Lessons From A New Mama

So I haven't really done any new lessons lately, not to say I haven't learned anything because oh boy is there a lot to learn when you kid refuses to crawl, wants to stand on their own, is teething and starts to learn to talk. Those lessons are soon to come! However today I'm going to talk to you all about baby food. When I was pregnant with Jackson I was so sure that I was going to be that mom and makes all her baby's baby food. Well, that really didn't happen, between working and Jason working crazy long hours and taking care of Jackson, buy food for him just seemed like the obvious choice and I became ok with that. However, I still had this feeling like I wanted to make some of his food because I want him to get exposed to a variety so that way he does not become a picky eater like so many kids I see these days. So I have finally taken the time mix up my first batch of fruit for Mr. Jackson!

I decided to start with fruit because I though I can mess that one up too badly right, plus pears were on sale and I already had blueberries in the freezer from when they were on sale at the store. So here is how I went about the process.

Since blueberries aren't that challenging for a blender I just took those out of the freezer to thaw and then washed them to get them ready for blending.

The pears I thought might pose a little bit more of challenge for my blender so I peeled the pears and cut them into slices.Then I put them in boiling water to soften them. I let them boil for about 10 minutes.

I then combine my blueberries and pears into the blender and mixed them together.

Tasted it...pretty good!

I bought OXO tots storage containers from Babies R Us (they were pretty cheap 4 of the 4oz containers for $10) Pour the blueberry/pear fruit mixture into the containers and freeze until ready for use. I read that the food can be stored for up to 6 months, I am sure Jackson will eat it before then, but it's good to know!

Ready for the freezer!

I didn't realize how easy it was to make his own food and I really wish I would have started doing it earlier, but that's ok I think it's good for him to try some new things now. I have made the decision to leave the meats up to Gerber (something about blending chicken just makes me a little uneasy), but fruits and veggies I totally can do those! If you have made some of your own baby food and have some fun combos for me to try let me know, I  would love to experiment!

I'm going to see what is on sale at the grocery store and then that's going to be Jackson next blending treat! So stick around and see what combination I come up with next!

Week 2 of Football Yummies!

This week I made my favorite soup. My friend Jessi introduced me to this soup two years ago and it quickly became a favorite of mine!

Cheeseburger Soup

1lb ground beef

1 1/2c chopped onion

1 1/2 c. chopped carrots

1 1/2c diced celery

2 tsp. dried basil

2 tsp. dried parsley flakes

8 TBSP butter

6 c. chicken broth

8 c. diced peeled potatoes

1/2 c. flour

16oz processed American cheese, cubed (2 cups)

3 c. milk

1 1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1/2 c sour cream

In a 3qt sauce pan, brown beef; drain and set aside. In the same sauce pan, saute onion, carrots, celery, basil and parsley in 1 TBSP butter until vegetables are tender, about 10 minutes.

Add broth, potatoes and beef; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 10-12 minutes or until potatoes are tender. 

Meanwhile, in a small skillet, melt remaining butter, add flour; cook and stir for 3-5 minutes or until bubbly. Add to soup; bring to boil.

Reduce heat to low, add cheese, milk, salt, and pepper; cook and stir until cheese melts. Remove from heat; blend in sour cream.

Yield 16 servings. 

This is one of those really rich soups that you just love on a cool day! Enjoy : )

7 months old

It seems like I just posted about Jackson turning 6 months old and now here I am already posting about how he is 7 months old! This month has come and gone in the blink of an eye and I cannot believe how much my little man has grown and changed. He is so much more fun to have around now...not that he wasn't fun before, but now he is doing a lot more and is just funny!

He's enjoying school more and more. It seems that when Sunday hits he's ready to go back and be around his little friends. Mom and Dad are so lame now! I'm happy that he's enjoying himself though it makes my choice of going back to work a lot easier!

He has been doing so well with eating. Jackson has three meals a day of baby food and then we have also started giving him puffs which he loves. I was really nervous about giving them to him at first because they seemed so big for him so I would break them up to little pieces and gradually they are getting closer to the whole puff.

We like to try to feed ourselves

We love sitting up still and looking around. It's nice to be able to just plop him down on the ground and play with him and not have to worry about him tipping over. However with that comes some draw backs...like when you want him to lay down for things like diaper changes and naps he wants to sit up.

Jackson is still sleeping through the night and has been trying to be good to Mom and Dad on the weekends and sleep in till 8 and sometimes 8:30 yay! Jason and I are still trying to take turns on who gets up with him in the morning so the other one can sleep in a little later if they want.

So happy

We are still teething like crazy so we are a little drool monster, but I wouldn't have it any other way!

Things to look forward to this month, visits from Grandma Shell and Grandpa Ken and Grandma Kathy, hopefully some more teeth!

Yay Football Season!

It's strange for me to be so excited about football, considering I was never really a huge fan of the sport until a few years ago, but I have been getting more and more excited each year for the upcoming season. I love getting together with friends and having a good time together cheering for our teams, smack talking, and enjoying some good food. The past two years we were able to enjoy our Sunday's with our Canton family...since we are so far away it is just Jason and I continuing on the tradition (with Jackson now of course)! As I said there is some really good food that goes along with Sunday Football and I thought hey why not share some of the yummy-ness with every one. This last Sunday I made Jason's favorite meals....ever!

Chicken Tortilla Soup

2 cans cream of chicken

2 cans fiesta nacho cheese

2 cans of milk 

2-3 chicken breasts

*optional shredded cheese, crackers or tortilla chips

Boil the chicken breasts so they are cooked all the way through.

Meanwhile in a soup pot put in cream of chicken, fiesta nacho cheese and milk and heat on low stirring occasionally (the fiesta nacho cheese will stick to the bottom of the pot if you don't stir it). 

When chicken is done cooking shred it and add it to soup pot. 

Heat all the way through and enjoy! 

Jason really likes to add shredded cheese to his and then break up club crackers to give it a little crunch. I don't add extra cheese but do prefer to break up tortilla chips to give it a little something. I didn't take pictures this week of the final product but will try my best to remember next week! Stay tuned to see what is on the menu for next week!