Hello reader! I appreciate your company. Today’s post is the most requested topic from my inbox. Most moms especially those who are about to wean their babies are keen to learn how to ensure that their babies get the right nutrients to enhance their growth and development. For the moms who already weaned, they are concerned about the weight loss after introduction of solid foods. The good thing is that weaning is something measurable. I use this term because you can keep track of what you are feeding the baby and determine the result monthly as you go for your growth and monitoring clinics. Where do most moms go wrong? Is it the type of foods that we give, is the method of preparation, what is the meal plan like? As always, got your back! Today I will share my sample weekly meal plan that I give my baby. Kindly note that am neither a nutritionist nor do I have any medical background.  What am sharing is based on personal experience and well, my baby’s growth is commendable. I ensure that this timetable is strictly followed by my nanny (am a working mom) to ensure the baby is well fed especially when am not at home. Also, it is not cast on stone you can alter a meal or replace an ingredient in the recipe. I know that so many moms are creative and I would be happy to learn from you as well. So here! Sample Weekly meal plan

Time	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday	Sunday
Early morning;	Breastmilk/ formula	Breastmilk/ formula	Breastmilk/ formula	Breastmilk/ formula	Breastmilk/ formula	Breastmilk/ formula	Breastmilk/ formula
8:00 AM breakfast	Baby cereal (	Milky Porridge	Baby cereals  (celeriac and milk)	Creamy banana porridge	Sweet potato puree	Milky porridge	Baby cereals
10:00	Milk	Milk	Milk	Milk	Milk	Milk	Milk
12:00 Lunch	Liver,potato and spinach blend	Pea mash	Fish Mash	Bean mash	Chicken blend	Green bananas & lentils mash	Blended liver Pumpkin & spinach mash
3:00 Fruit	passion, banana and paw paw	Avocado and banana	Paw paw and melon	Citrus fruits (oranges and tangerine	Passion fruits and banana and tree tomatos	Beetroot pawpaw and melon puree	Apples, banana and passion blend
5:00 Yoghurt	yoghurt blended with pineaples	Natural yoghurt blended with paw paw	Natural yoghurt blended mangoes/passion	Natural yoghurt blended with avocado	Natural yoghurt blended apples	Natural yoghurt blended grapes	Natural yoghurt blended strawberries/ pineapples
7:00 dinner	Liver,potato and spinach blend	Pea mash	Fish Mash	Bean mash	Chicken blend	Green bananas & lentils mash	Pumpkin & spinach mash
Late nights	Breastmilk/formula	Breastmilk/formula	Breastmilk/formula	Breastmilk/formula	Breastmilk/formula	Breastmilk/formula	Breastmilk/formula

  From the sample weekly plan, you may have noted that my baby eats the same meal for lunch and dinner. My reason being, I like her to eat freshly cooked meal daily and also prevent any wastage. Did I mention that I hate cooking twice for a handful meal? I don’t like refrigerated food (for babies). There is nothing wrong with that though. It’s just my preference. You may prepare more food and store for later. You may give your baby a different meal for dinner. Moms are not supposed to be lazy like me! Another ingredient I like to give my baby almost daily is pumpkin and I alternate with paw paw. For constipation reasons! A happy tummy, a happy mummy! This has really worked for me. I can’t even remember the last time she constipated. You may also have noticed that I give yoghurt daily! Yoghurt is a great source of protein and calcium. I enrich it with variety of fruits to add more vitamins and sweeten the yoghurt. Kindly note that the yoghurt is Natural. This thing taste like that EX you don’t want to remember. It’s very crucial as it introduces the good bacteria into the body of you little human being. If your baby is lactose intolerant, you may consider dropping cow and goat milk in the diet. The most important thing is to ensure that your baby gets all nutrients (proteins, vitamins and carbohydrates) in the right proportion.   I will share just a few recipe for now. I promise that every Wednesday it’s going to be a RECIPE WEDNESDAY! So be sure to like and follow be on facebook not to miss! Sample recipes Fish mash This is a great recipe to introduce to your baby. Fish is a rich source of protein, rich in omega 3 fatty acids that your baby needs for brain development, calcium and beta carotene. Most moms are scared of the bones so it’s important to go for fish fillet and still recheck to ensure that there is no bone left. Ingredients

• 50g of fish fillet
• 1 medium sized potato
• Slice of pumpkin
• 2 leaves of spinach
• 1 tomato
• 1 small onion
• I tsp cooking oil
• Salt to taste.

Method Bring the water to a boil in a saucepan, add the potato and pumpkin. Boil for eight minutes to 10 minutes until tender. Dice onions. Add cooking oil in the sauce pan. Add onions and cook till golden brown. Add peeled sliced tomato to the onions. To remove the tomato skin, deep the tomato in hot water for two minutes and peel off the skin. Place the fish to the fried tomatoes and onions. Add salt. Stir and cook for 5 minutes. Add some water and let it cook for another minutes. Add chopped spinach to the fish and stir. Cook for two minutes. Add pre-boiled pumpkin and potato and stir. Mash / blend to the right consistency. You can add milk if you prefer. Serve! Creamy banana porridge Porridge makes a great breakfast. This is among the first foods that the baby eats.  Depending on the grain used, porridge is a good source of fibre and iron. Ingredients

• 2 table spoons of flour
• One ripe banana
• 1 ½ cup of Water
• 75 ml milk (boiled/ pasteurized)

 Method Bring water to boil. Using warm water in separate cup, add flour and make a smooth paste. Add to the paste to the boiling water and stir to ensure that no lumps form. Bring to boil for 10 minutes. Add milk and cook for 5 more minutes. When ready, mix the porridge with pureed banana and serve. Avocado yoghurt This is one of my best combination. It’s so easy to prepare because blending is not necessary. Avocado I a great source of healthy fat that your baby needs to enhance those chunky thighs. Ingredients

• 100ml of natural yoghurt
• Slice of ripe avocado

Method Mash the avocado. Add it to the yoghurt and mix thoroughly. To warm it, dip in a bowl of warm water and stir to ensure that the heat is distributed evenly. Enjoy! Are you ready for recipe Wednesday? Then like and follow me on Facebook not to miss such awesome recipe! Asante