So the kid is slowly progressing to accepting non-mushified foods. I love and respect kids who eat actual food from the start. M was not one of those kids. She didn’t like many textures at all, in fact. Which was fine because making my own baby food was easy enough, and I also found tons of great organic baby puree options that she loved that I could buy packaged for when life was super hectic.
This is where I make a confession.
At our house, we are not the best eaters. You may have guessed this if you have ever met me in person and seen the girth of my hips and the swell of my (not pregnant anymore but looks like I am) belly. I eat a pretty healthy breakfast daily, and then it’s all downhill from there. I thought this was pretty self-evident, but at a recent mama get-together a lot of the moms were surprised to hear that I basically eat like shit. I eat stuff out of boxes. Frozen items. Pre-packaged items. Items that are far from organic and packed full of sodium. Things that I wouldn’t dream of serving to my now one-year-old kid.
So now that M is eating real food, I’m hoping that we will be forced to eat well also. Because I’m not going to prepare two dinners every night, right? And what’s the point of making that pre-packaged crap when you are already making the good stuff for the littlest member of the family? The one wrench in our little plan? M’s dad generally isn’t home for “dinnertime”. He usually gets home just in time to give her a bath, have some play time, read some books, give her a bottle and put her to bed. M eats her dinner when we get home from daycare, around 5pm, about 90 minutes before her dad gets home.
What I have been doing: making a couple of good meals for us each week (which are prepared and served after she hits the sack) and then keeping leftovers for her the next night(s). I guess this is working okay. I’d much rather we all eat together, but with our current schedules that seems impossible. How do all you other mamas balance meals with baby? I’m sure we aren’t the only ones with schedules that don’t align….
Hey mama. Too cute that you linked to us when talking about the groovy kids that eat solids from the get-go. Thank you for that!
With a jazz musician papa, it’s often just A and I for dinner times. Sometimes it makes me sad. But mostly A and I have a blast. Michel tends to sit with her and eat brekkie while I get myself showered and out the door during the week. Sometimes I have time to sit down and eat with them.
I don’t know what kind of schedule you have going, but for us, even though A’s taking a killer nap most days at school, I try to nap her after school (around 5 or 6). It gives me time to prepare something for us (even if it’s just warming leftovers.) She takes her little snooze and if Papa’s not getting home too late, we all eat together at 6:30 or even 7:30 and she settles into bed around 9 or 9:30 after a bath, reading, playtime and probably another snack. That might be too late for some people, but it suits us very well.
So I guess I tend to eat more often alone with the baby than alone with her dad. If he’s late he’ll grab something en route or eat at the restaurant he’s playing at or warm up leftovers if he’s teaching late.
We just save dessert for alone time. Meow.
Are you kidding? A is the original groovy solid eater!
Our schedule right now is: wake at 7am. Dressed, eat, out the door by 8. I work at 930 in the city, so that’s the latest I can leave. I pick her up around 430, we’re home by 5. While she could probably nap at that time, I’m usually ready to hit the sack myself by 10 at the latest, and I kinda like having downtime in the evening when she goes to bed at 7. When I was on mat leave I LOVED that she took two naps, went to bed at 9, and got up at 9/10am. But sadly those days are over.
Grass is always greener. When A goes to sleep at 7 (I WISH) she thinks it’s a nap and that really sucks, because she won’t sleep until 11. We’ve learned that the second nap is crucial to us not being up all night. Oof!
I’m working in the city every day too (ie downtown, not Verdun). Wonder if we could have a grown up lunch date sometime?!
I have the pickiest eaters right now that most of the time I end up making several different meals so that everyone does eat.
My mom did that for us for years. I realize now that it was soooo much work. Good for you, mama.
Aaaaaannnnd another argument for my One and Done stance. I have no idea how you do it Robyn! You are a rockstar!