Amber Waves

Last night, Sarah and her family were over for dinner. She brought this amazing garlic bread from Whole Foods. It has a nice crust and is soaked in garlic butter. It is so yummy, I think angels have a hand in preparing it.

I don't turn my nose up to carbs. I really try to limit white flour. Nutritionally, it is a nothing. The bread and pasta in my home are whole grain. Having the fiber and having the natural vitamins and minerals that are in the grains have it falling on the Healthy Yummy list.

When I was recovering from postpartum depression, I learned my practice of loading up on lots of lean animal protein was messing with my serotonin levels. I was eating all the protein because I was nursing and wanted my milk to be the best it could be (yeah, by the second baby, I just focused on eating good healthy foods). I was amazed at how much better I felt by have whole grains with a bit of fat. That was when I got hooked of the 9 Grain Honey bread from Central Market. We eat at least two loaves a week in my home now. So, a piece of that yummy fresh bread with a nice schmear of peanut butter or soft cheese - yum. And, I wasn't getting as stressed and freaked out. I now make an effort to include whole grains in my daily diet. Figuring out a few things, like my favorite bread, that I can have in the house and is easy to grab makes all the difference.

My three year old loves honey flax bread and the bread from Whole Foods with the seeds. Um, yeah, I never remember the name but, it looks like it has birdseed in it.

Any of the honey whole grain breads are crazy yummy as cinnamon toast. Use a little good quality butter and it is really heaven.

This brings me to one piece of advice I give new moms on rice cereal. When I was an infant (yes, 800 years ago), my parents were told to give me rice cereal starting at 2 weeks. Yes, two weeks of age. Now, the recommendation is 6 months. Rice cereal is still the first food of choice because it is easy to digest and bland. Rice cereal is processed removing the sheath and the fiber (which would give the poor baby awful gas) and the nutrition that it contains. replacing breastmilk or formula with something not very nutritious makes no sense to me.
I know some babies are given rice cereal as a treatment for GERD. I have heard it works wonders for some babies. That is obviously a totally different scenario.

I tell my friends to skip the rice cereal. I have never heard of a baby that likes it. Both my girls looked at me like I was torturing them. So, our first foods were banana, avocado, and sweet potato. Neither of my girls were ready for solids at 6 months. I just kept offering foods and when they each were ready, they ate with gusto. Some babies are more than ready by 6 months. I have seen a few babies go after a spoon of mashed food like my husband going after a basket of wings.

Moms put a lot of pressure on themselves. We were told from the day we got pregnant that rice cereal is so important to our babies. But, a little common sense says no. Especially for breastfed babies (and you will not find any opinion or debate about breastfed v formula fed here. Every family does what is best for them, mommy and baby. My decision to breastfeed both my girls has no reflection on any other child or family), introducing solids should really be done cautiously. If breastmilk is the best nutritionally for baby, then any thing else is second best and is replacing that liquid gold. For formula fed babies, mommies can have the same problem. Some kids really love food. Well, if solids are replacing too much formula, baby may not be getting enough important nutrients, especially fat.

My point? That through every stage in life, the kitchen is important as is healthy yummy food. Parents and caregivers have to use common sense when feeding their families and themselves. When you order your sandwich at lunch time, ask if you can get that on whole grain.