green Beans

Lentils

Black Eyed Peas

Peas (frozen)

Spinach (fresh)

Kale (fresh)

Avocado

Apple

Blueberries

Pineapple

Watermelon

Strawberries

Mango

:: Favorite Baby Food Combinations :: 

Banana/Avocado/Oatmeal

Spinach/Pineapple/Coconut Water

Blueberries/Kale/Banana

Sweet Potato/Corn/Apple

Squash/Green Beans/Cauliflower

Lentils/Sweet Potatoes/Kale

Squash/Zucchini/Apple

Peas/Squash/Quinoa

Sweet Potatoes/Corn/Broccoli

:: Favorite Baby Food Items :: 

Boon Baby Spoons //  Silicon Ice Trays //  OXO Baby Freezer Cubes  // Beaba Baby Cooker // Beaba Silicon Multiportion Tray with Lid // Reusable Food Pouch // Infantino Squeeze Station 

Suction Baby Food Bowls // Suction Sectioned Plate // Silicon Bibs // Skip Hop Plate and Bowl Set // Baby food silicon place mat and Bowl in One (square) // Silicon Place mat and plate (round)

I hope this helps you guys!  I wanted to share this because I felt it was a pretty intimidating process at first for some reason, but it can really be easy and enjoyable.  Your baby will let you know if they don't like a certain food or food combination.  Just try a new version the next time.


What are your favorite combinations of baby food??

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Thoughts for Thursday | Toddler Meals

Hi friends.  I've had this post in my draft box for quite some time, but haven't sat down long enough to finish it.  My son is a picky eater.  It makes mealtime stressful and annoying.  He eats all fruits, peanut butter sandwiches, sweet potatoes, butternut squash (sometimes) and grilled cheese.  He will also consume just about anything from the squeezable packet purees.  That's about the only way I get vegetables in him.  

I decided to try this new way of feeding because I thought it would help challenge me to serve him some different foods (it was very easy to just keep giving him the few things that he liked to keep for a more pleasant meal time) and also provide him with options...

So the whole thing revolved around using an ice tray or a muffin pan to feed him each meal.  I really do like the concept.  I've waited to write about it because I wanted to see if I think it really helped us out much and the truth is probably, not really.  

I did learn a few more things that he would tolerate such as string cheese and avocados (which he used to love when he was younger and then decided he didn't).  They also suggest providing dipping sauces (ketchup, mustard, bbq, etc) to let them explore a bit.  Brody has never liked any meats, so I thought this might be a good way to start.  

Do you guys have toddlers that run to the pantry or refrigerator multiple times through out the day wanting to pick their own food?? Mine drives me nuts.  He wants fruit from the refrigerator non-stop and then any snacks or packets he can find in the pantry.  I swear he would eat all day long if I let him.  He wears me out....

Anyway, I'm not expert at this idea at all.  I'll take any pointers you have.  I thought I would just share a few of his meals with you which might help somebody with new ideas...

avocado-chicken-rice-chickpeas-grapes-edamame - sweet potatoes - ketchup - peas- bbq - avocado - craisens

chicken parmesan - edamame - chickpeas - marinara - raspberries - string cheese 

broccoli salad - sweet potatoes - chickpeas - avocados - blueberries - butternut squash 

raspberries - macaroni and cheese - sweet potatoes - avacados - sweet potatoes - blueberries

blueberries - buttered noodles - avacado - sweet potatoes - string cheese - corn, edamame and tomato mixture

I tried to get back into juicing again to enjoy for myself and to give Brody.  He will drink a little bit of it.  I haven't been very consistent with the juicing though. 

I hope that helps some of you!  I'm trying to not get frustrated and roll with the punches.  He's always been 80-90% for weight, so he's getting what he needs.  It can just be pretty annoying at times :)

Do you have a picky eater in your house?  Have you found anything that helps???

Grab the button below and link up to Annie and Natalie  on your Thoughts for Thursday post.  

Use #thoughtsforthursdays on Instagram and tag us @homeofmalones and @eastcoastnat.
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Five on Friday

Hooray for Friday! I'm looking forward to heading to our first formal event of the year tonight!  We're talking long dresses, tuxedos and me getting my hair done by a professional!  I'm super excited.  Following along @homeofmalones to see some fun shots from the night.  The event is for Big Brothers Big Sisters which is an organization very close to my heart.  

Now, here's my Friday Five...

{One} 

Feeding a Toddler (Brody is 18 months)

I posted this on instagram (@homeofmalones)  this week and was so thankful for all of the great responses that I received. I haven't done a post lately on Brody's eating, but basically, the kid can eat a lot but it's only certain things without a lot of variety.  He seems to be going in and out of foods he likes right now.  He's always eaten and loved butternut squash and sweet potatoes.  But now, one day he eats them and the next he won't.  He used to kill some avocado, but now he wants nothing to do with it.  He's always been obsessed with fruit.  Any kind.  He'll eat grill cheese (most of the time), but he doesn't eat macaroni and cheese and really won't eat spaghetti. No meats.  No rice and beans.  And no to vegetables.  I feel like I've created a monster.  I'm working on trying more variety and cooking things a few different ways.  Does anyone else have trouble feeding their toddler???

