Mommy and Sweet Pea Make a Blog

Feeding My One-Year-Old

2010-03-14T17:38:00.000-07:00

You may have read about our earlier experiences and struggles with feeding Sweet Pea solids. Over the last month, she has continued to slowly expand her palate, and to eat with more regularity, saving me lots of worry. She has also continued to gain weight and height, and generally seems healthy and happy. Some major breakthroughs on the way to more consistent eating came, first when she learned the sign for "milk" and could let me know when she was hungry, then when she learned the sign for "more" which she usually uses for solid food, and finally, now that she is beginning to, messily, feed herself with utensils. She seems to really prefer to use the spoon herself, and last night ate a bowl of applesauce after Average handed her the spoon, when she had initially refused being spoon-fed by him. All of this goes to support my theory that she prefers to do things on her own. She seems to want to be in control of her own consumption and be able to make choices about what, when, and how much to eat. I am happy to provide those choices as long as she is eating something! Here she is with her spoon last night:

Right now she is eating three meals a day, and sometimes an afternoon snack as well. We usually do jarred baby food (we like to get the organic varieties, such as Earth's Best) and dry cereals like Cheerios and Rice Krispies for breakfast. For lunch, some favorites are crackers and cheese and scrambled eggs. Sometimes she eats what I'm eating if it's manageable with her eight teeth and tiny mouth. For dinner, we try to feed her what we're eating (she loves corn, rice, potatoes, and cooked veggies). The general idea is that we start by offering what we're eating. If she won't eat that, then we try purees and yogurt, if she won't eat that, then we try cereal or crackers. Sometimes after she's had a few bites of something she likes that she can feed herself (such as Annie's Cheddar Bunnies) she is more open to taking in other foods, too. I have found that feeding her is all about patience. If she turns her head away or throws things, I just go about eating my food, or play with her for a minute or two, and try again. About half the time, on the second try she is ready to eat. She sits in her Bumbo on a chair pulled up to the table with us most of the time, or in a high chair or in our laps at restaurants. I also give her a snack cup full of crackers, raisins, or yogurt melts to graze from throughout the day and during car rides. She is also still breastfeeding about four to five times a day, and once at night.

In general, I think her eating habits are fairly typical of a one-year-old, but like we had a longer road to get here than most. Maybe it would have been easier if I would have followed the standard directions and started her with rice cereal, then moved to veggies purees, then fruits, and so on. Or maybe not? I have a strong feeling that Sweet Pea's eating habits are just an expression of her personality.

What are your kids favorite foods and preferred ways to eat? Have your parents shared any stories about what it was like feeding you as a toddler? I'd love to read any insights or ideas in comments, as always.

Playing Outside

2010-03-10T18:43:00.000-08:00

Today the weather was nice, so I pruned three bushes in my front yard. Maybe a little late, but they look much better now than they did before - all leggy and with dead branches. The most exciting part of this was that Sweet Pea was able to be out there with me. Last summer I did yard work while caring for her and she would just lay on a blanket or sit in her swing or bouncy chair and be happy. When she started crawling at about 7 months old, and was also still putting everything into her mouth, there was no way I could hang out outside with her without very vigilant constant monitoring. So, for the last six months or so, yard work only got done when both Average and I were home, it wasn't raining, and we felt like it. Which is to say that it pretty much never got done. Well, we're back at it as of today, now that she is walking and doesn't put quite EVERYTHING in her mouth any more.

I forgot to bring my camera out with me today so missed a few very photo-worthy moments of Sweet Pea touching a daffodil, pulling a piece of grass, or toddling around with her bucket in hand. Next time! And there will be many many more next-times throughout this spring (which officially starts in a little over a week) because we are getting a tax refund so can afford to build the garden that we want in the back yard. Six raised beds! A paver or turfstone path! A flower bed along the house! Permanent supports for our raspberries! A new compost bin! Can you tell I am excited?! I plan to do another post showing the garden plan and photos as we make progress. Please share any tips for success with any of these projects.

