Introducing Your Baby To Indian Food

One thing I've learned about parenting is there are so many ways to do it. While we all think our way is best, it's not always the case. If you were to visit moms from around the world, you would see just how differently they raise their little ones. If you look a little closer to home, you'll still see big differences in parenting styles.What about food?A lot of moms think the only way to feed your kids is to start with the bottle, then rice cereal proceeded by vegetables, and ending up with table food. What if I told you that you could change it up a bit and make it more interesting and healthier for your kids?I introduced my children to Indian spices right away. When they were in the adorable squishy stage (you know the stage I'm talking about), I started them off with rice and butter. I added about 2 extra cups of water to the rice, so it soaked it all in and turned into more of a paste. Adding butter is a great way to sneak in dozens of vitamins and anti-oxidants into your child's diet.As they get a little older, we start adding in steamed vegetables and spices. Getting them used to different spices at a young age helps to get their palate used to it. Not to mention all of the health benefits them.

Turmeric

Turmeric is used in every single Indian dish. It's added to the base to add a rich color and people are becoming obsessed about it. A lot of health gurus are even recommending turmeric pills. Which of course my in-laws always laugh over and say people should all just start eating Indian food!Why is it so good for you? It's full of antioxidants, it's an anti-inflammatory, it helps reduce cholesterol, it's full of vitamin B, and has been said to help prevent cancer cells from growing.

Chili Powder

Before you skip over this section thinking I'm crazy, hear me out. Chili powder is full of antioxidants, vitamin C, vitamin A, helps to detoxify the body, enhances your metabolism, rich in potassium, and adds delicious flavor!We started adding chili powder at a young age. We started extremely small and increased as they got older. Now, they eat dinner with the rest of us. While we may still make our meals a little milder, they love it and have a great pallet for spicy food. You could even add a little yogurt as well and counteract the heat, but keep all of the health benefits.

Yogurt

Yogurt is the number one item I recommend to all parents. Especially homemade yogurt because it's full of healthy bacteria your body needs to build up its defenses against infections. Often times, our kids end up on antibiotics frequently which kills off a lot of good bacteria. This helps them get it all back. It's also full of vitamin D, vitamin B, helps prevent high blood pressure, and helps build strong bones.

Here are a few recipes you can try out and see what your kids think!

Carrot and Pea Curry

1/2 cup of peas1/2 cup of carrots1/4 tsp curry powderpinch of cinnamonCook your peas and carrots in about an inch of water until they are tender. When they are done spoon your vegetables into a blender. Add in your spices and pour a small amount of the water in from the saucepan until it almost covers the vegetables. Blend until everything is well combined and no chunks are remaining. If you would like to to be thinner, add 1/4 cup of water at a time.

Chicken Biryani

Pinch of cinnamonPinch garam masalaPinch of chili powder1/4 cup cooked chicken1/4 cup cooked rice1/2 cup chicken brothAdd the chicken, chicken broth, and spices together in a blender. Blend until the chicken is there are no chunks of chicken left. Add in your rice. Give the blender a few quick pulses, just enough to break the rice down a bit. You still want rice chunks in the baby food.What was the first solid food you gave your kids?

Enjoy Every Season Of Parenting

People are constantly asking us if we were crazy, deciding to have three boys so close together. Maybe a little, but I’m loving this decision more and more everyday.

 

Everyday I look around at a messy house, knowing it was caused by creative little minds at work.

 

Everyday I look next to me to see all three boys within arms reach, fighting over who gets to cuddle mommy more.

 

Everyday I hear them in their rooms playing, while Liam teaches his younger brothers valuable lessons.

 

Everyday they try to convince to me to extend their bedtime for a few more weeks.

 

Life with my three little boys is truly a blessing. Yet, there is a constant fear in the back of my head. Time. As much as I try to hold time still, I feel it falling through my fingers. My babies are growing so quickly. My little Lucas Love is now in three-six month clothes. I’m not a sentimental person, but I couldn’t help getting emotional. My boys will never be in newborn clothes again. They won’t ever fit in the itty bitty clothes, filled with memories.

 

I know what you’re all thinking. They will just have another one. I can’t even begin to think about having another little one right now. I was eager after the first too, knowing I wanted a big family. This time, I find myself trying to make time stand still. I can’t think of the next baby because all I can think about is keeping my three boys small forever.

 

Parents are always staring at my boys, reminiscing over their little baby days. It’s been so long for them, they find themselves begging to hold Lucas. In the back of my mind I’m thinking your children are independent! I long for the days of independence.

 

This week it hit me. Independence means my little baby boys won’t be little baby boys forever. Maybe I’m ok with my dependent little babies. Maybe I don’t want them growing as fast as I thought.

