5 homemade baby food combinations that your baby will love, and how to store them.

It’s true what they say about each child being different. I have 3 young boys, and while they are similar in many ways, they are very different in others. This is especially true when it comes to their tastes in food. My 7 year old will eat just about anything, and my 4 year old is very picky!

We just had baby boy number 3 at the beginning of this year, and we are finally getting to see some of his personality. With my first two boys, they were perfectly content to eat any baby food that we gave them, but our most recent addition to the family loves homemade baby food made with different combinations of flavors.

We started him out with rice cereal and he enjoyed that for awhile. That was convenient for me of course, because all I had to do was add some water and stir until it was ready to go. Whenever I made rice cereal for him, I liked to use Gerber® Pure® Water. I use it to mix his rice cereal and to include in homemade baby foods, because it is specially purified for babies. Anything that I can do to help my baby grow up strong is good in my book! You can find out more information about Gerber® Pure® Water here and you can buy it at your local Walmart.

After a few weeks of rice cereal, it was clear that my baby was going to need something else. I gave him baby food from the store for his age, but I quickly found that it was easier to make my own homemade baby foods and he liked them even more! Today I am going to share 5 of the best homemade baby food combinations. My baby loves them and I am sure that yours will too.

1. Apple, Banana, Cinnamon, & Oatmeal

This one is made by adding half a cup of old fashioned oats with one cup of Gerber® Pure® Water and 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon in a small saucepan. Then heat it over medium for 3-5 minutes. While that is cooking, peel the apple and cut it into small cubes. Finally, add the oatmeal, bananas and the apples to a blender and blend until smooth.

2. Spinach, Sweet Peas, and Flank Steak

To make this delicious combination, cook the flank steak in a pot with a couple of cups of boiling Gerber® Pure® Water. Once cooked, you can shred it or just cut it into small pieces so you can blend it easier. Open a can of sweet peas, drain out the liquid, and rinse. The last ingredient is half a bunch of spinach. Add the steak, the sweet peas, and the cleaned and disinfected spinach to a blender and blend until smooth.

3. Carrots and Squash

Take one bag of baby carrots and cook in one liter of boiling Gerber® Pure® Water until soft. Do the same with one squash. Add the carrots and squash with a pinch of ground turmeric to a blender and blend until smooth.

4. Mangoes, Kale, and Ginger

Take the meat from one fresh mango (or a can of mangoes in 100% juice) and a half bunch of kale and add it to a blender with a pinch of ground ginger. Add a couple of tablespoons of Gerber® Pure® Water and blend until smooth

5. Blueberry, Avocado, and Pears

Drain the juice from one can of pears, rinse and add to a blender. Do the same with a can of pears. Finally, add one mature peeled and cored avocado to the blender. Once everything is in the blender, blend until smooth.

Storage Tips

1. Mason Jars. You can find small glass mason jars with white plastic tops. This is where you can store the food that your little one is going to eat within 1-3 weeks if refrigerated. Just add the baby food and tighten the lid before storing in the refrigerator. If you need to store it for longer, you can *freeze in these jars or follow one of the other tips below. Don’t forget to label them!

1. Plastic Storage Containers with Lid. Another way to store these is to add the baby food to a small plastic storage container with lids. You can refrigerate these as well or *freeze them. You will want to label each of these as well.

1. Ice Cube Tray. One of my favorite ways to store homemade baby food is to put them into the individual spaces on an ice tray right after I make them. Then you cover them with plastic wrap and put them in the freezer. Once they are frozen, you can remove them just like you would an ice cube and store in individual, labeled bags in the *freezer. When you are ready to serve them to your baby, select 3 or 4 “baby food cubes” and heat in the microwave for around 1 minute, or until it returns to the original consistency.

*using each of these methods, you can store the baby food in the freezer for up to 3 months.

My baby has been a happy camper ever since I started making these homemade baby foods for him. The great thing is that you can make all of these in less than an hour, you can make a lot, and you will save money in the process.

What combinations of baby foods have you tried? Let me know in the comments below.

The post The 5 Best Homemade Baby Food Combinations appeared first on My Latina Table.

If you had told me 7 years ago when I moved to the United States for the first time, that I would be able to make a good income to supplement my husband’s job, I probably would have told you were crazy. Yet here I am – raising my three little boys alongside my husband, working from home on my own schedule, and bringing in some money at the same time.

