The Water Giver

Nitrates in Baby Food- Did You Know?

My little man is a very hungry little man. He drinks 5-6 ounce bottles and has been eating every two hours (even at night :/) that's a lot of milk for mommy to produce. I thought maybe it was just a growth spurt (we went through this last month for a little bit), but it's been going on for a few weeks now. So to help him not be so hungry all the time I'm starting to introduce solids.

Tuesday we tried avocado and he did surprisingly well with it. He ate quite a few bites with no problem. Not wanting to give him too much until I knew there would be no allergic reaction I didn't give him very much, but it's been three days and no signs of any allergy have come up. Not knowing really how to make my own baby food I was doing some research online and found out that nitrates in food are a really big deal for babies under 6 months. Did you know that? I didn't. Nitrate poisoning is pretty rare, but just in case you're interested in reading about it here's some information: Nitrates in baby food

For a quick reference here's the gist of it.
Veggies with high traces of nitrates:
Leafy greens like spinach & lettuce, green beans, beets, cabbage, broccoli, and carrots.

Safe veggies:
Peas, edamame, avacado, sweet potato, and zucchini.

If you're going to do a puree of a vegetable high in nitrates then peel first, then boil it in water for 3 minutes and throw out the water.

I'm only going to introduce veggies to Pierce right now because I don't want him getting too used to the sweetness of fruit. I'm actually really looking forward to start this new journey with my little one. Not because pumping enough milk to keep him satisfied is getting hard, but because I love watching him experience new things. And I'm kind of interested in trying out some of these purees myself; some of the combos sound pretty darn good.

I just started a Pinterest board dedicated to baby food, feel free to check out the pins and let me know which ones your baby likes or dislikes.

And if you know of any other vegetables low in nitrates that I didn't list let me know! I'm trying to find a list of low-high content but can't seem to find that type of chart anywhere.

Happy pureeing mommas!

Sleep Style

Nights have been rough in the Merrigan household. For the first couple months Pierce did pretty well at night, considering he was only a couple months old. The first two weeks were rough while he had his days and nights mixed up, but after that I felt like he was doing well. Two nights before he turned two months old he slept 10 hours. I woke up terrified that something had happened to him. But he was perfectly fine, sleeping like my darling angel.

And then three months hit. His coughing was getting worse and was keeping him up at night, and he started fighting the whole going to bed process. We tried everything. We rocked him, and we sang, we walked with him, we swaddled him, we un-swaddled him, we had lavender and chamomile baths, we had a set routine, we tried different times, I tried baby massages, we had story time, we played calming music, we played white noise, I nursed before bed, I tried a bottle before bed, I even put chamomile tea in his bottle...aside from letting him cry it out, which I just don't have the heart to do, we tried everything and nothing was working. 

And then we went to Utah to see family and friends. 

I thought, a new environment with new people- this is going to be terrible. I was sure that he wasn't going to sleep at all. And at first he didn't. He didn't know the rooms; he didn't like his playyard, and this momma was drained. So, one night not knowing what else to do I brought him into our bed and had him lie there. Before I knew it he was fast asleep. I picked him up and I placed him in his playyard and he slept throughout the night. The next day I lied down on the couch with Pierce right next to me and he fell asleep. That night was kind of rough and after getting one hour of sleep I was in desperate need of help. My sister and grandma, being the saints they are, watched Pierce for me while I took a nap. My sister sat Pierce on her bed and again, fast asleep. Now was about the time when I started to think that we may be on to something. On our way home from Utah to Oregon we stayed in a hotel; when we got to our room we started unpacking our things and placed Pierce on the bed. I looked back and what would ya know...he fell asleep.

The day we got home from our trip was the day our new nighttime routine started. Now here's how our night time goes: one feeding, then we do his breathing treatment, next we change his diaper, put on lotion, get him in jammies and then the secret weapon- I take Pierce into our bedroom and lie him down on our bed. I remove all pillows, blankets and sheets that could hurt him, and place his blanket over him. Next, I grab his bedtime book, lie down next to him and read. 90% of the time within 15 minutes he's fast asleep. Sometimes I read and he's still not ready to sleep, so I just lie with him and cuddle until he calms down and falls asleep on his own. Then once he's asleep we move him from our bed into his co-sleeper. There's no rocking, no music, no swaddling, no chamomille tea...just momma and Pierce lying beside each other, forehead against forehead. 

Is it an odd routine? It's probably unconventional. Do people have their opinions on us letting him fall asleep in our bed? They sure do. But does it work for us? You bet it does. 

I dreaded nighttime. I knew it was going to be a fight getting him to sleep. But now I look forward to the moment when I get to lay on our bed, read him a bedtime story and just cuddle until he falls asleep. It's a much more positive experience for him and I think he really likes our nighttime routine too. 

From Know It All To Know Very Little

Before I became pregnant I thought I knew it all- okay, maybe not all, but I thought I knew a heck of a lot. I've worked with babies for years; I've worked with different families, from different backgrounds, with different parenting styles. I've worked with troubled families and I've worked with thriving families. I studied family dynamics, prenatal/childhood nutrition, and child development in college. I thought I knew a lot.

Before I got pregnant I had an idea of what type of pregnant woman I would be. I had a list of things I would and wouldn't do. I would have the best, most healthy diet I'd ever had in my life because my baby deserved the best nutrition. I wouldn't be worried or anxious because I knew my baby could sense it. I wouldn't drink caffeine. I would continue to exercise. I would have a natural birth. I would resist any type of medicine (even Tylenol) throughout my pregnancy, and my labor and delivery. I knew what I was doing.

And then I got pregnant. I craved chocolate milkshakes; I put chocolate syrup over bananas; I ate fast food; I drank caffeine on accident -darn you Barq's rootbeer for not being caffeine free like every other kind of rootbeer! And Shockers candy with cherry Slurpees was practically my diet for the last three months. I did worry, constantly, about the health and well-being of my baby. Due to a previous miscarriage I was a nervous wreck that something would happen to Pierce too. I did not continue to exercise like I had hoped. I did resist any type of medicine throughout my pregnancy, even Tylenol, but I had a pain reliever during my labor. I did have a natural birth, but only because by the time I gave in and begged for an epidural I was 10 centimeters.

Before I became a mother I thought it knew it all....alright, not all...but a lot. I had read books, and taken college courses; I had gone to classes, read mommy boards, and talked to other moms. I thought I knew what I was getting myself into. I thought I knew what to expect. I was going to breastfeed for the first 12 months. My baby would never taste formula. I wasn't going to use a pacifier or bottle until at least 4 weeks. I would start sleep training at 3 months and it would be smooth sailing because you know, I read books.

And then I became a mother. And my baby boy had different plans than I did. I do breastfeed and my son has never had to have formula, but my once perfect nurser has been fighting me off and on since 2 months. I introduced a pacifier at 2 weeks and never looked back. I tried sleep training at 3 months, and now that he's 4 months we're just now figuring out how he likes to fall asleep at night.

You see, I thought I knew a lot. I had plans and strategies; I've done my homework, But there is no adequate amount of preparation you can do before you become a mom. It's different than you expect and takes you a million directions you never thought you'd go. I was so quick to judge before I became pregnant and before I became a mom, but every day I am reassured that there isn't one way to be a perfect parent, but there are a million different ways to be a great one.