Beechnut baby food canada
Which Is The Best for 2022?
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There comes a time in every baby’s life when he or she is ready to start on solids. And when that point comes, you’re going to be just a little bit overwhelmed with all of the different options, like Beech-Nut vs Gerber Baby Food, and which to choose between the two.
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Contents
- 1 Main Differences Between Beech-Nut vs Gerber Baby Food
- 2 Beech-Nut Baby Food Review
- 2.1 Beech-Nut Nutrition Features
- 2.2 Pros
- 2.3 Cons
- 2.4 Beech-Nut Reviews
- 3 Gerber Baby Food Review – Is Gerber Baby Food Safe?
- 3.1 Gerber Baby Food Features
- 3.2 Pros
- 3.3 Cons
- 3.4 Gerber Baby Food Reviews
- 4 The Verdict: Gerber vs Beech-Nut
- 5 FAQ’s About Beech Nut and Gerber
- 5.
1 Question: Is Gerber food bad for babies?
- 5.2 Question: Is homemade baby food healthier?
- 5.3 Question: How long does Beech-Nut baby food last?
- 5.4 Question: What is the safest baby food?
- 5.
- 6 Beech-Nut vs Gerber Baby Food: Final Thoughts
- 6.1 Further Baby Food Research
- 6.2 Recommended Baby Food
Main Differences Between
Beech-Nut vs Gerber Baby FoodThe Main Differences Between Beech-Nut vs Gerber baby food are:
- Beech-Nut ingredients are organic and have no preservatives or additives, whereas Gerber Baby does.
- Beech-Nut lids are for single-use, whereas Gerber baby food comes in jars that you can reuse because of the style of the lid.
- Beech-Nut is more affordable for most families, whereas Gerber Baby has a longer shelf life.
On the surface, they might seem like virtually the same kind of food option for your growing baby or toddler, but there are a few differences that set them apart from one another.
When you look at the consistency of the different baby foods, the different kinds of containers they both come in and, of course, the cost, you can see how they both differ from each other. You’re also likely to understand why one may be the stronger option over the other.
As with most baby foods, Beech-Nut comes in a variety of different flavors with options for young babies and even toddlers. Likewise, Gerber has not only a variety of different baby food options but also baby and toddler snacks to help them get used to solid foods.
That probably doesn’t make it any easier to choose between the two, but Gerber also tends to have a thicker consistency that your baby may have a hard time digesting at first.
Then again, Beech-Nut isn’t necessarily as easy to find in a pinch at the grocery store. The best thing to do is to compare them both and figure it out that way, but regardless, your baby is sure to have a healthy baby food option in either brand.
Beech-Nut Baby Food ReviewBottom Line Up Front: I much prefer giving my little ones the organic – clean ingredients without filler – found in Beech-Nut products here.
To make the healthiest baby food possible, Beech-Nut Baby Food uses the least amount of steps between putting ingredients together and cooking it. This ensures not only a pleasing flavor for your baby or toddler but also the right kind of texture that will agree with sensitive tummies.
Regardless of what foods you choose for your little one, all Beech-Nut baby food is made with 100% natural ingredients.
The company’s goal is to make authentic baby food from real ingredients, cooked in a way similar to how you as a parent would make it yourself. Beech-Nut uses the method of mixing and pureeing the food before it’s cooked, and the air is then taken out to preserve the freshness of the food.
This means that there’s no need for any added ingredients, natural or artificial. Even the pouches and glass jars were explicitly chosen to keep the contents tasting normal. This way, there’s less of a chance of the taste of your baby’s food being affected by plastic containers, and you can be sure that the glass jar is safe and BPA-free.
From choosing ingredients to the actual packaging, Beech-Nut seems to have taken great care in their baby food every step of the way.
Beech-Nut Nutrition Features
- Flavors/Varieties: Beech-Nut Baby Food comes in yogurt melts, cereal puffs, granola bars, cereals, baby food jars, and baby food pouches. Flavors include apple and green beans, corn and potato chowder, and mango, chicken, curry, and rice.
- Age Range: Foods from the brand are made for children from four months and up.
- Baby Food Container Style: The baby food comes in glass jars and pouches.
- Price: Shop Now with The Baby Swag.
- Where To Buy: You can buy it on Amazon or in-store at Walmart and Target.
- Has This Item Been Recalled?: While there are some complaints about Beech-Nut Baby Food, there are no recent or current recalls.
Pros
- Even if you don’t buy the organic Beech-Nut Baby Food, the ingredients are still all-natural and healthy.
- Unlike other baby foods, there are no added artificial ingredients.
- With glass jars, you can be sure that your baby’s food will come in safe and BPA-free containers.
- Beech-Nut has foods for babies of almost every age, including toddlers.
Cons
- While glass jars are safer for the contents, there is the chance of accidentally dropping and breaking jars of Beech-Nut baby food.
- Given the wide variety of flavors, there may be some specific food combinations that your child doesn’t like, so it’s more of a trial and error process.
- When you order packs of the jarred baby food online, you run the risk of receiving some broken jars in the box.
Beech-Nut Reviews
“I love Beech-Nut! Good consistency (and consistently so) and on target for the age range. Always smells and looks appetizing, with wholesome ingredients. Nothing to complain about and my daughter laps this up.” – Annie V. on Amazon.
“Both kids lived this brand.
They make a variety of good flavors. What we like the most about it is how it’s organic. Plus it’s only made up of the two or three organic vegetables that are listed on the jar.” – Amrou Awaysheh on Amazon.
“Love these, all real ingredients and very healthy. Easy to travel with and my son loves them! Wish they were a bit more affordable, but for the quality, we will take it!” – Amy Curtis on Amazon.
“This is my son’s favorite! I love that it is thick and doesn’t drip off the spoon. I also love the ease of simply opening the cap instead of having to pull back hard to grip foil on other brands.” – Amber L. on Amazon.
Must Try
Build a meal plan for your baby with Yumi
They make and deliver fresh baby meals each week. These are either blends and purées for babies, baby led weaning meal plans or finger food for older babies.
Check Pricing
We earn a commission if you click this link and make a purchase at no additional cost to you.
With Gerber baby food, the brand ensures that the different fruit and vegetable combinations are just right for your little one thanks to the panel of babies who test out each new baby food before it hits the shelves. Gerber baby food is a well-known brand built on safety, so it is certainly trustworthy.
Each stage that Gerber offers brings something new to the table for babies to enjoy and become familiar with. 1st Foods are made to be as smooth as possible for easier digestion and the most part; they don’t contain too many complicate fruits or veggies to incorporate too early into your baby’s diet.
2nd Foods are equally as smooth, but they contain a wider variety of ingredients to further your child’s palate. Once you get to the toddler and crawler stages within Gerber baby foods, you can introduce your little one to baby food pouches and Lil’ Bits.
The Gerber Lil’ Bits are thicker than the other baby foods from Gerber, and they include recipes like Chicken Itty-Bitty Noodle Dinner and Farmer’s Market Vegetable & Turkey Dinner.
Unlike Beech-Nut, most Gerber baby foods don’t come in glass jars, but there are different jars, plastic containers, and pouches to choose from, depending on what your baby likes.
Gerber Baby Food Features
- Flavors/Varieties: Gerber baby food offers fruit and vegetable squeeze pouches, organic jarred foods, small plastic containers, puffs, cereal, and cereal bars. The different food combinations include apple-strawberry-beet, pear-spinach, and herb vegetable pasta chicken dinner.
- Age Range: Gerber offers food for both babies and toddlers, starting with babies who can sit up supported.
