What to eat: Beginning Toddler Meals

It seems like just yesterday when my sweet little boy only needed milk and a cracker and he was full for the evening. Now, I hear the scream of "Eat, Eat" every 2 hours and sometimes at 1am, like this morning. Sometimes he loves pasta and fruit washed down with a little juice, other days he doesn't want anything to do with either! My job is to make sure the he eats a healthy diet, but he doesn't always cooperate. During those times,  I feel that I am scratching my head and scrambling to find a meal that he can enjoy. After a lot of practice and food rejection, I've come up with a sort of formula that seems to work for him, especially during the times where he doesn't want to stop playing long enough to eat anything.


1. Try to always start a meal with a small piece of fruit. This summer a small piece of watermelon or strawberry does the trick. The fruit helps open up the appetite a bit so that even the most stubborn toddler will remember that he/she may be a little hungry.


2. Stay away from super dry foods. So, I don't know if it's just the summer time heat that does it, my little Shane doesn't really like anything that can dry quickly, such as breads and dry meats. I try to leave these foods for the end of the meal or make sure a light sauce like marinara is used to wet these foods a bit.


3. Cut out snacks close to meal time. This may be a no-brainer, but I think it's pretty important to make sure the toddler doesn't come to meal time feeling satisfied with the small snacks he's eaten in the last hour or two, because this is a sure fire way to ruin a meal.




These are just a few of my tips! Let me know any other great tips that you use to make meal time a little easier.

Back-up Day Care to the Rescue!

Hey Everyone! Happy Friday! I just had the best afternoon discussion with some co-workers about a program that my company offers to working mothers called the Back-up Care Advantage Program. This programs offers moms back up care when your regular sitter/care provider can't make it for the day. Just by registering you can have access to back up care for your children and elderly care for those of you caring for aging parents or other family members. I was so excited because we need only pay a co-pay and give 2 hours notice and a sitter is right on your door step so you can make it to work on time every time. Our program is offered through Bright Horizons, who has some wonderful facilities. I thought I'd mention this program, because I hadn't heard of it but I'll bet many other companies have been offering programs like this one for years. If you aren't sure if your company offers this type of program, contact your human resources office or visit www.careadvantage.com and look for your company name on the list! Just thought I'd share...let me know any tips you have for back up care.

Helllloo!!! Welcome to my blog.

Welcome to my blog. I call myself the city mom because I have a 1 year old son and we live right in the heart of the nation's capital. There are so many things to learn about being a mom from calming colds, breastfeeding woes and post pregnancy adjustments, but there are also a lot of fun adventures when your a mom in the city. I'm hoping this blog helps me capture some of these adventures and learn from you about raising a child in the city as well.