4 Month Favorite Things

So I'm late with the 4 month favorite things... so shoot me

I can only say we have 2 things to add to the favorites list this month.  Things haven't changed much around here.  Ezra is a jumping machine, we love our fisherprice seahorse, and the grapes still make the diaper bag every day.

Diaper sprayer

This is my new BFF.  Affectionately called "the crap blaster," it is a homemade attachment to our toilet.  Basically it blasts all the "solid waste" (aka poop) off the dirty diaper and sends it into the toilet where it belongs.  Ezra's poop has not made it to "ploppable" yet, and I refuse to scrape (yes, folks, these are the things you must contemplate when diapering, plopping/scraping/blasting poop) so the sprayer is a necessity to keep the nasties out of the washing machine.

Mike the Builder was able to McGyver a sink sprayer to the back of the toilet.  Retail, a diaper sprayer will cost you about 40 smackers.  Mike saved us about 30.  Sweet.

The sprayer is also good for cleaning the toilet and sink, and spraying Mike with cold water when he's in the shower.

Kodak Playsport HD Waterproof Video Camera

Love this.  It is basically like a Flip video camera except you use a memory card instead of internal memory.  It fits in your pocket and is super easy to use.

We have a larger video camera that we just don't ever take out to take quick videos of the little guy so this is perfect.  I love to record short videos of all the cute things he does and this works great.  The picture looks good and it's really easy to transfer to the computer.  I love that it's waterproof, too, so that I don't really have to worry about it around the pool or when covered in Ezra's drool.

Plus, we got in on clearance at Target.  Sah-weet.

Cloth Diapers 101

Recently CBS news did a segment about cloth diapers that was not entirely favorable (see it here).  The cloth diapering community was up in arms about it so one of the anchors of the show decided to take on a 30 day cloth diaper challenge.  She blogged about it here and has actually admitted to be "converted."

Here's the video:
CBS News: Pros and Cons of Cloth Diapers

It goes through all the different types of cloth diapers, from basic prefolds to all-in-ones, and discusses cleaning as well.  (please ignore the gift giving segment at the end, lol).  But if you're new to cloth diapering, this can give you a basic overview of the types.  And trust me, there are very few moms who cloth diaper that never use disposables, so don't let them guilt you.

If you're considering trying it, I can answer any of your questions.  And I can promise you, it's not as scary (or messy) as it seems. :)

Overwhelmed...

Sorry it's been so long since I've blogged, this mommy thing is pretty hard.  ;) (and I've tried to type with one hand but it takes too long and there are too many mistakes so I gave up)

The last 2 weeks of mommyhood have been so life changing, difficult, rewarding, and overwhelming.  I can't believe that we finally have this little person that we'd tried to hard to create here in our house.  I can't believe this little being depends on me for everything yet I don't have the slightest clue what I'm actually doing.  It's quite frightening - especially for someone who like to be prepared for everything - there definitely is no preparation for parenthood.

I love this little guy more than I can say, but I'm not going to pretend there haven't been moments in the past 2 weeks that I thought about returning him - just for 5 minutes.  I definitely think that I was experiencing some definite baby blues/borderline post-partum depression for the first few days.  I cried about everything, was abnormally anxious that I was going to do some serious long term damage to the little guy, and ready to give up on breastfeeding and cloth diapering.  I didn't think that I was cut out for mommyhood for a few days.  So I avoided this blog because I didn't want to sound like I wasn't happy about being a mom after whining about wanting to become a mom for so long.

But I will say it was harder than expected to make that transition and I'm glad that I'm on the other side of it all, for the most part, and I can at least be rational right now.  A few trips to church and some "outings" have definitely helped me get my mind back on track.  Mike has been an amazing help, too.  Making dinner, giving baths, telling me I'm doing a good job, changing diapers, cleaning up around the house.  He has really stepped up to the plate for the most part and I definitely appreciate that.  Family has been great too.  We didn't have to worry about dinner for over a week, people come by to help with anything we need every day.  I'm always amazed at how much people are willing to help.

Breastfeeding was a big challenge for me.  I was experiencing a lot of pain, just from his Hoover vacuum latch (the lactation consultant said that he was basically attacking me, but there was no way to really fix it because he was latching properly).  It is definitely a difficult adjustment to have to have your boob available at the sound of any wail - and to not really be able to be away from the baby because you are his food source.  I'm glad that we've stuck with it and now I've even had the chance to pump a little bit so we have a small stash for emergencies and what not.  It was fabulous to be able to get out and get my hair done this week!!

