Natures Gifts

Wow! What a busy couple weeks!

For starters, we have a baby ready for food! A Mama ready (almost) to provide.

But what baby can start solids, without a proper bowl and spoon? My thoughts exactly! After a little tire kicking, I made a choice and went with this bowl & spoon from Nova Naturals- handmade in Maine and Vermont. Deliciously perfect!

So, then the quest to fill it. Up until now, well, all the little guy has had is breast milk. So, I went with something gentle to start him off and tried Earthsbest Organic Rice Cereal, mixed with breast milk. Eeh. He didn't love it, I felt it was a little creepy (the dehydrated flakes just look nasty) and just didn't seem like the right choice. So tonight, we introduce Mamas homemade oatmeal! We shall see if this is more my little guys style..Mama tried it last night (after Daddy technically made it!) and it was pretty yummy!

And then there was treats for us... the sap is running! Sugaring time!!!

This is our first year, but we are doing the whole compound with the help of my sisters boyfriend, who is a seasoned tree sappin' vet. We don't have enough trees to get a ton (with a 40 gallon to 1 gallon ratio, who really does?) But we will get enough to enjoy. The first batch was done Saturday night and promptly enjoyed on my pancakes Sunday morning!

Its amazing these simple little gifts- from a wood bowl & spoon to a sugary treat- can all be found right in our backyard!

Two Cents Too Many

Lately I have been getting very frustrated with unsolicited parenting advice. Not to sound ungrateful, because I am sure peoples intentions are good, but I find it somewhat invasive and brazen to tell someone else what they should or shouldn't be doing with their child. It's starting to really drive me nuts!

Now, the odd thing about this, is it's people who don't really know me or my parenting style. Coworkers, my mothers coworkers, my mother in law (who I'm sorry- raised the best man in the world- but her and I couldn't disagree about things MORE). I welcome advice from people when I seek it... or the occasional gentle suggestion from my Mama friends or Childcare provider. But when the receptionist at my work lectures me that I should practice "cry it out" and shouldn't co-sleep, well, that's when the helpfulness ends.

I do have a particular way I parent. That WE parent. Balance to us, is key. We don't co sleep all the time...but when it's called for, we do. I try not to give my son plastic crap, but yeah he has a few plastic toys. We do NOT practice CIO right now, maybe when he's old enough to understand, that will change. I exclusively breast feed, no formula, but foods coming. He has had some vaccinations, but others we have opted against. Balance, balance, balance. Every choice we make for him, we make with a thought process behind it.

I feel like each person should raise their child the way they see fit. You may do things differently than I and vice versa.

I read websites all the time that are filled with these awesome moms who have the best ideas and I adore reading what they do...and I do pick up ideas here and there that I feel apply to my method of parenting. To me, that's so warm and unobtrusive. I much prefer to gather my advice that way! The rest, well, I think I need to just tone them out!