It’s that time of year again! I’ve compiled a list of some great websites that offer organic baby and children’s clothes, natural products, wooden toys, and hand made, fair trade items. These sites will inspire you and make your gift giving exciting this year- and you don’t have to go out in the cold! Happy Shopping! Continue reading Holly’s Holiday Shopping List
Travel Tips With a Toddler
Buy him the sugary-est, tastiest, biggest drink at Starbucks and settle him into his seat.
This is sure to buy you some serious time.
I’m kidding. Of course.
Here’s some real help for traveling with a toddler. It can be done!
“Animal, Vegetable, Miracle”
Have you read Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life
It was released last year, and got rave reviews. I’m not sure why it took me so long to read it, considering I bought it for 2 of my sisters last year and the subject matter is right up my alley.
It probably has something to do with my complete lack of free time with which to read, but this past week I was on vacation and had lots of help and the luxury of laying in bed and reading for hours on end. I came upon Animal, Vegetable, Miracle
This book chronicles the author and her family’s year of eating local food- only what they grew for themselves, or could purchase at the farmer’s market. Kingsolver gently teaches the reader why it’s important to do so, and lays out exactly how they achieved this goal. She seriously believes in growing your own food- whether you live on a farm or in an urban apartment- and practically walks you through how to do it. She also makes a case for eating meat- as long as it’s pasture grown.
This book is very entertaining, as she weaves her wit and family history into the pages. There are also essays and recipes by her daughter, and lots of facts about factory farming and environmental concerns written by her husband.
Their project was clearly a labor of love and I am so thankful they embarked upon it and shared it with us. It reinvigorated my passion for eating with the seasons and supporting local farmers and my community. It also got me out to a great local nursery today to buy some lettuce, a tangerine tree, and some potted herbs!
What I love best about Animal, Vegetable, Miracle
This book would make a great gift for the holidays!
Kid-Friendly Chili Recipe
Most Saturday mornings, you can find us at one of the many farmer’s markets around town. Our 2 year old has been going since he was 6 weeks old, and is quite at home there. (In fact, anytime I ask him what he wants to do today, he says, “Go to Farmer’s Market!”)
Lately he has been very involved in the shopping process, as he loves to pick out the veggies, take them to the farmer and then hand over the money. It’s fun to see him so excited about buying fresh vegetables, and it is our hope that this is building a strong, healthy foundation for a lifelong love of nutritious food.
This past week, we bought some delicious sweet potatoes, onions, carrots and kale for use in the soups we love to make in the fall. I find that soup is the best way to get my son to eat lots of veggies.
Since the weather is turning cooler, I was craving chili, but knew I had to make a “non-spicy” (in other words no chili powder) chili. This is what I came up with:
Adventures in Breastfeeding (a Toddler)
I’m still breastfeeding my two year old, and even though I am very confident about my decision and know all of the many benefits of it, I am still a bit uneasy when he asks to nurse in public. So most of the time I ask him to wait until we get home, or in the get in the car, or somewhere less public.
I’m not sure why I’m self conscious of this though, because every time (and I mean every time) I nurse him in public someone comes up to me to tell me what a great thing I’m doing.
Last week on the airplane, even though my son had his own seat and no longer needs to nurse during take-off and landing for his little ears, he nursed about 3 times during a 1.5 hour flight. This was his 30th flight, and I’m sure it’s just his way of feeling comfortable on the plane. But each time he asked, I repositioned myself so no one else would see, and tried to muffle his voice when he asked for the “other one.”
There was a woman sitting across the aisle from us, and I was convinced she was thinking- “I can’t believe she’s nursing that walking, talking toddler!” In fact, since he’s completely potty-trained, we walked to the lavatories on the airplane 3 times during the flight because he was so enamored with the silver toilets and different sights and sounds. (“What’s that mommy, blue tinkle?”) So I was sure this women was thinking- wow, he’s even potty-trained, but still nursing!”
When our flight was over, the woman sitting across from us said, “I just want to say that I love to see a mom nursing her toddler. I nursed my daughter until she was 2 and a half, and she nursed my two grandbabies until they were 2. I think it’s so good for them- they are always so healthy! Congratulations! It’s very obvious you love your son.” Then, the woman sitting in front of her turned around and chimed in with similar sentiments. I thanked them for saying something, and confessed that I was self-conscious so I really appreciated their kind words.
I realized (again) in that moment how important it is to spend more time focusing on being the type of woman and mother I want to be, and less energy on what others may or may not be thinking.