Baby Food- The Fresh Way

Well- my baby girl is 5 months old! Can you believe it? I sure can't! So in honor of this gorgeous summer we are having I thought I'd share with the masses my first attempts at baby food making! So far we have officially made apple/zuchini, banana blueberry, and banana/avocado. Savannah loves bananas and if it was up to her they would be in everything! She truly is my monkey.

To start off- I am a fan and of doing what works for my little Babe- and that is NOT ALWAYS what is recommended by doctors. So this is just me sharing how we do things in the Drake household :)

Savannah has been tasting baby foods since about four months old. I decided it made sense to give her tastes every so often early on so it wasn't a huge shock to her system. We started with easily digested foods like bananas, apples, and avocados. :) studies show that baby cereal actually rots in the stomaches of babes so young because they can't digest grains properly. So after learning this we decided to limit her grain intake. We use cereal a little bit but I'd rather my babe have easily digested and YUMMY foods! Savannah even sucks/gnaws the banana right off itself- I watch carefully to make sure she doesn't get chunks :) So you could say we do a little baby-led eating! She loves her mesh feeder too- that's a great option if you feel uncomfortable with the banana sucking technique!

I love avocado/banana food momma makes!

Avocado/Banana Puree: 1 peeled banana and one scooped out avocado placed into a food processor! Wa-la!

Blueberry/Banana: 1 peeled banana and a half cup blueberries in the food processor!

Zuchini/Apple: cut up pieaces of both (peels on) cooked on med heat for ten minutes with two tbsp of butter. I then poured liquid off and blended in food processor. Once done I strained through a small mesh strainer. Wa-la!

Once all of these were done I spooned into an ice cube tray- froze- and then popped them out and bagged them in freezer. Right now Savannah only eats about one or two cubes worth- so it's great to have the ability to take as many out as needed!

So there ya have it! A foodie glimpse into Savannah's routine :)

Savannah Marie

So it's been just a little while since I have blogged- huh? It's like I had a baby or something! 

So here she is! My sweetest little froggy! Savannah Marie was born 1-14-15 and she came out perfect,flawless, amazing, and all of the other words that mean I'm a mom now ;-) Oh yes- and with huge feet like her momma. Josh tells me while they were cleaning her up a nurse exclaimed "she has huge feet!" I am so smitten on this little girl it's crazy! When she wakes up in the morning I cannot wait to go see her because she is always so happy in the morning. When I get home from work she is all smiles and she just makes life have even more meaning! 

Being a mom is for sure the toughest job I have ever had- but other than the no time off the benefits are pretty good! Savannah is almost three months old and I absolutely love seeing her grow and hit new milestones- there's always something new with this little firecracker! She already has my demeanor but is a spitting image of her daddy! I could count on one hand the amount of people who say she looks like me but that is quite alright because I think her daddy is pretty good looking if I do say so ;-) This girl is SO curious and ever since she was born she wants to see everything, sit up, chew her hands, suck her thumb, lay on her tummy, and sleep a lot! Since being born she has been ahead for her size and at her last appointment her length was 95% so she might just be tall like mommy! I can see some red in her hair in the sunlight but we won't be able to tell for sure til it gets longer- right now it's just pretty brown :-) 

Some things I've learned since my little Savannah came out to meet us:

• Caffeine is so popular because of moms
• Sleep deprivation makes everything more dramatic
• Baby poop is not normal and can totally shoot like a squirt gun
• Bath time is so much fun until it's time to get out- then brace yourself
• Thumb sucking is great because they will never lose it- but then again when she's mad she makes a fist and cannot find it anyway
• Having a baby girl is the best doll you could ever dress up!
• Sometimes the baby's clothes get stained with YOUR food because you're always holding them at first- haha!
• Breastfeeding is hard no matter what they say- but you'll find what works for you
• Your cats will get jealous of the new baby and start acting like lunatics
• There is SO much more laundry just with one baby!
• There is so much more trash too
• Don't get attached to your favorite baby outfit- they'll probably have a poop blowout on it
• Baby girls can get pee all over too- don't think you dodge a bullet with that one!
• Always plan to leave a half an hour before you need to- but you will still be late.
• Being a mom brings more reward than anything I've ever experienced
• Having a great husband is priceless- especially when you just want a shower

So that's just a little bit about my sweet girl and our life as a family of three so far! More updates coming soon! <3

Savannah Marie 1-14-15 7lbs. 5oz. Perfect <3

Flawless

We love being a family of three!

The day I became this girl's momma was one of the best days of my life <3

Delicious No-Bake Cookies

Last night I made some amazing no-bake cookies that have no chocolate in them! Some of the people in my family don't like every dessert to have chocolate in it (yeah-I have no idea what is wrong with them!) so I decided to make this peanut-buttery treat!

