ChowBaby

you may or may not know this. but there are two federal agencies that
regulate the food industry. the FDA (or Food and Drug Administration)
and the Agriculture Department. one oversees both drugs and anything
to do with meat and/or poultry in the food supply (that's the FDA, of
course) while the other oversees the rest of the food supply (and that
would be the Agriculture Department).
 
why are they split up? you're not the only one wondering that. you
also can't help but wonder if things like melamine in our infant
formula and salmonella in our kids' peanut butter wouldn't be better
avoided with one central agency that institutes strict food safety
guidelines (instead of the "voluntary" ones now in place--whose crazy
idea was that?!) and strict penalties for anyone who breaks the rules.
especially when leading experts assert that federal agencies "don't do
anything until people get sick." uh, hello? can anyone say prevention?
read more about current policies and what obama might
do in this New York Times article.

-m

YUM! EAT THIS...
a lovely, family-friendly recipe for squash and chickpea moroccan stew (via Smitten Kitchen)
3 family-friendly, easy veggies recipes (via Cookie Magazine)
a super healthy tofu (or chickpea) stir fry with spinach and okra (via Sassy Radish)
Making Orange Sherbet with Your Kids (complete with video!) (via Tara Parker-Poke's Well blog)
healthy, family-friendly turkey meatball recipe (via The Kitchn)
inexpensive, nutritious foods easily purchased in bulk (via Not Eating Out in New York)
Healthy Foods for Under $1 (via Tara Parker-Poke's Well blog)

INTERESTING! READ THIS...
5-year-old chef gets his own show (via NPR)
a review of Mark Bittman's Food Matters: A Guide to Conscious Eating (via Salon)
the problem of health care for farmers and how it impacts our food supply (via The Ethicurean)
the science of developing taste buds--from in utero onward (via the The Calgary Herald)

OF COURSE! TRY THIS...
a great hack to get sick kids to sip water while sleeping (via Parent Hacks)

USEFUL! LOOK INTO THIS...
Ziploc Zip n' Steam bags--worth it? (via The Kitchn)
Tilty sippy cups (via Weelicious)
small, melamine bento boxes perfect for toddlers and lil kids (via Oh Dee Doh)
reusable sandwich bags (via Cool Mom Picks)
reusable lunchbox napkins (via Springwise)

-S

as we all know, the price of milk last year reached an all time high. so high, it cost $3.89 per gallon last july. ouch! but the faltering global economy is changing all that. it's driving the demand for dairy products way down even as supply increases. and while consumers are saying yay! farmers (who are also consumers, don't forget) are saying nay!

and just as the government stepped in to rescue banks and car companies, they are now stepping in to help farmers. critics of farm subsidies argue that they allow farmers to continue producing even when the economics don't add up. that means that, ultimately, taxpayers (like you, me, and stacie) pay the price. and while i'd rather see government funds go to struggling farmers instead of poorly managed banks, the whole thing still makes me uneasy. read the details in  new york times article here.  

 
—m

happy weekend. here's a quick little find. straws made out of straws.

you'll see that i spied these on a design-focused blog that mike reads, swiss miss. he suggested that i read it since the writer, tina, is a mom who often posts cool, beautiful kids stuff. i love the her picks and thought that you might want to look, too.

the straws are from a japanese store called muji. they were the 2008 muji award prize winner (the theme of which was "found muji"--very cool concept). i looked up muji because i recognized the name. turns out, they have a small store in the new jet blue terminal (where i was recently stuck for hours). their only other US stores are in NYC, so it may not be so easy to get these straws for now. but keep your eye on this company. they are growing quickly and have an inspiring eco-minded point-of-view. we'd love for muji to make well-designed, eco-minded eat- and drink-ware widely available around the world!

-S

yes... i'm catching up on my New York Times reading before heading to a christmas eve gathering. this is a good one. i've been wanting to write about president-elect obama's selection of tom vilsak for secretary of agriculture since it happened last week, but haven't had time to read up because of my travels and the holidays. this article, Is a New Food Policy on Obama's List, is a nice introduction to what some people are looking for... and what we might get. more on tom after the holiday rush dies down--he's a bit of a controversial pick. or were our hopes too high?

another tidbit--michael pollan on vilsack.

-S

it's about time. though still not enough and not fast enough. but something is better than nothing, for sure. here's the article from today's New York Times.