I am using the following books for inspiration:

Our Favorite Children's Music

2010-03-09T13:14:00.000-08:00

Does the thought of children's music put a smile on your face or a look of disdain? Personally, I have always enjoyed children's music, but I know many adults who, if they don't hate it, at least are annoyed by it. When I was a kid, my favorite albums were anything by Raffi, and Wee Sing Silly Songs. I loved singing songs at summer camp, and would sing in the car to pass to the time on trips. However, if you don't like children's music so much, you might want to try a regular adult musical artist who has made a children's album. My current favorites are:
Ziggy Marley's Family Time
Dan Bern's Two Feet Tall

Of course, just because music is marketed to adults doesn't mean that children and babies won't love it too. Lately we have been using music to help Sweet Pea fall asleep at night, and Average made a great mix that helps her to relax and drift off. The majority of these are songs that we have always liked and won't easily tire of, with a few Raffi classics thrown in for good measure. Here is the list:

F-Stop Blues     Jack Johnson    Brushfire Fairytales
Swing Low, Sweet Chariot    Raffi    The Corner Grocery Store
Didn't Leave Nobody But The Baby    Emmylou Harris, Alison Krauss & Gillian Welch    O Brother, Where Art Thou?
Daughters    John Mayer    Heavier Things
Blackbird    Sarah McLachlan    I Am Sam Soundtrack
Rock-A-Bye Baby    Raffi    The Corner Grocery Store
Hard Time Killing Floor Blues   Chris Thomas King    O Brother, Where Art Thou?
I'm Yours    Jason Mraz    We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things
Yellow    Coldplay    Parachutes
Imagine   John Lennon    The John Lennon Collection
Slip Slidin' Away    Paul Simon    The Paul Simon Anthology
Home On the Range    Gene Autry    The Essential Gene Autry
Lullaby    Dixie Chicks    Taking the Long Way
Goodnight, Irene    Raffi    The Corner Grocery Store

If you are not familiar with Raffi, and you like fun, acoustic kids music, I would recommend checking out:

Another favorite of mine when I was a child was the Really Rosie album and matching book by Carole King.

What are your favorite kids songs or albums?

*I do get a commission on Amazon sales from readers clicking through my links to buy, and from my Amazon carousel in the sidebar.

She's a Toddler

2010-03-03T16:57:00.000-08:00

Over the last weeks, my baby turned into a toddler. She is walking everywhere and can go from sitting to standing without pulling up on anything, and she turned one year old. I think that makes it official. We will have to start attending "toddler story time" instead of the baby story time at the public library. Even with the frequent bumps and falls, walking has been tremendously fun and exciting for all of us, and we can't wait for the next steps (running, jumping, riding bikes?)

I have mentioned this before, but I just can't quite believe sometimes that the baby that I birthed a year ago is really going to turn into a CHILD, and then a teenager, and then an adult! It blows my mind. That's how life works, so it shouldn't be a surprise, right? Am I the only one who is regularly shocked by the passage of time?

A few photos from the birthday party:

With the giraffe that Grandma made.

The carrot cake: I made it, Average decorated.

In her pretty new tutu.

Congratulations to us! We made it through one year of breastfeeding, cloth diapering, night-time waking, baby-proofing, laundry for 3 people, and learning to travel as a family, among other things. We are looking forward to more learning and adventure in the year ahead!

Top Three Reasons Cloth Is Best

2010-02-24T22:30:00.000-08:00

The majority of new parents are not aware of the many benefits and the ease of use of modern cloth diapers. For this post, I've tried to condense my ideas down into three main points about the differences between cloth and disposables: cost, disposal of wastes, and the environment/health. Warning: this post is one-sided because I have never used disposables and they are not appealing to me to try out. But, I have done my research!

