Baby Food

When I decided to make my own baby food with my first child, I wanted The Baby Bullet. I heard nothing but good things about this small food blender. Initially I loved it. It was the perfect size to puree  the right amount of food for one baby. That was back in 2012. I used the Bullet for about nine months or so until it became difficult for me to bring around food that needed refrigeration. If I was going to be out and about all day, I would not necessarily have access to a fridge nor a means to heat up the food. Also, did I mention bringing a container of food and a spoon in a diaper bag takes up a lot of room and more times than not, there is no place to set it all out to feed your baby? And don't get me started on how messy it is!

So by that point I was buying the baby pureed food pouches such as Plum Organics and Earth's Best. These were/are fantastic because baby just eats directly from the pouch and the only thing that's in these purees is fruit and veggies and cereal. No added sugar or chemicals to keep you guessing what exactly you are feeding your baby.
Bonus: Your baby will most likely be feeding him/herself with ease after a few squeezing casualties!

Now, fast forward three years to 2015. I took out my Baby Bullet to use with my twins. I was all set to start making baby purees again and I am doing a great job at keeping up with it. The only problem was that after about three uses of my Baby Bullet, it broke. Not such a big deal, I have a regular blender. Luckily it works just as good, if not better since I have to make bigger batches of food to feed two babies. I still like the Baby Bullet, but mostly now because of the feeding booklet it came with. This book lets me know how to puree certain foods and also gives a feeding chart just in case I need some guidance.

Now that my twins are seven months old, I started buying the food pouches again. I will only use them for when we are not home, since I'm still not finding it hard to take the time to make my own purees, even with a three year old running me ragged. Once my twins are mobile though, that may change.


FYI: I am not getting paid to make any reviews. These are just the things I have used or do use and want to let more parents know about.

7 Spring/Summer Activities To Do With the Kiddies

Since I was "out of service" last spring and summer, due to hauling around two growing human beings inside of me, there was a lot I couldn't do with Lily, my then two year old. So here's my list of things to do this spring and summer with my now three year old and my twins.

1. The Bronx Zoo. Hell yeah! Can't wait to see the reaction of my three year old when she sees all the animals from her books and television shows in person.

2. The Mystic Aquarium. A little road trip to Connecticut for the day won't be such a bad thing. I really like this aquarium. It's a good size to see lots of sea life. If we think it'll be too much though, we can always go to the Long Island Aquarium in Riverhead. I've never been and I don't think my husband has either so it'll be a new experience for all. Plus, depending how we would go to Mystic, we would pass it anyway.

3. The beach. Sounds simple enough... just have to slather on a ton of sunscreen and pick one of many here on the island to go to.

4. Eisenhower Park. A staple when I was growing up. I'd love to buy a kite and fly it there with Lily. Also a great place for her to ride her tricycle with better scenery than what's on our block.

5. Montauk Point Lighthouse. Who doesn't like visiting a lighthouse?

6. The many carnivals that hit the island around the summer holidays. We did go to a couple last summer but I really couldn't enjoy myself fully. (In the below picture I was 17 weeks pregnant with Killian and Piper. 17 WEEKS!! Look how big I was.) Plus, this time Lily will actually be tall enough to ride the kiddy rides without having to argue about how tall she is.

7. Have a scavenger hunt. What will we collect or check off the list while walking through the park or just around the block? A yellow flower? A flat rock? An acorn? A blue car?

Click HERE to scroll through & print out a wide selection of scavenger hunts!

There are other things that I want to do, but these are the biggies. Now, can we make it happen? The weather is already warm enough to start these any time. Just gotta do it!

So, what's on your Spring/Summer Check Off List?

Mom, I Understand Now

I now understand you, Mom. I understand what it must have been like for you to raise the four of us. I understand the love, the worry, but above all, I understand the stress. I understand and don't blame you for certain things that you did or didn't do for me. I once was so angry at you for not looking at a drawing I did. I must have called out "Mom" so many times. I carried that hurt for a long time, until my own daughter called out to me to look at her drawing. One of, what seemed like, at least twenty drawings within ten minutes. It's overwhelming and stressful not to be able to even have a moment to think in peace and quiet, and I don't blame you now for not wanting to look. I know now that you most likely looked the first ten or so times I called for you. Just like I looked at my daughter, but then needed to concentrate on something else for a second or two.

I understand now the stress you must have felt when you would smash a glass to the floor. I, so many times want to break things. It must have given you a few seconds of relief knowing that it's better to smash a glass than one of our faces. It sounds odd, but when you are a mother, you can understand how some people snap. You just have to remember that snapping is definitely something you don't want to do. It's better to just quietly walk away and sometimes, if the moment calls for it, break something.

