Cloth Diapers

We've taken the money saving plunge. We've made the eco-friendly switch. We've decided to use cloth diapers. OH MY! What are we getting ourselves into? I've been wanting to do this for several months now I just wasn't sure how to do it. I did research online for about 2 months or so and picked the brains of everyone I knew who has done this. After looking at every option, I decided to go with a one size pocket style diaper. This diaper has a water proof layer on the outside, a fleece layer on the inside and a microfiber insert that slides into the pocket in the middle. The waist band and the crotch area are fully adjustable with several rows of snaps to accommodate any size child. This is meant to be the only diaper needed from birth through potty training (I would have a picture, but my little wiggle worm won't stand still). I watched Ebay closely for sales and jumped on it when I got them for a good price and got a bonus insert included for each diaper for overnights. For cloth diapers, it's best to double up on the inserts for those heavy nighttime diapers. The whole set cost us $130 (and about $10 to make our own cloth wipes). This is much better than the $40-$50 per month that we spend on David right now. With Baby Max expected in just a few short months I couldn't imagine doing but cloth.

So far we have no regrets. Our first day was Sunday and it went very well. I put little David in his first diaper and went to lay down for a bit. I was feeling very tired so David offered to watch him for a few minutes so I could crash. I had not been down for more than 10 minutes when little David dropped the first poo. Haha. David had to change it! :D He christened those dipes right away! I find it hilarious since I didn't have to change it. David handled it very well and said it wasn't as bad as he thought it might be. Good news for me. I was really looking to keep his support as we made the switch. Sometimes things are easier to talk about than to do, but so far he's still with me. Sunday night (or rather Monday morning) was not so great. I put only one insert (not 2) in his diaper and it leaked - everywhere. His diaper, his clothes and his bed were all soaked. There's nothing like pee covered laundry first thing in the morning.

I tried adjusting the snaps and playing with it in Monday to avoid daytime leaks. It worked and was smooth sailing all day. Last night I did the double insert thing and woke up to a very wet, but well contained diaper. That's what I like! Yesterday we stayed on the smaller settings and changed him often and had no problems. Night 3 (last night) was not the greatest either. We had a small leak even with 2 inserts. I don't know if this will be the norm or if he was just extra wet and this was a fluke. We'll test it out for a few more days and see.

David and I were worried about this whole undertaking. We were really hoping we weren't getting in over our heads. It's only been 3 days/3 nights, but so far we are very happy. David had a diaper rash when we switched and even without diaper cream (a big no-no for cloth diapers) it has cleared up. I've heard this is very common once kids get out of the chemical filled, paper and plastic ingredients of disposables. He seems completely unphased by the different feeling, shape and size of these diapers. I think we can label this one a success (so far!).

Pumpkin time '09!

Halloween '09 festivities are underway! We went to a pumpkin farm to play and pick our perfect pumpkins this past weekend. It was a freezing cold, somewhat rainy day, but we made the best of it and had a good time anyway. On Monday we finally got around to carving them. We lack some serious creativity so don't expect much! :) David's pumpkin (far left in the pic) was inspired by...well, I don't know. I think he grabbed the knife and just went at it. Little David's pumpkin (middle) was carved by me and I was totally channeling his adorable, huge, cheesy smile. My pumpkin (far right in the pic) came from a McD's coffee cup lid. Yep, I said it. McDonald's. Next time you buy coffee there, take the lid off, flip it over and take a peek. I bet you you'll think of my pumpkin's face. I really like how they made the sipping spout look like a funny face. Very genius, Ronald. :)

Best ever toasted pumpkin seed recipe!

I stole this idea from a recipe I found on the internet and then tweaked it a bit. I never measure things out so all measurements are approximate. Your seeds will need to be dried on a paper towel or cookie sheet overnight before starting. I used the seeds from 3 medium sized pumpkins and split them into 2 batches like this.