I have always loved cooking, but I never thought that I could make money sharing the recipes I learned in my youth. A couple of years ago, however, my sister-in-law started a very successful blog and encouraged my husband and I to start one as well.

At that time, my husband was still in school and we were definitely struggling with finances a little bit. I had two little boys and I wanted to be with them as much as possible. At the same time, I wanted to help my husband as much as possible. My dilemma was figuring out how to make some money, and still spend as much time with my kids as possible. An online blog business was a perfect choice for us.

In today’s society, it is definitely difficult to survive on one income. I made the decision a long time ago that I wanted to stay home with my kids. I understand, however, that that isn’t the right decision for everyone. I respect moms that are able to work outside of the home and I hope that they never feel guilty about it. We should all support each other.

I am grateful to be working with BBVA Compass, who sponsored this post, to share some tips with all of you on how I am able to work from home and feel good about it. I love the podcast that I just listened to which called “Mompreneurs” and which gives some great practical advice which is definitely relevant to the blog business which I have built. You can find it and other great podcasts on the Working Moms Mean Business section of the BBVA Compass website here.

With that introduction, I hope you enjoy the following five tips for working from home and enjoying it.

Find something to do that you enjoy

If I didn’t love cooking and taking pictures of food like the one below, I don’t think my blog would have lasted as long as it has or been as successful. When I decided to create a blog, I knew that the main focus would be on the delicious recipes that I learned how to make in Mexico. It then expanded to a few other topics, such as parenting and DIY, but the main focus is still on food.

Lemon Carlota – Click The Image For The Recipe.

My first bit of advice is to really figure out what interests you and get to work! If you are able to find a job for someone else that lets you work from home, and it is in an industry that you enjoy, I say go for it. If you want to work for yourself, it is even easier to find something that you like. Do your market research and give it a go. There are so many resources online for starting a blog or really any other business.

Plan Your Week In Advance

One of the struggles of raising my kids and working from home is managing my time. I have started setting fixed hours during the day and evening when I can dedicate almost completely to my blog business. That way I am never scrambling to get my work done and my husband and kids know what I am doing as well.

I am able to coordinate my time so that I am not taking away time from my kids and their activities, but I am also not compromising the success of my blog. I usually try to work about 2 hours per day, but sometimes it is more. It really depends on the nature of your work and your long term goals.

Set up a space dedicated to your work

I can’t understate the importance of this one. There are times when I will just sit at the kitchen table and work, but those time are usually the least effective. This last year we bought a pretty nice desk and put it in a place in the house where I am able to concentrate and edit picture, write blog posts, and promote them. It has really made a difference and combined with the second point above, has helped me to make a lot of progress.

We are getting ready to move to a new home and I am excited to set up a more official home office that I can dedicate to my work. I am excited not only about the space, but also about the potential tax benefits.

Lean on your support system

I am fortunate to have a husband who has supported me in this business from the beginning. He helps me with some of the blog posts, watches the kids when I am working on something, motivates me, and much more.

It is so important to have a support system when working from home on your own business. It is even more important to be able to lean on them and accept their help. This can be a husband, kids, friends, or really anyone. Let them know how much you appreciate them and let them help you!

Don’t feel guilty

Sometimes when I am working I feel guilty – I feel like I should be spending more time with my kids instead of working on a blog post. It was hard for me to get over this and sometimes I still feel it.

What has really helped me though, is following the tips above and remembering that my family is the reason that I am doing this.

I enjoy what I do, and that is important, but the real reason is because I want to contribute in some small way to my family’s success and happiness.

There is a great e-book that I read recently called “Mom Guilt.” It goes over a lot of these topics and how you can stop feeling guilty for working. I suggest it to any of you working moms out there who could use some support. You can download it for free here.

I hope that these tips are helpful to some of you. It hasn’t been easy being a “work from home mom”, but it has been worth it. I have been able to do it without affecting my children’s schedule and it has truly been a blessing for my family.

If you are a working mom, what are some ways that you have been able to balance work and family life? I would love to hear about it in the comments section below.

The post Five Tips For Working From Home appeared first on My Latina Table.

Getting your kids to drink more water can be difficult, in this article, I will share three fun ways to make it easier.

