sugar "free"

With some prompting from other moms in my on line mommy group, I've decided that May is going to be sugar "free".

I've put quotes around free because I'm still eating fruit.  Dried, juiced, blended or whole.  I think I'm also going to bake with some honey and agave for an occasional treat.

I guess what I'm really doing is eating whole foods.  Nothing from a package, and I'm not going to add refined sugar to *anything*.  I'm also not going to add honey (or other) to my coffee, cereal/granola or toast.  I'm also going to stay away from stivia, and artificial sweeteners as I'm not concerning myself with calories.  I'm concerning myself with eating more healthfully than I have been.

I've made a 'sugar free' board on Pinterest for possible sweets to make.

I need to make sure I've got a daily plan.  I'm pulling this out of ...um, accumulated stuff I've read.  And I'm fully aware I've tried stuff like this before!!
It's got to be loose and easy with LeoB around.
Lets see what a day might look like:

wake up - oil pull, and prep warm water and lemon/lime.
first breakfast - granola and yogurt
second breakfast - smoothie
elevensies - carrot and hummus/celery and peanut butter/apple and cheese
lunch - sandwich and bone broth
snack -baked good
dinner - extra veg.
snack - pop corn...?

I have to drink my 1685 ml jug of water!


lets see if I can stay on track!

the food

This week is a little repetitive.  But heck.  you have to work with what you've got

Monday:  Chicken cesar salad and loaded baked potatoe
Tuesday:  home made chicken strips, green beans, baked potatoes
Wednesday: chicken strips, salad
Thursday: pork chops, home made mushroom sauce, cauliflower
Friday: soup of some sort.  I'll be home alone.
Saturday: potato latkes and salad
Sunday: pasta of some sort, maybe this

3 months!!

LeoB is now 17 Lbs!!  and busting out of 6 month clothes!!
I was starting to wonder if it was possible I was feeding too much, but according to this article it's not.  Also, all the weight/age stats are for bottle fed babies, not breast fed babies, and that makes a difference.  Bottle fed babies have a steady increase, where breastfed (specifically 'on demand') babies gain lots in the first 3 or 4 months, then plateau.  Often bottle fed babies actually get bigger than breast fed in the end.

LeoB is now singing along when we sing to him.

He also joins in conversations.  He makes his vocalizations when other people are talking.  He's started to talk to his toys, alone, too!

He's definitely teething.  Jason dubbed him Crankenstien.  We're using an amber necklace, and homeopathic remedies so far.  They seem to calm him quite a bit.  No baby Tylonal yet.  I can feel a bump, bottom front and centre!  A drooly guy!

He's SO close to sitting up with no assistance.  We have a Bumbo seat that he seems to like, although he looks pretty darned funny in it.

He's figured out grabbing, but hasn't quite figured out hand mouth coordination yet. He's not able to hold on to much either, so he's not able to hold anything to help with teething.

holding Dada's hand

shadows on a walk

fattie!

cuddles

a preferred sleeping position

sitting up

playing with Dada

baby burrito

holding Mommy's hand

tasting the wind

enjoying the Bumbo

sleeping with his water buffalo

Getting a bottle from Dada (I went to work!)

he makes this face when he's concentrating (not pooping!)

Mommy and LeoB cuddling after Easter

Yes, it's a breast!  Love feeding my guy!

cuddling Sophie

(thee months photo to come!  Mr. napped the afternoon away and we didn't take the photos.  Today we're going to a meet and greet baby shower with my dads side of the family.  so tomorrow!)

Easter Eggs

The other day I received a note from my grandma.  It had instructions on how to make Easter eggs!

Doesn't she have lovely writing?

"Dear Rebecca:

    I thought you might like this recipe for "Easter eggs".
        White uncooked eggs
        Brown onion skins
        Tepid water
        Cloth - size to cover egg
    Put onion skins in tepid water to soften and make pliable.
    Cover uncooked egg with skins.
    Cover with cloth to keep skins in place.
    Tie cloth around egg
    Hard boil eggs in cloth
    Cool to handle - then uncover
    Now you have (light) brown goldy eggs, all motley and quite pretty.
          This is a recipe from your great great grandmother.
          Try it, have fun.

                   Love from
                             Grandma G.
                                          xxx "

I did as instructed.  I used both brown and red onion skins.  I used cheese cloth and twist ties to cover eggs.  I'm sure that's what my great great grandmother used too.  Well, cheese cloth, not green twist ties.

I had to look up how to hard boil eggs again.

Cover the eggs in a pot with cool water.  Bring to a boil.  Turn off water and let sit for 12 minutes.  Worked like a charm.  No green yolk!

Happy Easter!

the top 2 are the red onion skin, and the bottom 2 are the brown.

food!

