What we've been through (part I)

 I've mentioned many times here that my baby was sick. His first birthday is fast approaching, and so is the March for Babies, and our doctor says that there's an 80 percent chance he will never need more intervention. We are cautiously optimistic. Our babe is a normal, happy, healthy 11 month old.  Last night I dreamed that I became a pediatric nurse. I cried in my dream, because my heart still hurts so much, and being around sick children all the time would be so hard. But it felt right, because now I have greater compassion and respect for parents and the urge to help other families through such trying times.


Around 26 weeks in my pregnancy, my midwife sent me for an ultrasound because my baby was measuring small. The ultrasound showed a healthy-sized baby with a cyst in his neck. The doctor thought it was a benign branchial cleft cyst that would resolve on its own. I had a follow-up ultrasound four weeks later, which showed no change, and my midwife and I agreed to continue with our plan to birth at home.

I had a very long labor, and babe was born at the hospital. He was perfect and vigorous. We enjoyed a blissful 6 weeks at home. We learned to breastfeed and my postpartum recovery was pretty easy.

At our one month well-baby visit, our pediatrician was worried because baby's breathing was noisy (lots of snoring and snorting sounds), and the cyst in his neck was now visible, an egg shaped lump below his left ear. He suggested we go for an ultrasound. We didn't want to. We didn't want there to be anything the matter with our child.
"How about next week?" we said
"How about tomorrow," said our pediatrician.

What's happening in the garden?

It's March, I know. A little early for tomatoes, even in California. But it's spring now! And the weather is so fair. Today I did some work in the garden.

Considering the good news for Monsanto this week, I'm thinking that the more food we can eat from our back yard, the better. I'd like to get four more wine barrels so that I can plant beans and peppers.

Here we have the first tomato vines. Cherokee purple, Tye Dye, and San Marzano. These three are planted with some aspirin tabs, a crushed egg shell, a handful of tomato fertilizer, and some root fungi stuff.

Next is Brandywine Yellow, San Francisco Fog, and Early Girl. I planted the San Francisco Fog on top of a fish head left over from dinner. It must be a carniverous plant because it's already growing like crazy.

The pepper on the left is a Cute Stuff Red, and on the right is a Fresno Chile. The flowers are ranunculus and anemone.

Baby's favorite recipes

Avocado, coconut oil, frozen peas, banana, hard boiled egg, sweet potato, and whole-milk  plain yogurt. This is all you really need to make homemade baby food. These foods are in heavy rotation in my babe's diet. You don't need any fancy choppers, dicers or containers, just a fork and a minute to mash things in a bowl.

Here are a few of my babe's favorite recipes. He is 11 months and has 8 teeth and is doing well with a chunkier consistency. I try to make sure he eats something green (like peas, broccoli, or spinach) and something orange (like sweet potato, squash, or carrots) every day. I also add some healthy fats if he's eating only smashed fruits or veggies. We like coconut oil, olive oil, and occasionally organic butter.


Avi's Avicado
1/4 avocado
1 hard boiled egg yolk
1-2 tablespoons whole-milk plain yogurt or large curd cottage cheese
Mush in a bowl. This is also good spread on toast and cut into small pieces for baby to feed himself.


Monkey Mash
 1/2 sweet potato
1/2 banana
1 teaspoon coconut oil
Mush together in a bowl.


Peasto
1/4 cup frozen peas, cooked until soft
1 egg yolk or 1 tablespoon cottage cheese
a drizzle of olive oil
Mush lightly with a fork. I leave the peas large enough that babe can feed himself.

Happy spring

Moroccan Kale and Squash over Couscous

I often have kale and winter squash on hand this time of year. I make a really yummy pasta dish with roasted squash, kale, bacon, and parmesan. We were hungry for that tonight, but we are eating pretty much vegan right now, and I didn't think my usual dish would come together very well without a cured pork product and parmesan reggiano.


But I thought Moroccan spices* and the tartness from dried fruit would tie the flavors together nicely. And they did. This recipe is vegan and very nutritious. And our baby liked it.

 *I use a Moroccan spice blend called ras el hanut, which is available at my grocery store from Spicely Organic Spices. If you can't find it, you can make your own; there are plenty of recipes for it online.

Moroccan kale and roasted squash over couscous

1 butternut squash
1 onion, sliced into half-moons
2 cloves garlic
a large pinch saffron, soaked in 1/4 cup warm water
1 tablespoon ras al hanut
1 cinnamon stick
1 bunch kale, stems removed and chopped
1 15oz can chick peas, drained and rinsed
1 15oz can diced tomatoes
1 handful dried cranberries
1 cup couscous
a handful shelled pistaschios

Peel the butternut squash, chop into bite size pieces, toss in olive oil, salt, and pepper and roast in the oven at 425F for about half and hour, until soft and the flavor deepened.