- Baby Food Container Style: In addition to some glass jars, Gerber also offers baby food in pouches and plastic containers with peel-back films and plastic lids.
- Price: Shop Now with The Baby Swag.
- Where To Buy: You can buy Gerber baby food on Amazon or in-store at Target and Walmart.
- Has This Item Been Recalled?: There are no official recalls on Gerber baby food, but there are reports of trace amounts of metals being found in some varieties of the baby food.
Pros
- Compared to other baby foods, like Beech-Nut, Gerber baby food is a lot more affordable for some families.
- Each stage of the baby food is designed to be easily digestible for different children in the correct age and development stage.
- Because of the reusable lid on the small plastic containers of baby food, you can save any remaining food for later if need be.
- The first size, at two ounces, is just the right size for babies starting out with solids.
Cons
- Gerber baby food has a longer shelf life than some other baby foods, but that could mean that it has added preservatives that some parents may not love.
- To thicken some of the other more advanced Gerber options, cornstarch is added, which may not sit well with some babies’ stomachs.
- Some vegetables may be very bland or have almost no flavor, making them unpleasant for little ones.
Gerber Baby Food Reviews
“Great price and my kids love it — can’t go wrong. It sometimes is a bit cheaper than the grocery store, and comes to your door… what more could you ask for? I’ve never had quality issues with this.” – Laura B. on Amazon.
“So far I’ve purchased the flavors peas, carrots, butternut squash, pumpkin, and green beans. My baby loves them all. What’s more, is the convenience of purchasing them online and having them delivered in bulk to my home — so easy!” – R. Entler on Amazon.
“This is great for your little one, no artificial flavors or additives. But I found out after buying the stage 1, that stage 2 is cheaper, and you get more.” – Desiree Calora on Amazon.
“For the products — my baby loves this one. I feel good giving her something vegetarian (those little-jarred meat baby foods creep me out – how do they get the meat so gelatinous?!) which tastes somewhat like ‘real’ food instead of just plain veggie or plain fruit all the time.
” – H. Harper on Amazon.
At the end of the day, all that matters the most is that you find a baby food that your baby enjoys and that they can digest the easiest. When comparing Beech-Nut and Gerber baby foods, though, the stronger option seems to be the Beech-Nut.
It’s not only a little less costly, but it also tends to have fewer additives than the Gerber baby food options. Depending on your own child’s preferences, he or she may like the Gerber baby foods more, but it’s also hard to ignore that the consistency of Beech-Nut may be the easiest for little ones.
It’s a little thinner than the Gerber baby foods out there, which can be hard for some babies to get used to, but it may also be the easiest for babies just starting out on solids.
FAQ’s About Beech Nut and Gerber
Question: Is Gerber food bad for babies?Answer: While you might think that a puree would be the perfect meal for your baby, have in mind that Gerber uses additives and preservatives in baby food that it’s almost like you are feeding your baby a spoon of sugar.
Answer: Making a homemade puree and juice from fresh fruit is definitely healthier than only buying pre-made food for your baby. However, always make sure that your kid’s meal does not exceed the recommended calorie intake.
Must Try
Build a meal plan for your baby with Yumi
They make and deliver fresh baby meals each week. These are either blends and purées for babies, baby led weaning meal plans or finger food for older babies.
Check Pricing
We earn a commission if you click this link and make a purchase at no additional cost to you.
Question: How long does Beech-Nut baby food last?Answer: Beech-Nut baby food lasts 18 months, in comparison to other brands that also offer jarred baby food, whose shelf life is 24 months, and the main reason why is the lack of preservatives in the food.
Question: What is the safest baby food?
Answer: Both Beech-Nut and Gerber qualify as very safe baby food for your child!
Beech-Nut vs Gerber Baby Food: Final ThoughtsAs long as you’re giving your baby or toddler healthy baby food that they enjoy, then you’re doing something right.
In this case, the Beech-Nut may be the stronger option, but both baby foods are plenty healthy in their ways.
Since both brands offer natural and organic options, that’s half the battle in finding the right healthy baby food for your child. Choosing your baby’s first solid food can be hard enough without having to decide between two specific brands that have some clear differences from each other.
But while you may at first expect Gerber to be the winning baby food, in this instance, Beech-Nut is the way to go.
Further Baby Food Research
Definitely cross reference our frequently updated baby food recall list and our best baby food brand ratings for additional context.
- Best DIY Baby Food Makers
- Yumi vs Little Spoon Compared
- Gerber Gentle vs Soothe – Which Baby Formula is Best?
- Yumi Review: Is This The Best Baby Food to Opt For?
Recommended Baby Food
Jars, Pouches, Organic, and More
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After months of breastfeeding or bottle-feeding, it can be surprising to realize that your still-tiny baby is actually ready for “real” food. This exciting (albeit messy!) transition may be a little bittersweet and can feel overwhelming, especially considering the numerous baby food options available in 2022.
We’ve rounded up some of this year’s best baby foods to help you get started on the right foot — er, spoon.
Both the World Health Organization and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommend exclusively breastfeeding babies for the first 6 months of life. Formula-fed infants are ready to start solid foods when they start showing signs that they’re ready.
In some cases, you may start solids around 4 or 5 months, but it’s best to discuss this with your pediatrician. If your doctor doesn’t have a different recommendation, most babies are ready to start soft or pureed foods by the time they’re about 6 months old.
If you’re picking commercially prepared baby food (versus making your own), it’s wise to start with simple, one-ingredient baby food. Most commercial baby food is labeled stage 1, 2, or 3 based on the texture and number of ingredients.
For instance, stage 1 baby food has the smoothest texture and typically has one ingredient, such as pureed pears. So, for your 4- to 6-month-old, you’ll want to start with stage 1 baby food.
Starting with one food at a time helps you monitor for any adverse reactions or food allergies. The American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology recommends monitoring each food for 3 to 5 days.
There isn’t really a perfect first food — the choice is yours! Some good foods to start: infant cereal (preferably oat or whole grain), meat purees such as chicken or turkey, or single-ingredient purees of fruits or veggies.
If you’re debating whether to start with fruits or veggies first, the AAP suggests that an infant’s preferences for sweets won’t budge even if veggies are introduced first.
Mashed peas just don’t taste as good once you’ve had applesauce.
We chatted with pediatricians, read the research, polled real-life parents, read reviews, and used our own babies as taste testers (although we can’t say their opinions on nutritional value are very authoritative) to bring you some of the top baby food brands available. In addition:
- We looked for foods that are certified USDA organic and have non-GMO verified ingredients.
- We focused on baby food that’s free of added sugar (but have called out one or two products that contain it).
- The baby foods on our list are free of harmful preservatives.
- We called out the brands that market their products as gluten-free and allergen-free.
All products are also vetted by our medical standards team, which evaluates brand integrity and product safety.
Reducing Exposure to Toxic Elements in Baby Foods
Three brands in this article — Gerber, Beech-Nut, and Happy Baby — were mentioned in a February 2021 Congressional Report for products containing significantly high levels of toxic heavy metals, including arsenic, lead, cadmium, and mercury.
The FDA has since launched the Closer to Zero: Action Plan for Baby Foods to address exposure to toxic elements from eating baby foods.