Cost: For $350-$450, you can get set up with a great stash of enough cloth diapers to last you from birth until potty training. Yes, you can spend more than that, but you can also spend less. I have read of some people who went as simple as possible and bought mostly used and diapered a baby for around $100. Compare that to disposables, where you'll be typically spending at least $1000 (based on buying store brand and only changing 6-8 diapers per day), some estimate as high as $3000, depending on how many you use in a day and what kind you buy. AND, you can re-use or re-sell the cloth diapers your baby is done with them, leading to more money savings. Yes, you do need to spend the money up-front, whereas with disposables it is a monthly shopping expense. There are a few ways to get around shelling out the entire cost for your diaper stash at one time, though: 1 - register for cloth diapers for your baby shower, 2 - buy them a few at a time throughout your pregnancy, 3 - buy them a few at a time after your baby's birth, while using up any disposables you were gifted.
Ease of use: Modern cloth diapers can be as simple to put on your baby as disposables. Pins are no longer necessary, and most diapers now go on with velcro or aplix, or snaps. Cloth diaper washing routine is generally the same as for regular clothes, plus one extra rinse cycle, which you can probably set automatically on your washer. Breastfed poo can go straight into the washer, as can the wet bags that you can use to hold the dirty diapers. The more absorbent microfleece and microfiber diapers might need an extra cycle with bleach or peroxide once every couple of months to avoid stinky build-up, but that's it. Once your baby starts eating solids, you can shake the poo into the toilet before putting the diaper in the dirty bag. With cloth diapers, there is an average increase of 3 loads of laundry per week. Some people only wash once a week, others wash every day. It depends on your preferences and how many diapers you have. Also, I have heard time and again that people experience fewer "blow-outs" with cloth (we only have had 2-3 ever) so that means fewer outfit changes and less clothing to wash. In addition, you never have to run to the store late at night because you ran out of diapers!
Health and the environment: Cloth diapers are better for the environment and for your baby. With cloth diapers, you are disposing of your baby's wastes by putting them into a water treatment system designed to handle such things. With disposables, you are typically putting the waste into landfills where it can seep into the ground. Disposable diapers are the number 3 single item in landfills, with each (disposable-diapered) baby creating about 1 ton of waste during the diapering years. Disposables are typically made of bleached paper and plastics that include traces of dioxins, and the sodium polyacrylate gel that creates the absorbency of disposables can get onto the baby's skin. Some babies are allergic to the materials in disposables, and if you feel the differences between a disposable and a cloth diaper you will easily see which one would be more comfortable for your baby. There has also been some research done on the increase in temperature around babies' genitals with disposable diapers, due to the plastic not allowing air flow, and some possible negative effects of that.

Lastly, cloth diapers are cute and soft and make diaper changes so much more enjoyable!

What are your reasons for using or not using cloth diapers?

Buying More to Spend Less

2010-02-19T22:25:00.000-08:00

I just got back from a few days on vacation, and am about to start a couple of weeks of substitute teaching, so my blog has and probably will continue to suffer from my current non-Stay-at-Home-Mom status. It's not that I don't have ideas for things to write about, but I am having a hard time finding the time to write new posts, beyond a paragraph or so. One idea that I have had for a while I am going to actually crank out tonight! Blogging on a Friday night -- my life is so exciting.

Buying in bulk is a great way to save money and to be green. Greater quantities usually are cheaper by unit (although check the price tags to be sure), and use less packaging. Some items that we have bought in bulk recently include:

Hand soap for the kitchen, where I really like to have a hand-pump style soap dispenser. We bought a large bag of it to re-fill the dispenser that had run out. We got five times the amount of soap for only twice the cost of a regular container of soap.
Trail mix fixings. These were really fun for me because they were much cheaper in the bulk section of my grocery store than these items normally cost, and definitely cheaper than a pre-mixed bag. Also, I was able to add the raisins and banana chips that I made (dehydrated) myself this fall. I blended almonds, sunflower seeds, and chocolate chips with my dried fruit, and stored it in small jam jars, which are a great size for a travel snack.
Yogurt. Sweet Pea has started to enjoy yogurt, and I love it too, for breakfast, lunch, or dessert. I typically buy Nancy's, which is a local natural brand, and available in sizes ranging from a single serving up to 32 or 64 ounce containers. I usually buy the Honey or Plain flavors, and then add my own fruit, either fresh, canned, or jammed. Not only am I saving money by buying a larger quantity, I am creating less waste from packaging, and I typically re-use the containers a few times before recycling them. We have used them for everything from storing leftovers, to bath toys for Sweet Pea, to transporting dog food. The makers of Nancy's even left a blank spot on the container for the user to write what's inside in these future uses.