{Two}

Yesterday I shared a tour of our home office.  I'm sorry I didn't link to any items, but my internet has been down for a few days which has been super frustrating.  Thank you for all the wonderful feedback.  You girls were too sweet.  I am happy to have it put together and start to spend a little more time in there.  Here's a few links to items that some of you asked about yesterday.  

Personalized Wedding Picture  //  glass desk // White Desk Chair // Black Chinese Chippendale Chairs

{Three}

A friend of mine sent me these flowers with a super sweet note acknowledging the one year anniversary of my Dad's passing.  It was so thoughtful and I love the way they look in my house.  Is there anything better than fresh flowers at home?? I love them. 

{Four} 
I took this picture after the photographer left last weekend and I just couldn't help but share it.  I could pretty much eat this child up.  I can not wait to see the pictures we get back from the photographer.  Although I will say, Brody fussed 99% of the time during the shoot; so we'll see how they turn out!  Taking staged pictures at this age is nearly impossible...

{Five}

You guys were so kind this week with helpful comments from my Blog Tour post.  I'm glad you girls enjoyed that because it was actually pretty fun to write and take some time to think about the blog "behind the scenes."  Anyway, a lot of you mentioned that you enjoyed fashion and OOTD posts; so I will try to include some more of those each week.  Here's a couple that I snapped this week.  I obviously am crushing on navy blue lately :)

Photo One: J Crew Navy Sweater and plaid shirt, Kendra Scott Hot Pink Necklace, Loren Hope Pink Bracelet Photo Two: J Crew Zebra Button Down, Black Leggings, and Tory Burch Quilted Black Boots

Hope you enjoyed! Have a great weekend friends!!

Linking up with the Five on Friday ladies: 

Darci, April, Christina and Natasha.

Lauren Elizabeth for High Five Friday

Jennie for Friday Favorites

Rebecca for That Friday Blog Hop

Leslie for Confessional Friday

Amy for Oh hey Friday

Amanda for Friday Favorites

Six and Seven Month Favorites

I'm a little behind on these favorites as Brody turns 8 months old this week, but here they are.  I noticed they pretty much all have to do with bath time, eating or teething; but that is basically what we have done for the last couple of months.  

I was so excited to start feeding Brody "real" food and we did that the day he turned 6 months old.  From then, we have tried different things that make life easier for feeding.  I wouldn't say that Brody took to eating really ambitiously... In fact, our first meal was quite the disappointment.  I expected him to feel like he was getting something decadent, but instead he made terrible faces and didn't eat very much.  We started with sweet potatoes and we have tried lots of different fruits and vegetables now.  Some meals Brody scarfs the food down and other meals he could care less about eating.  He certainly doesn't take after his Mother in that respect.  I never miss a meal :)

Bath time has always been part of our nightly routine and has only gotten more and more fun.  He sits in his little bath ring and now can play with toys and enjoy some bath bubbles.  

Boon Highchair - When I first started feeding Brody, we didn't have a high chair and I would just feed him in the bumbo.  I always felt like he was too distracted and that's why he wasn't being a great eater.  This Boon highchair was quite the game changer.  Now he knows it's meal time, its a great fit and he can't reach anything else around him.  It's super easy to clean and has small wheels on the bottom so it is easy to move around.  We love it.  
Baby Bath Tub Ring - This was a great transition from his baby bath tub we used.  He grew out of the baby tub and I wasn't ready to sit him up in the big tub all by himself since he was still a bit wobbly.  

Boon Bath Toys - We received these in a Citrus Lane box and love them.  He uses them as teething toys as well as bath toys.  They float and stick to the walls and provide great entertainment!

Hylands Teething Tablets - These seem to work almost instantly and have been a lifesaver many of days.  I tried one myself first just to see how quickly they dissolve and it's within a second.  It's amazing.  

Baby Bjorn Bibs - Easiest wipe down ever and great food catcher. Plus no extra laundry. Enough said.

Infantino Spoons - Brody seems to do better with these spoons connected to the food pouches. He likes to feed himself and he can grab a hold of the pouch better than a regular spoon I guess.  They are great for feeding on the go as well and come with a carrying case. 

Activity Walker - These activity walkers are fantastic because they can be used sitting down first before your baby can start standing or walking.  He loves to sit in front of ours and play with all the gadgets and colors. 

Ella's Kitchen Baby Food Pouch - Let's be honest here.  I had every great intention of making lots of baby food of my own, but besides a mashed banana or avocado, it has all been organic pouches.  They are soo easy! I made my first big batch of homemade sweet potatoes today that I was very proud of, but how boring.....the poor kid will hate sweet potatoes by the time he is done eating it all.  I love the variety that the pouches provide.  More than I can ever put together....

What is your baby loving these days???  I'm always looking for new entertainment for this kid that has about a 3 min attention span....