For each batch:
2 Tbs. Worchestershire sauce
2 Tbs. Olive oil
1 Tbs. garlic powder
1 Tbs. salt

Mix with seeds in a ziploc bag then arrange in single layer on foil covered cookie sheet. Bake at 275 degrees for 50 minutes, stirring every 15 - 20 minutes.

Finger Paint

I got an email from BabyCenter.com the other day that was focused on keeping active and curious toddlers busy. They had a finger paint recipe on there that I just had to try. It's non-toxic, non-staining, cheap & easy and I always have the ingredients on hand. Best of all, it's safe on little tummies if he decides it looks tasty enough to try! Simply mix 2 Tablespoons flour, 2 Tablespoons water and 4 drops of food coloring. BAM! You have a good 20 minutes of distraction for your busy lil one. I taped a piece of waxed paper to his high chair tray so I didn't have to clean anything up. I simply rolled up the waxed paper and tossed it all out. Easy peasy mac and cheesy. And he loved it!

FYI

You can click on any of my pictures at any time to make them larger. Some are much easier to see if they are bigger. Click the back button on your browser to get back to the main blog page.

Milham Park

David seriously loves feeding the ducks. His Grandma knows that so last time I was at her house I was sent home with not one, but 2 loaves of old bread for him to give to the hungry ducks. I'm so grateful for Grandma and David or else those poor ducks would have starved to death. We can't have that now can we??

Enjoy the pics!

Sickies

How do you know when your toddler is sick and overtired? When he's watching TV and this happens:

So David and David are sick...again. What the heck. I am healthy for now, but I don't know how long it will stay that way. Clorox and Lysol are my 2 best friends at the moment and I'm really hoping they do their jobs! I've been keeping up on lots of water and daily vitamins too. Wish I could be getting a bit more rest, but that's just not going to happen. Little D is getting up 2 times a night and staying up for about 1.5 -2 hours at a time. The poor guy just can't breathe when he lays down. His cough gets much worse at night too. Blech. This is when it's extremely hard to be a mommy.

P.S. Did I mention he's cutting teeth too? Lower incisors/canines. One came through on Saturday and the other is due any day now. It's just too close to the surface to take much longer. That's not helping anything right now.

Recap

What a week it's been! Let's recap and catch you all up shall we?

Saturday the 10th We stayed at home all day. I had some girlfriends over for a pedicure party that evening. Ended up being....interesting. One uncooperative and insensitive husband and daddy + one emotional me + a teething cranky boy who did not want to sleep so he stayed up until 12:30am = a less than awesome party. :( I feel terrible - still. Sorta put a damper on the evening.

Sunday - We went to church and then spent the day watching football, eating and napping. We were supposed to be babysitting one of David's little pals, but this was a good alternative. :)

Monday and Tuesday were spent picking a name for our bun in the oven and sharing it. Maximus Lott it is! We are calling him Max.

Wednesday was grocery shopping day.

Thursday we had life group in the evening. Papa John's pizza for dinner yum! 22 weeks pregnant. Whoo Hoo!

Friday little David and I had a play day in the morning and then I went to my mom's house to collaborate on sewing David's and my Halloween costumes. Can't wait to show you all! They turned out great!

Saturday morning brought good food and great friends. Little David and I went to hang out for a while with our besties and whip up some delicious fall treats. Yum! Friday night was not the best (David was up for 2 hours crying - I found a brand new tooth on Sat. Go figure.) so the rest of Saturday was wasted away napping. We also managed some time to feed the ducks at Milham Park.

This brings us to yesterday. Keep in mind that in and around the things I mentioned I also watched Taylor Mon-Thurs. We did other things too - it's just been too long for me to remember every last detail. Yesterday started with church then home for lunch and more football, snacking and napping. Do you see a Sunday pattern going here??

While busy, our week was a good one. It's Monday now and I'm looking at the calendar and getting myself psyched up for the upcoming week. It's gonna be a good one too!