Colorado is such a great place to live and there are so many different things to do outdoors as a family. Of course going to the mountains is always a fun destination, but there are a lot of other parks and activities that are fun as well.

One thing that all of these activities have in common is that they can definitely make you tired! Walking around through the mountains or going on hikes can really take the energy right out of you and it can be easy to get dehydrated. That is why whenever we plan one of these activities, we make sure that we have lots of water with us to keep us going strong all day.

Of course when kids are involved, they are much more interested in running around and finding things to do then in drinking water and staying hydrated. I usually have to remind them to drink water when we are out on our trips, and it can turn into a bit of a battle sometimes. That is why today I want to share three things that I do to get my kids to actually want to drink their water and to enjoy it.

I always make sure that I have a healthy supply of bottled water at our house, so that when we do head out, I don’t have to worry about whether we will have any. In order to have enough water, I am always looking for the best value. For example, at Walmart now you can get a great value on Nestlé® Pure Life® bottled water – now a 35 pack is the same cost as the old 32 pack (35 pack is only available in stores – not online).

If the 35-pack of Nestle Pure Life is not available in your local Walmart, please ask a store manager about getting the product in your area.

Nestle Pure Life is re-launching in mid-May and it will have new packaging. We love Nestle Pure Life because we know that they are committed to quality through their 12 Step Quality Process, which you can read about here. Being hydrated is so important, so now is a great time to stock up on Nestle Pure Life, especially since you are getting more for your money. Visit nestlepurelife.com to sign up for promotions, offers and more.

Now for the tips!

GET YOUR KIDS TO DRINK MORE WATER BY ADDING FRESH FRUIT

One thing that I have done that has really worked to get my boys to drink more water is adding fresh fruit. This is so simple, but the kids love it!

The sky is really the limit here – you can choose whatever variety or combination of fruit that you want and that you know your kids enjoy. For example, I will sometimes add a couple of wedges of lemon and a few raspberries to a glass of water.

Whenever I do this, they can’t wait to drink their water! You can open up a bottle of Nestle Pure Life to and it it in before closing the lid and taking it with you on the road as well.

GET YOUR KIDS TO DRINK MORE WATER BY MAKING FRUIT FLAVORED ICE CUBES

Another fun thing that I have done to help my kids drink more water is making fruit flavored ice cubes. I do this by getting some fresh orange juice, and adding it to an ice cube tray until they are frozen. Once they are frozen all the way, I add them to a glass or bottle of water and the kids love it.

The combination of the color and a slightly different flavors makes water even more exciting for the kids, which is great for me!

GET YOUR KIDS TO DRINK MORE WATER BY USING STRAWS AND DECORATING THE GLASS

This last tip may seem kind of silly, but at least with my kids, just adding a straw and a little bit of decoration to a glass of water is enough to get them to drink it without complaining.

There are a lots of straws that you can get that are in fun shapes and colors and kids love them! In addition to the straws, I will occasionally cut a couple of pieces of cucumber into round pieces and put it on the edge of the glass. The kids may not eat the cucumber, but they sure like having it on there!

I don’t know what it is about the straw, but this always seems to work for us.

A few weeks ago we went down to the Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs for the weekend. It was so beautiful seeing all of the red rocks and walking along the trails. That said, it was a very warm day (especially for spring time in Colorado!), so we had to stay hydrated.

I used some of these tips, and I didn’t have to worry about whether my kids would drink the water or not. I hope they work for you to and I would love to hear how you get your kids to drink more water in the comments below.

The post Three Fun Ways To Get Your Kids To Drink More Water appeared first on My Latina Table.

Introduction

Marriage is hard. There is no way around that fact. There are always going to be high moments and low moments. The key is getting through those low moments together.

Most people, when they get married,  want their marriage to last forever (I hope so at least!). That is a worthy goal, and one that I believe is possible if both spouses truly want it to happen. However, with divorce rates being reported at around 40-50% of all marriages, I can see why it is hard for some to be optimistic about the chances of their marriage succeeding.

My wife and I have been married for almost 7 years now, and of course we have had our ups and downs. I doubt that there are any couples that haven’t. Nevertheless, we are still together and we still love each other and try to express that to each other as often as possible. Although I am no expert on marriage or family relations, I have learned a lot in the past 7 years, which is what leads me to this list of 5 ways to revive your marriage. Even if you feel like your marriage is strong now, there are always ways to improve it and to make it stronger.