 

Every stage has been so fun so far. My husband says Levi’s age is his favorite. He’s mischievous and full of such innocence. 

 

You’ve probably heard this before, but take time to realize what a blessing this season is. This season right now. Your children are growing up before your very eyes. Instead of wishing they were just a little bigger to make things just a little easier, soak it all in. 

 

Soak in the cuddles, the kisses, the chaos, the imaginations, and all the little baby coos. Remember it doesn't last forever, but hold on tight while you're in it. 

 

What's your favorite stage of parenting so far?  

All Parent Should Listen To Advice

My little baby. I remember when I was pregnant with him. Every month was new and exciting while I watched my belly grow.

 

I had so many crazy thoughts about pregnancy. 

 

One day comes to mind. I was in the car with my husband and sister in law. We were talking about something, I haven't the slightest remembrance over the topic anymore, and it was getting heated. All the sudden I started yelling, telling them to be careful what they were saying in front of my unborn child. I didn't want all of this negativity in front of him!

 

Wow... Like my child could actually understand a word we said. I'm so grateful they gave me such grace and didn't just laugh in my face. Luckily I have very loving family who puts up with my crazy. 

 

As new parents, my husband and I had so many ideas about parenting. We thought being in youth and children's ministry made us pros. We planned on raising perfect children, since we had it all figured out. 

 

It didn't take us too long to realize we actually knew nothing about having a little baby. 

 

It doesn't matter how much you think you know, even after five kids. There is always something to learn about raising kids. Each child is different and children go through different seasons. 

 

If we would have remained the know it all parents, our kids would be completely screwed up by now. One thing I love about Indian families is their the village raises the child mentality. You're not ever on your own. All of your pinnis (aunts), mamas (uncles), and parents teach you what they've learned and give  you advice. They've taught us so much about raising kids. 

 

If I could give you new or seasoned parents advice, it would be to ask for and be open to advice from others. You don't have to listen to everything, but at least hear them out. 

 

Make sure you're only asking people if you actually want their advice. I try to only ask my close friends and family. 

 

You don't have to know everything there is to know about raising children. Accept help and advice from the people you love and respect. 

 

Share the best piece of parenting you've received from a love one on my facebook page, tag me @almstindianwife, or on Instagram with the #almostindianwife 

What Do Real Parents Look Like?

Things around our house have been a little crazy since baby Lucas joined us. Most days consist of coffee, breastfeeding, movies, dishes, spit up stained clothes, toys everywhere, constantly stepping on said toys, bad attitudes, sword fights, towers of laundry, nap time, and repeat. Our day isn't structured much beyond nap times. That might be because I count down until nap time sometimes... ok a lot of the time. Joel will come home from a trip and ask about our week. I always have countless stories to tell him about our silly boys, but it's usually not a lot of anything productive. Some days are more about surviving while Joel is away and other days we are adventurous and decide to go and have a play date. Most of the time, I'm completely satisfied with my days. I know this is a busy season for our growing family. We have three kids under four and life with them is chaotic. Then it happens... I go on Instagram or Facebook and see other moms. They snap a quick picture of their seemingly perfect lives and I stare at it for more time than I'd like to admit. I sit their thinking what a better mom they are than me, how perfect their house looks, how much fun it looks like their kids have, how put together the mom looks, how their husbands are always right their in the picture.. It's easy to start comparing myself to them. Why can't my life look like that?Wait. Why does it have to!? If you think about it, it's easy to take a peaceful picture of your beautiful living room, interesting book, and not let the viewer in on the fact that all of your children are screaming in the background. We are constantly showing the best glimpse possible into our lives on social media. I'm guilty of doing it too! Why do we do it? Well, I know I'm the one that does it to say, "Look at my perfect life." I want to show off how great it can be sometimes. I want to prove that I'm doing a good job. While it's not bad to be grateful for the blessings in our life, we need to be happy regardless of how perfect our day is. We need to be happy in the midst of chaos and in the peace and quiet. Life as a parent is a compilation of different seasons. You have the newborn season, the crawling and getting into everything season, the send them off to school my house is empty season, the oh my gosh when did my kids get smarter than me season, the wow my kiddo is my best friend season, the why won't my kid remember how cool I am season, and all of those can be great. I challenge all of you to share a real picture of your day on Instagram and use the hashtag #RealParents. Beautiful you in the middle of a messy house, with your dinner burning, and all. Ok. Well, hopefully your dinner won't be burning, but you know what I mean. It's so encouraging to see other parents in the midst of it all. We can be there and encourage each other on those draining days and jump up and down together on the great days.