Seal of Approval

My friend Megs recommended these snack traps a which Drew uses, and she was right on.. there are a wonderful way of feeding snacks to the little guy without spillage and as an added bonus... they keep Lexie out too! So in the spirit of that discovery... I decided to have my own "seal of approval"... which in my humble opinion is equally as wonderful at the Good Housekeeping seal of approval... these things that our little 9 month old could not live without or that have worked for us very well thus far... So, without further ado..this is the Abbie Hartge Seal of Approval-food edition

Item Number 1

Baby Frank LOVES this yo-baby yogurt... he has it for breakfast practically everyday. It comes in many flavors (blueberry and apple are his favorites) regardless of your feelings on organic foods, this yogurt is very good, not a lot of additives, and it is supper YUMMY (i don't mind eating it with him!) This was recommended to me by my St. Jude co-worker Sam Cicero and can be found in any grocery store typically in the organic isle.

Item Number 2

I have tried every sippy cup under the sun to reach my goal of bottle freedom by 1 year (only 2.5 months to go)... Trying to be BPA free and $$ conscious we have finally found the most wonderful sippy cup... The Nuby no-spill cup is the only cup that baby frank has been completely successful with from the start. It does not have "safety's" or "valves" to prevent spillage (so much easier to clean)and yet it still does not leak all over the place. The cups are very easy to find and have made this transition a lot easier... he has been drinking juice and formula from them with no complaint!

Item Number 3

Since we have been trying new "textures" with frank... this boon catch bowl has been amazing! If you want to put steamed corn (as seen above) or any food in this bowl it suctions to the table so it cannot be tossed on the floor creating a Jackson Pollock painting on your carpet or wall. The little catch also helps little hands from dropping the snack in their lap and can be used as a chew toy when done eating.

Item Number 4

PUFFS! Every mommy of a baby above 6 months is probably aware of these wonderful melt in their mouth snacks! They come is a wide variety of flavors, the store brand is equally as delicious as the Gerber brand and a lot cheaper as well... baby frank could eat these ALL day if you would keep putting them in front of him... which is OK because a serving size is like 90 pieces... so snack away little buddy

Item Number 5

Since I love to cook, making Frank's baby food was a goal of mine even before he was born. This cook book is a wonderful guide to making baby food (which is insanely easy)... Making baby food is a lot more economical and does not really take me that much time (30 minutes every week or so)... If you don't want to peal the fruits and veggies you can even buy frozen food, steam it and then mash it up in the food processor or blender. If you want to make your own baby food all you need is this book (or ask me to send you recipes from it) and ice cube trays.

*** On a side note the Hartge household is yet again on high alert... recently baby frank has been standing unassisted for a second or two then collapsing to the floor. Last night he stood up on his own and then stood unassisted for about 5 seconds before collapsing... he also potentially took his first step (purely accidental) last night trying to make it from the couch to mommy... we think it won't be too long before he starts putting the pieces together and becomes a walking terror! (good thing we are already baby-proofed)