I had to think really hard this morning about what day it was. I was really struggling to decide whether it was Tuesday or Wednesday. One thing for certain about the newborn days is that they all blend together into one hard and beautiful blur.
Meals are interesting these days. Now that Finn has “woken up” a bit from those very sleepy first few weeks, it’s BUSY when he’s awake! I try to sneak away and make my coffee and prepare my breakfast while he’s still sleeping. I often eat meals on the floor with him or holding him and I’m learning the art of one-handed meals.
I can often get an uninterrupted lunch in while he’s napping. Dinner, on the other hand, is a challenge! Finding time to make anything is an act of congress because he’s usually pretty fussy and doesn’t want to be put down and cluster feeds between 6-10 p.m. If I do sit down to eat, I’m either holding him or getting up every two minutes to soothe him or pop the paci back in his mouth.
I’m not complaining (at all…I know this is normal baby behavior and we are figuring it out!) but it’s a new meal experience…that’s for sure! I’m glad that I’ve had a little extra help lately…especially with the evening meals.
Here’s what I’ve been eating in babyland! 🙂
BREAKFAST
Half a sweet roll and fruit.
Plain full-fat greek yogurt with banana, blueberries, strawberries, granola and almond butter.
I’ve also been doing smoothies and smoothie bowls, per usual!
LUNCH
Kale salad + tummy time! This salad was massaged kale (curly + lacinto), chicken, strawberries, cashews, dried cranberries and avocado.
Peanut butter, honey and banana on Dave’s Killer Seed Bread. This combo will forever be one of the best ever, especially when you don’t know what else to eat.
Turkey, avocado, mayo, provolone, tomatoes and arugula.
Open-face tomato, cucumber, avocado, basil and mayo on a blue cheese/walnut bread.
Sprouted whole wheat wrap with hummus, avocado, tomatoes, provolone and arugula. Dipped in an avocado ranch dressing. Grapes on the side. My grandmother has these crazy organic “gummy berry” grapes from Sam’s Club (they’re the dark grapes you see in the photo) and they are the weirdest thing! They kind of taste like blueberries. My dad and grandmother say they taste like muscadines but I don’t know that I’ve ever tried one.
DINNER
Chicken chili that a friend brought defrosted from the freezer along with a kale caesar kit from Whole Foods and biscuits.
Frozen pizza and salad.
Red curry and basil shrimp rolls from Deejai Thai via Postmates. My friend Brittany sent the most thoughtful book and card with a code to order dinner from Postmates. That was a great baby idea!
Chicken pot pie and salad. My dad made this meal the first night I was in Florida.
And grilled chicken salad with mixed greens, tomatoes, celery, pecans and dried cranberries. The dressing is a creamy homemade concoction that has apple juice in it. My dad has been making this salad for years. It’s yummy.
ETC.
I haven’t snapped any ETC photos lately (that I haven’t already shared with you) but there’s been everything from carrot cake to these amazing three layer bars with cookie, chocolate peanut butter and rice krispy treats to ice cream…lots of ice cream! It’s been a near-nightly treat for the last week.
Any tips or strategies to share on eating with newborns?
Sounds like you are really enjoying Florida! And good on you just to manage some “normal” postings with a newborn and a new “normal” for your daily routines. We just got a new puppy and my so called routines are all out of whack and stressing me out, lol! Have you considered a move back to Florida? So much support for you and Finn, and you always seem so happy when you are there. Take care and enjoy the rest of your trip, Jen.
Your dad’s chicken pot pie looks so good! I remember how hard it was to eat with a newborn. You are doing a much better job than I did! I’m pretty sure I lived off of frozen dinners.
Oh the ‘witching hour’! Dinner time does seem to be the worst when babies become fussy (for no good reason!). Really what helped me was to meal plan and prep as much as I could earlier in the day while the baby was content to sit in the bouncer or swing. But, like you said you will just ‘figure it out’! And it looks like you are because those meals, while simple still look delicious!
You’re doing a great job!
For cooking definitely baby wear and dance around to some music and/or sing. Perfect distraction and soothing for the witching hours. For eating sometimes I would just set myself up with a sling or nippy and nurse. Otherwise a swing with music or rock n play or other seat is great. Also taking a quick walk or drive to get the little one to sleep and then just bringing the cat seat inside for the rest of the nap works also. ?
Best wishes!
My 6-week old really only naps on me at this point, so I can probably count on one hand the number of meals I’ve eaten without holding him since he has been born! I always cover him with a paper towel in case I spill, baha…
Hi Jen – first time commenter, long time reader! My ten week old provides a similar challenge regarding meals! I try really hard to make quick meals for breakfast and lunch and have some healthy peanut butter balls in the fridge (recipe from PBFingers) for when I’m desperate! Our dinners used to be a complete disaster but I started using the boba wrap to wear the baby while prepping dinner. It’s definitely helped a bit. But I wanted to also recommend that you check out Taking Cara Babies – she’s an awesome, no-cry baby sleep helper. You can start at 4 weeks teaching babies certain strategies for learning how to sleep. It has helped our evenings immensely!
Hi Jen,
You are doing great! I really enjoy reading all of your posts. I love how real life everything is, I remember those days with my kids. They both had crumbs on the their heads for a fair amount of their baby life :). Nights are HARD! Witching hour is real. I started traveling with the kids (via airplane) really early too, and I cannot tell you enough how great that has been for them! They are SO flexible and easy going.
Have a great trip!
Enjoy it! I look back on the newborn days as relatively easy now that I have an 11 month old who wants to “eat” everything I am eating even though he wearing most of it or tossing it on the floor. That plus preparing dinners while he sits on my feet going “Mmmmmmmmmma” over and over again.
Bowls! Meals-in-bowls were the answer for me for the first five and a half months. I spent many nights marching or dancing around the kitchen island with my baby, listening to music or a podcast, and grabbing forkfuls of dinner out of bowls. Roast pork, (your!) braised cabbage, and another cooked veg like broccoli or squash was one of my favorite bowl combinations. I could prep them ahead and then reheat them easily. Now that my son is eating in a high chair, we have seated meals together. (Hurrah! There is hope!)
Jen, so glad you are in FL with family. That is so special and a huge help, I’m sure. I found baby wearing to be a game changer for me and my newborn. He seemed to really enjoy being in the mix of everything and just being close, plus I enjoyed having my two arms and hands back! 🙂 Eventually you can try to position Finn where he can nurse while you’re wearing him – which is another game changer.
Enjoy the rest of your time in FL. And thank you for sharing all of this with us. It’s weird for someone you’ve never met in person, but I just adore you and am SO happy for you and Finn. My heart melts with every post. Pure joy.
There are so many great meal ideas in here. I’m in the middle of moving and needed some quick & easy meals, so this post is perfect! I’ll definitely be referencing it later too. I’m so impressed you can actually make your food look pretty with a newborn in tow. Way to go, mama!
Glad to see you are still finding ways to eat delicious meals & snap photos, even with a newborn! I love seeing your posts each day & even though we’ve never met I count you as a friend & love how inspirational you are, whether it’s in how your tackling motherhood, workouts, or life in general!
On an unrelated note, I know you’d asked a little while about posts we might like to see & something i thought readers might enjoy us a roundup of blogs you read & enjoy (if you do read any!) I love the blogging community & am always looking to add new ones to my daily reading.