In addition to re-using my yogurt containers, I have found it incredibly useful to keep most of the glass jars that I buy with pickles, peanut butter, or jam in them, and once they are empty, re-use them for storing smaller amounts of the bulk items I buy. Of course I also save all of the empty jars I used for canning last year. This helps with transport (like for a snack to keep in the diaper bag) and with portion control. I've been keeping them in the cupboard above my dryer, and look forward to filling even more this summer with more home-made jams and dried fruit from my garden.

What else do you like to buy in bulk? How do you store it? Share your tips!

Baby's First Birthday Is Coming Soon!

2010-02-19T17:10:00.000-08:00

You may have noticed that my About Me section over on the side mentions my 11-month-old baby. Eleven months old is almost a year. So, we have a first birthday party to plan. I need ideas.

Should we do games?
Should I ask people to write a letter to Sweet Pea?
What kind of food should I have?

All that I have planned so far is for carrot cake cupcakes and only used, hand-made, or re-gifted presents. I want this to be a fun event for our family, low-pressure for me, and have some nice pictures for Sweet Pea to look back on. Which reminds me, I am also debating about doing professional 1-year-old photos, like from a real professional photographer, not a department store. I am talking art quality photos for us to blow up large and hang on the wall. This seems to be quite expensive. Ideas? Please?

Kreativ Blogger Award

2010-02-13T11:50:00.000-08:00

I got my first blog award! Thanks for passing this on to me, Abby!

When you get the award, you’re supposed to reveal seven things about yourself, then pass it on to seven other bloggers.

Seven things you might not know about me:

I played volleyball in high school and I still love it
My biggest weaknesses are dessert and TV
I gave birth in my dining room
I don't like tomatoes
I graduated from the "Honors College" at my university
My husband and I met when we were 18
I spent 6 months living in Spain and traveling in Europe

And the seven creative, informing, inspiring, and entertaining bloggers I am choosing to share this award with are:

Samantha at Mama Notes
Kim Rosas at Dirty Diaper Laundry
Emi at the Cloth Diaper Report
Carly at The Less Than Domestic Goddess
Melissa at Ethan's Page
Hellcat Betty
Andréa

Amber Teething Necklace

2010-02-11T16:23:00.000-08:00

I have been reading about amber teething necklaces for months, and finally decided to buy one this past week when Sweet Pea started drooling gallons again. She already has 8 teeth, and teething pains and symptoms seem to come and go for her, so I thought I might as well go ahead and get her a necklace, and whether it helps or not, it will be pretty! Oh boy, first piece of jewelry for my little girl!

Amber is supposed to have a natural soothing effect, through the tiny amounts of succinic acid in the oil from the amber that get absorbed by your skin -- not by the child actually chewing on it. The Baltic amber is supposed to be best for this, and the lighter the color the better. You can read more about it on one of the many websites dedicated to information and sales of these necklaces. I'm not sure if I believe in it yet, but I am willing to give it a try. I got this twelve-inch strand from Inspired by Finn on Hyenacart. It's is a European traditional teething soother that is catching on around the U.S. I love the look of the necklace but will have to wait and see if I feel it has any efficacy.
Note: Most retailers will tell you that jewelry is not recommended for children under age 3, and that you should always supervise your child if you do decide to put a necklace on him or her. The clasp on this one will pull apart if put under strain and the beads are individually knotted on the strand, so I feel comfortable with this on Sweet Pea's neck during the day, but take it off for bedtime. You can also get bracelets and anklets of amber beads.

What do you think? Could it really help? Have you ever used amber and felt like it worked? Share your experience!

Woolybottoms Winner!

2010-02-10T19:19:00.000-08:00

Random.org chose the number 19, so Maura, with comment number 19, is the winner of the blue Woollybottoms! Congratulations!

Maura said... "I'd love to win these. We're adopting an infant in the next few months (universe willing, of course) and I'm trying to start a collection of natural baby things!"

