We’ve had a good week but it passed so quickly. How is it already Thursday evening? I am heading back to Tennessee tomorrow for another teacher training weekend and I cannot wait to see my trainees and to spend a weekend immersed in yoga. We’re also having a holiday party on Saturday night with a white elephant gift exchange so I’m pumped about that too. 🙂
The only issue is that a winter storm is rolling into our region Saturday-Monday so there is a chance that the roads could be iffy for my return trip and my drive is very mountainous. Luckily, it’s all Interstate so I’m keeping my fingers crossed that they’ll get them cleared ASAP.
Speaking of teacher training…I’m leading an arm balance workshop on Saturday that is open to the public!
If you’re in the Tri-Cities area (Johnson City, Kingsport, Bristol) I’d love for you to come play! It’s an all-levels workshop where we’ll break down arm balances like crow, mountain climber, flying pigeon, flying splits and more. You can get details on Vida’s website.
Some highlights from this week…
Finn + solids…still not going so well! He makes the most entertaining faces when I try to give him food…no matter what it is. I’ve tried steamed carrots, steamed pears and steamed apples baby led weaning style. Zero interest. I tried plain greek yogurt and got this face. I pureed the steamed carrots, pears and apples and mixed them with breastmilk and that went slightly better. I’m keeping with the mantra that, “solids before one are just for fun” and not stressing. We’ll get there! I don’t want to force it with him.
I made a delicious creation this week that I’ve been asked for details on from my Instagram crew. I had some ground turkey that I had defrosted so I opened the fridge and looked for inspiration. I ended up with turkey meatballs! I mixed in sauteed shallots, cranberry sauce and red chili paste along with an egg, breadcrumbs and some seasonings. I am a big fan of sweet and spicy! I served the meatballs over a steam in the bag sweet potato/cauliflower rice blend and topped it with half an avocado, honey goat cheese and a spicy aioli. I can’t wait to enjoy the leftovers tonight.
We’ve also been doing a lot of walking. It takes forever to get everyone bundled up but I really like the crisp temperatures…so do the girls! It’s so energizing.
That’s all for today! I have a lot to do to prep for TT this weekend.
Best thing you cooked this week?
How long did it take your baby to embrace solids?
Hey Jen, Love the photo of Finn. My oldest didn’t start solids until after 1. She just had no interest. My youngest loved solids around 8 months. Its interesting how every kid is different.
My favorite meal was chicken salad sandwiches. Delicious!
I hope you have safe travels and a good time at your training.
I would love some advice on arm balances. I don’t know if it’s just that I have no arm strength or I am just scared to do them but I find them daunting.
My experience was similar. My oldest wasn’t really interested in food until about 15 months, although we offered appropriately before then. She’s 8 now and is a wonderfully thoughtful, healthy eater. My youngest was into food it seems like from the first offer at 6-months. He’s two next week and he is also a healthy eater. So, you are smart to go with the flow!
Also, appreciate all of your recipe ideas and hearing about your world. Take care on your drive to TN.
Hey Elisha, I got a 6 and 2 year old. I like the age gap. How about you?
Thank you for sharing your experience! Yes, I think they’re all just so different and their own little people! 🙂
Arm balances are all about overcoming fear and embracing falling, failing and having fun! You definitely need strength but so much of it is proper mechanics and fearlessness!
My son is the same way when it comes to solids. He’s 9 months and still prefers breast milk. We try and try! He will eat oatmeal cereal and purées but he won’t swallow anything else. He chews things but just spits it out. I thought we would do BLW but he would never eat anything if we did that. So we have had to stick to purées. I tried making my own and he pushed them out with his tongue! He makes the funniest faces when he doesn’t like things, though!
Hey Lisa, does your little one seem worried when he gets the solids in his mouth? My oldest always seemed scared and like she didn’t know what to do with it at first. They can be so adorable.
He doesn’t seem to really know what to do with the food when it’s in his mouth! It’s the strangest thing. He doesn’t seem scared but he doesn’t seem to understand how to swallow things. His doctor said to give it another month and if he’s not swallowing solids by then we’ll get referred to a speech pathologist for a feeding evaluation. I’m really hoping he makes some progress by the end of the month so we can avoid seeing a specialists (he’s seen a number of specialist this years so we are kind of burned out on doctor appointments!!)
Thanks for sharing how the experience has been for you Lisa. It seems a common theme of motherhood is that what you “thought” you would do….rarely plays out the way you imagined! 🙂
Same as the above comments on kids being different. My first wasn’t as into solids as my second. Where my second was trying to feed himself/grab things off our plates by 5 months. With him we just went with it and did more of an unintentional baby led weaning (feeding him small pieces of what we were eating) he also had really good hand-eye coordination so could feed himself pretty well by 7 or 8 months. I think the second was more into it because he tended to be held at the table while we ate more than the first where it was more us just focusing on feeding him separately. Either way, don’t stress, they eventually figure it out.
You’re so right not to stress. I stressed with my first but she is a great eater now.
Thank you so much for sharing your different experiences. I am not stressed and know we’ll get there soon! Yes, I bet your second was a little earlier due to watching his sibling and being at the table with y’all.
My daughter absolutely hated anything I made for her myself, and would just make faces and push it around. When we were out and about one day and I gave her a little jar of food she inhaled it 🙂 She’s 4 now and will eat just about anything, so I’m not taking any offense at her previous insult to my cooking skills 😛
Hey Any, I love when they just out of no where decide to make a change. When that happens everyone can be happy I think with almost anything. ?
Oh Amy! That is too funny. I’m sure it was hard not to take that personally at the time but glad she’s come around! Haha! 🙂
Hi Jen,
Your teeth always look so beautifully white! Do you have a product you use or are you just incredibly blessed!? I’ve been looking for a whitening treatment that’s not damaging for teeth. Best wishes
Ali
To Finn’s credit, that’s the face I make as an adult when I take a bite of plain Greek yogurt. =) As much as I like and appreciate the health benefits of Greek yogurt, I find that it does need at least a little something to balance the tang. Kudos to you for being persistent and patient with him on the weaning and eating.
Safe travels this weekend!
Haha! You are so right. It is very tangy but the full-fat version is much more doable than the nonfat or 2%! And thanks for the encouragement around eating. 🙂
Hey Jen! Just wanted to share an idea with you- you can try giving Finn a spoon (I like the olababy silicone ones) or a stick shaped food (like a raw carrot that he can’t actually bite through) just to mouth on. It helps beginning eaters to learn how to bring things into their mouth and can be a good step before actually eating anything. (I’m a pediatric RD :))
Thank you so very much Kacie! I am going to try this! Anytime you have tips, please send them my way! 🙂
If you get in any kind of bind or realize the road conditions are worse driving home, please reach out to me. You could stay with our family in Asheville, just in case! Send me a FB message if you need to! ?
Thank you so much Lynn! I decided to drive home last night and took 81 to avoid Asheville. I made it in just as the weather was starting. I hope you guys are safe and dry and warm. xoxo
My son wasn’t into solids his first year as much. It took him a little over a year before he really got into eating them. Love the pic of your little guy eating the greek yogurt, so precious!!!