-S

hello from muggy louisiana. we finally made it here after a seriously botched travel day. we were booked on a 7:15 am flight from new york to new orleans but after waking up at 5 am, we were still running late. we reached the gate at 7:14 am to find that the plane was gone. not closed. not locked. GONE. as in no where near the gate. in the sky. really gone.

to avoid paying $300 to guarantee seats on the next flight out--which left at 2:30 pm!--we had to hang around the airport until 10 am to get (free) seat assignments. and by that time, going home wouldn't make much sense. so, we were stuck. for 7 hours. with a nap-aversive 2-year-old.

while it was not an ideal way to spend the day, i must say that isaac (and baby daddy, for that matter), held up remarkably well. it wasn't nearly as bad as i had anticipated. being in the new jfk/jet blue terminal definitely helped. it's pretty nice. it's new (ie, fairly clean) and there is a play area. but what about the food? i was dreading our options, but also knew that food was the key to a successful camp out. i prepared to break under the pressure of making the day go smoothly. thankfully, i didn't have to.

not sure how helpful this list will be seeing that our options were superior to those available at most airport terminals, but here's what we fed isaac while stranded and in flight:

• i had packed a hard boiled egg, but noticed that there were some for sale. i thought this was a good protein-packed foundation for what would inevitably be a day of snacking.
• we were excited to find a jamba juice--and, while not always as nice as jamba, i think there are usually places where you can get a smoothie. we got a fruit-and-juice-only smoothie that had pomegranate juice, strawberries, bananas and mango. no frozen yogurt, no supplement powders, no added sugar. the small size was plenty for me and isaac to share (about 1/3 for him, 2/3 for me)
• a lot of nyc airport terminals have lunchboxes made by nyc-based kid fresh. we got one with a small packet of organic cheese crackers, turkey & cheddar on whole wheat bread, and organic raisins.
• we picked up some stacy's pita chips to give isaac on the plane when me and baby daddy would indulge in potato chips. they're pretty salty, but more wholesome than your average chip. and with the same impact. i looked for some hummus to go with the chips, but couldn't find any. i was sure to call the package all done once 2/3 through--it's just too much to give him the whole thing.
• there were a bunch of celery and carrot packets with dip--i could have gotten them and ditched the dip, but found cherry tomatoes instead. it felt like they'd be easier for him to eat without requiring us to watch over him. carrots make me nervous. and i've recently learned that non-organic celery is among the 12 foods on which pesticides are most commonly found (according to the environmental working group).
• i found a small package of peeled (brand) dried fruits and nuts. i like how these come with the dried fruit and nuts in separate packets. i was able to pull out some of the dried fruit (isaac had had plenty of fruit between the smoothie, and pineapple fruit leather, apple sauce, and grapes that i brought--i was nervous for his belly!).
• i had also brought a bag of my own crackers (thinking organic ones would be hard to come by at the airport and, besides the crackers in the kid fresh kit, i was right), cucumber spears (which hold up well), and veggie booty.

besides the one mini chocolate chip cookie that baby daddy gave up when he was caught eating them, isaac didn't get nearly as much trash food as i thought he might. i felt really proud that we were able to pull it off. though, of course, if we hadn't, one day would not have killed him. it's just nice to not have to go there since we shouldn't be forced to. i hope that jet blue's approach to on-the-go food is a sign of how younger companies to come will think about the options they make available.

-S

tuesday night, it snowed in brooklyn. our first real snow. not the tiny
flurries that hint at snow, mind you. but lots of big white flakes
that scream winter is here! i knew everything would melt by morning.
and i didn't want atticus to miss it. so i did what i usually have a
hard time doing. i opted for "the moment" instead of "the plan" and
delayed atticus' bedtime. instead of going into his room for books,
songs, and lights out at 7:30--we covered our jammies with down coats,
hats, scarves, gloves, and snow boots and headed into the street.
watching atticus with eyes closed, head upturned, and tongue out
whispering "mama, look!" reminded me that kids are an opportunity to
see how great "the moment" really is.
 
of course, by the time we got back, he wasn't too happy that his hands
were like "ice cream" (he's not so great with idioms). so i whipped up
a warm ginger milk. the mug turned his red fingers a more normal color
within minutes. and a bit of spicy ginger heated him from the inside
out. i use ginger a lot now that atticus is officially a toddler,
especially when it's cold outside. so in honor of the holiday season,
here are the recipes (of course, i use all organic ingredients) for
his favorite toasty ginger drinks:
 
warm ginger milk
1 cup milk
1/4 tsp fresh grated ginger (or ginger powder in a pinch)
a dash of ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp agave nectar (you could use honey as long as your child is
older than 1 year)
heat the milk , ginger, and cinnamon on the stove until it almost--but
doesn't--boil. reduce heat and let simmer for 5-10 minutes. let cool
until just warm and safe for your little one's mouth. strain to remove
any big bits of ginger if your snow angel (like mine!) has an aversion
to bits in their drinks. add agave. stir. and serve!
 
warm ginger lemonade
1 cup water
juice of 1/2 lemon
1/4 tsp fresh grated ginger (or ginger powder in a pinch)
1/2 tsp agave nectar (you could use honey as long as your child is
older than 1 year)
heat the water, lemon, and ginger on the stove until it boils. reduce
heat and let simmer for 5-10 minutes. let cool until just warm and
safe for your little one's mouth. strain to remove any big bits of
ginger if your snow angel (like mine!) has an aversion to bits in
their drinks. add agave. stir. and serve!
 
warm mulled raspberry apple cider
1 cup apple cider
1/4 cup frozen raspberries
1/4 tsp fresh grated ginger (or ginger powder in a pinch)
a dash of ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp agave nectar (you could use honey as long as your child is
older than 1 year)
heat the cider, raspberries, ginger, and cinnamon on the stove until
it boils. reduce heat and let simmer for 10-15 minutes. let cool until
just warm and safe for your little one's mouth. strain to remove the
raspberries and any big bits of ginger if your snow angel (like mine!)
has an aversion to bits in their drinks. add agave. stir. and serve!
(note: don't throw away the raspberries! mix them in plain yogurt or
use them as spread on toast.)
 