You can find the recipe at http://allrecipes.com/recipe/peanut-butter-and-honey-no-bake-cookies/\ and the only thing I did differently was I used smooth peanut butter and if I could do it over again I would use more oats than recommended to make them a little more solid :)

Honey Peanut Butter No-bake Cookies

• 1/2 cup Butter
• 1/3 cup Whole Milk
• 1/2 cup Brown Sugar
• 1/2 cup White Sugar
• 1/2 cup Honey
• Pinch of Salt
• 1 cup Crunchy Peanut Butter
• 3 1/2 cups Instant Quick-Oats

1. Combine the butter, milk, white sugar, brown sugar, and honey in a large pot over medium-high heat; bring to a rapid boil for 90 seconds. Stir the salt and peanut butter into the mixture and remove immediately from the heat. Add the oatmeal quickly and mix to combine. Make sure the texture is thick with a little bit of sauce, but not too much sauce. If needed add extra oatmeal.
2. Drop rounded spoonfuls of the dough 2 inches apart onto aluminum foil or waxed paper; allow to sit 1 to 2 hours before serving.

It's A Girl!

On Thursday we found out our sweet little baby is a beautiful little girl! <3 We could not be happier! Josh and I were just so happy to find out the gender- we did not care if there was a little boy or little girl in my belly- just so long as it was a healthy baby! (I know everyone says that- but really- it's our first- how picky can a person be? ;) )

Our sweet baby girl's name is Savannah Marie and we know she will be much more beautiful than her name <3 Josh and I really loved the name Savannah and we chose Marie because both Josh's and my mother's middle names are Marie! So Savannah is named after both of her Grammies :) We hope she becomes a super awesome woman when she grows up like her Grandmothers!

Things I have learned while being pregnant with this sweet girl:

• I somewhat thought Savannah was going to be a boy because of how active she is- always jumping around- but I should have known she's just going to be an active little girl like her Momma was!
• All the burping that happens when you are pregnant is really crazy- I think this is an understated symptom!
• The amount of love and gifts we began to receive when we knew we were expecting Savannah is absolutely overwhelming! God is good <3 This little girl is already spoiled with so much love!
• The amount of advice- wanted and unwanted- about raising your baby and going through a pregnancy is also overwhelming... in a different sort of way ;-)
• I have had a really easy pregnancy so far and I feel so blessed by that! I know so many Mommas who are not so lucky. 
• I have ALREADY had people ask me how many more children we want... boy- Savannah isn't even here yet! 
• Pink does make me happy <3
• Ultrasounds are not always pleasant... those people get rough!
• Peeing in a cup seriously- pregnancy makes you a professional at that.
• Some days I still have to remind myself that it is true- we will have our sweet little baby in our arms in just a few months! We feel so lucky and blessed!

Excitement of a New Baby!

So we are expecting our first baby and of course we are SO EXCITED! I think that really with every little thing I get MORE excited :) I really cannot wait to hold this little one in my arms! I wish I could fast-forward just to meet him/her sooner! 

    This weekend Josh and I just re-painted my old dresser for the baby's room. I cannot wait to get it up there and start preparing more! Yeah, I may seem a little premature in planning but we have not actually gotten much for the babe yet- I am just setting up the organization of the room! I think my next project might be making a window seat cushion of the baby's sweet little reading nook <3 

We will find out the gender of our sweet baby on August 28th and we are pretty excited! We don't care what God has decided to bless us with- we just feel sooooo lucky to even have a baby <3 God must trust us ;) 

Finally opened my Etsy!

For a long time now I have been wanting to open an Etsy shop! Well, I finally did it! I am still working out what I want my shop's focus to be (what items). But right now I have baby things and canvas art :) I love both!

Here is one of my new canvas creations! It was my first experience with a chalkboard finish- I love it! 

I have found that in starting an Etsy you need to focus on your keywords, title, pictures, and consistency. Keep posting new stuff and see your traffic increase! The things that I thought would not get traffic are doing the best- I think it is because some of my titles are better than others! Also, some titles bring up less search results than others, therefore, people see your item more! Stay tuned for some more Etsy tips- I am just beginning but cannot wait to have my first sale!

 Check out my Etsy: https://www.etsy.com/shop/TheBuddingHomemaker?ref=hdr_shop_menu

It's A... BABY!

Josh and I's announcement of the year... we're expecting a sweet addition in January! Talk about the best Birthday gift ever! We have been waiting for God to bless our sweet family with a baby and He sure did have the best plan ever <3 Here's the story of our amazing weekend:

On the weekend of May 10th we left to go to Lynchburg, VA for my college graduation ceremony. It was also Josh's Birthday that very day, and the next day was Mother's Day! So, long story short- It was already turning out as an awesome weekend! On the morning of the 10th it was my graduation day and Josh's 23rd Birthday. While I was getting ready (at the CRACK of dawn!) to head over for the graduation ceremony- I decided I would take a test just to see. I don't know whether it was because of the heartburn that woke me up (that I would learn was my first pregnancy "symptom"), or what, but who decides to take a test at 5AM on their graduation day?! Evidently ME! So the test was taken... and it was positive! Talk about a tear-jerker! We were (and are) SO happy to be adding this sweet little baby to our family! 

The day flew like a whirlwind and the whole time I was walking in graduation I just thought "the baby is with me during graduation" "I am pregnant". It was surreal- the ceremony was awesome and tiring. And it was one of the best days of my life <3 Later that night we went out to dinner and shared the great news with both sets of parents and my younger brother- they were all so shocked and happy- it was awesome!! 

Now I am 11 weeks pregnant with this sweet peanut and we are still on cloud nine <3 

“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.” Jeremiah 1:5