It Won't Be Like This For Long

This is my favorite song right now. I seriously can not listen to it with out getting teary-eyed. It's that good. It really won't be like this for long. :(

It Won't Be Like This For Long
by Darius Rucker

He didn't have to wake up
He'd been up all night
Layin’ there in bed listenin’
To his newborn baby cry
He makes a pot of coffee
He splashes water on his face
His wife gives him a kiss and says
"Its gonna be OK"

It won’t be like this for long
One day soon we'll look back laughin’
At the week we brought her home
This phase is gonna fly by
So, baby, just hold on
‘Cause it won't be like this for long

Four years later ‘bout 4:30
She's crawling in their bed
And when he drops her off at preschool
She's clinging to his leg
The teacher peels her off of him
He says "What can I do?"
She says "Now don't you worry,
This’ll only last a week or two."

It won’t be like this for long
One day soon you'll drop her off
And she won’t even know you're gone
This phase is gonna fly by
If you can just hold on
It won’t be like this for long

Some day soon she'll be a teenager
And at times he'll think she hates him
Then he'll walk her down the aisle
And he'll raise her veil
But right now she's up and cryin’
And the truth is that he don't mind
As he kisses her good night
And she says her prayers
He lays down there beside her
‘Til her eyes are finally closed
And just watchin’ her it breaks his heart
Cause he already knows

It won’t be like this for long
One day soon that little girl is gonna be
All grown up and gone
Yeah, this phase is gonna fly by
So he's tryin’ to hold on
‘Cause it won’t be like this for long
It won’t be like this for long

updates coming soon!

It's been quite the busy week in our house. The days have literally flown by. When I have a minute you'll be getting quite the posting....or a bunch of back dated posts that I already have started. Whichever ends up easier.

He likes yogurt....

.....can you tell??

I can't stop laughing!

No really, I can't! Who teaches kids all this creatively "naughty" stuff? How do they know to do these things? Where do they come up with it all?

I put David in his high chair, gave him his grilled cheese sandwich and walked away to go to the bathroom. I left the door open a little bit so I could still hear him if he needed me. All was calm for about 3 seconds before I heard him yelling "Stuck! Stuck!". Great. I finished up and went to check on him. I got to the kitchen and stopped dead in my tracks when I realized he had chewed his grilled cheese sandwich sticks down to small bites, shoved them in his ears and gotten them stuck.

A good mom probably would have panicked right about now. A good mom would have rushed to his side to extract the greasy, cheesy bites from his ear canals. A good mom would have probably yelled at him. You know what I did? Laughed. Really hard. Then I ran to grab my camera. Then I laughed some more. I'm still laughing.

(P.S. The bites were never so far in there that they actually got stuck. He just loves to say that word now. He had them wedged in there so that they didn't fall out, but it didn't leave any crumbs when I got them out. There is no lasting damage. It all came out in one piece. )

Here he is trying to get a bite back out:

Brave and Helpful

What do you get when you cross a brave mommy and a helpful boy? Yummy cookies of course!

True to the name of the blog I try to go on little 'adventures' as a parent. How fun is it if you play it safe all the time?? Yesterday was no different. I had a pretty busy day. I had loads to do by a certain time so I got some extra help. My mom was here for a while doing her part (Thank you!) and I recruited little David too. He helped me make some double chocolate chip cookies. I was pleasantly surprised at how well he did. He kept the spoon in the bowl and didn't try to lick it or anything. Nice. Better than I expected. He got to "taste test" 2 chocolate chips for his efforts.

Produce Etiquette

I have a burning question....

When you go to the store, what are the produce etiquette rules on grape bunches? Follow me here people. You go to the grape display and all the bunches are already put into bags with their little produce number on them. But the bags are open! Are you allowed to take out just one of the big bunches or just part of the grapes out and put it in one of those plastic bags on the roll that they have and take it to the cashier that way? But now it's missing it's little produce number. Or do you have to buy the whole thing? I mean, I don't want the whole thing and that's what you're making me do. That's lame. And why would they leave the bags open if I couldn't take some out? They would close them up, right?

