Food..

Nikki - posted on 05/09/2010

What a great idea smoothies!

Good Day! - posted on 05/09/2010

OH great idea on throwing the veggies in the smoothie!

Eliza loves juice, and I'm also careful to give her not from concentrate no sugar added. I used to only give her juice (mixed with water) about half the time but she's started realizing that she only has water in her sippy cut and demands juice!

Chatty - posted on 05/09/2010

I don't drink juice at all but WHEN I have given Roxanne juice it's been diluted with water and it's 100% pure juice (not from concentrate) with no sugar added! Sun-Rype Veggie PLUS....Roxanne loves the blueberry one! Ironic right?! V8 also makes a similar product but theirs is made from concentrate! To be honest, I usually blend up smoothies for Roxanne as a snack.....

Water or milk as the base and then just throw in frozen blueberries, strawberries etc......you can also add spinach or carrots which are both hidden well by the strong fruit tastes! I also add in avacado or flaxseed oil so she gets her healthy fats! Yum!

Good Day! - posted on 05/09/2010

Wow...when I drink Ocean Spray I'm drinking your cranberries?! Small world! Do you know the people in the commercial? LOL

So that can segue us back to the original question. What type of juice does everyone prefer? haha!

Chatty - posted on 05/09/2010

I totally agree! Very sad.... I'm so grateful that my family has been sooo successful but a lot of that has to do with the fact that my dad isn't JUST a farmer....he also has his arcitechtural degree, a license to do land surveying and a business degree.....he's a pretty smart guy! His decision to sell the majority of the farm, just leaving him as a day to day manager (so to speak) was the smartest decision he ever made! He emmigrated here from Poland when he was 8 and it wasn't always easy but he unlike his father and grandfather who originally started the farm he was much more educated! It's sad for him (and me, our family) because when he completely retires and they sell the last bit of property they have our family name, family business will be forgot!



I never had ANY interest in taking over.....I ran the office end of things for years but just can't be involved in family business! WAY too stressful! It's a good thing my brother got out when he did......he makes 6 figures now and is MUCH happier.....OH WELL, C'est la vie!



My parents also own a processing plant called " Berryhill Foods "......they just had their 10 year anniversary! It's doing well, thankfully! We even have an exclusive contract with Ocean Spray for cranberries!



Anyhow, sorry to get WAY off topic....thanks for listening Sara! I guess I'm just a lil' sad!?

Good Day! - posted on 05/09/2010

Wow three generations of blueberry farming! You don't want to take over since your brother was lured by the elevator company? Can't say I blame him though. My grandfather was born to dairy farmers (in Kentwood, the hometown of Britney Spears. Why are the places I've lived/have family associated with dumb blonds?!) He went to college and opened his own business. He did very well, but his brother and sisters are all dairy farmers and dirt poor. It's sad that farming is not a way of life anymore.

Chatty - posted on 05/09/2010

Blackberries are my favorite.....yummy is right! We used to have blackberry bushes surrounding one of our farms and we used to pick them every summer but my dad had to cut them all back because they were interfering with something.....can't remember what though....miss them!

Here's a link to the story about my dad......the articles is about the tough times with agriculture right now and my dad going on to say how we've managed to do ok!

http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/bcb/top-s...

Good Day! - posted on 05/08/2010

That is so cool about your dad! I'd love to see it if you could find a link.



And I share your feelings on Jessica Simpson. I'm ashamed to admit that we went to see the movie in theaters. But only because it was filmed in our area! If you ever do see it, in the opening scene the General Lee jumps an old dilapidated bridge. That bridge was about a mile from where I lived at the time. I used to walk from my house to that bridge and back several times a week for exercise. It's totally in the middle of nowhere.



So back to the topic on hand (sort of). On my walk to that bridge I often passed wild blueberry and blackberry bushes. Yummy!