As a disclaimer, I know that every marriage is different. I know that it may be hard to do all of these things, all the time. I know that there are things that work for some marriages that don’t work for everyone. With all of that said, I believe that you if are having problems in your marriage, doing any (or all) of these five things, will help you improve, or even save, your marriage.

In sum, if you want to revive any aspect of your marriage, you should do these of these 5 things!

#1 – Don’t Put Your Needs Before Those Of Your Spouse

The first way to revive your marriage is to not put your needs before those of your spouse. Being in a marriage requires love, devotion, selflessness, and sacrifice. There are going to be times where you know that there is something that your spouse needs or wants, but that may conflict with what you need or want in that moment. When that happens, if you both dig in your heels and are unwilling to compromise, inevitably it will create stress on your marriage.

I’m not trying to say that you always have to give in, and you always have to do what your spouse says. However, if both of you are really focusing on your spouse’s needs and wants rather than on your won, I truly believe that you will find an equilibrium and be able to compromise as much as possible. When your spouse sees, and truly knows, that you care about their needs, they will more than likely reciprocate and you will know that they care about yours too.

So how can you tell if you are putting your needs before those of your spouse? Here are two very similar examples. These may seem small or petty, but sometimes those can turn into the biggest issues.

• There is a big football game that you (husband) want to watch this weekend, but  your wife had already planned a girls night out and  needs you to watch the kids. You refuse and go out to watch the game anyway, leaving your wife to figure something out with the kids. Compromise –  You talk to each other and get a babysitter, or you figure out a way to watch the game somewhere that you can watch the kids. Maybe you can DVR the game and watch it later?
• You (wife) plan a girls night out at the last minute, but your husband has been planning to watch a big football game with his dad for weeks. You shut down and refuse to change your plans, leaving him with the kids and with the need to cancel with his dad. Compromise – same as above. The key is to talk and figure it out together.

While the above example may not seem like a big deal, pretty much every marital problem can fall into this category of putting your needs before those of your spouse. Some of the big causes of marital strife and divorce are infidelity, pornography, and financial issues. It doesn’t require too much imagination to figure out how each of these can begin by putting your needs first.

#2 – Be Open And Transparent About Your Finances

Finances can be the root of a lot of arguments and disagreements in a marriage. You don’t have to be a marriage expert to know why. As bad as it may sound, so many things in life require money. It seems like every time you turn around there is another bill in the mail or an emergency that you weren’t expecting – and all of that is on top of the monthly bills and everything else that you have to pay already!

While it is true that money can’t buy everything, and that money alone won’t make you happy, it can make some things easier in life.

For many people you can’t control how much money you make or how many bills you have – there are a lot of unknowns in life and factors that we can’t do anything about. You can, however, control how you choose to communicate about money and those other unknowns in life with your spouse. From my own personal experience and what I have seen in others, not being transparent about these issues can only cause problems.

For example, lets say that you (husband or wife) are the main provider for the family. You make the money, you pay the bills, and you know all of the details about all of your accounts. Now lets say that your spouse doesn’t know anything about your finances – how much you make, how much you have to pay each month in bills, how much you are saving, etc. So what happens when your spouse thinks that everything is going great, and all of a sudden he or she wants to buy something expensive that was not in the budget. Now, if everything really is fine and there is enough to cover it, this may not be an issue. If, on the other hand, things aren’t great and you don’t have enough to cover the expense, what do you do? I can tell you that if you just get mad and say no without explaining why or being transparent, things could get ugly fast.

The better way to handle this, in my opinion, is for both spouses to have, at the very least, a general idea of your family’s financial situation. There is nothing wrong with one spouse making the money, paying the bills, handling the accounts, etc., but that doesn’t mean that the other spouse shouldn’t at least know how much money the other makes. This likely will not solve all financial arguments or disagreements that you might have, but I do believe that it can solve many.

Even if one spouse takes care of most of the finances, you both should agree on the budget and be dedicated to making sure that it works!

