Rainbow Blog

Toddler Constipated? Read on…

posted by: Kia

Have you ever come across a website where you feel like you just spend hours and hours going through all their amazing products?!  That’s what happened to me when I came across Toys Naturally! You can’t go wrong with a wooden rainbow!!  Well it turns out Hillary, the woman behind the site, is just as lovely as her site and she offered us this great guest post on a very important subject!!  Enjoy…

My little toddler has suffered with constipation since a hot spell in the summer. A few trips to the GP and micralax finally sorted out the problem which had progressed to impaction. Not pleasant and not something I ever want to repeat! Apparently mum’s having to watch their poor tots go red faced while straining and becoming distressed, while they look on in despair is a common occurrence. A friend shared the following recipe with me and this magic stuff is helping us get back to normal + LOTS of drinks and lactulose (a plant based glycoside which helps to draw water into the colon and alleviate/prevent constipation! I make the recipe up as listed here however the original recipe is a little more sophisticated so I’ve added in the variations at the end with other goodies which may be added.

3 blocks dates, 1 packet soft stone-out snacking out prunes, 1 packet soft snacking apricots 1 packet soft snacking figs, 250-300g raisins, 1 heaped tablespoon good quality cocoa powder. Put all the ingredients into a food processor (ensure you have a strong motor, if not, process this in short bursts with breaks in between-the mixture is very heavy and will burn your motor out otherwise) Blend the mixture until it is a smooth gooey dough.
Roll out on a board dusted with corn flour or icing sugar to prevent the mixture sticking. Form a thick sausage and wrap in cling film or grease proof paper and refrigerate. To serve cut into slices. It is yummy. The original recipe calls for 100g dark grated chocolate and ½ tsp. of mixed spice and a variation for non-nut allergy sufferers is to roll the mixture out and place a row of walnuts/hazelnuts down the center then roll it around these, so that you have a nut in the middle of each slice when you cut it. Enjoy.

The advice I’ve gleaned is nothing new for long term management and fits with everything we try to do (most of the time) anyway. Plenty of fruit and veg (eat a rainbow!) and whole grains, plus plenty of fluids. Be vigilant in hot weather as toddlers are not particularly good at identifying and responding to thirst (learned that one the hard way!)

Bio

I became a mom in 2009 to a beautiful little girl and my world expanded like the waves from a sonic boom, as did my heart.  I think most mom’s know what I mean!  I was made redundant  a short while into maternity leave. Uncharacteristically, I welcomed this stroke of ‘misfortune’ with open arms. I was reassessing life and this gave me the perfect reason and springboard to go about establishing a new work life balance and allow me to be the mother and wife I wanted to be, while embarking on something that could fulfil my passions and use my acquired skills while still challenging me mentally and professionally. ( I trained as a veterinarian, but  progressed to the
pharmaceutical industry in pursuit of a more family friendly work regime when I started thinking about a family. It was here that I worked alongside a sales and marketing team and realised my untapped interest in marketing) I tossed around a few ideas and in January of 2011 registered Toys Naturally with Companies House. In September the Toys Naturally website went live http://www.toysnaturally.co.uk/ and I successfully took my first 2 orders from friends a week later!  What a buzz that was. Its feels hugely symbolic that it is was approximately 9
months from registering Toys Naturally to going live. This is so very much about being a mum and putting in everything I treasure for the little people in my life and for the mum’s who’s companionship I value so deeply.

Beautiful, Intelligent, ethical wooden toys for the child in us all. Wood you Play?

Best wishes,

Hillary Cowley