Chatty - posted on 05/08/2010

P.S. I'm not a huge fan of Jessica Simpson and admit that I haven't seen the movie....used to LOVE the Dukes of Hazzard though....ol' skool!

Chatty - posted on 05/08/2010

That's so cool, Sara! Red, White and Blueberry Festival....I'll mention it to him! We just have a " Berry Festival " which incorporates blueberries, strawberries and raspberries! I actually just got back from my parents house and my mom showed me this magazine article about our family farm with a huge picture of my dad in his coveralls....LOL! I wanted to bring it home so I could scan it and show you but he wouldn't let me....LOL! I'm gonna try and find it online....

Good Day! - posted on 05/08/2010

I'm in Louisiana, north of Baton Rouge. Talk to your dad about coming to the Red, White and Blueberry Festival in Clinton, LA this year! It's always Fourth of July weekend (hence the name of the festival, you know our flag is red, white, and blue!)



http://www.clintonla.com/



Oh and I wanted to add, Clinton is where the Dukes of Hazzard (the movie with Jessica Simpson) was filmed. We're so proud...lol...rolls eyes!

Chatty - posted on 05/08/2010

P.S. Roxanne has oatmeal and yogurt (plain full fat) every morning for breakfast! She loves it! I usually add ground cinnamon and frozen blueberries! Yum!

Chatty - posted on 05/08/2010

WOW! That's awesome.....my dad is the largest grower in BC, Canada! They recently sold a lot of our farms but we used to have over 400 acres! He's also the president of the BC and North American Blueberry Cousels......he's always away speaking at conventions etc. He's kinda the go-to guy around here! LOL! We have pretty different varieties up here then you've probably ever tried but still super yummy!

Where are you?

Good Day! - posted on 05/08/2010

Christina, I agree that YoBaby is a little runny. My daughter has insisted upon feeding herself since before she was one. We learned real quick that if you mix any baby food with a little oatmeal cereal (we use Earth's Best Organic, but Gerber or generic would work) it thickens it up enough so it doesn't drip off the spoon. She's eaten YoBaby with a little oatmeal cereal mixed in for over a year now. Just recently though, we ran out of cereal and just let her have the yogurt to see how she did. She did great! But she's had a lot of practice feeding herself and is a lot better at it than a lot of kids her age.

And Dana, I love blueberries! Could you ship some to me? There is a certified organic pick-your-own blueberry farm near us that is pretty good. And we have a blueberry festival every year in a nearby town. I won the blueberry cooking contest last year!!! I made homemade lemon blueberry muffins and got a prize of a whopping $25!!!

Chatty - posted on 05/08/2010

I don't HAVE to have organic but whole grains are important to me! That makes total sense about alternating, Christina.....it also helps because if ur child is anything like Roxanne she gets bored of the same thing so I've always gotta switch things up anyhow! And YES, Sara.....organic DOES taste different and sometimes NOT better! LOL! My parents farm blueberries and although we're pretty close to organic we're not certified......EVERYONE loves our berries and the organic farm next door suffers because of it! LOL!

C. - posted on 05/08/2010

No, I don't think they do come in whole grain. I bought the Cheddar Whales along with a pack of the whole grain Goldfish, b/c I prefer to buy whole grain versions of food, but the Cheddar Whales are cheaper and that way I can alternate them (if that makes sense).



We tried Yo-Baby yogurt.. My son liked the taste, but it's just too watery for a yogurt, IMO. And I was the one feeding him and even with deep spoons, it always made a huge mess. So we buy him other yogurts. Gerber actually has a shelf-stable yogurt now, which comes in VERY handy b/c my son seems to get in the mood for a yogurt when it's expired, so this saves money since I'm not constantly throwing it out. Sorry, I don't think it's organic or anything, so that doesn't really help those mommies that love to buy organic :/

Good Day! - posted on 05/08/2010

I think its the organic ingredients. Ever noticed how organic fruits and veggies or meat taste different?

Chatty - posted on 05/08/2010

Sara....if you've ever compared the ingredients from the Goldfish brand to Annie's Cheddar Bunnies you'll notice they're VERY similar so why do they taste so different? Weird, right?!!

Chatty - posted on 05/08/2010

I don't typically buy packaged foods but when I do I usually buy the brand names.......I definitely won't buy a lesser brand of mayo......has to be HELLMANS! Yum! And Q-TIPS MUST be the Q-TIP brand.....the other ones suck! I won't cheap out on toilet paper....has to PUREX or Kirkland Signature ( Costco's Brand )......



I will buy and actually prefer the Western Family ( Save-on-Foods ) brand marble cheese.....it's less expensive and I prefer the taste although I don't buy cheese much!

Good Day! - posted on 05/08/2010

Dana, I like Cheddar Bunnies too! We don't buy them often. Just when we are going on a long car ride and need car snacks.

Chatty - posted on 05/08/2010

Annie's Cheddar Bunnies are awesome.....I prefer the taste although Roxanne doesn't seem to mind the difference! They're whole wheat and organic as well but their typically more expensive......you can buy them at Costco in bulk which makes it a lil' better! I don't mind the Goldfish but I do always make sure to buy the whole grain ones which Walmart typically doesn't carry and I've never tried Stouffer's Cheddar Whales....do they come in a whole grain?

Good Day! - posted on 05/08/2010

We try to eat a lot of organic whole foods. So we never did puffs or cookies. Though we eat them at other people's houses. =)

My daughter loves YoBaby yogurt. It's a bit pricey but it has less sugar and no additives like most of the other kids' yogurt brands. Plus, their website always has good coupons, and you can get a free book and free 6 pk of yogurt after buying four 6pks (you enter label code on their website). By doing that I really haven't spent any extra to get the better yogurt.

Another thing I won't compromise on is juice. I don't care what brand, but it has to be not from concentrate and no sugar added. Winn Dixie store brand actually has this available. But I've been able to find good Welch's coupons lately so I've been getting that.

One more thing I won't compromise on is chicken nuggets. The only nuggets I'll buy is Tyson because the cheaper brands have additives. I found a really good sale recently (at WalMart which I rarely go to) so I stocked up. They won't go bad in the freezer. I wasn't keen on ever buying chicken nuggets, but we discovered that my daughter loves them and she won't eat any other meat. So we just buy the best that is offered until she is old enough to eat other meat.

My daughter also loves ketchup. Winn Dixie store brand is actually organic with no high fructose corn syrup! My dream ketchup! And it's cheaper the Heines.

And bread. We buy Nature's Own or Nature's Goodness. Has to be Whole Wheat with no high fructose corn syrup. Nature's Goodness is actually comparable in price store brand.

So you have my lengthy list. I've actually been pleasantly surprised that if you do a little smart shopping (i.e. use coupons and stock up when items are on sale) you can feed your family very healthy foods on a low budget.

C. - posted on 05/08/2010

I think the Parent's Choice puffs are just as good as the Gerber Puffs and they are about a dollar cheaper. Great Value cheerios, which my son LOVES, is just as good as Cheerios..

Christina - posted on 05/07/2010

My husband and are are big fans of President's Choice (Super Store brand) especially the ice cream : ) And... if you don't like it they'll give you your money back!

Carolee - posted on 05/07/2010

My husband and I love the flaky biscuits from Marsh (local grocery store where my husband... among multiple other family members... works). We both (plus his family) agree that the store brand tastes better and cooks more evenly than the Pillsbury brand.

Erin - posted on 05/07/2010

At our Walmart here we have the cheaper off-brand whale cheese crackers that my son likes better than the Goldfish brand, and they are $1.20 cheaper.



I also prefer the Great Value fruit and grain bars to the Nutrigrain bars, they are not as dry.



Really the only thing that I will not buy generic are toilet paper, laundry soap (Gain all the way!!), and diapers.