- Best overall baby food: Beech-Nut Naturals Stage 1
- Best organic baby food pouches: Plum Organics Stage 1
- Best budget-friendly baby food: Gerber Organic 1st Foods
- Best baby food for constipation: Gerber Natural 1st Foods (Pear)
- Best organic jarred baby food: Happy Baby Organics Clearly Crafted Stage 1
- Best personalized subscription service: Cerebelly
- Best fresh baby food: Once Upon a Farm Cold-Pressed Organic Baby Food
- Best first baby cereal: Gerber Organic 1st Foods Single Grain Cereal
- Best, most interesting baby food blends: Little Spoon Complex Solids
- Best all-around clean baby food: Baby Gourmet
Best overall baby food
Beech-Nut Naturals Stage 1
This affordable baby food is an all-around fan favorite.
Beech-Nut baby foods come in recyclable glass jars and are available in both natural and organic varieties. Blends are available in every stage, from single-ingredient foods for brand-new eaters (like butternut squash and plum) to multi-food blends with chunkier textures for older babies.
The ingredients in Beech-Nut baby foods are simple, with no artificial additives. Plus, these little glass jars are available at most grocery stores, so they’re easy to find. However, while it’s great for recycling purposes, glass can be dangerous — always supervise your little one around glass.
Beech-Nut Naturals are free of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) but not certified organic (unless you shop their organics line). They contain no added sugar.
Shop now at Walmart
Best organic baby food pouches
Plum Organics Stage 1
If sustainability, organic foods, and non-GMO ingredients are important to you, Plum Organics has a great line of baby food options to try.
Their BPA-free pouches are super convenient and available in a variety of fruits, veggies, and grains for each stage of eating. These foods have no added salts or sugars, so they’re nutritious and simple for baby’s maturing digestive system. They’re also widely available and can be purchased in bulk for greater savings.
And while feeding experts definitely discourage using pouches exclusively, there’s no denying that pouches are very convenient for occasional on-the-go feedings. To make sure your baby is still progressing in their journey through solid foods, try squeezing the pouch contents into a spoon. And be sure to watch out for the small plastic caps, as they’re a choking hazard.
Plum Organics is certified organic and non-GMO, and their baby food doesn’t contain added sugar.
Shop now at Amazon
Best budget-friendly baby food
Gerber Organic 1st Foods
Gerber is the classic baby food brand, and they’ve made changes over the last few years to make their food more health-conscious (e.
g., starting an organic line). Yet they have maintained their status as one of the most affordable prepared baby food brands on the market.
They offer benefits like glass jars, organic ingredients, and a wide variety of food choices at a lower cost than some other brands on our list.
Gerber Organic is USDA organic, non-GMO, and free of added sugar.
Shop now at Walmart
Best baby food for constipation
Gerber Natural 1st Foods (Pear)
Sometimes babies get a little constipated when they’re beginning their solid food journey, especially if they’re eating a lot of dairy or iron-fortified cereal. In addition to continuing breast milk, some foods may help relieve your little one’s digestive discomfort, including all the “P” fruits.
So prunes, pears, plums, and peaches are some options to help keep tiny bowels on the move. You can find great fruit purees in any brand on our list, but one of the more cost-effective is the Gerber brand. The good news is that many babies love fruit, so it shouldn’t be too hard to get your little one to down some prunes or pears.
This product is made with non-GMO ingredients and pears grown with Clean Field Farming practices. It doesn’t contain added sugars.
Shop now at Walmart
Best organic jarred baby food
Happy Baby Organics Clearly Crafted Stage 1
Another great organic baby food option, the Happy Baby company offers their organic baby food jars at most stores — although not quite as widely as Beech-Nut and Plum Organics.
Happy Baby jars offer a wide variety of foods, from kale and mango to spinach and peaches and chia seeds. You can start with their single-ingredient jars (this is important for ruling out allergies, as well as to help baby learn to like spinach even when it’s not disguised by pears). Then, you can move on to their fruit and veggie blends as your little one grows.
High quality ingredients, creative flavors, and no artificial ingredients all make Happy Baby a solid (no pun intended) choice.
Happy Baby is USDA organic and doesn’t contain added sugars.
Shop now at Walmart
Best personalized subscription service
Cerebelly
Cerebelly allows you to personalize your subscription of baby food pouches based on your child’s age, leaning on science to determine what foods will benefit them at their stage of development.
You’ll take a quiz that asks about the current development and language cues your baby is showing (responding to their name, grasping toys, using noises to show emotion, etc.). It also asks about motor, social, and visual skills.
The results will clue you in on key nutrients that may benefit your little one and customize your baby food pouches based on this.
To boot, the brand has earned the Clean Label Project Purity Award (which evaluates products for toxins and contaminants), is certified USDA organic, and contains no added sugars.
Shop now at Cerebelly
Best fresh baby food
Once Upon a Farm Cold-Pressed Organic Baby Food
These organic, cold-pressed baby food pouches and cups are found in the refrigerated section at your grocery store (and yes, they have to be refrigerated at home).
The company also has a subscription delivery option to make baby food even more convenient for your busy schedule.
Creative names like Wild Rumpus Avocado and Magic Velvet Mango will have you smiling, and the variety of flavors will (hopefully!) appeal to your little one. Once Upon a Farm offers a variety of food stages, so you can start with their purees and move on up to their finger and toddler foods as your baby grows.
Once Upon a Farm is certified organic and non-GMO. Their products contain no added sugars and are Clean Label Project certified.
Shop now at Target
Best first baby cereal
Gerber Organic 1st Foods Single Grain Cereal
This simple cereal is a great first food for baby. You can mix this one-ingredient whole grain cereal with breast milk, formula, or water to provide your little one with some crucial nutrients (such as iron) and experience with spoons and textures.
The AAP recommends oatmeal or multigrain cereals over rice cereals, as they have a lower risk of exposure to chemicals such as arsenic (which is sometimes a concern with rice products).
As your baby gets used to other foods, you can also mix this cereal with fruit or yogurt to provide a heartier meal.
Gerber Organic is certified USDA organic and non-GMO, but this product does contain some added sugars.
Shop now at Walmart
Best, most interesting baby food blends
Little Spoon Complex Solids
Once your baby is ready for more advanced blends, Little Spoon has a unique line of complex blends that contain multiple purees as well as other seeds and grains for texture.
For example, one blend contains quinoa, butternut squash, and apple. Another contains kale, white bean, pear, basil, quinoa, and avocado oil.
Little Spoon purees use certified organic and non-GMO ingredients. They’re free of added sugar.
Shop now at Little Spoon
Best all-around clean baby food
Baby Gourmet
Baby Gourmet is another Clean Label Project Purity Award winner, which means they go above and beyond to ensure their baby food is free of harmful toxins that naturally occur in the environment.
This Canadian company is also set to donate 1 million meals to vulnerable populations by 2025. It’s founded and run by moms, which can be reassuring.
Baby Gourmet is certified organic and non-GMO by both U.S. and Canadian standards. All packaging is BPA-free. Products contain no added sugar.
Shop now at Baby Gourmet
As a general guideline, it’s a good idea to start with iron-fortified baby cereals or pureed meats if your infant is breastfed. Breastfed babies are more likely to need extra iron than formula-fed babies.
It’s also advisable to start with simple, single-ingredient purees of meat, vegetables, and fruits.
Choosing brands that are certified organic, use BPA-free materials, and are conscious of using whole food ingredients (e.g., they don’t add “extras” like salt, sugar, or corn syrup) helps ensure a healthy start for your little one.
According to the AAP, you shouldn’t give babies under age 1 cow’s milk, honey, unpasteurized dairy, or undercooked meat, as these can be an infection risk for a baby’s developing immune system.