Thanks to everyone who participated in this giveaway. I have another one with a different product tentatively planned for a few weeks from now, so stay tuned!

New Fireplace Doors

2010-02-07T11:57:00.000-08:00

When we bought our home last year, one of the items on the inspection that we didn't request for the previous home-owner to complete was screening the fireplace. The chimney also needed to be cleaned and a new topper put on the top. We are now one step closer to being able to use our fireplace, and we also have a barrier to keep Sweet Pea from climbing into it! I am so glad that it no longer looks like a big sooty hole in our living room. We also recently installed a wall mount for our TV so our living room is definitely looking more put-together these days.

We decided on a glass door system after browsing around and deciding that Sweet Pea would just pull down any screen that wasn't fully attached to the fireplace, and we have a smallish living room so we didn't want to totally baby-gate off the fireplace area. A door seemed the safest and most attractive way to go. However, doors can cost as much as $1400, which was not really in our budget for the month. We asked a sales-person for some ideas and she showed us a hidden upstairs area with returned and floor-model fireplaces and doors. The one she showed us that would fit our fireplace opening was not what I had in mind in terms of looks, but the price was right: reduced from $600 to $299. We went home to think about it, and a week later we were back to buy. While the door set we got is not exactly my style, I do think that it goes with the era of our home, and the style of the rest of the fireplace. It is a light gold/bronze color, and I prefer black or silver usually, but looking at it in our house I think it is really the best choice.

Average installed it himself with a borrowed hammer drill, a screwdriver, hammer, tape measure, 5/16 pin punch, and button-head concrete fasteners.

I was surprised that the fireplace store didn't send us home with any instructions at all, but am lucky to be married to a very handy man. He only broke one brick in the installation process, and it's hidden inside.

Before:

After:

Baby Messes

2010-02-05T00:38:00.000-08:00

Here are a few of the messes that my sweet baby has made in the house this week.

Clearly, she has continued with the "emptying everything" phase. Although she has on occasion begun filling things, too. Today she put a big tape measure in the diaper bag. I found it when we were at a restaurant. The other day she put the mixer blades in the oven drawer and I felt slightly crazy when I was trying to clean up the kitchen and they seemed to have disappeared. We now have child safety devices on our kitchen cupboards so she can't do that anymore, which she finds very frustrating.

Sometimes I think I spend half my day cleaning up Sweet Pea's messes, but she has such fun making them, and I know this phase won't last forever. The one certainty in life is that time will pass and things will change. I was just looking through my photos and found what I looked like one year ago. Unbelievable.

Woollybottoms Giveaway

2010-02-02T19:46:00.000-08:00

I am hosting my first giveaway! I have been wanting to do this for a while, and I'm so pleased to have it finally planned. The item I chose to give is a new pair of Woollybottoms - wool pants for babies. The retail value of these is $29.00. I have been really into the wool pants thing lately, as you may have noticed from my recent posts (about Nifty Knickers, and my baby blue longies) so this seems like a good fit. Wool pants can be used as a cloth diaper cover, or just as snuggly warm pants for the winter or for bedtime. These ones are "footies" so they should keep your baby toasty! The pair I am giving to one lucky winner is light blue with fish fabric for the footie part. Maybe a little more boyish than girlie, but Stella would definitely wear these if we got to keep them. They are size medium, and have the following measurements:
8" waist (elastic)
9" rise
18" length

Here they are:

To enter, simply comment below and let me know why you want to win, or what you like about wool. I will choose a winner by using Random.org to pick a comment number on Wednesday February 10, 2010.

Other ways to enter:

Follow me on twitter. Come back to the blog and comment that you are following.
Being a follower of the blog gives you TWO extra entries. Simply post two comments saying that you are a follower.
Commenting in other posts during the week will give you ONE extra entry per comment that you make. Simply post a comment on this one saying the title of the post where you wrote your comment.
Advertising the giveaway in a forum or other blog gives you one extra entry.
Using my button on your blog (or starting to) gives you one extra entry. Simply post a comment saying that you are using it and where.
Tweet about this giveaway. Then come back and leave your comment with a link to the tweet.