And seriously, everyone does it with bananas anyway. You know you've seen those lonely bananas sitting on the shelf by themselves. They don't grow that way you know - in bunches of one or 2. Someone came along, decided the bunch was too big and ripped a few off. I applaud them. They are sticking it to the man. He can't make them buy more than they want!

But then again, I don't go and rip heads of lettuce apart. I buy the whole thing even if it looks a little big. I don't rip a few leaves off to cut it down to size. And come to think of it, no one else does either. You don't see 3 or 4 leaves floating by themselves. Hmm...this throws a wrench in things.

So what is the rule on grapes? Should I follow banana rules of etiquette or stick to the lettuce way of things? I'm confused.

Just Listen, OK?

I feel like complaining. A lot. I really feel like crap today. Why does life always throw me my worst days when I'm babysitting Taylor? A 15 month old, a 4 month old and being 5 months pregnant is hard enough, but when I feel crappy on top of it - seriously, it's enough to push me over the edge. My Facebook status today is "Lauren is going to cry. Not kidding." That just about sums it up.

My cold is finally cleared up (fingers crossed), but the cough is still lingering. It hasn't been all that bad so that's not too much to deal with. Today I have been very dizzy. It's a fairly common 2nd trimester symptom. I had problems last time when I was pregnant with David too. I had to go home from work a few times because they were worried that I'd hit the floor right there in front of the customers! Not good for my health and not good for business. I remember it lasting only a few weeks with him so we'll see what happens this time. Thankfully, I never did faint last time as long as I sat down right away and didn't try to ignore it. I've just got to listen to what my body is telling me I guess.

But seriously, why me??!?! I have enough on my plate without this. I'm doing lots of catching up on the housework and such from when we were sick. I've got probably 4 loads of laundry to wash and I don't even know how many to put away. David is gone for the day. I'm watching Taylor. I'm planning for the next 4 straight weekends full of activities and parties. I have shopping to do - groceries and clothes. I have play days to plan. It's a rainy day so the babies are extra cranky. I have yet to plan dinner for the company that's coming over. Yeah, I know, let's just be dizzy today too. Awesome. That works out perfectly. Thanks, Life, for throwing that one at me. I needed it.

P.S. I want a Kit Kat bar.

Brown Bag Boy

Today I bring you Brown Bag Boy! David emptied the groceries out of this bag and tried to put it on his head to wear it. He was really enjoying it until the whole running into walls thing kicked in. :( That's bad news. I cut him a few holes and VOILA! a new vest! (No worries, David got home from work and immediately told me that vest sounded girly so now it's his manly body armor. Boys are so much fun. :) )

Commercial Break Bedtime

With our second baby on the way, I have been taking the time to reflect a bit and look back on our parenting with David. What a journey it has been! Since this is my blog and I'm the one behind the keyboard, I'm going to take a minute to toot my own horn. We nailed bedtime and nap time the first time around. No changes needed for the new baby. We started making sleep time a very strict and serious thing from way back. There are no options - you have to do it Mommy and Daddy's way. I'm not saying it was easy. There were nights when I would be exhausted and want to cave. There were nights that I called my mom almost in tears asking what to do because I couldn't listen to him cry for one more second. Mom's advice? Stick it out. He will learn and you will appreciate all this hard work later. And boy do I!

Last night I was watching some TV around David's bedtime. He got fussy and started showing signs of being tired. Bedtime!! It happened to be right at a commercial break so I got up and put him to bed. This includes: laying him down, making sure Dog is there, covering him with a blanket, saying "Goodnight. I love you", and walking away. Maybe a minute altogether. After this little routine was done I went to the living room and cleaned up all his toys. I sat back down on the couch just in time to see my show start back up. A full bedtime routine and clean up during a commercial break?? I rock.