You’ll also want to avoid foods that are hard or sharp or present a choking risk (for instance, chips, nuts, popcorn, raisins, raw apples, raw carrots, whole grapes, hot dogs). For a more comprehensive guide to which foods to give and what to avoid, check out our article on infant nutrition and starting solids.
While experts used to advise waiting to introduce highly allergenic foods (such as dairy, wheat, nuts, and eggs) until after the first year, the experts now say that delayed introduction of these foods may increase a child’s risk of food allergies. So, with the guidance of your pediatrician, go ahead and introduce those foods within the first year.
Seek immediate emergency medical attention if you notice swelling of the tongue and mouth, wheezing, or trouble breathing after your child eats certain foods
Some babies are raring to go when it comes to trying food, while others may take a little more convincing. Either way, definitely get your camera on video mode, as there are bound to be some hilarious faces and some impressive food spillage along the way.
Here are some pro tips to help make the process as smooth as possible:
- Wait until your baby shows signs of readiness for solid food.
- Keep trying. It can take 5 to 10 exposures for a baby to accept a new food.
- Make it fun and silly.
- Cook and eat as a family as much as possible.
- Let your baby play with the spoon and even the food! While incredibly messy, this helps them get comfortable with the textures, smells, and tastes of new foods.
- Talk with your pediatrician if you have any questions or concerns. They’re a great resource and want to help you grow a happy, healthy baby.
What’s the best baby food for growth and weight gain?
If your baby is under 6 months and breastfeeding, it’s recommended that you stick to that exclusively for 6 months. When you’re ready to introduce solids after 6 months, it should be in addition to breastfeeding and formula, not as a replacement.
If your baby is formula-fed, they may begin eating solids sooner than 6 months.
While no one specific food is recommended, a variety of foods and colors is best, including meats, vegetables, and fruits. One of the key foods that can help with growth and weight gain is avocados (high in healthy fats and fiber but low in sugar).
Always discuss your baby’s dietary changes with your pediatrician and attend regular checkups to monitor growth.
What’s the easiest food for babies to digest?
Just like adults, babies do best with regular bowel movements. If they’re having a hard time with this, oatmeal is one food known to be easy to digest and promote regularity, as it contains higher amounts of dietary fiber.
It may also help to focus on quantity. Try feeding your baby smaller meals more often, rather than fewer larger meals. This may be easier on their system and allow them to digest foods more easily.
What’s the best baby food to start with?
Mashed banana and avocado are some of the most popular solids to start with. Soft, ground oatmeal is also great.
When it comes to fruit and vegetable purees, focus on variety, but don’t overdo it with those that are naturally high in sugar (such as berry purees).
Most importantly, at 6 months old, all foods should still be pureed and cooked. Once your baby is 9 months old and older, you can start to introduce vegetables cut into pieces. The only other no-no is honey, which they shouldn’t have until they’re over a year old.
It can feel like a lot of pressure to choose the best nutrition for your child, especially when trying to capitalize on the years before they start demanding chicken nuggets and ice cream. But there are a lot of great, healthy options available in 2022.
Whether you choose to make your own baby food, buy jars or pouches, or use a baby food subscription service, there are a number of resources to help you feed your baby.
To Canada with a child - Hello Canada!
- Arrival
1 2523
When I was asked about the nuances of moving with a child, the first thing I did was to look at old posts, with the feeling that everything had already been described a long time ago.
It turned out that the information appears in a number of posts, but a general post would not hurt. Especially considering the accumulated experience over the past time. In something I will repeat, something new will be.
Flight
Let me remind you that we flew with a transfer in Zurich. The flight was probably the most difficult moment for us. My daughter was three years old at the time. We had a fear of strangers in the maximum phase and this meant continuous sitting on our hands with occasional tantrums, if God forbid someone looked. The only respite we had was in the mother and child room at the transfer airport. It has everything for both toddlers and older kids. Lots of toys, equipped kitchen and high chairs, changing tables (with everything you need) and even cribs to sleep in.
With us, in hand luggage, we had a standard set for a long trip from home. I think it makes no sense to paint a lot, any mom is aware of what is required. I can only say that the airport and airline staff were polite and helped as much as possible.
In Moscow, they missed everything that a child needs without question: a liter bottle of water (and I myself asked if it was possible), a jar of dry mix, a bunch of jars of purees. Mixture and purees, by the way, are allowed to be imported, so we also had no problems with importing in Montreal. On planes, we were always warmed up bottles (a bottle of water) without question and supplied with water. We handed over our stroller at the exit to the plane and got it at the exit. Otherwise, I'm afraid I would have grunted there from the amount of our hand luggage :).
First days
Take everything with a margin, at least for a couple of days. This will eliminate the need to frantically rush about in search of children's consumables :). A stroller helps a lot, you can take it on the spot (cheap canes at Walmart). However, in the Montreal subway with a stroller is extremely inconvenient. Huge stairs and in most cases escalators are only going up. In Toronto, the situation is better, but not at all stations.
Most toilets have a corner with a changing table or even a separate booth; The first days will have to drag a lot, but it's not scary.
Nutrition and diapers
In addition, baby food here is very different from what is sold in Russia. For example, we were looking for meat in jars for a very long time, it was simply nowhere to be found. Because of this, we quickly switched to a blender and regular meat, which is excellent here and does not cause any reactions in the baby. The difference is in the consistency and in the products. There are simply no potatoes, broccoli, cauliflower, zucchini in jars. But all this is also available fresh and a blender to help. From the famous brands Heinz and Gerber. Here, for example, is the Canadian website Heinz, where you can see what kind of food is offered to children here. The rest of the brands will be about the same. Mixtures, such as spaghetti with meat, are a must try for yourself, as in some cases they overdo it with spices.
Mixes, this is also fine, but it's clear, everything is different. There are, by the way, liquid mixtures, that is, already diluted. I don’t know what the trick is, but everything that is available in the form of a powder can be bought in liquid form. It seems to be considered that this option is better. We used in Moscow a mixture based on goat's milk. There are none here. As a result, we settled on Similac Sensitive Lactose-Free (when you arrive, register on their website, they will send coupons for an additional discount).
We originally made porridge ourselves. The only difficulty was to find a store with cereals at reasonable prices. In Montreal, we had no time for that; we returned to cereals already in Ontario. And so there are any cereals.
Diapers tried probably all manufacturers. As a result, we settled on Huggies, although they were not used in Moscow, but there were Japanese ones ... you can forget about them here. It is interesting that only recently they had panties in the local sale, before that they were only for potty training and regular diapers.
It is better to guess all purchases for promotions, you can save decently. The main places where we buy are Costco and Walmart. Sometimes, of course, we buy in other networks, if there is a promotion. For prices, you can look at the Walmart website, there you just need to get attached to someone in the store.
Clothes
There are a lot of branded stores here (Children's Place, Gap, etc.) and they also have promotions :). You can also watch Sears, Winners and even Zellers and Walmart. It is only necessary to carefully choose what would be cotton, not synthetics. The only thing is that good shoes are worth taking. There are not so many “correct” shoes here and they are quite decently priced (mm, if it’s rude, then somewhere from $ 70).
In Montreal, I really liked the L'Aubainerie store. Children's clothes are cute and of good quality, there are also for the little ones. Including diapers (there is a myth that they are not here 🙂).
Entertainment
There's plenty of that here (I'm talking about Toronto here).
Lots of playgrounds and wildlife parks. Lots of groups for moms and kids. For older kids, even more entertainment, but already requiring the financial participation of parents (it's stupid to go to an amusement park and not ride;)). We are still small for this, we will grow up - we will tell you how it is here. There are enough toys for every taste and budget.
