Advice on cooking/ food prep please

[Veggielove84]

Hello.

The issue is my 15 month old hates the high chair and has been refusing food due to lots teeth coming in. Poor baba.

Anyway my issue is since baby hates high chair and since newborn stage will not go in a wrap or carrier I can't get food made for us. So everything is no cook and that's OK except I'm type 2 diabetic and would like to make better meals for myself during the day.

What do you mean you can’t get the meals made? Can she play on the floor in a safe place whilst you prepare a meal? Or batch cook when she’s in bed/napping and then reheat at meal times?

“Better meals” could be filling cold salads ? You and baby can pick at those - green leaves, cucumber, carrot sticks or grated carrot, humous to dip, eggs, cheese, tuna, chicken etc. with some crackers or toast for carbs for the baby?

Does your baby not play on the floor? Do you have a safety gate for the kitchen? Mine will sit on the floor of the kitchen and happily investigate the washing machine, tumble dryer and safe cupboard (I have a lock on the dangerous one) or eat little snacks I pass down to him, empty the recycling or use a wooden spoon or plastic spatula to play drums on pots and pans, put measuring cups inside each other etc. I wouldn't be able to use the grill or oven with him there, but the hob is fine.

Do you have a bouncer chair or a carry cot you could put the baby in while you cook?
can the toddler just play on the floor (I used to put an old duvet down in the corner of the kitchen with some spoons and pots and pans and a bag of dry pasta shapes and ds would play for ages)

you don’t need to cook elaborate meals, but this way you can get basic food prep done.

Also maybe things like slow cooker meals you can reheat in microwave?

A big box of tupaware was a life saver at that age. Our kitchen is tiny so he used to sit in the door between the kitchen and the living room and empty out the box. Will the newborn go in a bouncy chair if not the sling?
I would buy in lots of frozen veggies (onions, leeks, peppers, butternut squash) that you can use. And batch cook in the evenings. I highly recommend a slow cooker too. I work full time so we use ours at least three times a week.
Maybe don't put so much pressure on yourself, buy some ready meals for the toddler for a couple of times a week? And do you have anyone that she (and you) could go to another night. That's three nights covered. Then a freezer raid another night. Then a couple of nights with the slow cooker.

Nothing bad will happen if your baby sits in the highchair with you in sight, talking to her, and cries for 10 minutes a day. I promise.

At that age, my DS loved reorganising kitchen shelves or cupboards. I filled one bottom one with Tupperware and let him go to down so that I could get on with cooking.

Some really great ideas here thanks ! I'm just fed up of sandwiches. Toddler eats well although not cooked lunches. Just different breads and things with cheese or meat or both and fruit ans yogurt is the go to. It's me that just forgets about myself because of the "hassle " if you know what I mean? I guess I need a new mind set. Thanks all.

Have you considered trying a meal prep company? There are a few about and I've tried a few - Fresh Fitness Food springs to mind as I think they have a maternity plan, if you're still breastfeeding? I remember their food being a huge time saver- very convenient. Think their trial offers are pretty good too if you want to try it out for a week - worth thinking about :) it saved me hours, without a baby!