Thanks for the good advice Mom. It worked. :)

Rowdy Boys

I was laying on the couch yesterday relaxing and feeling the baby kick when little David came up to me for a spontaneous unprompted hug. These are the best. They always melt my heart. *big sigh* He laid his head on my belly and looked up at me smiling. Just then the baby moved again and David took a kick to the side of the head. He stood straight up and looked at me like I was the one who assaulted him. He looked back to my belly and watched careful as the baby kicked and moved my belly. He thought that was the funniest thing ever! He watched my belly some more and this time when it moved he gave it a poke. The baby really went crazy now and kicked like mad! Of course, this made David laugh again and poke my belly again. They went back and forth for a while, laughing and poking and kicking. So precious. I like to see that they are getting along. :)

Team Blue!

Our ultrasound confirmed this morning that we'll be having another baby boy!! That ultrasound tech sure knew what she was talking about a few weeks ago! Everything is healthy and perfect looking. The baby is measuring a little bit on the big side (even though my due date is dead on), but look at his big bro! David was born at 9lbs. 10oz. so we expected another big one. This should be my last ultrasound appt for the pregnancy so we'll have to wait until delivery day to know more!

Still can't sleep

It is now 6:54am and I still can't sleep. By the time I finished my last post "Can't Sleep" the baby had calmed down and I was ready to go back to sleep. As soon as I laid down the little stinker decided to start kicking again! Really? Cut your tired mom a break here, Kid! Lay off the acrobatics until at least 7:30am will ya? That's when your brother gets up and then I know all hope is lost. Geez.

I've given up on trying to get even a few minutes of shut eye before David gets up. I think I am going to cease the opportunity and enjoy the quiet house. I love starting my day with the news and a cup of tea.

Can't sleep

It's 4:37am and I can't sleep. David woke me up on his way out to work (and he was late, shame on him!), but I haven't been able to get back to sleep since then. Apparently, the baby has decided that now is a good time to wake up and kick for a bit. Now this isn't a kick or 2, we're talking a full gymnastics performance. It's been too long since David for me to remember exactly what he was like, but it doesn't seem like he ever did this to me. He got worked up when we tried to "play" with him and poke at him and he also got excited when he heard music, but I don't remember spontaneous outbursts like this.

I know every child is different and they all have their own personalities - even within the same family. David has always been very laid back and content since day one. I appreciate that. :) He doesn't get upset or worked up easily. He can play for what seems like hours with one toy, on one spot on the floor and be perfectly happy. He is not the type to throw fits or need lots of attention. He has absolutely no need to run around like crazy and create trouble. He's a bit too easy going for that. If he happens to stumble across trouble then so be it, but he won't often search it out. This baby seems to be much more active already and frankly that worries me a bit. :D Not really, I'm sure what ever his/her personality is it will seem perfect and I will handle it like it's nothing. It will be interesting to see how similar (or different) they are though.

Being 20 weeks and 1 day pregnant now, I am officially over half way to meeting this little guy/girl. I can't wait. New babies in the house bring about all sorts of changes and stresses, but in the end it is SO worth it! Months later you sit back and wonder why you ever complained and you just can't remember what is so hard about it. Then you get pregnant again and with a new little one on the way you start thinking about it realistically and it all comes rushing back to you. "Crap!" You think. "What are we getting ourselves into? Are we in over our heads?". Perhaps. But I for one, like a challenge. :)

Camping trip

Whew. I am just now getting around to sharing about the camping trip we took last week. It's been a crazy week. I got sick the day we came home and David is still working on kicking the cough left over from his cold last week. All my blog post are coming at once now. Sorry! You all have lots of reading to do!

We left Thursday afternoon and got to the campsite in time for dinner. We wanted to stay close to home so we chose Fort Custer Recreation Area. I would highly recommend it. Very nice place! After setting up camp we got down to business and started a fire for dinner and s'mores. Yummo! I found some great camping recipes online so we had some really delicious food out there! We of course, stayed up late relaxing and talking around the fire. That's what camping is all about, right?

