Kale Applesauce

The key to good applesauce, a wise auntie once told me, is lots of different apples. The key to a healthy diet, a wise macrobiotic chef told me, is variety variety variety. This yummy and easy to make kale applesauce does both.

7-10 Apples of all kinds. Buy organic. Its better for baby and the environment. If you're feelin' kind crazy - add a pear or two!

Peal ½ the apples and cube. Leave the skin on the rest for fiber’s-sake.

Cover apples with water. Boil in sauce pan until soft. As apples cook, you might need to add more water.

WHEN APPLES ARE SOFT, turn heat off and add 10 leaves of stemmed kale (to remove the stems, just rip leaves off).

Turn off Heat.

Mix in kale. Cover until wilted.

Put in blender and blend for 3 minutes.

 

Freeze in ice cube trays and add to all smoothies, yogurt, and oatmeal. Add water to make popsicles.

Our NEXT Super Baby Foods class is 2/13 @11am. Come learn how to make kale applesauce and more!

Is it time to wean yet?

by Holli Shiro

PART TWO
When you’re ready to start weaning, weaning can be mother-led or baby-led, but often it is a combination of both, with the mother watching for cues that her child is ready to be nudged a little closer to weaning completely from the breast. Some moms may be ready to wean completely, others may be feeling overwhelmed by the number of nursing sessions in a day, but aren’t quite ready to wean completely. Cutting down on nursing sessions can help bring some balance back to her life. It is generally not advisable to wean abruptly since this can be traumatizing to the child and cause mom to be susceptible to plugged ducts and mastitis.   

Common weaning strategies
Nursing is about more than just nutrition for mother and child. For the child, it is a source of comfort and love, and as many experienced moms know, a quick nursing session can soothe an upset child, calm down an over-stimulated one or serves as a no-fail way to get their baby to sleep. When you are taking away this experience at the breast for your child, it needs to be replaced with something that conveys the same message of love and comfort.  

1.  Don’t offer, don’t refuse: you can stop offering nursing sessions, but at the same time, nurse if her child requests it or clearly needs it.

2.  Use distraction or substitution: if child asks to nurse, offer a snack or to read a book or play a game instead. You can also change parts of your daily routine to eliminate a predictable nursing time.

3.  Use delay:  if child asks to nurse, tell her you’ll do it after you finish the dishes or fold the laundry, etc. The child may forget about nursing by the time you are finished.

4.  Limit nursing sessions. You can set limits, such as only nursing at home, not in public or nursing for the duration of a song or to the count of 10. 

5.  Involve dad or other family member in distracting child from a nursing session you want to drop. Can be especially helpful at bedtime or first thing in the morning.

Fertility and Nutrition

Join us for our very first Healthy Pregnancy Lecture of the year!

Wednesday January 19th, 6:00 p.m.

FREE!

Stephanie Jurgenson, holistic health coach, will offer an interesting presentation on how to nourish and even boost your fertility. A professionally trained and certified nutritionist, Stephanie will share all kinds of tips and insight into getting on a healthy track of well-being that also integrates pregnancy-readiness.

TO RSVP for the lecture: e-mail lani@babyawearness.com or Stephanie Jurgenson 783-0163

Is It Time to Wean Yet?

by Holli Shiro

PART ONE
Technically speaking, weaning begins when something other than breastmilk is introduced to baby. For some babies weaning begins with a supplemental bottle of formula, for others it’s their first taste of rice cereal or smashed bananas. From this perspective, weaning is often a long process of gradually replacing breastmilk with other foods over the period of six months to several years.  Many mothers hear that their breastmilk no longer nutritionally benefits their baby after six months or one year of age. On the contrary, breastmilk continues to be highly nutritious and delivers immunological benefits to a growing baby or toddler for as long as they are breastfeeding.

The World Health Organization recommends: “Exclusive breastfeeding is recommended up to 6 months of age, with continued breastfeeding along with appropriate complementary foods up to two years of age or beyond.”

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends: “Pediatricians and parents should be aware that exclusive breastfeeding is sufficient to support optimal growth and development for approximately the first 6 months of life and provides continuing protection against diarrhea and respiratory tract infection. Breastfeeding should be continued for at least the first year of life and beyond for as long as mutually desired by mother and child.”