#3 – Never Go To Bed Angry (Or, In General, Leave Issues Unresolved)

One of the first pieces of advice that my wife and I received was to never go to bed angry. This advice has proved to be invaluable. I know that other people think that “sleeping it off” is the better way to resolve an argument. I have to say that there have been very few times that we do go to bed without talking through an argument. When we have, it isn’t resolved in the morning and we have to end up talking about it anyway. Because of that, we always try to talk about anything that is bothering us before we go to bed. There have been times when we don’t even want to talk to each other for a few minutes, but in the end we always work it out (and usually end up laughing about it) by talking through it.

In general holding a grudge against your spouse is a recipe for disaster. There are two quotes that I have heard that really explain it well – the first I remember hearing, but I am not sure who it is originally attributed to, and it says, “holding a grudge is like drinking poison and waiting for the other person to die.” The other is from Tim McGraw’s song, “Humble and Kind.” In one part of the song, he says “Don’t hold a grudge or a chip and here’s why, bitterness keeps you from flyin’, always stay humble and kind.” It is true – if you are bitter or holding a grudge, it will not allow you to elevate your marriage to a higher level and make it better.

This is one that will come up often in your marriage – if you want your marriage to last, do not leave issues unresolved and try not to go to bed angry as often as possible.

#4 – Go On Dates On A Regular Basis

Chances are that when you were dating, you were actually going on dates. Quite the concept, right? Chances also are that after a couple years of marriage (or less) you are used to the standard routine of work, school, sleep, etc. If you have kids, you may feel like you don’t have time to spend with your spouse and even if you did, who is going to watch them?

This one is tough and my wife and I definitely don’t go on as many dates as we would like to. It seems like the weeks come and go and between all of our own activities and those of our kids, we have a hard time fitting in dates. When we do go on dates, we are always able to reconnect and relax, taking a break from the normal routine. I fully believe that going on regular dates can save and/or strengthen a marriage.

So how do you do it? Well, make it a priority. Start out with a goal to go on at least one date per month. Once you have that down, try to go once every two weeks, and so forth until you are able to go out at least once a week.

Now a date doesn’t have to be anything fancy – I would define a date as really anything that you can do together, as a couple, in an environment where you are able to talk. Even if that talking only happens in the car on your way to a movie and afterwards.

10 Ideas for Date Night

1. Dinner and Movie – a classic, but still a good one.
2. Picnic in the park
3. Couples massage
4. Doing a volunteer project together
5. Go to an amusement park
6. Get together with a group of couples and play this Who Dunit? Group Mystery Date Night
7. Go to the Zoo
8. Go to a sporting event that you both enjoy
9. Play miniature golf
10. Go bowling

If you want to mix it up a bit, you might want to buy this Year of Dates Binder which includes 12 “done-for-you” date nights!

#5 – Do The “Little Things”

During the dating and honeymoon stages, it is normal to want to try to impress your significant other. Maybe you are leaving them notes, buying them flowers, picking them up for surprise dates, and more. These acts may be small, but they make a huge difference, because they show your spouse that you are thinking about them and that you want them to feel special.

As the months and years go on, it can be easy to forget about doing these little things. With work, kids, cleaning, activities, and more, it can feel overwhelming to do anything other than come home and relax before going to bed. While it may be common to forget about doing these little things, it is something that can definitely contribute to the downfall of a marriage. It may not be the main cause, but it can contribute to it and can create a gap between you and your spouse.

I truly believe that doing the little things on a regular basis can help strengthen, and even save, a marriage. Think about all of the time that you spend on your phone, surfing the internet, or just doing things that are not as important as your marriage! Doing something small to show your spouse that you are thinking about them, and that you love them, doesn’t have to take long at all. It can be as simple as writing a note and leaving it where you know they will find it during the day. It can be buying them flowers on a day other than Mother’s Day.

It can be coming home from work and taking the kids for a while so that he or she can rest. Since you are probably going to be using your smartphone most of the day anyway, you can even just try to send a special text message every day. If you need some idea starters, check out these 365 Love Text Messages which you can get for $3.65.

Whatever you do, make sure that it comes from your heart and that it is something that will really show them how much you care.

If you have fallen out of the habit of doing these things, your spouse may think it is odd when you start doing it again – they might even be suspicious –  but as it becomes something that you do on a regular basis, he or she will hopefully be able to see how much you care and that could make all the difference!