Adaptation
At our age, it seems to me that my daughter did not even notice that we live somewhere else. The locals have to get used to the microbes, and adults can’t get away from it either. There is also a lack of understanding of adults who speak English (what they want with their Hi). But all this is somehow uncritical against the background of the advantages that are here. When he grows up, he will start teaching his parents what and how is right here :).
Source: tinos.ru
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Alexander K.
Tinos, thank you very much for your story, it was interesting to read. The question is ripe - are there many parks everywhere, or is this area so successful for you?
And one more thing - what about development schools and other things that at your age are already quite profitable?
| you are reading a book |
| David Markish Yacht Trachtenberg boulevard was crowded. Pedestrians walked in pairs, groups and singly, seated invalids rode on a wheel. Others were pushing a structure in front of them that looked like a mobile flagpole with an IV bag hanging from it. The boulevard crossed the building of the Tel Meir hospital along its entire cyclopean width. It was, strictly speaking, a corridor, on one side of which were medical departments, and on the other - operating rooms, laboratories, research centers, housekeeping services, cafes and shops: flowers, gifts, books and confectionery. One could, of course, call this covered passage and a boulevard, but such a thing came into someone's head. But who Trachtenberg is and what he became famous for, remained unclear: enameled plates, white on blue, read: "Trachtenberg Boulevard." And it's all. It is more than likely that Trachtenberg, unknown to the general public, gave money for the construction of the corridor. Such cases are not isolated: in the Tel Meir hospital, entire departments were built on donations, not to mention hospital squares or outlandish statues that adorn lawns and clearings. In the middle, approximately, of the boulevard, on the right hand, there was a cafe "Robespierre". The sign featured an artistic depiction of a bloodthirsty Frenchman in front of a guillotine. His face had an angry expression. With a broad gesture, the Incorruptible pointed to the entrance to the establishment and invited everyone to come in without delay. Walking patients and their guests drank coffee and smoked tobacco at round tables. There was also a sculpture here, in the corner, to excite an aesthetic feeling, if anyone had dozed off. The author, Jerry Drucker of Chicago, Illinois, apparently paid quite a bit to have her put here in the hospital, on the brink of death. The sculpture was made of perforated steel sheets, by riveting - flat, with branching members. It was an image of an evil and dangerous creature. In the upper part, arbitrarily, a sharp straight beak stuck out. On the other hand, the mood of the religious part of the patients was not affected in any way: the sculpture had nothing to do with the sinful figurative world. If the owner of "Robespierre" put here the armless Venus de Milo or Michelangelo's David, they would not stand here for even an hour: the rabbis, who oversee the strict observance of traditions in the hospital in three shifts, would make a scandal. And, indeed, David with his uncircumcised pip is not an idol that cannot be created? Why is it better than the Golden Calf in the Sinai sands? Nothing. Lyova Shor-Tabachnik from the Fourth Section was sitting opposite the sculpture, looking at it without any expression. A man is not a dog, a man gets used to everything, - and Lyova has been sitting here over his coffee for a month and a half, day after day, and the road from Tel Meir to the closed medical institution Migdal-Nakhum, located in the forest thickets of the Upper Galilee, shone for him, in almond places. I met Lev's Yacht at the American writer Hemingway's, where his girlfriend Bret looks like a racing yacht - I met and fell in love. He fell in love like another great writer, Platonov, the new knight Kopyonkin loves with excellent love the fiery revolutionary Rosa Luxembourg, who, however, has long since passed away from us. And so the Yacht became the dream of Lyova Shor-Tabachnik, he wanted to master it, or at least touch it. Further into the water, deeper bottom. The dream captured Lyova, as they say, with ears, led him by the hand. The decision to go to Israel for permanent residence came to Lyova Shor-Tabachnik at the end of the 80s, shortly after graduation. I must honestly say that the Zionist idea did not play any role here: Lyova was not eager to fight the Arabs and did not plan to collect oranges and dates in the forest. By that time Lyova was already married to an English teacher of Russian nationality named Vera. The visit to the registry office did not happen by itself, but as a result of an oversight: Vera missed her, her intimate spring misfired or even jumped out somewhere, and here's the result for you - an interesting situation, and the child grows there by leaps and bounds. Lyova accepted the news without anguish and went to register. In the end, once in a life there is only death, and everything else is plural. They lived in a one-room apartment on the outskirts of the city, in a new area. They lived well: he worked in the design bureau of the trawler fleet, she taught the children the language of William Shakespeare and Kim Philby. But nature took its toll, young years are green, and now, after the daughter, the son Vitya appeared. One child is bored in the house, no one will argue about this, and it is not pedagogical, and the Pope is also not a fool, but how he stands against abortion. Time passed neither shaky nor roll, life was overgrown with shells and pulled to the bottom. Although the wind of Gorbachev's freedom blew over Moscow, it blew past: there was no sail to catch it, the construction of trawlers was coming to naught, and there was disgustingly little money even for the most essential. Lenya Shor-Tabachnik felt homesick. The yacht existed nearby, but it was completely impossible to reach it; only at night it approached in the dark, with a gentle splash, rubbing its side against his shoulder, and then he moaned and tossed about in his sleep. Vera understood this too - she hoped that with a change in the life situation, Lenya would take up his mind and put his idea with the boat out of his head, and the children in the new place would stop snot, act up and roar. A new place was designated as if by itself: Israel. There is baby food, there is a Mediterranean climate, everything is there. Just in case, Vera hinted at Germany, but Lenya didn’t even want to listen - dense feelings arose in his heart for his historical homeland, for the twelve sons of old Yakov, one of whom, by the way, did not drive goats with rams through the hills, not from a bow shot at a flying duck, and went along the nautical part. Departure documents have been submitted, the countdown before the start has begun. A few friends and buddies were not at all surprised by the decision of the Shor-Tabachnikovs; one could only be surprised that Vera and Lenya had not set off anywhere yet, but they could. Permission from the authorities came quickly and without interference, the fees also did not take much time. And what is there to collect? Not a loose bed, not wooden bookshelves to send at a quiet speed to distant lands, to the distant Jewish state. It was decided to take with them washed-out children's clothes for a shift, two dozen books on shipbuilding and various household small items in two suitcases and a checkered oilcloth trunk, with which Russian shuttles scurry back and forth across the wide world. The moment of the arrival of the sons of Israel with children and household members, with belongings, dogs and cats to their ancient homeland is described many times; I wrote about it myself. Cats and dogs also arrived, although it would be more logical to bring a sheep to their historical homeland, if only because this useful animal is mentioned in Jewish sacred books more often than other dumb creatures. But times are changing, and people are changing with the times: the king of nature today places a sheep next to a goat ... While they were filling out the documents, Lenya, Vera and their children, along with other newcomers, watched a pair of white royal poodles, crazy from the flight - a male and a girl . As for the cat, he was sitting in a wicker basket, sticking his round head into a hole and looking at the Jewish world with complete indifference. His mistress, a large old woman in a hat with a brim and a bird, patiently waited in line for registration and did not communicate with the cat, as if it were an independent neighbor with an independent character. And Lenya toiled. He wanted to quickly sit down in front of the official and declare without preamble: “I don’t care where to go, the main thing is to go to the seashore.” And so it happened - he was sent to