Trying to be more organized with dinners...
I was in a rut, then I remembered all the stuff I pin onto pinterest!!

My breakfasts will be granola, sort of following that recipe, and yogurt.
Lunches will be leftovers or soup, or sandwiches.
Snacks:  smoothies, kimchi, carrots, hommade gummies?  I'm going to make my own sauerkraut!

I'm making my own almond milk too.  Sound ambitious, but it's really easy.

What we will eat:

Friday: Quinoa chicken chili
Saturday: bbqed sausage at P+P's b-day party
Sunday: leftover chili
Monday: Chips and dips - Baked hummus and spinach dip, guacamole, fresh bean 'salsa'
Tuesday: meat of some sort, Cilantro lime quinoa
Wednesday: quinoa, avocado chickpea salad (using the quinoa from Tuesday, cooked chickpeas and guacamole from Monday!)
Thursday: Shrimp alfredo
Friday: Easter weekend...we will be fed
Saturday:
Sunday:

week 10

yeesh.
At this rate I'm going to blink and he'll be 16 and surly.  (just like his brother is now!  16 is tough)


He LOVES me.  He is always tracking me when I'm in the room. 
He's really quite happy in other peoples arms too though, and I'll happy to pass him off.  I try not to hover too much.

He's not grabbing much yet.  He has seemed to figure out hand mouth coordination now though.  Although sometimes he misses his mouth.  I've been encouraging thumb sucking.  He likes soothers, but soothers fall out and when he's cranky and trying to fall asleep and the soother falls out, I have to put it back in.  He will eventually be able to consistently get his own thumb in there.
LeoB has been chewing his tongue too.  It's quite cute!


I haven't started 'sleep training' yet.  We do go to bed around 10 every night.  That's as far as I've gone as far a a schedule goes.  We do our 9:30/10:00/10:30 nursing laying down in bed with the lights out.  9/10 nights we both fall asleep.  I've learned to swaddle LeoB as he is a flailer and wakes himself and me!) up with all his movement.  I can also put him in the co-sleeper if I don't fall asleep right away.  If he's not swaddled he wakes up when I move him.  I get a deeper sleep if he's not right there.  We often have about 4 hours of sleep (10ish-2ish).  LeoB starts whimpering and grunting and I pull him over and we nurse in our sleep a couple times.  Often around 5 he gets really restless and we ajourn to the living room so Dada can get some uninterrupted sleep as LeoB is *really* loud with his grunting and kicking (he shakes the bed!).  I'll often pop him in the swing and he'll fall back asleep and I'll nap on the couch until 7 when he eats.  I generally get 6 hours of good sleep now a days.

Soon I'll start my research on a method I feel good about since LeoB doesn't sleep alone yet unless he falls asleep in the swing.  I'm not in a rush though.  I love having him sleeping on me.  Unless I have to pee or am hungry!!

He's started laughing!  It's a 'hur hur hur' laugh.  It's great.

He's enjoying sitting up with our support.  He looks proud!  We also have a Bumbo seat.  His head lolls back a little when he's in it, so I don't leave him in for long, but encourage him to have his head up.

We've discovered the mirror too.  We've had a couple fun times chatting thought our reflections.


We're doing well.  Happy the weather is getting warmer!!

speaking of nice weather.  Out for our first walk while LeoB was awake! 

Oh, and I got my hair cut.  I went to the west end (at West Salon) and wrapped Lionel up with Auntie S.  Got my head massaged and my hair cut.  It was about 45 minutes all alone.  He was good, and so was I!

day 6: 100 happy days

My friend and clown teacher Dave announced his candidacy for the Mayor of Toronto yesterday as Sketchy the Clown.  We where able to get out and support him, because...it is no joke!  Read about his platform here:  Sketchyformayor.com

and look!  I'm famous again!

day's 4 and 5 happy days

I don't have a photo for Day 4:
My dad came over on his way home from visiting my Grandma.  He was dropping off the cradle my Grandpa made for my cousin when he was born.  We had had sad news from my Uncle, that he has been diagnosed with cancer and the prognosis is 12-18 months, and my dad was over to help support Grandma, who scoffed, not at the support, but at the implication that she was 'emotionally crippled' and needed looking after lol.  I wouldn't call my grandma feisty.  she is very gentle, and I guess that's why all her children thought she'd need someone there.  Regardless, she didn't 'need' the support, although it was welcome.  That made me feel better, because my heart hurt for her since my Grandpa passed.  (wait...I don't think I've written about that...He passed early March, I'll talk about it soon)

Day 5: LeoB's first walk while he was awake.  And thankfully, it was a beautiful day as he had his hear thrown back and was taking it all in.  I also want to my first mommy group.