Nine month update

Brayden had his nine month check up this week. Unlike the previous three appointments (2,4 and 6 months), this time there were no needles involved! In fact, the nine month appointment is optional -- it's an opportunity for the doctor to ensure you're baby's growth and development are on track and for you to ask questions that might probably have come up since your last appointment.

Our appointment revealed that Brayden is 16 pounds and confirmed that he has hit all the typical developmental milestones for his age. (Way to go little guy!) While I'm not one to pay too close attention to the percentiles that inevitably come out of these appointments (usually just numbers mommies harmlessly like to throw around when comparing each other's babies) our HPC did request she see Brayden in a month to check in on his weight. (Though he has always been a slender baby, he's fallen below the fifth percentile...) The advice I received from our HPC in the meantime is to continue breastfeeding 3-4 times/day and offer him more snacks.

So, I've decided to take these next four weeks to test out whether feeding two formal snacks, in addition to the three formal meals and four nursings I've been feeding, to see whether it helps beef up our little string bean.

Sample Menu: 4 Week Challenge

Breakfast

- breast milk

- oatmeal cereal

- banana

- yogurt

Snack

- breast milk

- peach slices

- toast

Lunch

- barley cereal

- chicken puree

- corn puree

- butternut squash

- apple sauce

Snack

- breast milk

- cheese cubes

- cracker

Dinner

- brown rice cereal

- beef puree

- mashed peas

- sweet potato 

- pear puree

Bedtime

- breast milk

Dirty dozen and the Clean 15

It has been just over two months since introducing solid foods to Brayden and I’m proud to say that I’ve remained committed to preparing my own baby food for him. This process has taught me a lot but one of the biggies has been reading about what lurks within our produce.  If you’re making your own baby food, I recommend reading about the dirty dozen to learn about the produce containing the most pesticide residue. In fact, it might be a good idea to become more aware about what you are putting into your body too.

The Dirty Dozen (the most important to buy organic):

1. Apples
2. Celery
3. Strawberries
4. Peaches 
5. Spinach
6. Nectarines (imported)
7. Grapes (imported)
8. Sweet bell peppers
9. Potatoes
10. Blueberries
11. Lettuce
12. Kale/collard greens

There’s also a list known as the Clean 15. These are the fruits and vegetables with the lowest amounts of pesticide residue.

1. Onions
2. Sweet corn
3. Pineapples
4. Avocado
5. Asparagus
6. Sweet peas
7. Mangoes
8. Eggplant
9. Cantaloupe
10. Kiwi
11. Cabbage
12. Watermelon
13. Sweet potatoes
14. Grapefruit
15. Mushrooms