Real-Life Guides for Pregnancy, Babies, Toddlers & Travel

If you're looking for an easy fall breakfast that the whole family will love, this pumpkin spice ciabatta French toast is worth trying. I made it for my husband and three-year-old over the weekend, and my toddler absolutely loved it. The secret? Ciabatta bread. It holds up beautifully when soaked in the egg mixture, giving you a golden, slightly crispy outside and a soft center. I also added cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice for a cozy fall flavor, and it turned out so good. It'

If you're looking for an easy fall snack for toddlers, these pumpkin chocolate chip muffins are a great option to try. They're made with pumpkin puree, Greek yogurt, warm fall spices, and mini chocolate chips. They're simple to prepare, easy to make ahead, and the perfect size for little hands. I love having homemade snacks ready to go, especially ones that can double as a quick breakfast or something to pack in my toddler's lunchbox. And while pumpkin recipes are especially

When you have a premature baby, figuring out when to start solids can feel a little more complicated than it does with a full-term baby. Do you go by their actual age? Their corrected age? Do you wait until six months, or can you start earlier? These were all questions I had with my daughter, who was born at 33 weeks and one day, almost seven weeks before her due date. With my son, who was born full-term, we started introducing solids around four months. So naturally, when my

When I first introduced solids to my daughter at six months, I expected some funny faces, maybe a little confusion, and probably a lot of food ending up everywhere except her mouth. What I didn't expect was for her to cry hysterically. I had put a little purée from a pouch onto a silicone spoon and offered it to her. She was absolutely not interested. She seemed completely confused about what was happening and wanted nothing to do with it. Fast-forward about a month, and she'

One of the things I found surprisingly confusing when we started solids was figuring out whether to offer solids before or after milk. And by milk, I mean breast milk or infant formula, not cow’s milk. Should I give my baby solids first so she’s hungry enough to eat? Should I give her a bottle first because formula is still more important? And if she has a full bottle, will she have any interest in food at all? My daughter is 6 months old, and right now formula is still very

Starting solids somehow feels just as confusing the second time around as it did the first. My daughter is my second baby, and I still found myself wondering: How often am I actually supposed to be feeding her solids? Once a day? Three meals a day? Should I offer food before her bottle or after? And how do we eventually get from a few bites of mashed banana to eating actual meals? Right now, at 6 months old, my goal is pretty simple: I try to offer her solids at least once a

I’m always looking for easy toddler recipes that use just a few ingredients, especially ones I can make ahead and keep in the refrigerator or freezer. These sweet potato tots are exactly that. They’re made with sweet potato, cheese, egg and breadcrumbs, and they’re an easy finger food for toddlers. They work as a snack, a side with dinner or something you can add to a toddler lunch. I also love recipes like this because I can make a batch once and have something ready to grab

I’m always looking for easy toddler recipes that I can make ahead and have ready for busy mornings or snack time. Bonus points if I can make a big batch and put some in the freezer. These banana blueberry oatmeal muffins check all of those boxes. They’re made with ripe bananas, blueberries and old-fashioned oats, and you don’t need flour or a blender to make them. Just mash, mix and bake. I especially love these for breakfast because I can grab one from the refrigerator or fr

I’m always looking for easy snacks that I can make once and have ready for the week, especially ones I can keep in the freezer for those moments when my toddler is suddenly starving and needs something immediately. These zucchini muffins have become one of those recipes for us. They’re made with bananas, zucchini and oats, with a little maple syrup for sweetness. I usually add chocolate chips, but blueberries are great too. The best part is that they freeze really well. I can

Packing preschool lunch every day sounds simple until you realize you have to come up with something your child will actually eat five days a week. My approach is pretty straightforward: I pack foods I know my 3-year-old likes, keep the sides predictable, and don't put pressure on myself to make his lunchbox particularly creative. Now that my son is 3, his preschool lunches look a little different than they did when he was younger. I pack bigger portions, I don't cut everythi

I pack my three year old’s daycare lunch five days a week, which means I have made a lot of toddler lunches at this point. And if there is one thing I have learned, it is that daycare lunch does not need to be complicated. I am not cutting sandwiches into shapes. I am not coming up with a brand new combination every day. And I am definitely not spending 30 minutes making a toddler lunch at 7:30 in the morning. Most mornings, I can pack his entire lunch in about five minutes w

Egg bites are one of those toddler breakfasts that I keep coming back to because they’re easy, filling, and incredibly customizable. My son loves them, and I can usually make them with ingredients I already have in the fridge. I make mine in a regular muffin tin instead of making mini egg bites. If I’m going through the trouble of making them, I want him to actually eat a decent amount, and the regular size works really well for us. The best part is that you really don’t need

Introducing allergens was one of those parts of starting solids that made me a little nervous the first time around. Peanut butter? Egg? Dairy? These are foods you spend months hearing about as potential allergens, and then suddenly you’re supposed to intentionally give them to your baby. I ended up approaching allergen introduction completely differently with my two kids. With my first, I introduced allergens using the actual foods as soon as we started solids. With my secon

Starting solids can feel like one of those baby milestones that suddenly requires an entirely new category of stuff. High chair, plates, bowls, spoons, cups, bibs, baby food makers, storage containers, floor mats. The list goes on. After starting solids with two babies, I really don't think you need that much. You don't need to make homemade purées, you don't have to jump straight into baby led weaning, and you definitely don't need an entire cabinet of feeding supplies befor

These broccoli cheese tots are one of those toddler recipes I come back to again and again. They're easy, cheesy, and a simple way to get some broccoli into my toddler's meals without making an entirely separate dish. I've simplified the recipe over time, and now I use equal parts broccoli and cheese. My three-year-old loves them, and I've recently started packing them cold in his preschool lunchbox. He eats them that way, too! No food processor. No elaborate prep. Just an ea

If you're breastfeeding, you've probably discovered that you're hungry almost all the time. These healthy no-bake energy balls are packed with protein, healthy fats, and oats to make an easy grab-and-go snack. They're also soft enough for toddlers, making them a snack the whole family can enjoy. Why These Energy Balls Are Great for Breastfeeding Moms Breastfeeding can leave you feeling hungry at all hours of the day, and finding time to prepare balanced meals isn't always eas