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SQUASH!

We've been exploring the wide world of squash lately. I know more about squash than I ever thought I'd know. And I must say, I'm surprised. Squash can actually be good without gobs of cheese! The boys have enjoyed all the different squash surprises I've made, but I think they like the winter squash family better than the regular summer squash. I think it's the texture.

Would you like to learn about squash too?

Try these sites:

Delicious Organics - Tells you all about each type of squash and better yet, how they're usually cooked and eaten!

Wholesome Baby Food - This one breaks down the nutrition facts for squash and lists lots of recipes for the more advanced eater.

Homemade Baby Food Recipes - Got a spaghetti squash? Find out what to do with it here. By the way, the boys LOVED spaghetti squash!

A mom's blog - She's more ambitious than I am today and includes pictures...scroll down, they're there...

30 days to green

For those of you that can't handle the vinegar and baking soda approach to cleaning, check out this website.

Banana Baby Food

Banana's are the easiest food for making baby food by far. They are extremely portable as you can just drop a couple in your purse or diaper bag for feeding on the go. They come in a nice peel that comes right off and they are baby ready with a few mashes of your fork. They're also cheap. I got some at the farmers market for .49/lb. Brayden, who I swear is teething and has been for a while with no toothers to show for it, took a slice of banana and gummed it while I prepared bottles. It was a great way to keep him busy and satisfied.

As the babies get older, their are many fun things to make and do with bananas. Click here to see and get some great recipes and tips (for this and any other food).

DIY Dryer balls

Here's a great tutorial on making your own dryer balls. A good alternative to the plastic PVC balls you can buy. You'll never have to buy cling sheets again. = )

Power Bill

My power bill was down $50 this month! I only used the clothes line about half of the month, so I'm sure a lot of the decline is due to the cooler temperatures and less use of the a/c. But still, we're headed in the right direction. That's also with an increase in Alabama Power rates...

Sweet Potatoes

My camera died. So I will post the pictures later. For now, here's an update on the baby food making.

Mom gave me 4 HUGE sweet potatoes for the babies. With about 12 oz of formula added to the potatoes, they made a total of 5 1 /2 ice trays. That's appx. 66 servings of sweet potatoes! I use them 3 servings at a time, so knock that down to 22 servings for us. Still, that's a lot.

I washed, peeled, cubed, steamed, drained, and let the potatoes cool off. Then I dumped a few in my blender. WHY?! I guess because I was thinking baby food = blender. I don't know. After a failed mess in the blender. I got out my electric hand mixer (like one uses to make mashed potatoes, duh!) and added roughly 12 oz of formula and viola, it was done. I spooned it into ice trays, froze over night and then put the cubes in a freezer safe tupperware.

For some reason the sweet potatoes take a minute in the microwave and the pears only take 30 seconds... But it's that easy!

I've since read that you should not peel the sweet potatoes, but instead leave the skin on while steaming so that you retain the extra vitamins and them scoop the 'meat' of the potato away from the skin. Live and learn.

!

dice

mash

freeze