Made the Switch to Cloth Nappies!

So I'm not from England or any of the other places that seem to call diapers "nappies" but I've been aching to use the word..so I did! :) Nappies!

Let me define a few terms for those of you new to the cloth world

AIO- all in one (means the diaper looks and acts like disposable but its cloth)

Pocket- you have to stuff an absorbent liner into the diaper

One size- the diaper should grow with your child and you wont have to get a different size

Prefolds- are what you imagine when you think of old fashioned cloth diapers

For the past 21 days Avery and I have been trying cloth diapers out. Here is what we did and the results:

First we ordered a 21 day trial for a deposit of $121 (upon completion of the trial we return all items and get $111 back) from www.jilliansdrawers.com We received the following items:

Thirsties Fab Fitted $13.95

2 Chinese Prefolds $2.00 each

1 Fuzzi Bunz Pocket $17.95

1 bumGenius V3.0 Pocket One size $17.95

1 Thirsties Pocket AIO $16.95

1 Snappi Diaper Fastener (used in place of safety pins) $2.49

1 Thirsties Cover (used to go over the Thirsties Fab Fitted or Chinese prefolds) $10.95

1 bumGenius Organic AIO $24.95

Avery is long and lean so her "best picks" may be different from a chunkier kid. She is also a super soaker...day and night!

Thirsties Fab Fitted are bulky. They fit nice around the legs and belly but her bottom looks like J-Lo's! We sent this one back

Chinese prefolds- did not even try! I couldn't figure out how to fold them and I did not want to clean up any leaks. We also didn't use the Snappi...the directions were not easy to follow on that silly thing.

Fuzzi Bunz- this diaper didn't leak and it was pretty soft. I felt like it was really bulky too but we kept it for night time. She wont be able to wear pants over this one but it has extra room for long nights of sleep.

bumGenius Pocket one size- overall this was the best one we tried in the bunch from this trial. It is supposedly pretty trim compared to other brands. I didn't have much trouble with leaking except once at night. The liner doesn't lay down correctly or maybe I don't put it on right so she leaks at the top of the diaper. These liners take forever to dry but it is worth it for their super-absorbency.

Thirsties Cover- hands down the best leak proof item I tried. However, it fits over the already bulky Thirsties Fab Fitted diaper so we sent these back. (We kept the Thirsties pocket diaper)

bumGenius Organic AIO- ok so I was torn on this one. It takes forever and then some to dry because of all the "all in one" parts. I also felt it smelled horrible when she peed in it. I washed it 10 times before using it and I washed it immediately after she soiled it. It came out clean and smelling fresh but within minutes of urinating...I could smell a terrible odor...and not of pee either! We did keep this one for nights because it is super soft, organic and it is very trim. I would not stock up on this one for the price.

During my trial I washed the heck out of these diapers. I washed them EVERY day! I wanted to see how they would hold up, plus I wanted to use them a lot and with only this small amount of diapers I had to wash often.

I was pretty sure I was switching to cloth so I started shopping around Des Moines to see who carried what.

I found bumGenius at Simply for Giggles. I bought one diaper and paid $21.99 plus tax. If I were to purchase 6 or more I would pay $17.99. This is a competitive price as long as I buy 6 or more. Online I can pay less but in most cases there is shipping. (Jillian's Drawers offers free shipping on your next order after the trial). So at this point I wont be buying 6 of the bumGenius diapers because they still aren't "perfect" for Avery.

I stopped at Little Padded Bottoms in Valley Junction. What a GREAT selection of products. I had no idea about this store and was in love the minute I walked in. I purchased the following items:

Wahmies Pail liner $16.50

Wahmies wet bag (regular size) $15.50

Grandma El's diaper cream (suitable for cloth diapers) $10.95

1 Swaddlebees Nappi (in super cute chocolate and pink!) $28.95

3 GAD Pocket Diapers $15.95 each

3 Knickernappies LoopyDo Inserts $6.95 each

I love the Wahmies pail liner and bag- I wash them every time I wash the diapers.

The diaper cream is nice but it doesn't compare to Desitin- which I can't use with a cloth diaper! :(

The Swaddlebees diaper is rather bulky but it is so cute that I just don't care! It is very absorbent but overnight, Avery woke up with wet skin and a slight diaper rash. The Velcro is extremely strong.