the South, to Ashkelon. The easiest way would be to buy a Yacht - for money, at some British shipyard, say, or second-hand; and the choice was outstanding. He called England more for order and out of dark curiosity: prices went through the roof from the first sound, zeros went to the horizon. Under the reproachful gaze of Verka, who was counting the minutes of the international conversation, Lenya asked for pleasant details: how many meters from bow to stern, what is the height of the mast and the area of \u200b\u200bthe sails, what kind of wood the helm is made of - red or beech. Then it inevitably came to the price, and the conversation stopped. A second-hand purchase seemed more achievable, if only because it was possible to go to Herzelia and see and feel the boat with your own hands in the “marina” there. But even in Herzelia, the prices were completely Gulliverian, and one of the private owners, whom Lenya Shor-Tabachnik got through on the phone, even allowed himself to be sarcastic. In response to the question of how much diesel fuel the emergency engine consumes, the yachtsman snarled into the phone: “If you are going to buy a yacht from me and ask such nonsense, then you don’t even have money for a bus!” And interrupted the conversation without saying goodbye. - He would go to hell! Lenya reacted, and Verka agreed with him. “You can immediately see what kind of guy! He would trade slaves in the slave market. Here Verka shook her head sadly - the comparison seemed a bit far-fetched to her. And after all these conversations, Lyonya's heart felt better: there are no options, you have to build the Yacht yourself. It will take a year, two - let it go: as much as necessary, so much will go away. The Ashkelon Sea turned out to be quite suitable for releasing a Yacht into it - sapphire, with a sparkle. However, there was no time to admire the beautiful water. Lenya meticulously examined the sandy shore and, five kilometers north of the city, chose a deserted area, with its rear resting against a decrepit ocher rock, all in crevices, and to the right and left not limited by anything. Here it was necessary to lay the Yacht, build it and launch it. The main business was hindered by side, distracting problems. And the household always wanted something in this luxurious world. The children wanted ice cream and Lego, Vera wanted a washing machine and went to a private gynecologist. Lenya Shor-Tabachnik was silently annoyed at them, but did not express himself aloud in order to avoid scandal. For a long time, for a short time, something resembling the skeleton of a boat hull appeared on the coastal platform near Ashkelon. How much time, divided into days, weeks and months, has passed since Lenya appeared here, on the shore, if he knew, then he did not focus his attention on this: day and night - a day away, and ends in water. The builder's face was overgrown with a beautiful beard, the forehead and under the eyes were covered with a persistent tan. Indeed, a year or so ago, Lenya worked in some kind of sharashka office, designed a new generation of juicers, but then he was fired from there due to staff reductions, according to the iron rule “last in, first out”. The yacht, meanwhile, grew up and demanded more and more money for further development. Verya's earnings were barely enough to pay off a loan for a dilapidated apartment, bought by chance near the Old Market, and the rest crawled away on their own, God knows where, like Gogol's crayfish from a basket. One day Lenya found on the edge of his property a single tent with holes in it, in which a fair-haired fellow, similar to a Viking, with traces of night drunkenness on his face, slept in a serene sleep. - Who are you? - Pushing the young man, asked Lenya Shor-Tabachnik. “Someone…” murmured discontentedly, awakened from sleep. Well, Ivanov. Ivanov turned out to be a native of Bryansk, a speech therapist. Fifteen years ago, he and his Jewish wife left the borders of the fatherland and settled in Canada, and now he has come to the Holy Land with an important goal - to wait for the coming of the Messiah and the End of the World. According to Ivanov's calculations, the Messiah was supposed to appear within five months right here, near Ashkelon. Ivanov could not indicate the exact number, but it was not necessary. The deadline was December, the calculator was firmly convinced of this. Based on this, he quit his job at the University Hospital of Montreal, left a family that doubted the accuracy of the calculations, and bought a one-way ticket to Israel. The deed was done, the ball passed into the hands of the Messiah. Ivanov saved money for food strictly until December, and a hotel is simply useless here: Israel is not Canada, it is warm all year round, you can wait on the shore in a tent. - And for January, then, no? Leona clarified. - Of money? "Why do I need January," Ivanov shrugged his shoulders, "when there's no need for January. In response to this explanation, Lenya Shor-Tabachnik just shook his head: hello, what an End of the World, what January! The yacht, God willing, will be launched not earlier than in a year and a half. The acquaintance dragged on pleasantly. We drank vodka from Ivanov's supplies. We ate Canadian beans in a tomato. Both had time: Lenya went to wash the floors at night, and Ivanov was in no hurry at all. The conversation flowed nicely. It was interesting for Lena to hear about Canada, about the country of the maple leaf - that people there lack spirituality simply catastrophically. Sincerely sympathizing with the Canadians, Lenya undertook to tell a new acquaintance about his Yacht, but he missed the detailed story on deaf ears. Lenya was not offended - he understood that Ivanov was carried away by the imminent appearance of the Messiah, and other people's problems were far from him. — Well, yes, — said Ivanov. - And at the same time I will guard against thieves, otherwise you never know what ... Tuesday rides on Wednesday, and drives on Thursday; this is exactly. Time passed, leaving no notches, past the Yacht and Lenya Shor-Tabachnik, the children of Roxanne and Vitya grew up on oranges by leaps and bounds, and Verka grumbled and frowned: she could not rejoice in her soul only from the beauty of life around her. Looking from the window at the unceasing stirring of the Old Market, she sweetly dreamed of the day when Lenya would finish his boat and swim away wherever her eyes looked. Not bringing sustainable enlightenment, the days one after another rolled over the stump-deck. And there was no one in the Ashkelon sands overgrown with palm trees who would take pity on Vera or give practical advice. Not knowing her own sins, Vera suspected a malicious evil eye, induced damage - but how else can you explain the continuous troubles of life? Do not blame the Jews for this, the Jews probably have nothing to do with it. And if and with what, how to figure out who here, in the Jewish land ... There remained a fortune-teller, a specialist in the evil eye, they also wrote about her in the newspaper, as about Lenya, who is very experienced and well versed in such matters. The fortune-teller patiently listened to Verin's story, and the story of the Yacht surprised her greatly, she even boiled up - apparently, she did not often come across such a scenario. - Worm man. You, woman, need to hand him over to a lunatic asylum and go to court to get a divorce. - What about the evil eye? Vera asked. - Can't you get rid of it? — There is a dark horizon, — the fortuneteller explained incomprehensibly. - I can damage it, yours, it will wither itself. - Don't! Vera said, pursing her lips and putting the photograph into her bag. - How much do I owe you? Having received the fee, the fortuneteller counted the money and wrote out a receipt. This receipt angered Vera the most. Receipt! Going out into the street, she tore the paper into small pieces, threw it on the pavement and went to the Old Market. When she returned home, she found a letter from the law office in a drawer. The lawyer informed Mr. Leonid Shor-Tabachnik that his apartment had been sold and that all the papers had been duly executed. - I so agreed that we would stay to live in the same apartment, we would only pay for the rent, - repeated Lenya Shor-Tabachnik, looking with some anxiety at the crying and howling Veerka. - It will turn out even better: it will cost less in a month than on a loan. - Where is the money? Verka sobbed, choking with tears. - Where do you put the money? - Well, money ... - Lenya shrugged. - I bought a steering wheel, beams, canvas, paint, something made of copper and, most importantly, a keel ... Show a list or something? - He killed, - Verka burst into words, - he left the children on the street! - We will soon move to the yacht, - conscientiously reassured Lenya, - we will live there. Enough space, and what air. No crooks,” he nodded his head at the Old Market outside the window, “no noise. It's clear! The fortuneteller turned out to be