-m

as i put isaac down for a nap today, it hit me. i haven't given him a bottle in ages! until several weeks ago, he was getting a bottle before nap and one before bed (before brushing his pearly whites!). for a while i kept filling his bottles up to the 6-8 oz mark. but he drank less and less. by the time i gave him his last bottle, i was only filling them up to 3 or 4 oz, and even that wasn't disappearing down his gullet. in fact, half of the milk would dribble down his face since he really just wanted to play with the bottle.

since i hadn't processed that his two reliable daily sources of dairy intake had fallen out of routine, i hadn't been paying specific attention to whether or not he was getting enough... until now!

i couldn't find anything about daily dairy or milk intake on the site of our favorite online pediatrician, dr. greene. so i hopped on over the the american academy of pediatrics where i found this guideline. pretty general, though it does emphasize the importance of calcium, of which milk (including goat's milk) is a great source. (they also touch on calcium sources for kids who can't or don't drink cow's milk.)

this brings up a great point--it isn't milk, per se, that children need, but calcium and vitamin D which are readily available in milk. both are vitally important to healthy development, and it can be difficult to get them in necessary amounts through other dietary sources. maybe that's why fortified drinks and foods are often recommended in tandem with foods rich in calcium and vitamin D for lactose-intolerant children. if milk (and yogurt and cheese) aren't part of your child's diet, talk to your pediatrician about what you can feed them to ensure they are getting what they need. you can also check out the world's healthiest foods entries on calcium and vitamin d. both provide a list of food sources (eg, eat spinach, mustard greens, turnip greens or collards for calcium,  and salmon, shrimp, cod or eggs for vitamin d).

Kidshealth.org (a site with doctor-approved kids health info by the Nemours Foundation) provides a useful, easy to read chart on what 2- and 3-year-olds should be eating across food groups. it says that they should be getting 2 cups of dairy daily, with 1 cup being equal to a cup of milk or yogurt, 1 1/2 ounces of natural cheese, or 2 ounces of processed cheese. (the one time those two words will ever appear together on this blog! please note that it takes double the amount of processed cheese to get the same benefits as the natural version--enough to skip it?)

as it turns out, isaac is getting what he needs. i've been giving him milk in a cup (we've been drinking mostly cow's milk, though goat's milk shows up from time to time). and he loves yogurt and cheese. and one last note that is more about the bottle than the contents of the bottle: in the US, we encourage parents to wean children from the bottle (and the breast, for that matter) much earlier than elsewhere in the world. i know every kid is different. and i must admit that isaac has naturally grown out of every attachment on his own. but maybe (?) it's because we let him. i definitely felt weird that he was approaching two and still totally attached to a bottle. but instead of projecting that onto him, we put some rules in place (e.g., we didn't carry it around, but made it a part of a routine) and let him have his comfort (the sucking instinct that we all accept and respect in infancy is strong through 24 months). while not every child will let you know when they don't need something anymore as clearly as isaac did, a conversation can be had if you listen to your kids. i hope that sharing our story eases some of anxiety around feeling like there is some fixed milestone your kid has to hit. because there isn't!

-S

   

Click here to download:

how_squeezing_an_orange_made_m.zip (1268 KB)

oh, juice. the bane of my mama existence. and probably the topic of many posts to come.

this is from a february 2007 policy statement from the american academy of pediatrics entitled The Use and Misuse of Fruit Juice in Pediatrics:

basically, juice doesn't provide the full scope of nutritional benefits as whole fruit and it's a lot easier to feed beyond the daily recommended intake (which means a whole lot of sugar) when fruit is served in juice form.

but fighting the requests for juice sometimes feels like a never ending battle. plus, as it turns out, organic juice, at least, can be a great source of vitamin C. (check out the section A Glass of Orange Juice More Protective than Vitamin C Alone.) good to know, especially in the winter months.

this morning i managed to give isaac a small cup of freshly squeezed orange juice without having to contend with begging for more. i bought juicing oranges for mulled wine this weekend (mama juice?). i grabbed one in my pre-coffee haze and decide to make a spectacle of squeezing it "special" for isaac. it yielded almost exactly 1/3 of a cup of juice (just about 3 oz)--a perfect serving size! once i had extracted all of the juice, which took all of 2 minutes, i let him play with the orange halves. you know how we're suckers for tactile food experiences here. plus it was fun, distracted him from wanting more juice, and gave him a concrete way of seeing that the juice was "all done" (as opposed to me sneakily slipping a full container back into the fridge while dishonestly--and guiltily--repeating, "all done").

-S