I am not receiving any compensation for this giveaway.

The Queen in Her Chariot

2010-02-01T13:00:00.000-08:00

We finally bought a bicycle trailer to tow Sweet Pea. We chose the deluxe model, since we plan to use it a lot and for a long time. The one we got, the Chariot Cougar, has room and seat buckles for two children, a spot to stow gear that perfectly fits my new diaper bag, and can convert to a jogger or to be used with cross-country skis.

So far, we have taken Sweet Pea in it twice, and she has been happy both times! Average, who works in a bicycle shop, says that it's rare for a baby to take to riding in a trailer the first time so we really think we are lucky. She looks quite comfortable back there rolling along, playing with a toy or drinking a bottle of water. Of course, she got a helmet, too, and she likes it so much that she just wants to wear it around the house sometimes. Average usually commutes to work by bicycle, but I have only been on my bike a few times since I was pregnant. These first rides as a family felt so good I can't wait to do it again! The fresh air, the increased heart rate, and the feeling of having DONE something physical are so refreshing after spending so much time inside and in my car over the last few months.

Traveling by bicycle is healthy for you because you're getting exercise. You save money by not buying gas. Finally, you get to take routes that cars can't, saving time on some trips, depending on where you live. Read more about specifics of the benefits of traveling by bike at BicycleUniverse.

We are so pleased to now have the option to travel in a healthier manner with our baby, and have been inspired by some of our friends who do family bike commuting. Check out this awesome family, with four children and no car -- by choice, of course!

Baby's First Steps

2010-01-28T13:52:00.000-08:00

Video number two! This happened back on January 11. She is starting to take more and more steps on her own. She can get from one piece of furniture to another without holding anything, and can walk all over the house if she holds someone's hand. Walking is such an exciting development for us, but a little bit scary too. She can get into more trouble, it seems, and has a higher likelihood of bad bonks on the head. Wish us luck!

Rocking Snail Video

2010-01-27T12:04:00.001-08:00

This is my first time sharing a video. If it is successful, you can look forward to more videos in the coming weeks, including a video of baby's first steps!

I bought this rocking snail the other day at a re-sale shop, and Sweet Pea loves it. It is so much fun to watch her go. She also enjoys standing next to it and rocking it with her arms.

Is My Baby a Picky Eater?

2010-01-25T15:41:00.000-08:00

Or is she just being a baby?

She has been interested in food for months and months. We started giving her food, some whole chunks, some purees and mushes, when she was about 6 months old. Now, Sweet Pea is eleven months old (tomorrow!) and it is still REALLY hit or miss whether she will eat food at any given meal. I haven't done a post on baby food since October, because I really didn't know what to say. One week I'd think we were "over the hump" and that now she would be eating quite a bit, and then three days would pass with her eating next to nothing! Luckily my milk supply is holding up!

Right now we offer her food about three times a day, and I never can predict whether she will eat it or not. Sometimes she will eat quite a bit (which for her is like a half a piece of bread, or 3-4 tablespoons). Sometimes she will eat nothing. Some days she loves sweet potatoes, other days she spits it out as soon as it touches her mouth, and other days she won't even open up to allow it in! It is like this with every single thing she has eaten so far. One day she loves it, the next she won't even take a bite. Maybe it's a control issue, maybe she is a picky eater, and maybe she is just being a baby and this is a normal course of development for her. Today, for example, she only ate about 3 Cheerios (organic, no high fructose corn syrup) at breakfast, even though that is one of the things she has eaten the most consistently. She spit out the blueberries I tried to feed her. At lunch, she LOVED the plain yogurt with jam that I fed her, and was fine taking it from a spoon (she often grabs the spoon from our hands and won't let us feed her with it). Yet, she totally rejected the crackers and bread that I offered her alongside the yogurt.

I am trying to just go with the flow with this, because I know I don't want to turn food into a battle between us, but it becomes so frustrating when I prepare three different things for a meal for her three times a day, and she might eat one or two of the things, at one or two of the meals, in a totally unpredictable pattern. Sometimes she throws her food as soon as we set it in front of her, sometimes throwing food is a sign that she is done. Should I just buy some processed baby food so that it doesn't make me feel like I wasted my time when she refuses or throws the food that I prepared? Advice?