After a terrible night's sleep we were up bright and early Friday morning...well not exactly bright. We were up before the sun so it was actually a bit dark. Little David was not about to sleep in the tent so he was up all night fussing and our air mattress was not the best so we were deflated half the night and hurting so we didn't sleep well either. We shook off the gloomy moods and bad night's sleep with a cup of campfire coffee and got a jump on our omelets for breakfast. Mmm. Nothing like a custom made omelet while you're camping. We tried out Fort Custer's disc golf course (which blew chunks) and then went down to the lake for a bit to play at the beach. The afternoon was mostly for napping. This is when we finally shook off the haze of the terrible night before and started to perk up and have fun. Everyone that is except for my sis-in-law Dawn. She took off to the E.R. with a severe ear infection. While she was gone, we started up another fire for dinner (don't worry, we saved her some leftovers) and chowed down on the best hobo dinners I've ever had...wait a minute, those were the first hobo dinners I've ever had. Small detail. Doesn't matter. Again we wrapped up the evening with s'mores and more campfire chat. This time, just for kicks and giggles, we threw in some rain. It started just as the kiddos were headed to bed and lasted all night.

Saturday morning we packed our soggy things and headed out. We planned to stay for breakfast and thru lunch, but it was still cold and sprinkling so we scraped those plans. We headed down the highway a bit and stopped for breakfast under the golden arches at good old McD's. Our tents were quite wet still so when we got to Mom and Dad's to unload and set them up to dry. We were all pretty exhausted at this point so we said our goodbyes and went our seperate ways. David and I came home and put little David down for a nap so we could unpack. We got everything but the laundry done and then collapsed for a nap ourselves.

Overall, it was a great weekend and we had a (wet and soggy) blast. Good way to kick off the fall I'd say.

Our set up:

He demanded this lovely and fashionable outfit. Perfect for camping I'd say.

20 weeks!

I'm 20 weeks pregnant today. Tomorrow is the big day - it's ultrasound time!! We'll get a complete scan with all baby's measurements to make sure it's growing fine and looking healthy and we'll get another gender peak (if we're lucky). I was told 6 weeks ago that they were guessing a boy. I was too early to make a real determination so that was only a guess. We'll see what they say tomorrow! We'll keep you updated.

Vacation - illness, a warning, and precious baby kicks

David is back to work now. His 9 day vacation is over. :( I'm sad to see him go. It was so nice to have him here. We were sick the entire time he was home though - some vacation! We just stayed home on the couch the whole time. Little David got sick the day before vacation then David got it the day vacation started. By the time they both felt like they were coming out of it, i came down with a sinus infection. Oh boy! We are a shareful family aren't we?? I am now pulling out of the worst of it - just in time for vacation to be over and David to go back to work. :) (We did manage to have some fun during the week and a half. We went camping for 2 nights with David's parents and sister and her family. Good times. More about that to come later in another post...)

I'm pretty sure we survived the week on chicken noodle soup alone. Homemade of course - it's the best! We just didn't have the appetite for anything else. This brings me to my warning: Never buy those $1 glass bowls from Wal-Mart. You are not being thrifty, you are being silly. They sell them for only $1 for a reason - that's simply all they are worth. I took a bowl out of the cupboard and started dishing up a big bowl of soup. I had one scoop in there and one more halfway there when I heard a crack. The next thing I know the bottom of the bowl has neatly fallen out and I have a full bowl of steaming hot soup running down my bare leg and foot. Nice. I then had to (keep in mind that I am SICK!!) sop up hot broth and noodles from the floor and counter top. Fabulous. There goes my dinner.

The week ended on a good note though. David and I were laying in bed last night when the baby started kicking. I have been feeling it internally for about 8 weeks and have been able to feel it from the outside for about the last 3 weeks. The little stinker always does it when David isn't around though! Last night was his chance. He felt his first little punch...followed by a series of roundhouse kicks, somersaults, back flips and then more punches. Then, when David felt he had enough, he turned over and went to sleep and left me with a three ring circus going on in my belly. Too bad the little one didn't get the memo that it was time to sleep. :(