Natural weaning age
Anthropologist Katherine Dettwyler has studied weaning ages in primates according to different variables, such as weaning according to tripling or quadrupling birth weight, gestation length, attaining 1/3 of adult weight, adult body size and weaning according to emergence of permanent molars. When applied to humans, natural weaning age ranges from a minimum of two years old to a maximum of seven years old. Of course, cultural norms play a large part in deciding when to wean completely from the breast. For non-western cultures, nursing until age 3 is common. Mothers in western cultures often wean at a much younger age.

Deciding to wean: what to consider
Child’s reasons for continuing to nurse: 
Tastes good, feels good, source of comfort and quality time with mom

Child’s reasons for weaning: 
Distracted by other activities, eating and drinking other foods

Mom’s reasons for continuing to nurse: 
Easy and free, good nutrition and immunological benefits, mothering tool

Mom’s reasons for weaning: 
Feels “touched out”, returning to work or school, desires return of fertility, outside pressures

Radical Homemakers Reading Group

I am so looking forward to starting our Radical Homemaking Reading Group on January 20th, at 7pm! If you are curious what I mean by Radical Homemaking, please check out this short story in the weekly.

Radical Homemaking is, at its core, about building sustainable, healthy communities through family. This reading group will be an opportunity for us to discuss the necessary conditions of possibility for us all to be our own version of a radical homemaker.


Prior to our first meeting, please pick up a copy of Radical Homemaking at the store, and read the preface and intro. These short and easy to read chapters lay out the organization of the book and will give all of us an idea of what we're in for. 


At our first meeting, we will set the schedule for future meetings and draft a short list of relevant books that we can read after Radical Homemaking. Finally, because skill-sharing and community building are the foundations for all radical homemaking, we will also come up with a list of workshops we are interested in having in conjunction with our reading group meetings.

Doula Tea Returns this Saturday!

Doula Tea Time
Saturday, January 15th 
2:00 to 4:00 p.m.

Our first doula tea was such a full house that we are bringing it back! If you missed it last month, stop by the store this Saturday afternoon and enjoy some Earth Mama tea samples while learning all about doulas. You'll get to meet some of Honolulu's finest certified doulas and have all your questions answered. Find out how having a doula can be helpful to you and your partner and baby-to-come.

A few questions and topics to ask about:

• Who should come to my birth?
• Why hire a doula?
• What are the benefits of having a doula?
• Coping with labor, the doula way

Baby A Exchange Launches

Start the new year off right! Out with the old and in with the re-newed!

Join us this Saturday, January 8, 2011, from 10 - 4 pm, as we celebrate the launch of  Baby A Exchange (BAX) at Baby Awearness in Manoa Marketplace. This will be the first and biggest "Buy-In" event of the year!  

From 10 am to 4 pm during BAX's "Buy-In," we will hand pick high-quality, gently-used goods from the public. This is a perfect opportunity for you to off load those not-so-perfect items received during the holiday season, or simply to clean out your closets. Join us and and invite your friends along in getting a fresh start in 2011 (and a little extra cash)! 

Baby A Exchange is a store by the community, for the community. 100% of our items will be bought directly from local customers to keep pre-loved goodies from going to waste. We curate for the high-end and the eco-friendly, offering clothing, toys and accessories for both mama and baby. No more sifting through piles of junk at the thrift store or waiting months to get repaid at a typical consignment shop. We give cash or store credit for your items on the spot. You'll get more value for your stuff if you're willing to accept trade (store credit) instead of cash.
 

We only buy and sell the best at Baby A Exchange.
BAX accepts high-quality, gently-used cloth diapers, carriers, toys, clothing and other parenting accessories including maternity clothes.
Think "boutique eco-fashion" -- not Goodwill. For all accepted items,
you will have a choice of being paid in cash, store credit,
and/or donating any portion of your payment to a local non-profit.

Additionally, a portion of proceeds from all Baby A Exchange purchases will be donated to various non-profits. Non-profits interested in being a beneficiary of the Baby A Exchange, should contact Amanda@babyawearness.com. 

For guidelines and further details on how BAX works, read here. If you have any questions or need to speak to a team member, please call the store at 808.988.0010.