Dresser Painting Project Finished! Sort Of...

2010-01-24T20:03:00.000-08:00

For the last few weeks, I have been debating what to do with my dresser project. This project has been "on the table" for way too long; I don't even want to think about how long ago I started this. I painted oh, about eight coats on with my sprayer, and the furniture polish was still coming through a little bit when I last updated you. It took quite a while to figure out that this was what was happening. My mom had bought the dresser used for me, and put some dark furniture polish on it before she brought it to me. Apparently that stuff is STRONG because after those eight coats of paint, including two initial coats of primer, there is still some pink tinge coming through. I was so frustrated because I painted several other things while working on the dresser, usually to use up the last of the paint in the sprayer while I waited for a coat of paint on the dresser to dry. (I was very careful about keeping my sprayer clean, not letting any paint dry inside it.) Everything else that I painted took three coats of paint or less to look completely white and smooth. So, it has to be the furniture polish, right? Live and learn, I guess. This weekend, I finally got fed up with having half of my garage taken up with this dresser and the plastic sheeting hanging around it and decided, "it's good enough." Maybe this summer I will take it up again and do some more sanding and painting when I don't have to use vast amounts of electricity to heat the garage warm enough to paint, and when I don't care so much about using the garage for parking my car. So, here is the dresser in Sweet Pea's room.

Now that I have it inside, I actually feel pretty good about how it looks. I like the metal drawer pulls I chose, and the pink isn't really all that odd-looking, I think. Also, I am just happy that this piece of furniture makes the room complete. Eleven months after her birth my baby finally has a finished bedroom without any odd piles of stuff in the corner. The baskets on the shelves had been what we were using to store her clothes, but they were becoming too small. Now, they hold her toys! Yes, that is a trash can on top of the dresser. Sweet Pea loves to empty things, and she also puts everything in her mouth. And we also have a puppy. So, we have items in odd places so we can keep them out of reach of those two.

And just for fun, one of the other things I painted while I had everything set up. This quilt stand has a cut-out that matches the pattern of our wedding quilt (the one in front). It was raw wood with some marks from stickers, and I really like how it looks white.

It sure feels good to have that space in my garage back! What do you think I should do with the dresser: strip it and re-paint it, strip it and stain it, or leave it how it is?

Nifty Nappy Woolies and Diaper - WAHM Series

2010-01-21T15:58:00.000-08:00

I ordered two wool longies from Nifty Nappy over the holiday. My order got lost in the holiday rush, and when owner/sewing master Vilate Thacker eventually found it, she offered to throw in a fitted diaper as well to make up for the delay. A fair deal, I thought. I was thrilled when the package arrived. One of the benefits of online shopping is that you get the rush of buying several times - first when you do the payment online, next when you see that it has shipped, and again and again every time you see the mail truck, until finally when it actually arrives and you get to open the package. Fluffy mail!

The wool longies, or "Nifty Knickers" as she calls them, are custom made to fit your little one based on measurements you send in, and at $16 each they are a steal for custom wool baby attire. We got one in red and one in purple, and Sweet Pea has already worn each several times. I really like putting her to bed in them because they are so warm and cozy. The seams are very strong; each one is sewed and then serged. Sweet Pea is super active right now so I had a hard time taking a photo of the longies on her, but here she is in the purple ones:

Yes, we are really close to walking!

I am also impressed with the fitted she sent. This is a great diaper, it fits well and isn't too bulky, especially for a fitted. I usually add a microfiber insert wrapped up in the lay-in insert (organic hemp fleece and bamboo velour) that comes with it for longer wear.

It looks like Nifty Nappy has a great offer right now of a combo purchase of the fitted with a woolie cover for only $38, with a money-back guarantee!

In sum, I would recommend this mom-of-six's diaper business to any cloth diapering parents looking to venture into fitteds and/or wool. A great price for a great product!

