You know, before I had a kid I used to really like to cook.

Back then, I used to see cooking as an outlet, the kitchen was something of a refuge from the pressures of the outside world.  Even when I was cooking in high-pressure situations – like Thanksgiving – I still enjoyed creating food for my family.  But it was when we bought our house and moved to the woods that I really tried to bring out my inner Martha Stewart (well..a couple of times a week, anyways).  Was I successful?  Not really.  But I enjoyed it.

Like all other delusional first-time moms, I swore up and down that I’d try to cook my family our meals as much as is possible.   Fast forward three years to the present and, while I still cook dinner about five nights a week, I often struggle with the one person I thought would be the easiest critic in the dining room  – my almost three year old.  Man, she’d make Eric Ripert nervous in the kitchen!  Every time I think I have a culinary home run, she turns her nose up at it and I’m left with a choice: either make Anna something else (so, really, make her a second dinner) or let her not eat.  And the truth is that sometimes she takes that choice out of my hands anyways and just doesn’t eat.  But what about the times when I really want her to eat something and I’m either short on time or short on the patience to make her yet another meal?

Most parents find themselves using the shortcuts like Easy Mac or the microwave chicken tenders, dreaded breading and all.  For the record, my feet are firmly planted off the soapbox – both Easy Mac and the dreaded breaded tenders have been consumed by my own kid.  More than once.  But I’m happy to report that I’ve found an alternative!

HAPPYBABY is a company whose mission it is to “make baby food as healthy and delicious as homemade with the essential nutrients needed for optimal growth and development.”  Their products are for all ages and stages: fresh frozen organic baby meals in 15 flavors, probiotic dry cereals with DHA, toddler meals with hidden veggies, organic puffed grain snacks and organic freeze-dried yogurt snacks.  This is truly a company that you can grow with as your child gets older!

HAPPYBABY sent us a variety of their HAPPYBITES toddler meals as well as their Organic Puffs.  Now, puffs are always a big snack for the baby and toddler set, but I have to say that the HAPPYBABY Organic Puffs are really in a class of their own.  Their Puffs have 40% more product than the competition (Gerber and Beech Nut have 1.5 oz – HAPPYBABY has 2.1 oz).  Their packaging is 25% recycled materials and is BPA free – not to mention recyclable!  But perhaps the biggest test for Puffs is playgroup – the Organic Banana Puffs were gone in an instant!  But, interestingly, so were the Organic Greens Puffs.  The Greens Puffs are made with ingredients such as organic kale, organic spinach, organic whole oats and organic collard greens.   And with half the sugar (compared to leading brands) and 10% of baby’s recommended daily intake of Vitamin D, one might even go so far as to say that they feel good about giving their child puffs for a snack!

But the biggest surprise was HAPPYBABY’s line of toddler/kid’s meals!  HAPPYBITES is a complete line of yummy, nutritionally balanced meals that are in easy-to-hold sizes and lots of hidden veggies!   We first tried the Chicken Bites – organic chicken with whole grain brown rice, potato and natural seasonings.   I don’t mind telling you that my entire family would have been happy to eat this for dinner – myself included!  It was really a very yummy dinner and it made it all the better that it was a special meal, just for Anna.  You can’t underestimate the power of a kid-friendly box!  The serving size is great, too – there’s enough for two meals for Anna in each box.

Another of her favorites was the Mac & Cheese, of course!  But these Mac & Cheese patties have a secret serving of veggies hidden inside – cauliflower and butternut squash, to name a couple.  Anna gobbled these right up and, again, with a side serving of broccoli it’s a super healthy and yummy dinner.

HAPPYBITES also has Fish Bites, Salmon Stix and Veggie Tots rounding out their offerings – all of which got a definitive thumbs-up from our professional taster.   My experience with the HAPPYBABY products is that they are all healthy, well-rounded, easy to make and quite yummy!  We’ll be making the Puffs regular additions to our pantry and I will be keeping the HAPPYBITES stocked in our freezer for those mealtimes when I’m just not feeling creative or up to arguing about it.  I know that I’m feeding Anna a product that is as good as any that I would make for her myself – and that’s high praise!

If you needed any more convincing, there’s this:  Dr. Sears.  HAPPYBABY has partnered with the prestigious Dr. Sears to present their new book: HAPPYBABY: The Organic Guide to Baby’s First 24 Months.  The book offers a book for parents who are looking to raise happy, healthy baby.  Our generation views organic and green products as a necessity instead of a luxury and this book has easy ways to “green” your family – from the simplest and easiest changes to the most hardcore organic parents out there.  For those of you seeking to make your family a darker shade of “green”, this is the book for you!

HAPPYBABY did provide my family with product samples so that I could experience their product and share my thoughts with my readers.  All opinions expressed here are my own or that of my family and are not influenced in any way by any form of compensation.

WIN IT! One winner will win the HAPPYBABY: The Organic Guide to Baby’s First 24 Months book by HAPPYBABY and Dr. Sears!  To enter, please visit HAPPYBABY and tell me a way that you are/have/want to “green” your family AND become a subscriber of this site (if you aren’t already)  You MUST confirm your subscription for it to count!  I check all entries and if you are not a subscriber, your comment will be deleted.  That’s it!

***Apparently, some of you need a refresher course in your giveaway manners.  If you need a clue or have noticed your two-word entries being deleted, please see my previous blog post on What Not to Do When Entering Giveaways before entering.  All entries that are simply “enter me”, “wow”, “great prize”, etc will be deleted and you will not be notified. Take your ignorance elsewhere.***

Comments will close on November 5, 2009 at 10 PM EST.  One comment per person, please (unless you do the extra credit). Open to US residents only. Duplicates and comments not including the above information will be disqualified. Comments are moderated. If you don’t see your comment in a reasonable amount of time, send me an email. Bloggers and non-bloggers may enter. If you don’t want to leave your email address, please be sure to check back for my announcement of the winner. Please note that winners must respond within 48 hours of being announced/contacted or another winner will be drawn.

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