Home ยป Family Friday (vol. 3): The Kitchen Helper

Family Friday (vol. 3): The Kitchen Helper

Family Friday vol 3

It was a good week. It went fast and daycare was only canceled one day due to snow. You guys, is it May yet? Nothing like paying daycare tuition only to have to 1. find an available babysitter for the day and then 2. pay good money for said babysitter. But, as a mother who is not cut from the stay-at-home-mom cloth, this is just part of the gig.

We’re finally in a routine of wearing hats when we leave the house, so much so that Shea is near meltdown if she’s not wearing a hat. Ooooooookay.

She loves snow, but hasn’t figured out that if she touches it, her hands will be cold and wet. And then she cries.

She’s getting more and more proficient eating with a fork and drinking from a glass. But I think she’ll demand bottles until she gets a driver’s license…

I’ve decided to go to a 50/50 mix of unsweetened almond milk or cashew milk and whole cow’s milk. Since the girl is obsessed with bottles and milk, I figured this was a good way to calorie-control. I do believe she has her mother’s metabolism (I so hope I’m wrong) and she’s a very good eater, loving dairy products such as cheese and yogurt. Her stats at her 15 month check-up: 31 1/2 inches (81st %ile) and 27 lbs 1 oz (97th %ile). Plus, every resource I consult on how much milk a toddler should be intaking is different and it’s driving me insane. Pediatrics is not my nutrition expertise and I think common sense goes a long way with this one – each child is different.

Shea is a carb-a-holic (but also a serious carnivore). Confirmed by daycare. One night she chucked every last pieces of broccoli off her plate and onto the floor before proceeding with eating her meal. Sigh. But, she housed some peas last night. I just need to hold on tight for this vegetable roller coaster.

This week, I did a good job of choosing quick and easy meals. Shea LOVED goulash.  Oh my word. She had it head to toe by the end of the meal. Literally. See the image in the top right of the collage (^^). Any pasta dish has been an absolute hit.

The one thing I didn’t do well this week was photograph our meals. I made Cubans and they were really good, but I just didn’t feel like photographing the dinner. And we ate them. The night I made goulash, I just forgot to take photos. I made the dinner early for Shea to enjoy and left it on the stove for Mr. Prevention and I for later and yep…then it was 9pm. I’ll be remaking it ASAP 🙂

Shea Kitchen Helper

Our newest find to make mealtime easier was Shea’s new Kitchen Helper! You all gushed over this on Instagram, so I figured it was time to share on the blog. Our friends have one for their girls and I’ve had my eye on one since before Shea was even born. Shea loves it – she can see what I’m doing in the kitchen…without being on my hip or worse, sitting on the counter. I can keep knives and such out of reach. Involving her in the meal making process will only help encourage her vegetable consumption, too! The Kitchen Helper is a preferred distraction to Mickey Mouse Clubhouse when I need to get things done in the kitchen… and a new way for me to spend more time with her!

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Be well,

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9 Comments

  1. Stephanie
    January 22, 2016 / 10:01 am

    We have the same kitchen helper and my 2 year old loves it! She likes to “help me” make dinner. I called it a “thingamabob” one night while pulling it out and she (and the rest of us) now call it Bob. Whenever I start cooking I hear “I need to get my Bob!”

    • Nicole Morrissey
      Author
      January 22, 2016 / 4:28 pm

      That is so funny!!! I literally LOL’ed ๐Ÿ™‚

  2. Stacey
    January 25, 2016 / 10:35 am

    I love this new series ๐Ÿ™‚
    My daughter will be 1 on Friday and we are entering of course the transition to milk. We decided the other night to switch to milk first before tackling the whole bottle thing. She drinks around 4oz of water each day from her sippy cup but wants milk from the bottle and we have to hold it (she won’t do that herself…). I know she’ll outgrow it someday so I’m just taking it one day at a time. I too have wondered how much milk they need as Lena loves it and drinks 24-28oz each day. I think I read 2-2/12 cups max to keep them from not eating their food? But I guess if they eat well too despite their milk consumption then does it really matter?
    Anyway, enough of that. Love Shea’s hair clips. We are entering the stage of needing a clip or hair-tie as headband bows aren’t cutting it anymore!

    • Stacey
      January 25, 2016 / 10:36 am

      OH! and I love the kitchen helper. I have been waiting for the day to get one of those ๐Ÿ™‚

    • Nicole Morrissey
      Author
      January 25, 2016 / 3:30 pm

      Thanks tons, Stacey – means a lot. Sometimes it seems so boring to blab on and on about kids, but there’s LOTS of mamas out there who can so easily relate. I know it’s refreshing when I’m doing the reading so I hope to bring that to others ๐Ÿ™‚

      The milk thing is so hard. Lena sounds a lot like Shea. My pediatrician at one point said 24-30 ounces/day, but that was closer to a year. Now that her actual food intake has gone up, it was recommended closer to “up to 20” ounces a day around 15 months. Do you offer her milk with meals or on its own? I know a lot of parents differ on this approach and many offer milk only with meals and water in between. I think for us because it’s more the bottle that Shea wants and the milk is a bonus, first thing in the morning and last thing at night are the 2 key times. She’d pitch a total fit if we dropped these. Her 2 bottles during the day I think we could start to wean from, though. And there are days she only has 1 (5 oz) bottle at daycare for a full 8 hour day. Sigh! It’s a lot to consider – we all just want to do the “right” thing and our little ones all have different needs, likes, and dislikes!

      • Stacey
        January 25, 2016 / 4:24 pm

        Crazy how alike they are — Lena will drink maybe 10oz at daycare all day and then come home ‘dying’. haha. I think they are just too busy? Who knows. Currently she has milk right away in the morning, after lunch, after nap and then after supper. She tends to want it as a dessert or topper I guess. I keep waffling on when to serve it in the future… she’s such a snacker. At first I’ll probably offer right away in the morning and then as the day progresses keep milk to food times… Water for in-between. Not going to make it a battle though so we’ll just test-drive this theory ๐Ÿ™‚

  3. Jill
    January 25, 2016 / 10:39 am

    Those towers are the BEST! We got one for our daughter around age 1. For at least a year, she would eat her breakfast standing in it so she could be a part of what was going on in the kitchen (while I packed up our lunches). She uses it now to help me “make stuff.” ๐Ÿ™‚ Enjoy it!

    • Nicole Morrissey
      Author
      January 25, 2016 / 3:26 pm

      That’s adorable ๐Ÿ™‚ Shea actually ate half her breakfast standing in the tower this morning…I mean, they make a total mess anywhere they eat anyway, right?! ๐Ÿ˜‰

  4. Chrissy
    January 26, 2016 / 5:46 pm

    I feel ya on the milk thing. Avery loves milk, and will drink it all day long if I let her. She’ll drink water, but much prefers her “milky”. My pedi was kinda lecturing me on her “excessive” milk intake, but she still eats pretty well so its not like she is getting full from milk and not eating real food. Everyone has such a different opinion on it!

    I love that tower though! I definitely need to get her one. Probably safer than sitting her in the middle of the island like I do now. ๐Ÿ˜‰

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