Here are a couple of other inexpensive digital products that you can purchase to help you out with this important aspect of a healthy marriage.

1. Sexy Sticky Notes
2. Printable Love Sticky Notes
3. Open When … Letters
4. Love Text Messages 2.0
5. Love Letters of the Month

 Conclusion

Anyone who tells you that marriage is easy probably hasn’t been married. There will always be good days and bad days. The secret is learning how to work through the bad ones and to make the most of the good ones. Not doing one of the things on this list may not mean that your marriage is going to fail, but not doing any of them may. No one is perfect, and there may be stages of your marriage where you aren’t doing the best that you can. When that happens, evaluate the areas where you need to improve, and make the effort to do so. It will be worth it to you and your spouse.

I would love to hear your thoughts in the comments section below.

The post 5 Ways To Revive Your Marriage appeared first on My Latina Table.

I recently wrote a post titled, “The Breastfeeding Survival Guide for First Time Moms.” In that article I talk a little bit about the difficult experiences that I had breastfeeding my first born and how I survived that difficult stage with lots of help, including these 10 products. They helped me to gain a strong bond with my baby during the breastfeeding process and in the end we were able to learn so much together.

Keep breastfeeding if you can, don’t give up, and I promise that it will get better every day, and before you know it breastfeeding will seem just as natural as taking a drink of water.

1. Electric BreastPump: This tool will quickly become your best friend in this new adventure. It performs a similar role as your baby in that it creates a sucking motion that helps increase your milk supply. I used it quite a bit in the first few days when my baby wasn’t latching on correctly and I needed to avoid an excess accumulation of milk. I also liked to use it about 10 minutes before nursing, because it helped get the milk flowing which kept my baby from getting impatient and crying. 
2. Breastmilk Storage Bags: These don’t need much explanation – if you are using an electric breastpump, you will need somewhere to store the extra milk where it will be safe from bacteria. You can find many options on Amazon.
3. Nursing Bra: You will need a good nursing bra that is comfortable and that provides easy access for your baby. When you are not home, this will be one of your best friends.
4. Nursing Cover: Whether you buy one or make one, you will definitely want to have one of these in your baby bag so that you can comfortably feed your baby in public. If you go to this site, and enter the code SAVE35MLT, you can get one for free and you will just pay a small amount for shipping.
5. Nursing Pillow: This, without a doubt, was one of my favorite products. It allowed me to hold onto my baby more comfortably when I was nursing him. You can get one for free at www.nursingpillow.com using the code A4E56C
6. Nursing Pads: I never had to worry about leaking milk until I started breastfeeding. Of course at first I was filled with pride, because only a few weeks earlier I was so worried that I couldn’t produce enough milk, and now I couldn’t get it to stop! The truth is that it isn’t a great experience to be at a meeting or activity when you start leaking milk. Keeping a pack of these nursing pads in your bag can definitely help you to avoid those embarrassing moments.
7. Clean Towel: It is important to have a clean towel nearby when you are breastfeeding so that you can dry the nipple area after nursing. Humidity in that area creates a perfect environment for bacteria, and you want to avoid that because your baby will be eating from there again very soon.
8. Lanolin: Fortunately there are a lot of great nipple creams on the market, including Lanolin. These are 100% safe for your baby and they provide instant relief for dry, cracked nipples. I used this at least 2-3 times per day in the first few weeks and it was a lifesaver!
9. Gel Pads: These are amazing and they also provide instant relief. I had a couple pairs of these and I always kept one in the refrigerator so that they were ready when I needed them.
10. Nipple Shield: I had never heard of these until one day that my nipples hurt so bad an were so cracked that I thought I couldn’t bear any more. That day, one of my friends suggested that I try these, and although they can be a little bit uncomfortable at first, they definitely do the job and protect your nipples on especially painful days.

Without a doubt there are countless products available to help us in this difficult, but wonderful job of being a mother. If you aren’t sure what some of these products are called where you live, just copy and paste the word and search the internet and you will be able to find lots of options! These products were so helpful for me, ad I hope that they help you as well.

Remember, failure isn’t not being able to do something, failure is never having tried. Good luck and congratulations on your decision to breastfeed!

The post 10 Breastfeeding Essentials For First Time Moms appeared first on My Latina Table.