Today was sure a special day!! It was my first "official" Mommy's Day, as last year I was only a few months pregnant at this time. My parents were up visiting for Kaelyn's dedication (I will update with pics tomorrow), which by the way was also a very special time and couldn't have happened on a better day!! It was great to get to spend time with them and spend Mother's Day with them too. Scott and my Dad made us lunch while we had the chance to relax a bit. It was GREAT!! I hope all Mom's out there had as terrific of a Mommy's Day as I did!! Happy Mother's Day!!

When we were just beginning this baby food process...I searched high and low for reviews on "making your own baby food". I've written many times on the process I went through, as well as some of the things I found. One thing I have to mention though....is the importance of having a good blender. We've only been doing solid foods for about a month now, but I've already come to realize the importance of our blender. Before we started, I searched and found one called the Tribest PB-200 Personal Blender. It's much like other products on the market, but the reviews I read were much better! I got it, and I'm SOO glad that I did. So far, it's done a wonderful job at pureeing and grinding up the food that I've made for Kaelyn. It's powerful and so easy to use. Something that's convenient is important for any mom who is busy during the day, and that's probably what I like most about this blender. As time goes on, we'll be making more and more foods in there, so I'm glad that I have a quality machine to use. I would recommend any mom try it if they are looking to make their own baby food like I do.

Every now and then I enjoy sharing the lessons that I am continuing to learn in motherhood. Being a new mom, everything is...well...new to me. There are so many things that I have learned and continue to learn each and every day. One thing, which may seem like a "duh" statement to some is the importance of making sure to always have the video camera and digital camera next to me at all time...and making sure that their fully charged as well!

When possible, I am always making sure to try and catch everything on film. This is something that I have wanted to do from the beginning, but as Kaelyn learns to do more and more, it seems even more necessary to have it by my side at all times! It seems that one minute Kaelyn will be on the floor playing with her toys....and in the blink of an eye she is off learning to do something new. Recently that "something" was getting up on her hands and knees. Scott and I knew that this time would come sooner than later, as Kaelyn is a very curious little girl...always wanting to discover the environment around her. She has been scooting around and moving every which way except for forwards for a couple of months now. Soon, she will be moving in that direction though....as getting up on her hands and knees is a very good indication that crawling will be next. It was so cute to watch her as she did this for the firs time. It took so much effort for her to get to that point, and once she did her little face shined and she looked so proud of herself. I'm sure it helped that Scott and I were cheering and clapping...saying "YYEEAAHH Kaelyn!!":) I suppose you could see we're very proud parents!! ;)

As with many other moms out there, I am always trying to make sure that the products I use with Kaelyn are safe. This started before she was even born. While I was pregnant I was always careful with the things I ate or surrounded myself with. As a baby it was the same way. I wanted to be careful what I used on her skin, or the things I ate...as I was, and still am breastfeeding. Now, she's almost 6 months old...which means solid foods are coming right around the corner! With that in mind, I have been searching high and low for quality products that are BPA Free, as well as homemade baby food recipes and tips....the things that I feel are great ways to give her a healthy start when it comes to eating solid foods. Finding the actual products was my first priority. So far, I have had a lot of luck finding great products that are reasonably priced and are safe for her to use. The Nuby brand has a lot of safe options for parents who are looking like I was. This is the brand that I probably purchased the most from.