lets be best friends!

photo by Sarah Vanderford Photography

so your baby is 4 months, or 6 months or maybe older and its time to feed them that yummy fooood. if you’re anything like myself, i had no clue where to start. well due to popular demand, i’m sharing with you all how i prepare Tate’s baby food. PSA- i am by no means an over-achiever mom or even a mom that has a ton of free time (i so wish!), so this blog post is definitely as basic as it gets. i make baby food because i haaaate spending so much on baby food pouches. we LOVE pouches (see what kinds below!) but i’d be broke with the amount of them that Tate consumes in a week- this is the reason i choose to make the majoirty of his food.

you’ll need a few things for the actual cooking portion. i HIGHLY reccomend the Beaba Babycook. We have this one, but there are a few different models. this actually cooks and blends your food all in one! its a bit on the pricey side but i wouldn’t reccomend something like this and not 100% believe in it. totally worth the price. with that said, a regular blender or food processeor will be just fine. you’ll obviously have to cook the food first, then place it in the blender to puree it!

photo by Jami Thompson Photography

you’ll want these for freezing the food! we have these (they come in so many different colors, check each color as they are all priced differently). each cube is about 1 oz so its great for not only freezing but also measuring how much your babe(s) is eating! at 10 months, Tate is eating about 5 cubes each meal. i love these trays because they are so easy to pop the frozen cubes out and they’re cheap (score)!

so if you’re just starting out with food, obviously first and foremost check with your babe’s pediatrician on their recommendation. i loved this book- it really helped me as a first time mom. it tells you literally everything you need to know from the start to four years of age. it contains recipes and different methods to prepare all kinds of food. its even got the most helpful tips/tricks and food alerts! seriously recommend it! we skipped the rice introduction because Tenley was allergic to it as a baby (she had FPIES) and i worried about that with Tate. i introduced oatmeal first and mixed it with a little bit of formula/breastmilk. after a few days i continued on to sweet potatoes and then so on and so forth.

i have found that picking an afternoon on the weekend (or whenever i have help with the kids) is the only way that i’ll likely get all of this done at once. so Sunday’s, i go to the grocery store and pick up everything i need. honestly, i wing it. i’ll buy sweet potatoes, pears, butternut squash, spaghetti squash, apples etc. any ingredient that i remember reading on the pouches is what i usually get.

speaking of pouches. we DO love our pouches. i use them anytime we are out and about during a meal. some of our favorites are Happy Baby Clearly Crafted pouches. a lot of companies are coming out with the clear pouches which basically lets you see exactly what your kid is eating. sounds legit, yeah? another brand we love is Plum Organics. BUT, usually i will get whatever is the cheapest at the time.

if i’m only using the babycook– all i have to do is peel (if needed) the food and cut it up in cubes. thats literally it. it steams it and then blends it. BUT if i’m not using the babycook (which is rare) then i’ll cook the food in the oven and then throw it in the blender. i received a lot of questions about whether i keep the food separated or if i mix it. i do both but most of the time i just mix it because thats what a pouch is!

after its all blended and mixed (or not) i’ll take the silicone ice cube trays and put them all side by side. i’ll just pour the food in the trays and take a rubber spatula and smooth it over until they are all full. just pop those suckers in the freezer and let them freeze (usually overnight). the next morning, i’ll take them out and pop those, now, food cubes out into a large plastic bag and throw the bag back in the freezer until its time for Tate to eat! seriously, so easy.

when it’s time for Tate to eat, i’ll take the cubes out (usually 5 for him at 10 months old) and place into his bowl. i’ll put the bowl in the microwave and heat the frozen cubes up (usually about 1 minute 30 seconds- give or take depending on your microwave). sometimes i’ll add oatmeal to his, it just depends on how hungry he is! we use these spoons.

some of the questions that i received were about Tate’s eating schedule (10 months old, around 20 pounds). now that he is not breastfeeding anymore, he usually gets 4 bottles of formula (first thing in the morning, snack before first nap, snack before second nap, and right before bed). each bottle is usually 4oz, sometimes 6oz. breakfast I almost always mush up an entire banana and half of an avocado, lunch i’ll give him cubes, and dinner i’ll give him cubes as well. he may snack on puffs or yogurt bites randomly in between all of this.

hopefully this all makes sense! feel free to send me your questions and i’ll do my best to answer them all!

xoxo,

Lauren

*this post is NOT sponsored and contains all of my own opinions.