Interview and Giveaway: Raising Happy Healthy Babies with Kim Corrigan-Oliver

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This is a big exciting post so grab some tea and get comfy! 

I recently received an amazing book by one of my fellow bloggers Kim Corrigan-Oliver.  The title is one that all mamas want to hear: Raising Happy Healthy Babies. This book is filled with holistic nutrition advice for mom, baby and toddler. As well as a delicious recipe section. 

I really like that this book is written by a mom for parents.  She understands what it is like to be a pregnant woman, a breastfeeding mom and a chef to new eaters and that all comes through in this book. Although I think the whole book is really important, I find that the section on postpartum and breastfeeding health and eating to be invaluable. Just because baby is not inside you anymore doesn't mean that every bite doesn't count; too often women forget about themselves once the baby is born. She really put a lot of focus on getting all of your nutrients through a varied diet of whole foods plus probiotics for gut health.

The book focuses mainly on a vegetarian diet. I don't find this to be a problem at all as babies can't eat meat for at least the first year and most toddlers don't enjoy meat anyway. She does a good job of explaining how to add protein into your babies diet without meat, via nuts, eggs, beans and legumes.  You won't even think twice about missing meat once you see all the yummy recipes that are in this book. The first recipe I tried was the toddler smoothie which Kim has let me share with you today. It is so delicious I actually split it with Sofia. She didn't notice the spinach, nor did she care! 

Toddler Smoothie:

• 1/2 cup of milk of your choice, water or herbal tea (nettle would be great for toddlers)
• 1/4 cup frozen blueberries
• 1/4 cup frozen raspberries or strawberries
• 1/2 banana
• small handful of spinach
• 1 tsp hemp seeds
• 1 tsp flax or hemp oil
• 1 tsp molasses (optional)
• 1 tsp bee pollen (optional)
• 1 tsp chia seeds (optional)

Put all ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth. Add more liquid if necessary, to reach desired consistency. Serve Immediately.

By the time you are done reading this book it will be neon green and covered in sticky notes because you'll have highlighted and book marked so many things. From nutritional requirements to boosting your babies immune system through food, this book touches on almost (I say almost because I can't think of anything she's left un-talked about) every aspect  of your babies relationship with food For the first few years of his life. This book is a fantastic guide to a healthy food foundation for babies and toddlers that will care through with them for the rest of their lives and make them not only great eaters but exploratory eaters as well.

That being said, I wanted to talk to the author myself and ask her a few questions so you and I can get to know her better. Here is what she had to say:


Have you always been interested in food? What drew you to studying holistic nutrition?
Yes, food has always played a large role in my life. Growing up I was a competitive dancer, so fueling my body for the demands of training was high on my list as a teenager. When I left competitive dance in my late teens I turned to the sport of triathlon and became even more interested in food and how it could help my body not only train harder, but also recover stronger. I competed in two Ironman events and learned first hand how strong a component nutrition is to being a successful athlete. After many years working in the field of sports nutrition, and helping other endurance athletes achieve their goals, I became interested in nutrition from a holistic perspective. I wanted to know more about the healing properties of food, how food affects our health and well being and how food plays a role in disease prevention. This lead me to The Instutitue of Holistic Nutrition where I studied holistic nutrition.

This is a wonderfully comprehensive book, as a mama to a little one, where did you find the time to write it?
Thanks. I began to write this book just before Reece's first birthday. It began with an outline, then some research and then nothing for quite a few months, I just couldn't find the time to actually start writing. I knew I needed a plan in order to get going so I talked with my mom who agreed to watch Reece one morning a week so I could focus on writing. Justin, my wonderful husband agreed to take Reece to visit his parents one morning a week as well. So that gave me two free mornings to work on the book. The rest of my writing was done in the evening once Reece was tucked in for the night. There were many, many late nights trying to get it completed. It was completely worth it. I am a mom first, and then a nutritionist, so it was important to me to not let my writing interfer with my time with Reece. This type of schedule is not for everyone, but it worked for me and my family, and while it may have taken me a bit longer to write the book, I was completely okay with that.  The book took 18 months from start to finish.

What would be the one most important tip you would give to newly pregnant women
Enjoy every moment of your pregnancy, don't wish for it to be over. It is one of the most amazing journeys you will ever take...growing a human being is a wonderful, life changing experience.

You have written a wonderful chapter on feeding toddlers, can you give us two tips for feeding picky eaters.
Ah, yes, picky eaters. First tip, serve a new food with a favourite food. Second tip, serve only a small portion of a new food, too much can scare your little one off. And always remember as a parent your role is to provide healthy, nourishing foods for your child, your child's role is to decide what and how much to eat.

As a busy mama what is your favorite go-to snack?
I have two snacks I never leave the house without - the first is a container of nuts, seeds and dates. The second is hummus and crackers. Both are easy to carry, easy to eat and taste delish! And of course a bottle of water is always within reach.

It's cold season right now, do you have any food related remedies you can share with us for cough and cold? Or food as preventative medicine?
Food as prevention - eat real food, avoid processed man made foods, include lots of garlic and stay well hydrated. 

You can read more about Kim and her great nutrition advice at Your Green Baby and follower her on Twitter @YourGreenBaby.

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--------------------------------------------GIVEAWAY-------------------------------------------------

*Now for the really fun part! Kim has been so kind as to giveaway a copy of Raising Happy Healthy Babies to one lucky reader.  Here are the contest rules:

• You can enter by leaving a comment below
• The giveaway is open to US and Canada residents only
• The giveaway will run until Wednesday night. I will close comments at 8pm Wednesday mountain time (that's Arizona time)
• The winner will be chosen via random number generator
• The winner will be announced on Thursday morning

Thank you Kim Corrigan-Oliver!