right: she should have divorced. There was no money for a lawyer, and Verka found extra money - in the mornings, before school, she washed windows in office premises. The view from above, from the eighth floor, opened marvelous: the white sandy shore turned into wavy sands, islands of palm parks and orange groves were green on them, on the left, like lamb nuts, the houses of Gaza rolled down to the sea, and on the right, in the distance, the white towers of Ashdod were guessed . Standing on the windowsill, with a rag and a rubber wringer in her hands, Vera peered into the milk-covered horizon with a low sun above it and, having lost the sense of time, waited for a miracle: the appearance of an unknown God over the sea, or at least an angel on sailing wings, with a golden pipe at faces. The world seemed to her one-dimensional, simple and sweet. The ringing of the phone behind her, on one of the tables, lashed her like a whip. She shuddered and stumbled on the windowsill. And the world, before disappearing, turned upside down in her eyes and became itself again. The graveyard removes scale from the heart. The cemetery is the threshold of Eternity, which is God. So or something like this thought and felt Lenya Shor-Tabachnik, wandering along the paths of the cemetery to Vera. Time, advancing neither shaky nor swath, from the day of the funeral, let days and nights slip through its fingers — just like a diligent pilgrim passes the seeds of a rosary on a string — and the earth around Vera managed to swell with new brown humps. As he passed, Lenya peered at the inscriptions on the tombstones. Hundreds of unfamiliar names did not tell him anything, but the crowd of inhabitants of this place was benevolent to the stranger, and Lenya felt gratitude to her for such a reception. He had not felt so well and protected for a long time, he felt respectful love for the cemetery, as for the king - and not at all because Vera was now here. In general, he did not think about Vera in the first place, she had already disappeared around the corner, she was not visible. But problems started with Ivanov. The closer the End of the World approached, the more anxious Ivanov became and more thoughtful. He drank more and smoked more. He even bought a bar of soap, went to a deserted public beach in the winter season and washed himself under a lonely tap from head to toe, although he had not abused body washing until then. It sometimes seemed to Lena Shor-Tabachnik that Ivanov would be delighted if the Messiah changed the direction of his path at the appointed hour and passed by Ashkelon, somewhere. Sitting on a cemetery bench, in the shade of strong trees, Lenya imagined the appearance of the Messiah: here he comes, a strict old man in a white jacket, he does not look around, his lips move: “The hour has come! The hour has come! In his hand, the Messiah carries a canvas bag with food, his head is not covered, his gray mane sparkles with rain pollen. And Ivanov drank, sitting on the sand of the shore. He drank to get ahead of time and to make his soul light and cool. Finishing his bottle of Ouzo, he glanced at his watch; it was the sixth hour, the end of the world had not yet come. Ivanov narrowed his eyes in annoyance and shook his head: God invented Time, not clock hands. Then he got to his feet and climbed into the yacht, into the hut - to sleep. Lighting a Nobles, he stretched out on a rubber mattress and closed his eyes. The cigarette, smoking, fell from his fingers and rolled to a handful of dry shavings in the corner. The yacht was on fire. Against the background of the high evening sky, closing on the horizon with the dark sea, the column of fire seemed small, like a hunter's fire. The yacht was on fire, an even rumble of flame reached Lyonya. It was impossible to guess the girlish outlines of the Yacht in the golden depths of the fire; so a house or a pile of dry logs could burn. And this suited Lenya: his Yacht, seriously speaking, could not take it and turn into dust, like Indira Gandhi on the banks of the Brahmaputra River. The yacht left him, that was the point. No, she did not cheat on him with another, this is not. She left because she was tired of waiting for him to fulfill all his promises: I will present a sail, I will present a mahogany steering wheel with copper rivets, I will present Aivazovsky’s painting “Dawn over the Sea” in a gold frame. Where is the steering wheel, where is the painting by Aivazovsky? How long can you wait? Anyone in place of the Yacht would have left long ago ... Lyonya unsticked his eyes from the fire and was now looking at the sea. In half an hour or an hour - it was already getting dark, the air darkened to blue and became almost tangible to the touch - Lenya Shor-Tabachnik descended from the cliff and approached the conflagration. He looked at the smoldering firebrands with condescending interest, like a complete stranger. To the call of Ivanov, who was sitting on the sand, on the sidelines, he did not respond. Gathering more air into his chest, which smelled alarmingly of burnt wood, Lenya inhaled, howled on one note, like a sea wind: “Uuuuuuuuu!”. So he stood and sang without words, sang and conjured and swayed, as if in prayer. Ivanov brought him to the Tel Meir hospital in a psychiatric ambulance.  .
|
There were lovers holding hands. The cyclist maneuvered. The child ran on roller skates. It was rush hour. 
Jews tend to donate to hospital needs. May the hand of the giver not be impoverished, what can I say. 
Such a swell could well have appeared in God's world as a result of the romantic relationship between Koshchei the Immortal and Baba Yaga. 
This prospect did not please Lyova, but it did not upset either: he did not care where to spend his life. In the Fourth Psychiatric Ward he was reputed to be quiet, so that even in the almond forests he would hardly be transferred to the violent ones. Looking through the iron contraption of the Chicago sculptor, Lyova distinctly distinguished the sandy shore of the sapphire sea and the white yacht on the log stocks. And other visions - witches, demons - he never visited. 
The Moscow guy took a liking to the sea, which he had never seen before, but which served as the natural habitat of his Yacht. “The lonely sail turns white in the blue mist of the sea. What is he looking for in a distant land ... ”These lines pierced him with an arrow smeared with fragrant honey, and Mikhail Lermontov, in a mentic casually hanging from his right shoulder, with a strong jerk ahead of Alexander Pushkin with his Tatiana, whom he had previously wanted to catch up in a dark evening corridor, grab by his bare shoulders , hug you tightly and kiss you. The slanting white sail, escaping, dragged Lyova behind him who knows where, into the dense depths. He went to study shipbuilding because of this sail, because of this coveted Yacht, as beautiful as Bret. 
The fact was that in Russia, engulfed in the flames of change, the Yacht could be wonderfully drawn only on a piece of paper, and then stick this piece of paper on your forehead. In the distant land, on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea, anything could happen - up to a miracle. 
There was enough money for living and being - Lyova shunned bad habits: he didn’t drink, he didn’t play cards, he smoked more for show off, he didn’t look after strangers - he had enough of his own. Theirs are Verka and her daughter, who, as a result of agonizing reflections, was given the name Roxana, which is rare for Jews. Lyova pressed and insisted that the newborn be called simply and at the same time with the meaning - Yacht. But Verka was crying and screaming and threatening to go on a hunger strike, and the exhausted husband gave in: Roxana is Roxana. He yielded - but the abrasion remained in his soul, and he measured the divergent woman with a sharp slate look, as if he were drawing her on logs, beams and frames. Feeling the sharp look on her skin, Verka asked herself a belated question: is everything at her Lenya's house? Shouldn't you have had an abortion? 
And what about whether all of Lenik’s houses are at home or only some, so much depends on habit: yes, he is a little strange with this boat of his, but other matchboxes are collected or alcoholics in general. And when Vitya was born, Lenya did not argue about the name, but immediately agreed: “Okay, let Victor be. "Victoria" is a victory. Naval victory. And after all, he could have rested - let's call Brig or Frigate there. 
In Russia, which had broken loose from its chains and was slipping away from under its feet, like a deck in a storm, the prospect of tying a beautiful and spoiled Yacht to itself was equal to zero. This zero seemed to Lena the collapse of life, worse than the collapse - non-existence. It was necessary to leave the Ninth Wave, it was clear. 
The Germans also sometimes set sail from their shores, but they were completely strangers, why should they delve into the spiritual aspirations of Lenya Shor-Tabachnik. 