Mom, I totally get why you sometimes just walked out the front door, got into your car and drove away. The noise we must have made. The yelling and screaming. The loud talking. The ganging up on you for attention. The wants and needs of all of us all day, every day, must have given you anxiety. Anxiety that I now feel. I thought I was having a heart attack one night a few months ago after a long and stressful day with Lily and the twins. I really just needed to drive away, as you did, to catch my breath. Just a little space to breathe even if it was only for a few minutes. No kids hanging on me. None yelling, crying, or whining at the tiniest of things. Just quiet. Lovely, I used to take for granted, quiet.

I get sacrifices and the ones you made for us. I never truly understood what sacrifice meant until I had kids. I will give up everything for myself just so Lily, Killian, and Piper can have what they need and sometimes what they want but not necessarily need. Giving up the last piece of cake, that cute top you saw when rushing through the store, hobbies, alone time. Some are trivial sacrifices and others are big, but I know I will never regret giving up anything just to make my kids happy and I imagine you don't either. I just want you to know, because moms don't get told very often, I appreciate every single sacrifice you made and still make.

I know now that when you jokingly say "... because I was such a bad mother" you're not really joking. You may want reassurance that you weren't a bad mom. Or you may feel that you really were because of certain things we may say. At one time, I may have thought some of the things you did or said were not "motherly" or caring, but that was before I became a mom. Moms are people, too. We aren't infallible just because we become mothers. Sure, we almost always know what's best, but we do make mistakes. Children will not understand that and they will hold it against us until the day they have children. Then, only then, do we as children understand. So, the next time you want to say, "...because I was such a bad mother," hold your tongue. You don't deserve to feel that way. Especially around me.

Out of the four of us, Mom, I'm the only one that gets you. I look back at turning points in my relationship with you. The first time I didn't want you to touch me lovingly. All the times I said I hated you. When I was embarrassed to be seen with you. I know these are phases kids go through, but I don't want to imagine what those moments must have felt like for you. I know that one day, my own children will do the same and when that time comes, I know my heart will ache. I also know that I will be thinking of how I now understand that part of you, too.

I love you, Mom. For everything you did and do for us, for me. I know that you will always be there for me and sometimes I don't even need to say one word, you just know that I need you. Just like I know when my children need me.

Mom, I understand now. I understand because I am a mom of three. I understand because my eyes are opened to your world now.

I Love You, Mommy

So simple, those four words. So simple and yet so powerful in their meaning. "I love you, Mommy." Out of nowhere I hear those four words. Out of nowhere I hear a sweet little voice whisper them to me and I think for a moment, what does "I love you" mean to a three year old?

Even before Lily was born I loved her. From the moment she was conceived at my fertility doctor's office, with my husband standing next to me with the highest of hopes, I loved her. Our Rainbow Baby. I told her every day, throughout the day while rubbing my belly. When she was born, I whispered it in her ear as I held her close, "I love you, Lily."

1/14/2012 - Lily's Birth Day

I know what those words mean to me. They mean that I will always and forever be on her side. Her needs will always come before mine. She will never be without a piece of my heart and so she will always feel my love even when I am no longer here (which goes for all three of my babies). But, I wonder... what do those words mean to a three year old? Does she really know what love is? Does she say those words because I so often say them to her? No. I believe she knows. I believe she gets it now just like she gets what being sorry is. She knows that I am her mommy and I will always protect her and be here for her and for that, she loves me.

3/1/2015 - Selfie fun

Out of nowhere I hear a sweet little voice whisper, "I love you, Mommy" and in that moment I feel alive.

Lily Didn't Do It

Nope. Lily didn't do it. She didn't write on her table. My three year old is very clear that her friends Roar and Robot did it!

I love her imagination. Her imaginary friend, Roar, is the monster from her room that used to scare her until I told her to introduce herself to him. Now they are besties! Her friend Robot came along after we watched the movie The Iron Giant. Then, of course, she has to make her other friends help clean up. These would include the Fisher Price Corn Popper and the Fisher Price Little People City Skyway.

So, yes, this video is primarily about Lily, but I can't help but notice all that unfolded laundry. I think there's three baskets full. Yes, all clean. This is like an everyday event around here. There is always at least one basket of laundry hanging around needing to be folded and put away. Hey, there are five of us, or more accurately, one three year old and two six month olds who go through clothes and bibs and burp cloths and blankets like it's the coolest thing to constantly be doing laundry. Well, it is the coolest thing, isn't it? Please tell me it's cool.