Lennox & Me

Have you ever watched a documentary called What The Health? I think it's still showing on Netflix now. The show popped up when i was in Singapore having dinner with a couple of friends... they mentioned that they are trying to eat healthier (who isn't??). But instead of the usual 'less carbs less sugar etc', they were trying to eat less animal products. My friend Nai joked that he was trying his best but he was basically a "non-practicing vegetarian"... hahaha. I must admit i was pretty sceptical of the whole documentary while watching it and even after. I believe that if you wanted to find 'studies' to support any claim, you will be able to! But what definitely stuck in my mind were the people in the show who had so much improvement in their health just by eating vegan for 2 weeks. They reduced the amount of medication they had to take by half or more, and they just had more energy and less ailment. Granted, they were mostly the older generati...

From my previous post about Introducing Solids , I mentioned that I would also document Lennox's journey with BLW. He started when he was 24 weeks old (5 and a half months). By the time he could sit up on his own and was already holding items and putting them into his mouth. Here are some tips i learnt when starting BLW, suggested first foods and basically photos of him looking terribly cute while eating! :P Food prep for BLW Babies do not need teeth to chew! Their gums are strong enough to bite stuff off (just check with moms who breastfeed babies without teeth - the gummy bite can still be painful! :P) Babies around 6 months would be able to pick up objects, but using their whole fists. So one tip i learnt was to cut food into strips that are a little longer that their fists, so that even when they grabbed the food, one part would be sticking out for them to eat. I have here a few examples of Nox holding pieces of carrot, beans and cooked plaintain with his whole fist. ...

For me it's somewhere in the middle. I did not bother about organic products at all even when i started cooking daily after i moved to the netherlands in 2008. I have a few friends who ONLY buy organic products and i never really understood why they would want to pay extra for their groceries. BUT, somehow after Lennox was born and was starting solids, i started reading more about organic products and in general about what we put into our bodies. Especially when that body is a small baby's body! Read this TIME article which succinctly puts it: "Organic food is a healthy choice for all of us but especially for kids. Infants and children are particularly vulnerable to chemicals, in part because their immune systems are still developing and in part because, pound for pound, they’re exposed to more chemical residues than adults. Another reason is that children and babies tend to eat a lot more of certain foods than adults — think bananas or apples." I won't g...

I love Ella's Kitchen products. From the smoothie packs to the little puffit snacks to the spelt cookies, it's so handy for Lennox to eat, especially on the go! I was actually introduced to it from a free 'pregnancy package' kit that we receive here in the Netherlands once I got pregnant. I tried it for myself and i loved their packaging and how clean the items were. Best part is that Nox loves it too! He's been using them since he was 6 months, especially when we were out of the house. I was happy to also find it in Singapore when i was there in February this year. Seems like it's a pretty well known brand. Since i'm breastfeeding and it's always not convenient to breastfeed Nox (let's say we are rushing and he's in his stroller), I give him a smoothie pack instead to keep him quiet... haha. I always make sure there's 2 of it in the diaper bag at all times! Anyway these smoothie packs cost anywhere from €0,99 to €1,99 each. So the past ...

Lennox (like most babies i think) loves to grab rattles and shake toys especially those that make a sound. He is intrigued by the fact that he is the maker of the sound; the look on his face is priceless! I filled our bottle with uncooked penne pasta and rounded up all the (unmatching) ribbons i could get I rounded up a couple of things i found easily at home and made this music shaker bottle. He plays with it almost daily! On top of making the sound he looks at the contents and pulls at the ribbons.  Although it keeps him entertained only for awhile most times, I feel pretty accomplished that it's a toy i made from scraps! haha

Who doesn't love popsicles when it's hot out? Earlier this month the temperatures in the whole of the Netherlands increased to about 26-30 degrees and it was HOT! Supermarkets were selling popsicles on big discounts and I purchased them as well. Got home and enjoyed them, then Lennox looked at me longingly and wanted a taste. Uh... ok lemme check the ingredients list: "Water, sugar, glucose-fructose syrup etc etc"... YIPES! So it was a quick no no since (refined) sugar was on the list. I gave him ONE lick then said sorry, no more for you. I gulped it down then he started crying. Haha. So the next day I bought a popsicle mould from the Action for like €1,99 and I made these beauties! Ingredients list: 3 oranges a handful of grapes, cut lengthwise

We always have bananas at home. ALWAYS. It's the perfect snack during the day especially before and post workout. Also, bananas with almond/peanut butter on top?? YUMMY. When we have too many ripe bananas though, i like to cut them up and freeze them for a smoothie later in the week. Earlier this week i had one measly overripe banana and lots of dates leftover so i decided to whip up a banana-date muffin. A quick google search gave me recipes where i didn't have all the ingredients on hand at home, so i came up with something on my own. And guess what, it turned out awesome! Ingredients: 1 ripe banana 10 dates, pitted 2 eggs 5 tbs plain flour pinch of baking soda pinch of cinnamon