​When I was pregnant I made a lot of plans, because that's what you do when you try to imagine what your life will be like when you have a small human to look after, feed and keep alive. You have no clue what you're getting into, so you daydream about what your baby will look like, what YOU might look like postpartum, and the state of your home while trying to juggle a family growing in size.

I imagined that I'd have an immaculate house that always had classical music on, no TV in the background, and my daughter would only have eco friendly wooden toys scattered around the floor. I certainly would not feed her from a pouch and I would make everything from scratch.

Ha. Ha. Ha. Haaaaaaaa.

Let me tell you something about expectations. The secret of happiness is: to have low expectations. Ok, I'm joking, but let's get one thing straight. You don't get a medal for being the hardest working mum. You don't get a medal for having an immaculately clean house while having a baby either. Why put yourself through the wringer if it's going to make you miserable, and consequently, make your family unhappy too? 

My sister in law had recommended Bellamy's baby rice cereal when the time came to introduce solids. I didn't want to make my own rice cereal, so I knew whatever we chose had to be high quality, non- GMO and organic (duh). Bellamy's porridge and rice cereal ticked all the boxes and my daughter loveddddd it. We mixed the baby rice cereal with breastmilk for a week and a half or so, before I started to introduce her to more variety. The best thing about the rice cereal (and the porridge) was that I always had it on hand to mix with any puree to thicken it up and increase the iron content. There is no added sugar or salt and it's made in Australia, which is another huge win in my books. 

Easy As Brekkie for a 4+ Month old 
1/2 Avocado 
1/2 Banana 
Bellamy's Organics baby rice cereal or porridge (follow instruction on the packet) 
+ Breastmilk or H20
Mash the banana and avocado with a fork. Add the rice cereal and mix with breastmilk or water until you reach your desired consistency

​When my daughter's sleep routine changed I decided to make the most of her time awake. This meant heading out to run errands (or just live life outside the house) between her naps. I didn't always have the time, or the equipment, to heat, warm, and carry my homemade baby purees. I faced a bit of a conundrum. It was around this time that we had truly established hearty solids, which was a smoother transition than I thought I might add, and I stumbled across the range on offer from Bellamy's Organic at Chemist Warehouse. 

I gravitated toward the pouches with protein and veggies, over the fruit filled options. Our favourites are as follows:  
Organic chicken sweet potato and cous cous 
Organic broccoli beef and brown rice
Organic pumpkin and tomato risotto 

My daughter enjoys them immensely and they have saved the day on more than one occasion. My daughter is like me, and when HANGRY sets in, she needs to eat, like five minutes ago. I'm so happy to have found these and had them on hand when we needed that extra hour out and about or simply to take the edge off when I had my hands full or was unable to breastfeed.

I had thought, for God knows what reason, that I would be a "bad mom" if I fed my baby from a pouch. Not only is that ridiculous, but it's Mom Shaming - of myself! These have been a great supplement to her diet when necessary, and so handy for traveling or simply on-the-go #momlife. I always try to have a few in the cupboard and stock up when I'm at Chemist Warehouse or Coles.

For those of you with older babies,I would also recommend their pastas! These can be blended directly into your homemade purees in the early stages of solids, or you can keep them whole, adding them to your own creations to change the texture. I would defrost and warm my daughter's purees and then spoon a tablespoon or two of the Organic Veggie Alphabet Pasta in and mix it well. This was a great way to teach her how to chew, safely I might add, and I loved that they used beetroot, tomato and spinach to make the pasta. 

Easy as Lunch or Dinner for a 6+ Month Old
STEAM 1 bunch of asparagus, 100 grams of green beans(ends trimmed), and 1 head of broccoli florets  
Add some of the  hot water from the steamer and blend 
(makes 4-5 servings) 
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To serve a single meal: spoon the green puree, like a sauce, over 2-3 tablespoons of the alphabet pasta
- Full Recipe -

I remember what it was like embarking on this journey of weaning. I felt so overwhelmed when it should really be a time of exploration and excitement. 

Let me know if you have any questions in the comments below.

​EMK

 
I'm seriously obsessed with Dr Bronner's since discovering them about six months ago. It's all we use in our house now! Our family even travels with it when we are headed out of town or going overseas.  We use the organic sugar soap as our body wash and we use the pure-castile bar soap in our bathroom to wash our hands. To date, my favourite scents are the lavender and peppermint. (All Peppermint products are 15% off the entire month of February if you use the code PEPPERMINT before Feb 28th!) 

My daughter and I also use their nourishing unscented balm to help combat dry skin, and their toothpaste is the BOMB. I've used the peppermint toothpaste and I have a tube of cinnamon to try next! I like to alternate daily between Dr Bronners toothpaste and My Magic Mud activated charcoal toothpaste. 

                                                                                __________

As some readers already know, our family decided to transition to a chemical free household once our daughter joined our family. We started by eliminating harmful products that came into contact with our skin; such as soaps, shampoos, moisturizers and make up. With time we expanded that knowledge to household cleaners, choosing natural products with vinegar, essential oils, and no nasties. 

I wanted to take things to the next level and try my hand at making some laundry detergent since I still wasn't 100% satisfied with the "eco friendly" one we were using. I knew Castile soap seemed to be a staple for environmentally conscious households like ours, and decided to pick some up. Two places to buy and pick up Dr Bronner's in Brisbane are Biome and Vive Health, but Dr B also has a fantastic website if you prefer online shopping.

First things first, I decided to clean my washing machine with a recipe I got from Jazze of The Calm Compound. It called for baking soda, vinegar and a few drops of lemon essential oils- super easy!  Once the cycle finished, I got down to business making my homemade laundry detergent.

To Use

Use 1/4 cup per load of washing. This amount should do 48 loads of laundry!

It doesn't look fancy, like, at all . . . but smells so damn good and works wonders. We have no surfactants, fragrance, preservatives or sulfates! Pretty chuffed with my first ever batch. I wasn't trying to save money, but it's also SUPER cheap to make which is an added bonus if you're looking to tighten up on the household spending. 

Have you ever made your own? What was your experience like?
Tell me in the comments below, or share another recipe of you have one! 

​EMK
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Our theme for February: "FROM THE INSIDE OUT"
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