Meanwhile, start the onion softening in olive oil in a saute pan. When it is quite soft and a little brown, add the garlic and ras al hanut. When fragrant, add the kale and give it a quick saute. Add the tomaotes, chick peas, cinnamon stick, saffron and the soaking liquid, and dried cranberries. Stir in the roasted squash. Bring to a simmer, cover and turn the heat to low.

Bring 1 1/4 cups water to a boil in a saucepan. Add 1 cup couscous and a bit of salt. Stir, cover, and remove from the heat. Let sit for 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork.

To serve, dish couscous and top with the kale mixture. Top with pistaschios, a drizzle of olive oil and extra cranberries, if desired.

10 things i love about you (10 months old)

1. You are so out-going. You had such a hard start, your first months in life, but you still believe the world is a benevolent place that loves you. Maybe it's because you had so many caregivers in the early months.
2. Your easy smile. You see humor in everything.
3. You wake up happy, most days. Maybe I can learn how to do this from you.
4. I love your sweet voice, and the way that you say, "Da, da." Gently, with a slight "t" sound. You say it to Daddy and to me. It seems to mean, "One that I Love."
5. Your favorite foods are sweet potatoes and prunes. You are my little sweet potato.
6. You don't sleep in the carrier any more, and I miss the baby closeness of you sleeping in my arms all those long hours. But you do sleep all night long, in your crib, in a little ball like a turtle, on your knees with your butt up in the air. I know because I check on you and gaze at you late at night when I get home from work.
7. I love walking into your room in the morning, and you are standing up in your crib smiling and laughing at me.
8. You and your daddy have such a special thing. I love watching you play. You love your daddy so much and he is so tender and protective with you. You are a very lucky boy. He is a very lucky daddy.
9. You are such a busy boy. You are so industrious and very serious about the baby work you have to do. You examine things closely, with your little brow furrowed. You taste it. You drop it. You practice standing, and bending over to pick things up. You are amazed at what your little body can do.
10. Sometimes, when you are tired, you are still and I get to hold you again. Last night you woke up and needed a bottle and a snuggle. You relaxed in my arms and held so still, nursed your bottle and stared at me. You are the best thing.

Mushroom Immunity Soup

Our baby is 10 months old. I stopped pumping for him; he just gets formula now. I'm surprised that I don't feel sad, only relieved. I always thought that we would nurse for as long as we both wanted to... but I thought it would be longer than 5 months! If there is another baby, maybe we will nurse til it's 3.

He also gets big boy food. I make most of it myself. He loves prunes, yogurt, avocado, and spinach. Today he had curried cauliflower and sweet potato for breakfast.

I think a lot about food as medicine and I've been reading about alternative nutrition. I'd like to get deeper into ayurveda and Chinese medicine. We're doing a plant-based diet for awhile for health reasons--and I'd like to lose 10 pounds-- it feels really good to eat beans, lentils, grains and greens every day. This kind of food gives deep nourishment.

Usually I get colds in the winter. Usually, by this time of year, I'd had at least a few. Not this year. I think it's my mushroom immunity soup. I try to put as many superfoods as possible into this pot, and I feel it. I feel more robust and vibrant than ever before.
 

Mushroom Immunity Soup

2 tablespoons coconut oil
1 onion
1 jalapeno
8 ounces shitakes and/or other medicinal mushrooms
1 generous tablespoon fresh ginger
several cloves garlic
sea vegetables, kale, or other hearty green
fresh miso (kept in the refrigerated section)
rice noodles
fresh-squeezed lemon juice
cilatro, basil, or other fresh herb of your choice

Finely chop the onion, jalapeno, garlic, and ginger and soften in coconut oil in a heavy-bottomed pot over meduim heat. Rinse the shitakes, chop off the woody stems and put the stems in a large measuring cup or bowl and cover with a few cups of hot water to steep. Chop the mushrooms and add to the pot to brown. When softened, after 10 minutes or so, strain the stems from the mushroom water and add the broth to the pot. Bring to a boil for another 10 minutes. Add the greens and cook til tender. Put another small pot of water on to boil.

When you're ready to eat, cook the rice noodles in the separate pot of water until al dente. Put a tablespoon of fresh miso paste in the bottom of your bowl, add soup and stir to combine. Add the rice noodles; they will finish cooking in the bowl. Top with a squeeze of lemon juice, fresh herbs, and hot sauce if desired.


I wish you and yours good health this season.


This post is linked to the Tuned-In Tuesday Blog Hop.