The GAD diapers are by far THE trimmest diapers I have tried. The inserts are great but my super soaker needs a little more. We will be heading down to the store again this week to add a second insert to her diaper. Even if we add another insert I think these diapers will continue to be super trim. The snaps hold well too.

Finally, I ordered a 3-pack from www.smartipants.com for a total of $45 including shipping. The features of these diapers make them my all time favorite. They hold well, they absorb exactly like the bumGenius diapers and they are extremely trim. The colors are pretty basic but they do have some added flair here and there. They are easy to wash because the liner comes out on its own in the wash!

Conclusion:

I'm going to order a few more bumGenius from Jillian's Drawers with my free shipping, a flushable liner that goes on top of the inside of the diaper (so you can just flush the liner with any poo!), and maybe a few extra absorbent inserts to "beef up" my other nappies.

I'm ordering another 3 pack from SmartiPants.com because so far I love these diapers.

Little Padded Seats is such a cute store...so once I get the inserts I need I will try to stay away from the store! :)

My total spent so far on diapers is just under $275 and I have enough for 1.5 days. (meaning I do laundry every day). My goal is to spend about $75 more and have enough for 2 days and a morning.

Crying Out Loud!

Oh man I am throwing in the towel! I've asked dozens- and I really mean dozens of mom's what they do to get their kid to sleep. I get an entirely different answer from each one. My poor girl used to do the same thing every night- sigh, yawn, look off into wonderland...I'd put her binky in and drop her in the crib. Within 5-10 minutes she was out for 9-12 hours.

Now...I spend no less than 3 hours per night listening to her cry. I find myself sitting at the bottom of the stairs or outside her room crying right along with her. I don't know what to do! I pick her up and she falls asleep right away so I know her needs are met. I put her back in the crib. She will either cry right then or sleep for 5 minutes and then wake. Well I have been trying to let her "cry it out". I let her go for 2 hours and 35 minutes tonight and she starting choking on whatever she started spitting up from crying. I felt soooooo horrible.

So this last time that I picked her up she clung to me as if she was fearing for her life. Then when I started talking to her- telling her she really needed to go to sleep- she started laughing at me. I just broke down. WHY!?!?!? This is just insane. I feel crazy. I go from laughing at her and thinking she is cute to crying. Am I letting her down? Why wont she sleep- what does she need from me?

The past 3 weeks have been so unproductive. I have so much to do and no time to do it because of my little munchkin. I love her to death but the crying is killing me!

Reading Between the Lines of Baby Talk

I've read plenty of research that says the first year of parenthood is extremely hard on a marriage. So far at nearly 6 months through I would have to say that we are doing just fine. We haven't had any "fights" or weird arguments so far. However, we do speak to each other through baby talk!

This sounds funny but I'm sure everyone has noticed it before. Instead of telling Stephen I am annoyed that I had to get out of bed and take care of Avery when it is his turn I will say to her, "I guess Daddy didn't want to help you this time so I will". Other comments have been, "I know you are starving but mommy doesn't think so", "Tell Daddy to pick his dirty shoes up so you can have room to play".

Anyway- instead of actually speaking negative things to each other we have put our complaints "between the lines" of baby talk to our daughter. Maybe that isn't any healthier than just arguing, but for now it works.

Phase II-Title Deed Ceremony

Well Phase II of Christ Life is finally over. I say finally not because I'm tired of it but the 3 hour time commitment every week was kind of annoying. I was so busy today that I didn't have time to think about what I would contribute to the ceremony. So I arrived hoping to be inspired.

Describing Christ Life to anyone that hasn't been through it is a bad idea. So let me just say this- I arrived scattered brained but when I left I felt strangely calm but drained. Part of these feelings can be attributed to the days tasks but the rest I think was the ceremony.

Tonight we were to write down the issues we struggle with from Phase I and Phase II and nail them to a cross (meaning we give them to God to work through). Once we finished explaining to our peers what our issues were we then took them down and burned them outside. This sounded really crazy and pointless to me prior to actually doing it.

