Picky Eater

Like with almost everything, Henley Jane is turning out to be opposite of her brother...Lash was a great eater and Henley is not. She enjoyed all of the baby food that we introduced to her, although she had her favorites and the ones she would struggle to eat. Once we ran out of pureed baby food (equivalent to Stage 1 and Stage 2) we tried introducing chunkier baby foods and some additional solids and found out that she is very picky.

Here is a list of solids that she would eat without much coercing: zucchini bread, nutrigrain type granola bars, cheese, banana/blueberry muffins, wheat thin crackers, pear sauce, applesauce, cheerios, rice cereal and animal crackers. We tried things like macaroni and cheese and chicken with rice, but she would only try a few bites and then start spitting it out. She did really like the chicken and noodles at the Vinland Fair, so if anyone can get me that recipe I would greatly appreciate it :)

After quite a bit of observation, I have concluded that it is an issue with texture and not with taste. Here are a couple of things I have tried and found success:

1) For snack I give Henley cheese crackers and watered down 100% vegetable juice (similar to V8 or tomato juice). For some reason this combination works. If I try to give her veggie juice without the cheese crackers she usually spits it out. Go figure!

2) I realized that Henley really liked bread, so I tried to think of any way to get veggies and fruit into bread. I went to allrecipes.com and stumbled upon a recipe called Toddler Muffins. I followed the instructions for the recipe, but I made some slight changes to the ingredients based on what I had:

1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
5 oz (total) pureed baby food: carrots, sweet potatoes, green beans
1/2 cup shredded carrots
1/2 cup sweetened applesauce
2 mashed bananas (3/4 cup)
1 cup flour
1/2 cup quick oats
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt

This recipe made 24 mini muffins and a few regular size muffins. I froze the muffins in a freezer bag and I pull out two each morning because Henley eats one mini muffin for lunch and one for dinner. Along with the muffin she will have a slice of cheese at one meal and some pear sauce or applesauce at the other meal.

Thanks for taking time to read about our picky eater. The purpose of this blog post was to put in writing our experience so that if I cross paths in the future with someone who has a picky eater I can say more than "Oh yeah, Henley was like that but I can't remember what we fed her." Also, I welcome any and all ideas for ways to get fruits and veggies into her diet.

Aahhh....Fall!

Can you feel that Fall is in the air? Maybe it is just because the temperatures are a little cooler compared to the record high temps we had earlier this summer, but I feel Fall coming. Fall is my favorite season...I'm so excited!! Here are some area attractions that you might want to check out:

Vinland Fair: Okay, so this fair was last weekend, but it was so much fun and you should definitely put it on your calendar for next year! We went on Friday night and got to see the tractor pull and listen to live music. We skipped Saturday but I heard there was a watermelon seed spitting contest, a box turtle race and a homemade ice cream contest. Make sure you get there early if you want to eat dinner or eat before you go...whatever you do make sure to save room for some homemade pie! Next year I am excited to enter okra and zucchini in the Ag Exhibit...who knows maybe I'll get a ribbon. (http://vinlandfair.blogspot.com/)

Louisburg Ciderfest: My mom and I went to this festival a couple of years ago. There are lots of craft booths, a corn maze, a pumpkin patch and lots of apples and apple products. This festival is always the last weekend of September and the first weekend of October. (http://www.louisburgcidermill.com/?page_id=1705)

Kaw Valley Farm Tour: This is not an event we have participated in before, but it is something I would like to do. I have heard that it is well worth the ticket price ($10 per carload). The farms on the tour are working farms and have farm animals, produce and lots of fun! (http://www.kawvalleyfarmtour.org/)

Apple picking: Lash is so excited to go apple picking this year and to make applesauce. I have checked out local orchards and I think we are going to head to Wagon Wheel Orchard. They have many varieties of apples and they are located within 10 miles of our house. (http://www.wagonwheelorchard.com/)

Maple Leaf Festival: A lovely craft festival in Baldwin City! I have attended this festival as a patron and a vendor in the past and have enjoyed it every year (assuming the weather is nice). The festival is always the third full weekend in October. There is a parade Saturday morning, but if you want to miss the crowds I recommend heading out on Sunday afternoon. (http://mapleleaffestival.com/)

Schaake's Pumpkin Patch: There are all sorts of family-friendly activities at Schaake's. Last year the kids and I went with Grandma K and rode the wagon out to the pumpkin patch. Lash got to pick out a pumpkin for him and one for Henley Jane and then we hiked back to the barn. They also have a hay maze, farm animals and concessions. Admission is FREE and pumpkins are inexpensive. (http://schaakespumpkinpatch.com/index.htm)

Lash loves to sing!