I've also started cloth diapering a little bit - just when we're home or I know that I'll be able to change him within 2 hours.  Still using sposies at night so that we can leave him sleeping for long stretches.  Right now I'm using the Kissaluv's fitteds and Thirstie's covers.  I tried my Softbums but his runny poo gets all over the cover after the first use so I go through a cover with each change.  The problem with the Kissaluv's is that they don't have a stay-dry fleece layer, so they get very wet against his skin.  Right now we haven't had any rash issues, but I think I'll probably cut some left-over fleece that I have an make a stay-dry layer insert.

Ezra has been the most perfect baby - even in the midst of a neurotic mother.  He sleeps for a good 4 to 5 hour stretch at night (knock on wood) and only has a few "I'm crying for no reason" stretches during the day.  He takes a pacifier, loves to be swaddled, and is even starting to look around and be more alert during the day.  He's absolutely perfect.

On more exciting news, we got our newborn photos back!  We went to Target portrait studios, which surpisingly was amazing.  The pictures look great and it was relatively inexpensive.  Here's a sampling:

Fluff Mail!!

I got my first 2 trial pairs of cloth diapers in the mail today! I was excited to actually show them to M so that he could see what I was talking about. I thought he was going to pass out when I first suggested it, but he seems to be getting on board slowly... he agreed to "try" them today. That's a step in the right direction :)

I ordered 2 Blueberries (supposedly the Cadillac of one-size pocket diapers, we'll see) made by Swaddlebees. I ordered from the clearance section, there is supposedly something wrong with them, but I don't see anything. I got them for a much cheaper price (18 bucks each), this is one of the more expensive brands of one-size pocket diapers.

Here they are at the smallest size



For a quick lesson in these diapers, they come with either snaps or velcro closures. Some people prefer one over the other, so I got one of each. Essentially, they get longer by undoing the snaps across the bottom and fastening them wider. You can see the difference in the picture below, the one on the left is at the smallest size, and the one on the right is the largest size.


There are three rows of blue snaps on the right, that allow you to make them longer and the legs wider, and the velcro/snaps across the top also get larger. There looks like a much bigger difference in size in person.

There is a pocket in the back. The inside layer against the baby's bum is fleece, which allows the liquid to go through onto the doubler while keeping the skin dry.



In the pocket you put a "doubler" which is basically two or three layers of organic bamboo/cotton to absorb the liquids (or pee, whiz, urine, etc). When you change the baby, you take out the doubler and wash all the parts together, then restuff them when they're clean.


I think we are going to use a type of disposable liner inside the diaper, too, to catch solids (or poop, fecal matter, stinkies). I'm really not interested in scraping poop off of a diaper with a spatula. This way, the poop and the liner go into the toilet. Flush. Voila, clean diaper.

Yes, I am aware that this does not account for massive baby blow-outs. We'll cross that bridge when we get there folks. (I might need the spatula to scrape the walls, I should keep one handy)

Even though these diapers run about 18 bucks a pop for the cheaper brands, they will still save money over buying diapers and wipes every week. If we go the cloth diaper route, we'll probably use a combination of disposable and cloth wipes, too. We're hoping to get about 20-24 cloth diapers, if we decide to use them, so we (by that I guess I mean "I") only have to do laundry about every other day.

Also, there is no need for a nasty "wet pail" that I've read horror stories about. You can use a traditional trash can type thing with a lid and a leak-proof bag, that goes in the laundry right with the dipes. Hopefully flushing the solids will also help.

From what I've researched "they" (that would be the earthy crunchy people I've been stalking) say that cloth diapers prevent rashes better than disposables, they are more absorbent and have less leaks, and really aren't so bad once you get in the swing of it. I do think it is an upgrade from folding diapers, using large safety pins (ouchie), and rubber pants. I might change my mind in about 7 months ;).

If you want to see more of the different kinds of cloth diapers, there really is a lot out there. Check out some of these websites
www.kellyscloset.com
www.theclothdiaperwhisperer.com
allaboutclothdiapers.com/new-to-cloth-diapers