I sat with my pen in hand and didn't know what to write. Even after 26 weeks of working on this I had no clue what to put down. I think this was me being stubborn. It was my head speaking for me instead of my heart. So I just wrote down GUILT and traced it over and over. Then stuff started coming to me. My biggest issue that I can't resolve on my own is GUILT...Guilt for things I shouldn't even feel guilt for. When I stood up to explain my issues I said I was putting the guilt I feel for keeping my mom out of my life and Avery's life on the cross, and that I was wiping the slate clean with my dad since he is making a minimal effort to be a part of Avery's life... and something came up that I hadn't really felt like was bothering me... just attempting to say it aloud made me shake and feel weak. I've felt guilt for the way my brother was raised...by me. I know I've admitted this to myself before but tonight I threw it out there to let it go. My brother turned out just fine. It was never my responsibility to take care of us and especially not to take care of him. I should never have had to do it. I should never have had to feel the guilt of him struggling through life because he didn't have a strong role model to guide him. He's doing great now and it wasn't ME who got him where he is. He did it on HIS OWN! He turned out ok. His struggles were tough and can be attributed to the way I parented him/lack of parenting but it is ok-I am not going to feel guilty anymore- I don't need to feel that guilt! I did the best I could.

Now that this Phase has ended I'm ready to move forward...which I have already started to do. Phase III will be hard as it will require discipleship like I've never known before. I'm ready to serve others though so bring it on!

Come Back to Love by Rachel Scott

I want to give you reason to love, an example to pursue. Your dad and I are doing our best to love each other and love you. I know there are times, I know there are trials. But we've always come back to love. I want to give you reason to trust, to believe what you can't see. The lesson of my life has been, learning how my God loves me. And though I am weak, and I have often failed, The Lord has always been faithful. Oh my child, the love of my life. It is my heart that I'll always do right, in your eyes. And if I ever let you down, please know my love for you in this song. My baby I want to do for you more than I could ever do. If I could have a prayer for you, please don't walk in my shoes. Just cling to the one, who calls you by name, and remember how much He loves you too. And He says, "You are the love of my life. It is my heart that you'll know why I died with you in mind. And if you think you've let me down, please know, please know, please know my love for you in this song." And always know that you can come back, back to love.

What a fabulous song! I wasn't expecting such a powerful message at the concert tonight. This just brings to mind how much responsibility I have as a parent to ensure that my daughter's Christian journey begins earlier in life than mine- and that she is a stronger Christian earlier in her life than I have ever been.

It is Not about Me!

This blog is about me...but the main focus of our Christ Life discussion tonight was that our life is not about us.

This is probably a hard pill for everyone to swallow- myself especially. I found myself saying in my head- I'm not trying to be selfish- but I do want to live a fun life. I can understand how our lives are being consumed by chasing the dollar and whatever other materialistic/social/professional gains we obsess over...and that is SELFISH. However, what if we are focusing on how to simplify our lives in order to be focused less on ourselves?

I don't know- I get lost in here somewhere. I know the gifts I have- but how do I use them now and what ones do I use? If every day I am only taking care of my daughter, studying the Bible and taking care of our household responsibilities am I making my life about ME and not God? What does it look like to live a soulish life instead of selfish? Our facilitator said that everything we do should bring glory to God. Ok- I can totally appreciate the fact that He deserves it and that we should do this as often as possible- but this makes me feel like getting a latte is selfish. Does it really go all the way down the ecosystem- as in- God made cows-which make milk- and are a part of lattes...so God deserves glory for this- but what does that mean?

Ha ha. I had to get this out of my head. It is just as confusing out as it is in my head. At this point I'm pretty sure my life is more about me than it should be but I don't know any other way to live life. I have no clue what to do if I were to wake up tomorrow and say everything I do will be about God. I do feed a dog, a baby and my husband so I'm taking care of God's creatures.

I'm thinking too hard and feel drained. I thought I was done trying to figure out my "purpose in life" but I guess not.

I think I'm afraid of the dark...

Have you ever watched a scary movie and then been "afraid of the dark" as an adult? You know- where you pull all the blinds and turn on every light...but you really have no reason to be scared?

I've read about the death and resurrection of Jesus MANY times in the Bible but now that I'm actually "studying" as I read I got myself all freaked out. I feel like an idiot saying it (typing) aloud but I'm going to put it out there and hope it goes away now....but yeah... I'm afraid of the dark now. It is completely unreasonable and beyond crazy to be so scared but I literally jump into bed and throw the covers over me because I'm scared. I tried to visualize what it was that was making me feel scared but I can't. Am I worried God is going to show up and scare the pants off me or what? I have no clue. I just know that every time I get done reading my daily assignment I feel like I just watched a scary movie.