Monday ~ Goulash and salad
Tuesday ~ Chicken pot pie in the crockpot with gluten free biscuits
Wednesday ~ Shrimp stirfry
Thursday ~ Venison stew and homemade bread
Friday ~ Tacos
Saturday ~ Enchiladas
Sunday ~ Chicken and sweet potato stew
For more meal ideas – you should check out Organizing Junkie!
Random.org number generator picked #7 as the Flourishing Spring e-book winner from Frugal Granola. Congrats Geri!!! Email me at jenniesmith(at)gmail(dot)com.
Thank you for all who participated!
My Sunday inspiration post is a little later than usual because I woke up to a warm day on the homestead, which inspired me to put clothes on the line to dry, do barn chores with a little extra gratitude, and enjoy time outside with the animals and family. My parents came for brunch of eggs, bacon, home fries, and toast this AM too. That time spent outside in the sunshine talking and showing them our growing farm really made my heart happy.
Inspirational Links~
::Little Gurus - learning from your kids
::This from Milago Girl
Enjoy your SUNday! <3
I’ve talked about baby-led weaning and how to get started, but what are good and nutritious choices as starter foods for BLW? Here is a good list to start from:
Cooked veggies::
1. Peas
2. Carrots sticks
3. Green beans
4. Sweet potato (mashed or in wedges)
5. Squash
6. Broccoli florets
7. Pumpkin
Raw fruits::
1. Bananas
2. Avocado
3. Peaches
4. Pears
5. Apples
6. Apricots
7. Mangoes
Have you done Baby-led Weaning? If so, what were your child’s first foods? If you are planning on trying this time around, what foods do you plan on trying with your baby?
{this moment} – A Friday ritual. A single photo – no words – capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.
I am happy to be hosting a giveaway for Frugal Granola‘s new e-book called Flourishing Spring! It’s a great holistic family book to enjoy spring together. There are great ideas for family crafts, decorating, recipes, learning, and sharing blessings with others.
Here is a glimpse at the Table of Contents from Flourishing Spring:
Now doesn’t this book like so much fun? 
I’m looking forward to helping Val make the birdseed cupcakes for the chickadees that are visiting our trees and the flourless peanut butter cookies because we are all about healthy snacks any time of year, but especially after romping in the mud puddles all morning.
You can win a copy of this e-book and I’m giving you THREE chances.
1. Leave a comment here telling me which activity looks like something your family would enjoy.
2. Like Making a Home and Family on Facebook and come back to tell me you did.
3. Like Frugal Granola on Facebook and come back to tell me you did.
The winner will be announced on Sunday evening at 8pm CST. Good luck!
If you can’t wait until the winner is announced, visit here!
What is Baby-led Weaning and where do I start? That is what I was wondering just a few weeks ago. So, I’ll explain it and give you 3 simple ideas to get you started with Baby-Led Weaning (BLW). Baby-led Weaning is when your infant feeds himself/herself. You know all those puree recipes you’ve been reading? With BLW you can throw them all out the window because baby can feed themselves hand-held foods (think slices of avocado or steamed carrots) instead.
With pureed foods, the baby will learn to swallow foods first because they don’t need to understand how to mush it down or chew it first. So when they do, they will still gag and have to learn to manipulate chunky foods in their mouths. With BLW, they learn to mush and chew first while enjoying the tastes of the foods (and not necessarily swallowing it at first). After they accomplish grasping, picking it up and getting it to their mouth, and mushing it then they can work on the new skill of actually eating it.
If BLW sounds right for you and your little one, here are 3 simple ways to get started:
1. Is your baby ready for solid foods? Make sure your baby is old enough, has the skills, and is giving cues that he/she wants to start experimenting with solid foods. You can read more details about that here.
2. Be prepared. You may not need a magic bullet blender, but some other things may come in handy with BLW. A high chair or Bumbo seat with a tray will be a necessity because BLW can be messy, and in order to foster food independence a baby should really have their own eating space. A tablecloth that’s easy to wipe off or wash would be good underneath the highchair because there will be food that drops to the floor (and gets mashed onto the tray, the seat, and all over baby). A bib that catches food may be another nice item to add to the list or maybe just a dog to eat up the scraps – I kid, I kid.
3. Share your food. The easiest part of Baby-led Weaning is that you follow baby’s cues and you share your food. If you are having an apple for a snack – slice them a piece and let them gum it. If you are having mashed potatoes and steamed carrots for dinner – give them a sample. It’s that easy!
I’m looking forward to AJ starting his BLW journey very soon! Be sure to check back for pictures!
*Do remember if your family has allergies to wait until they are older to introduce those foods and be sure to space them apart so you can be sure if they have a reaction you know what it was that caused it.
Monday ~ Chili
Tuesday ~ Baked pasta and cauliflower
Wednesday ~ Meatballs, mashed potatoes, and broccoli
Thursday ~ Burgers, homemade buns, homemade fries, and cauliflower
Friday ~ Nachos
Saturday ~ Shrimp stirfry
Sunday ~ Chicken pot pie in the crockpot with gluten-free biscuits
Remember how I was pumped about joining a goal setting group of women last week? Here I thought I’d share lists and tackle my to-do’s, but it turned into learning how to tackle myself with self-care. Who would’ve thought that taking care of me first would really truly help me take care of everything else around here?!
I kind of knew it already. I’ve heard other women talk about it before. BUT that was them, ya know? They didn’t have two little kids, a farm, homeschooling, errands… right? I laugh now because it was just an excuse. Every other mom out there has STUFF going on – lots of STUFF and it’s not selfish to put yourself first once in awhile.
So, this week I’ve done yoga, meditated, got on the Organic Sister Coaching Call, scrubbed my feet, shaved my legs which are all things I usually push aside to do laundry, dishes, or ignore because I don’t want to ask for a few extra minutes for me. Amazingly though, nothing else fell through because of those little extras for me. The dishes and laundry are as caught up as they’d usually be, we still ate nourishing meals, the kids are clean and healthy, and we made it out to homeschooling group, play group, and story time!
Inspirational Links~
::A FREE e-course of self-care by Roots of She
::The 4 Questions from The Work of Byron Katie
::Your Most Important To Do List
What inspired you this week? I’d love to hear from you?
{this moment} – A Friday ritual. A single photo – no words – capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.
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