Yesterday we were on our way to a play date and I needed to stop at the grocery store for a couple of items since I was in town. Henley always rides shotgun in the cart and Lash rides inside the "tank". As we are making our way through the store, Lash is singing "Bless the Lord, oh my soul..." quite loudly and without a single reservation! It was priceless!

Today before naps Lash had all of his dinosaurs and other animals in the living room and they were all laying down (there were 14 total). Lash starts standing them each up and saying "Come on, we are going to sing He's Got the Whole World." After he gets them all standing he starts waving his arms singing "He's got the whole world in His arms!" He looks over at me and says very seriously "Don't smile." It was so funny and how could I not smile at my young choir director?!?

Growing up

The other day I was thinking about how in the next couple of months Henley will start getting teeth (yeah, she is 10 months old and still no chompers), start standing and maybe even walking, eat more table food, sleep through the night (hopefully!!) and other major accomplishments. Then I realized that in the next couple of months Lash will master pottying in the big potty by himself, learn how to ride a bike, take on more chores at the house, etc.

My kids are growing up and I can't say I'm too disappointed. What does that say about me as a mother? I'm not implying that I am excited for them to grow up and move out...I'm just looking forward to when I can do things like: take a shower or use the restroom by myself; leave Henley and not have to be back at a certain time in fear that she might starve or go into Mama withdrawal if I am gone for more than a couple of hours; not have to dread tomorrow if the kiddos don't get naps today; get a full eight hours of sleep a night.

I love my kids and I pray that I am able to enjoy every minute as they grow!

Two Peas in a Pod

My kiddos love to read...well, Lash loves to read and Henley loves to chew on the books, so they make a good pair.

Potty Humor

We are smack in the middle of potty training. Some days are better than others, but every day includes hilarious potty humor. For example, Lash likes to assign an animal/object to the way he peed (for the record, we have no idea why he started doing this):

• "I just ready peed like a snowman."
• "I just peed like a seahorse."
• "I just peed like a crying cow."
• "I just peed like a triceratops." (that one is his favorite!)

Oh my soul...

I don't know what to say...

Zucchini Goodness

Every year I have lots and lots of zucchini and I struggle with different ways to fix it. Here is something I tried last week that was so yummy:

Slice zucchini so you end up with lots of round slices (like quarters, only bigger). Put your zucchini slices into a bag and toss with olive oil, garlic salt and grated Parmesan cheese. Place slices onto a cookie sheet sprayed with cooking spray and bake at 450 degrees for 10-15 minutes (length of baking depends on how crispy or soft you want your zucchini).

ENJOY!

What do you want to be?

I randomly asked Lash this afternoon "What do you want to be when you grow up?" With a twinkle in his eye he responded with "Hmmm...let's see...get in water and do swimming lessons and fly like a super hero."

I love that kid!

"Scuse Me Kitties"

A month or so ago we got four kittens...Ed, Rose, Doc and Nike. Lately Lash has been very aware of when they needed food and he was anxious to help them out.

Last night we were coming in for the evening and Lash wanted to feed the kittens. He opened the door to the closet where the cat food is kept, filled the measuring cup, navigated down the few stairs (with all the kittens at his feet), and walked to the food dish while saying "here kitty, kitty."

Lash was very careful when he poured the cat food into the dish and the kittens started eating before he could finish pouring out all of the food. So there he was standing over the kittens repeating "scuse me kitties"...I guess thinking they would just move so he could pour the rest of the food into their dish. It was so sweet.