I’m back with another easy meal for you family + baby. These are meals we’ve cooked for ourselves and adapted for Jennings. We started baby-led weaning (BLW) over a month ago and it’s been great for Jennings and not as difficult as expected for us. I have a whole blog about starting BLW and all the things you need to know that you can read here:

Tonight we had salmon bowls for dinner. 

Here's a look at how WE ate it and how SHE ate it.

JENNINGS'S PLATE:

- Salmon: 
Cut into strips (about two finger widths in size) and seasoned with avocado oil, dill, and fresh lemon. Baked in the oven and served whole.

- Cauliflower:

Roasted in the oven with avocado oil and served in large florets.

- Strawberry:

I prepped these organic strawberries this week. I always wash and cut the tops and store in my favorite fridge organizer (linked below). I served these whole and she is able to bite off just small pieces at a time.  

Another option would’ve been to give her cucumber. To prepare that I would simply slice in half and offer. Bigger is better when starting BLW. 

OUR PLATE:

I served our dinner in bowl form. These consisted of baked salmon (with lemon and chili oil) and roasted cauliflower over rice. I topped with diced cucumbers and drizzled some taziki sauce on top. 

As you can see, we were able to have a complete [and normal!] meal while adapting it to meet our baby's needs for starting solids! Plus, she loved it which you can tell in these photos:

SHOP BLW MUST HAVES:

 Well, the day came and went and wow, it was so special. 

At six months old, Jennings finally saw her first concert. We waited until she could see a show close to him [just in case we needed to leave lol] and I, selfishly, felt it was necessary her first concert be a Chase Rice one. 

photo credit: Sam Ehrnstein

Eddie and I met because of Chase so it only felt appropriate for Jennings to go to one of his shows first. We made the trip [45ish minutes] to Gonzales where Chase was playing Cattle Country Fest. She ended up napping in the car and for about an hour in the Doona once we got there. Thank goodness for the long nap because she ended up not taking another one stayed up about 2.5 hours after bedtime to see Uncle Chase play. LOL. 

She did great though and loved watching the lights during the set. We ended up staying for about five songs before her limit was reached and we needed to head home. 

If you are looking for a sign to take your baby somewhere that you are nervous to take them, this is it. I had a bit of anxiety about the process but everything was super smooth and I have zero regrets (and a lot of memories). 

Tip: change your baby into pajamas before the show so when you get home they are ready to transition into bedtime. She fell asleep on the ride home and back asleep at home within a few minutes of her diaper change. 

Not a ton to say so I'll just share a ton of pictures of our little music gal and link all the things below we had in our bag for a smooth day. 

photo credit: Evan De Stefano

photo credit: Evan De Stefano

photo credit: Evan De Stefano

photo credit: Sam Ehrnstein

photo credit: Sam Ehrnstein

SHOP OUR MUST-HAVES FOR THE DAY:

 Happy National Laundry Day!

Truthfully I didn't know it was a thing until I watched the Today Show this morning. BUT, I already had this post in the queue so I decided to move it up and share today. 

Having a baby has changed a few things in our laundry room ; mainly the types of products we use. I started swapping out our home cleaning products prior to getting pregnant but once we had Jennings, laundry items became a priority. 

Here's A Few Laundry of Our Must-Haves:

- Molly's Suds Laundry Powder:

This was highly recommend by several friends and at the top of my list when I researched laundry powders with clean ingredients. It contains no dyes, SLS, formaldehyde, parabens, or optical brighteners. We use the fragrance free option which also eliminates allergens to fragrance. We not only wash J's laundry with it, but our own. It's gentle enough for her but tough enough for adult stains and smells. 

- Molly's Suds Laundry Pods:

Same as above but in pod form which some washers list as their preferred option. 

- Molly's Suds Dryer Sheets:

We just started using the dryer sheets and they work great. Not a ton to say other than we use the fragrance free, they work, and they are a great clean option!

- Molly's Suds Oxygen Whitener:

Pre-treat, aka Oxyclean, is awful. Lol. I said it. It works but the ingredients are basically just all toxins. We swapped to the Molly's Suds version and it works just as well without all the bad stuff in it. It uses lemon to brighten whites and work as a natural bleaching agent. 

- Miss Mouth's Stain Spray:

An absolute MUST for babies ESPECIALLY once they start foods. Cannot recommend it enough. I just spray on the stain and wait 15 minutes before washing. Usually the stain is gone before the wash even happens. Below is a blueberry before and after 15 minutes of being sprayed. 

 

Shop The Items + Laundry Organization: