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Guest Blogger (Chef Steph): Kalorik Baby Food Maker – MCH 33526

February 4, 2012 //
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The Kalorik Baby Food Maker (Kalorik Baby Gourmet) was a purchase made through coincidence. A friend had given us a gift card to Sur La Table, and since cooking adult food had moved far down on my list of priorities after the kiddo came along, we decided to use it to purchase this baby food maker that another friend had been lusting after. We figured she and I could have baby food prep parties, sipping wine and talking about our beloved DD and DS whilst the Kalorik practically made the food itself.

Turns out, not so much. While I can definitely see the benefit of this unit for someone who has a micro-sized kitchen and no storage space to keep the pots/steaming baskets/food processor that is needed to make baby food without it, the unit does leave a bit to be desired (I have a feeling others share my sentiments considering the current going price for this machine has dropped into the $60 range, whereas you couldn’t find it for less than retail ($99) anywhere when we bought it last year).

Kalorik Baby Gourmet

The use of the unit is super simple. There is a port to put in the water, which is measured out with a handy measuring cup that has increments of not only milliliters and ounces, but also steam time.  This way you can guestimate how much water you need to add based upon a guess of how much time will be needed to steam something (this is useful as the instruction manual only lists about a dozen example foods and steaming times).  You pour the water into the port, screw in the knob (better not lose that as the unit won’t work without it), lock in the main bowl, put in the steaming basket, put in your evenly cubed fruits and vegetables, lock on the tip, turn the knob to steam and voila… it turns off automatically once the steam runs out.

While it is simple to use (and I lost the instructions after the first time setting it up, so it must be easy to figure out as I have very little mechanical aptitude), there is a lot left to be desired in the design.

First off, the basket only holds about 2 cups of cubed fruit/veggies.  This translates into about a cup of cooked food. Which is fine for when you are just introducing solids and are only making enough for a few days at a time, but when your ravenous infant is eating 2-3 cups of purees a day, the tiny output doesn’t cut it.

It is a bit difficult to have the transfer the scalding cooked fruit/veggies from the steaming basket (which has no handle) back into the main bowl, AND manage to get the blade on without smooshing food into the gears or burning the crap out of yourself.

Cleaning the unit can be a pain, and there are parts that will never get clean. The steam port on the main bowl that lets the steam in from the base is screwed on and not removable. (That may have changed on the newer model.)

Steam Port on Kalorik Baby Food Processor

It also doesn’t have a flow back prevention valve, which means that when you blend in the main bowl, pureed food seeps back into the port. And you can’t rinse or scrub it out. So the food just sits there. Forever.

Also, the plastic on the base cracked almost within the first week (and no, it wasn’t because Dylan was showing Gavin Kung Fu moves with it), and the blending is SUPER loud, even more so than the mini food processor we own.

So, all in all, I probably wouldn’t buy this again. In fact, I am going out this weekend to buy a full size food processor to make sure I can make enough food at one time to last the week without having the prepare 17 batches of the same thing.

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Overall Rating:  5 Worms

Ease of Use: 7 Worms

Performance:  6 Worms

Features:  5 Worms

Durability:  3 Worms

Manliness:  5 Worms (Your man may make the baby food, but I have a hunch he probably ain’t gonna use this)

Retail Price:  $99

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Pros:

Purees food much smoother than a regular food processor.  If you don’t have the storage space for a full size food processor and steaming pans, this is a nice compact little all-in-one unit that will allow you to make some small batches of food at home and it’s easy enough that a caveman (or husband) could use it.

Cons:

The blending is very noisy (not so good when you’re trying to sneak in some food preparation while baby’s napping); the steaming port on the main bowl is impossible to clean out (yuk); it is not very durable.

Things I would modify:

Definitely allow for the steam port to be rinsed out (Maybe changed on the newer model); make the bowl and steam basket bigger; increase the durability of the base.

Where to find:

http://www.kalorik.com/Kalorik-html/itempages/foodpros/MCH-33526-Y.html

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Categories Product Reviews

Oak Tree Catches Flying Squirrel

February 3, 2012 //
2

I don’t know whether to be proud of this or embarrassed, so I’m just going to think glass half-full.

As a teenager, I worked at a little supermarket in my neighborhood.  It was my dojo.  Kind of like the Karate Kid movie (the real one) where Ralph Macchio was washing cars and learning Karate. I, on the other hand, was honing my martial art techniques by bagging groceries.

Left hand cups the canned vegetables, right hand palms the lettuce.  Make eye contact with customer.  Is she going to tip me?  No?  Lettuce to the bottom of the grocery bag and canned vegetables directly on top.  Repeat with avocados and canned beans coming down the conveyor.  This time, eyes closed.

With this intense supermarket training, I was able to sharpen my hand speed and coordination.  By the end of my 2 years there, I was able to make the bagels on aisle 10 crumble to the ground with only a glancing blow.

Young student says “Master, when will I know that I’m done here?”
Old master replies “When you are no longer pink in the middle.”

Little did I know, that 20 years later, I still maintained my supermarket skills.  And I would need it to save the life of my son, Gavin.

Steph and I are in the bedroom.  It’s morning and she’s getting ready for work.  The Worm’s awake so she gets him out of his crib, brings him into our room and plops him down on the bed.  “Watch him, ok?”  She goes to the bathroom and fixes her hair.  Gavin and I are both sitting on the bed looking at each other.  The Worm then starts crawling around atop the duvet.  (You know where this is going, right?)  I’m caught up in conversation with Steph and I’ve got one eye on Gavin.  Well, he crawls to the edge of the bed and looks over.  I think nothing of it, because in my conscious mind, no rational baby would want to leap off the edge of the bed and plunge 2 feet to their fate…

This one’s not rational.  He dives.

This is an exact reenactment.

In the flash of half a second, I lunge towards him and grab onto his right lower leg catching him with his head dangling 2 inches from the ground.  (It was a one-handed grab, in case you were wondering.)  On a side note, since all the great techniques have names I call this one “Oak tree Catches Flying Squirrel”

Afterwards, with baby safe on the bed again, my adrenalin kicked in.  I also realized Steph watched the whole thing in the bathroom mirror.  (Yes, I got an earful from her.)  If I had missed, I’m pretty sure there would have been two doctor’s visits, one for his head and one for my a$$.  (I’m sorry Steph.  You are right again, as always.  It won’t happen again.  You are the prettiest woman in the universe.)

I’m patting myself on the back for this one.  I’m still in the awe part of my awesomeness.

Gavin – 5; Dad – 4

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Categories Play

I’ve Done Something Only a Mother Would Do…

February 2, 2012 //
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I entered Gavin in a cutest baby contest.  I’m a little sheepish about this.  (SHAMELESS PLUG:  If you read Pregnancy & Newborn Magazine, you can vote for the Worm.) I never thought I would ever do such a thing.  I’m a man, for crying out loud!  (Which is something men don’t do, by the way.) So, why would I even think to do this?

I know every mother thinks their kid is the most beautiful thing in the universe, but that’s hormones playing with a woman’s mind!  I’m not a woman and I don’t even have hormones!  (At times, Steph thinks that I barely even have a heart!)  What’s gotten into me?  Does spending too much time with a baby generate estrogens in a man?  (Why is my underwear suddenly more baggy in the front?)

Is my sanity in fatherhood spiraling out of control?  Is SAHD life making me soft?  (Am I growing man boobs?)

I feel like a different man.  Not quite a wo-man, but a more sensitive man…I guess I would say a Wham!-man.  I’m no longer a Bad Boy.  For certain, Last Christmas, I was a manly man.  (How many Wham! song references can I make?) Now, I’m a sopping, photo-taking, face-wiping, diaper-changing shadow of my former self.

Is this going to lead to professional photo shoots in Gavin’s future?  Yes.  Will I be his driver for his future road-trip beauty pageants all over America? Yes!

The ultimate question is….Will I teach him how to toss a baton?  Yes!

We’ll be kicking ass and taking names, my Little Miss Sunshine.  Toddlers and Tiaras?  Hell no, Toddlers and Testicles.

Look out for us on the baby beauty pageant circuit.  We’ll be in the old Land Cruiser.

Photolicious!

 

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Categories Random Thoughts

Boy, I Feel Like I’ve Been Squeezed Through a Straw

January 31, 2012 //
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Cleaned Up and Ready to...Sleep

This picture was taken a little while after the incident with the lederhosen and the pitchfork.  What?  I’m trying to make this picture interesting…Ok, he’s napping soon after completing his descent from the warmth of mom’s womb.

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Categories GPOD

Bright From the Start

January 30, 2012 //
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Bright From the Start By Jill Stamm

Every new parent wants to get their kids on the right track to learning.  Finding a way to give your children the best opportunity to feed their brains has fueled an enormous industry in baby learning products.  Are they really necessary?  Is one better than another?  The vast number of products available can cause you to lose your mind trying to figure out which educational toy is best.  Bright From the Start by Jill Stamm is a great starter book for people looking to figure out what is really important in nurturing a child’s mental growth.

Bright From the Start is easy to read and contains fundamental ideas from which you can build a solid learning platform.  (Parents are always looking for that magic secret to unlocking those extra IQ points in their kids, aren’t they?)  The book stands by its principle, ABC, or Attention, Bonding, and Communication.  The entire book is written around this simple philosophy.

Stamm discounts the hype associated with the latest and greatest products to boost your child’s brain development.  (And rightfully so.  Do you really think that your child playing with a jump rope is worse than playing with a talking multi-lingual stuffed toy?  Not necessarily.)  In the beginning of life, there are more important things to work on, hence the ABCs (see above).

Now, I know that different parents have different ideas about the early years of a child’s development.  So, please understand that this is my opinion.  I agree with Jill Stamm’s ABCs.  Babies need attention.  Attention from you.  That is how they learn.  Babies want attention from you and obviously their verbal skills haven’t developed yet.  So, they use their face, hands and voice to get your attention.  This interplay between you and the baby is probably the most important aspect of learning.  (Stamm also talks about the TV being a problem before the age of 2.  I agree.  Staring at a TV teaches your child to, um, stare at a TV…even if it is an educational show.)  Bonding is also important.  Your baby is a living creature.  It naturally wants needs to bond to a human.  That human should be you.  A strong bond with you lowers stress hormones in the baby.  When the baby feels safe, he or she can explore and learn without fear.  Lastly, there’s communication.  We need to learn to communicate with the baby as much as the other way around.  Adults are so used to verbal communication that many have lost the ability to recognize non-verbal cues.  Babies provide a nice refresher course for us.  When we work on communication with our baby, there’s less frustration on both parties.  You’ll probably notice yourself starting to “read your baby’s mind” which may result in less frequent crying.

Jill Stamm has written a nice book with general concepts for us non-neuroscientists.  She briefly explains brain development from a neural connectivity perspective and then goes into the Attention, Bonding, and Communication strategies.  For some parents, the ABC philosophy makes complete sense.  For other parents, it may take a little convincing.  (I believed in the ABC philosophy from the beginning and Stamm gave some great reasons why the philosophy makes sense.)  I enjoyed reading this book as it was not densely filled with data.  But, it left me wanting a little more substance to bite into.  (Personally, I would have liked to see a bit more technical information.)  If you are looking for an instruction book on how to manage your child’s learning from 0-3 years old, this is not it.

Bright From the Start gives you, the reader, some games that you can play with your baby.  Stamm talks about how these games work on the baby’s brain.  There are also tables on how your baby should progress, developmentally.  It’s a great book to learn about how YOU can assist in developing your baby’s learning from birth until three years of age.  I recommend this book as a reference for parents who want to understand how the time they invest in their babies is more important than anything else.  If you already understand how important spending time with your baby is, then this book may be somewhat rudimentary.

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Overall Rating:  7 Worms   

Readability:  8 Worms

Usefulness:  7 Worms 

Manliness:  7 Worms 

Retail Price:  $17

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Pros:

Easy to read.  General concepts.  Simple games to play with your baby.

Cons:

Not enough technical information.  I would have liked to see some studies and scientific evidence, etc.

Things I would modify:

Not much.  This book is a casual read.  I think it is targeted towards a parent that is interested in building a strong relationship with their child, but could use a little guidance.

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Categories Product Reviews

Missing the Milestones

January 30, 2012 //
3

When people describe other people’s inadequacies, they may say to you…”So and so has a great personality!”  which translates into “So and so is ugly as sin.”  Or…”So and so is an incredible athlete”  which means “So and so can’t think his way out of a paper bag.”  Well, we think Gavin may be the athletic type.  (Which is disappointing for now, unless we can later exploit his athletic prowess for millions of dollars.)

Pediatricians have developed a way to measure mental growth in children.  There are milestones for you (and them) to observe and chart your child’s progress.  It is based upon the average age at which babies learn to do things such as giggle, wave, make eye contact, turn when called, etc.  This milestone checklist is partly so doctors can catch abnormalities early in baby brain development.  More importantly though, milestones are used for parents to quietly rank their own child against their friends’ kids.

In the beginning, Gavin was smarter than average.  Smiling, laughing, rolling over, fetching  (or was that Duncan?).  Gavin was passing the milestones early by weeks, if not an entire month.  We would visit with the pediatrician and made sure she knew how advanced our prodigy was.  She would check off the milestone boxes on the Worm’s medical chart and we would make sure she documented the additional parlor tricks of our young Einstein.  Oh, how we enjoyed weekends at the park, jeering and throwing yogurt drops at all of the ‘normal’ kids falling off swings and tripping over themselves in the grass.  Our child was so much smarter than THAT!

Durp.

Well that’s changed, and not for the better.  Gavin’s almost 10 months old and has missed a few milestones already.  He doesn’t mimic any sounds we make (except for burping and farting).  He doesn’t say mama or dada.  He uses his forehead as an extra limb.  There’s no baby sign language coming off his hands even though I’ve been teaching him how to sign “eat” for 6 months now.  (At least, I’m learning sign language…)

Let’s just say that if licking the sliding glass door, dragging your face over the carpet, and chewing power cords comprised the milestone checklist, the Worm is in the 99th percentile.  But alas, he is doomed to be either an athlete, or worse, a reality TV actor.

 

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Categories Education

KidCo Anti-Tip TV Strap

January 29, 2012 //
1

We’ve got a TV in the house.  (Yes I said house, not living room.)  It’s not big by today’s standards, just a 40″ LCD.  It probably weighs 45 lbs.  As with most LCD’s or flat screens, there’s a svelte base supporting the TV.  Barring earthquakes (we get them here in SoCal), the chances of our TV falling or toppling over had been less than 1%.  But with a baby that is crawling and pulling himself up on things, that chance has increased 10-fold.

Since we don’t want to see Gavin trying to muscle himself up onto the TV and then have it topple over and injure him (or even worse, kill him), we have installed a child proof TV anti-tip strap.  (After I became a parent, I started hearing these stories about TV’s crushing kids and furniture falling over on babies, etc.  It seemed like every day I read about a freshly pressed baby.  Not good.  So, naturally I freaked out about  all the evil house furnishings that could injure him. Duh, that’s what parents do!)

Our TV is perched on a stand on top of an entertainment center.  Our TV has mounting holes (in the back) to mount said TV onto a wall or other vertical surface.  It is these screw holes that will be used with the KidCo anti-tip TV strap.  The KidCo kit comes with a few different sized machine screws to fit the mounting holes on your TV.  This may be a problem if your TV mounting holes are recessed or odd-sized.

KidCo Anti-Tip TV Strap Kit

Check that your TV has holes in the back before purchasing this KidCo anti-tip TV strap.  Otherwise, it will be difficult to install this kit properly.  Also, you must be willing to drill holes into your entertainment center or into your wall.  Drilling into an antique entertainment center could be a deal breaker for some.  NOTE:  The KidCo kit does not have drywall anchors, so you’d have to purchase these separately to secure the anti-tip straps to a wall.

For our television setup, the KidCo Anti-Tip TV Strap mounted fairly easily.  The package says that it’s a 2-pack.  This is BS because you need both straps from the box to secure one TV.  I also had problems with the quality of screws in the bag.  Since I know more about nuts and bolts than I should, this was disappointing.  Especially if you ruin your TV mounting holes trying to force some cheap screws into your $10000 TV.  The nylon straps in the kit are well, nylon.  They seem ok for general use, so I can’t comment on the strength of them.  But, the thing that still worries me are the plastic mounting brackets.  The nylon strap has loops that sit over a hook portion of the plastic mounting bracket.  When you pull on the nylon strap, the plastic hook tends to deform.  This means that there is a chance that the anti-tip TV strap could break a plastic bracket and still fail.

Hook mounts

Even after mounting my KidCo anti-tip strap, I still worry about those plastic mounts.  I don’t feel like I should have to do that with any child safety item.  It should give you some peace of mind, right?

Bottom line:  This product provides some protection from TV tipping, but not enough for me.  Would I buy this product again?  Probably not.  I’ll be looking for another child proof TV anti-tip strap.

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Overall Rating:  3 Worms   

Ease of Use:  7 Worms  (But others can have problems with mounting to back of TV.) 

Performance:  1 Worm 

Features:  7 Worms 

Durability:  1 Worms 

Manliness:  10 Worms (We know how guys like to put things together with tools!)

Retail Price:  $10

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Pros:

Provides a little peace of mind.

Cons:

Cheap screws, no drywall anchors, flimsy plastic mounts.

Things I would modify:

Closed loop plastic fasteners. Different sized screws.  Add drywall anchors.

Where to find:

http://www.amazon.com/Kidco-Anti-Tip-TV-Strap-Pack/dp/B002SZT35S

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Categories Product Reviews
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