A few weeks before Natasha was born I bought a book at Chapters called First Meals, by Annabel Karmel (see picture), but haven't really used it until now. I've referred to it on a few occasions because it offers some great advice on breastfeeding vs. formula-feeding, storage of milk, etc. But it also has a huge supply of baby food recipes, starting from the very first tastes (4-5 months) and all the way to 7 years. The amount of recipes is endless! And the best part is that the writer combines the ingredients in ways I would never think of, which is fabulous, because all the recipes are divided into sections by age and are very easy to search and browse through. The reason I haven't paid much attention to this book until now is because I wasn't making my own homemade food. So far Natasha ate very basic veggies and fruits such as sweet potatoes, squash, carrots, peas, apples, pears, peaches, etc. and I found that those are way faster to buy than to prepare yourself and freeze. But now that she's older she's ready to try more exotic tastes and combinations of ingredients that are not sold in little jars, and so now I am finding this book way more useful. And the book also has a huge family-recipe section with recipes such as lasagna, casseroles, and pies that are children friendly and can be used down the road. I really recommend this book!

Today I've attempted blending a papaya - the fruit tasted great but there were more seeds than flesh in there.
Here's a photo of a blended butternut squash, sweet potato, and a red papaya. Natasha's menu for tomorrow!

We've also attempted another new procedure today - we brushed Natasha's teeth! I've read that it's important to brush baby's teeth as soon as they come out and Natasha has had her bottom two incisors for 4 months. Yes, we're late. So we finally bought Gerber's Tooth and Gum Cleanser for Infants; it comes with safe-to-swallow toothpaste and a rubber finger toothbrush which is very soft and also good for massaging baby's gums. And Natasha loved it! She allowed us to brush her 2 bottom teeth and then to massage her gums. We are planning on making this a regular nighttime ritual.