In the crowd of immigrants descending from the plane at the Tel Aviv airport, the Shor-Tabachnikov family was no different from the others: everyone was excited, no one thought about the bad. The time of kissing the native land is a thing of the past, in the 70s, and now such nonsense never occurred to anyone. And how can you kiss here if there is only asphalt, marble and reinforced concrete around. It’s even funny and awkward somehow: they might think that a person has gone crazy. You need to behave more modestly after two thousand years of separation and not climb with kisses. 
The opinions of observers coincided: the dogs were brought for divorce, for the sake of small business. Pioneers of the 1970s dragged drills and light bulbs over the hill for sale - but why, when a thoroughbred puppy with a diploma boldly pulls for half a hundred bucks? Human thought is always leaping forward, that's for sure. 
Pay and raise sails in the blue mist of the sea! Lyonya wrote out a dozen phones and began to call. 
So it was, so it will be; Lena is used to it. Life, implicated in lack of money, interfered with going headlong into construction. English, however, is taught even in tropical thickets, and Vera gave private lessons and taught children in an Arab school - they promised to transfer to a regular school in seven months, for the new academic year. With trawlers it was more difficult. In Israel, trawlers were not built, battleships too, and Lenya earned his bread by washing floors in factory premises - sponges. Chasing dirty water over the chipped stone tiles, he saw himself with a rope mop in his hands, on the boarded white deck of the Yacht. It was more interesting that way, and time flowed with a pleasant hiss outside the factory. 
Say even a word, as the children began to cry and roar, Verka - to whine and lament. And the point here was not at all in the local heat, which had a negative effect on the nervous system, but in the fact that Lenya spent all the money on buying the tools necessary for the construction of the Yacht, on oak boards, copper staples and brass screws. The boards were wonderful, selected, and such screws still need to be looked for. And Lenya, as the head of the family, received money as a gift from the Jewish state for the arrangement and the first steps on the land of his historical homeland. By land, not by water. 
Lyonya Shor-Tabachnik could now be mistaken for a free tramp, it is possible that he was also a seafarer. He spent all his free time at the construction site, and onlookers were drawn there - to look at the crazy man. Lenya did not make a secret of his occupation, he explained his project in detail to everyone who wished, including technical details. A local Russian newspaper published an article about him with a photograph: here, they say, what a wonderful fellow countryman we have, he is ready for anything to make his dream come true, even quit working in the design bureau of a fruit juice company so as not to interfere with his beloved work. Between the lines of the article, the thought sparkled slyly that a local Hebrew would not be able to make such a sacrifice for the sake of an idea, only a real Russian Jew with a burning heart, such as Shor-Tabachnik, is capable of this. 
He forgot to think about that episode, going to regular service, by the hour, was disgusting to his being, who had gathered sea wind on the shore, near the Yacht. Scrubbing the floors at night was more suited to his new, coastal nature. Scrub floors or one-time, without guarantees, sweep the streets of the city of Ashkelon that ran down to the sea. No, it was not for nothing that the wits joked that the Israeli cities, with the arrival of a large emigration from Russia, became the cleanest and most musical cities in the world. Crowds of unskilled engineers, picking up leaves and cigarette butts from the asphalt, were scooping with scoops and brooms, and certified violinists and trumpeters entertained the audience with a musical game at busy intersections. Finally, not even two millennia have passed, the Jewish mass passion for music has turned into an undoubted good. Lyonin, a colleague in receiving social benefits, a candidate of science in permafrost, earned good money, moving from cafe to cafe and singing songs like a nightingale of Kursk, but only with words.
Everything went into action: gypsy romances, the anthem of the Soviet Union and diamond ditties, flavored with a beautiful obscenity. There was only one discrepancy here: unlike most of his compatriots, a bear stepped on the Merzlovik’s ear, but this circumstance did not turn the listeners away from the performer, but only added specificity and aroused pity in the hearts connected by a thin vein to the wallet. After the appearance of an article with a photograph, the candidate of sciences suggested that Lena cooperate and sing something marine in chorus, for example, “Our proud Varyag does not surrender to the enemy,” but the promoted Shor-Tabachnik rejected the tempting offer - he could not cope with timidity. 
There was nothing to think about full-fledged new clothes for the Yacht, and Lenya wandered around the construction sites in search of suitable garbage boards and used nails; he, with his skipper's beard and mustache, was already accustomed to in the city, considered a little crazy. When he finally reached his shipyard, he dumped a bag with finds from his shoulders to the ground, relieved and joyfully took a breath and tied a flag to a pole, which was scheduled to fly on the mast of the Yacht in due time. That flag Lenya Shor-Tabachnik made with his own hands: on a blue silk field, bordered by a golden fringe, an orange centaur pranced against the background of the rising sun. The admiral, so to speak, has arrived, everything is in place. 
When they finished the bottle, both were in a wonderful mood; the future looked bright to them. Lyonya suggested that the sociable Ivanov, who successfully combined the high with the everyday, move from the tent to the Yacht's hull, already outlined by dotted logs and boards. To do this, it was necessary to build something like a hut or a box there and spend time in anticipation of the End of the World with more amenities than in a tent. Ivanov immediately agreed. 
She had long understood herself as a widow with a living husband. Verka's vital juice had not yet turned sour, at night she was overcome by pleasant visions: pink and pearl flying men emerged from the darkness and gently pounced on her, she obediently opened up to their pressure and turned for some reason into a sticky birch bud, iridescently glowing from the inside. Meanwhile, poor Lenya lived his own special separate life: instead of reaching out and driving away the flying men, he only interrupted his wild boatswain snoring for a minute - and then only to whisper the name of his rival: “Yacht!” Hearing this disgusting name, Verka clearly saw herself with a knife in her hand, raised above the destroyer of the family, and the blade cut not a cold piece of wood, but the shameless chest of a lovebird. Blood was flowing, a woman with the deceitful eyes of a mermaid was lying at Verka's feet ... Having done the job, Verka moved away from the sleeping Lenya Shor-Tabachnik and turned freely to the flying cavaliers .
.. After a short time, she returned to the depressing realities of our life, and with a floating - no, sliding flying, but not floating! - with a smile, stretching, she asked herself the question: “Am I completely delusional?” Verka could not give an honest answer to this question. 
Then she looked at Lenino's photo for a long time, turned it this way and that, and made a decision: 
They paid well. 
The sight of the graves with those lying in them grounds the stupid flight of the still living. 
Yes, and things that could remind her of her: the chair on which she sat, the brush with which she combed her hair - all this disappeared with her and along with the apartment in the Old Market, from where she had to move out for non-payment and move to the Yacht, into a roofed hut, to Ivanov. There was no way to take the children with them, and the Social Welfare Service for juveniles placed them temporarily in an orphanage. They were fine there. 
Such an old man, perhaps, can incinerate if he wants; dangerous old man. Lena Shor-Tabachnik would like to ask the Messiah if he will come ashore, to the Yacht, where Ivanov is waiting for him, but he is afraid to ask a question and becomes shy. Be that as it may, we must go and warn Ivanov so that he is finally ready. 
Lenya Shor-Tabachnik looked at the fire from above, from a wrinkled rock, and did not go down. 
The yacht moved easily, swaying on the waves. Her sail was resiliently arched and full of wind. A flag was beating on the mast, Lenya saw an orange centaur on it and shook his head with satisfaction: there is no question of any betrayal, this is his flag, everything is in order. The Yacht just took off and left. May she be happy and not harbor resentment in her soul. 