I Serged and Serged and Then Serged Some More

2010-01-19T22:04:00.000-08:00

Since I got my serger, I have successfully made six sets of napkins, two sets of flannel baby wipes, and the longies I wrote about in my previous post. I have three sets of flannel wipes to go before I take my machine in to the sewing machine repair shop for a tune-up and some new needles. The only reason it's not going in earlier is that I need to finish the wipes before Saturday (for my cloth diaper party). I really love the finished product that sergers create, but using one can be oh so frustrating, especially when you have no manual.

This was going to be a much longer post, but Sweet Pea unplugged the computer without me noticing, and then my old laptop died because the battery has no life left in it, and the two additional paragraphs that I had written disappeared. I thought that wasn't supposed to happen with the automatic saving feature of blogger. Sad. I'll try again tomorrow. That's life with a baby, right? "I guess I'll try again tomorrow...." for a better bedtime routine, for better meals, for a cleaner house, for more items crossed off the to-do list, for returning more phone calls, replying to more emails, and sending more thank-you cards. But for now, it's time to get that baby ready for bed.

Baby Blue Recycled Wool Longies

2010-01-13T16:54:00.000-08:00

The first time I made recycled wool diaper covers, I made "shorties" that fit like little shorts, or a more typical diaper cover. For that project, I bought several wool sweaters at Goodwill and followed a pattern I found online that basically consists of cutting a triangle out of the sweater, cutting off the sleeve cuffs and neck, and sewing it all together, using the sleeves for the leg holes and the neck for the waist. I can give more specific instructions if you'd like, just ask in comments, but unfortunately was unable to find the site that I originally got the pattern from. To size the sides of the triangle, measure your little one's waist and add a half inch. Katrina's Sew Quick blog has some great patterns for a variety of types of wool diaper covers.

Here is one of the first ones I made, clearly it is a little bit big at this point.

You can see another photo of my handiwork in the bottom photo of my "Diapering My Active Nine-Month-Old" post.

Sweet Pea has grown and the weather has gotten colder. So, this weekend I got my sewing supplies back out and made a pair of "longies" for Sweet Pea out of an old sweater of mine that shrank in the wash. It is high quality cashmere so this was the perfect way to re-purpose the fabric. It is free, soft, and I love the color! The only drawback is that it will probably get dirty because my little crawler likes to get into everything. They have an elastic waist, and I made them longer than needed for now, then whip-stitched the hem up to be the right length. As she grows I can let them out. I made the bottom hem of the sweater serve as the bottom hem of the longies, and cut them so that the pocket of the sweater is a left back pocket for her. I also added ribbons at the knees as just a fun detail.

Here is the uncut sweater. I know it's weird - a short sleeved cashmere shirt? But I used to wear this to work all the time.

And the completed longies! (before I stitched up the bottom hem)

I recently bought several more fitted diapers, which are the best companion (better than prefolds) for wool covers because they are so absorbent and they usually snap together. Wool is such a wonderful fabric because it is natural, breathable, and I think it is pretty! I am really excited to use my new fitteds with my new wool longies, keeping my little one warm and dry this winter. My mom is also knitting a pair for us, and I can't wait to see them! Wool covers can sometimes be quite expensive to buy new (as much as $75 for a hand-knitted pair, typically more like $30-$40), but they can last through multiple children, serve as pants so you don't need to worry about buying those, and only need to be washed once a month, unless they get poo on them. It is a naturally anti-microbial fiber and so breathable that it is the only thing that works for some babies who are extra sensitive to diaper rash. A more in-depth explanation of wool's great properties can be found at Llamajamas.

Some places to buy wool longies:
Cloth Diaper Superstore
Goodmamas
Llamajamas
Diaper Covers - Soakers for Night, Large (Amazon)

Or how to make your own:
That's Kinda Cool
Bright Hub
Born to Love
the diaper hyena - this one has lots of link to patterns

And, instructions for caring for your woolies:
at Understanding Laura
at All About Cloth Diapers
at Green Mountain Diapers

If you have a site you'd like me to add, let me know in comments!

Emptying Everything

2010-01-12T12:36:00.000-08:00

Sweet Pea's current favorite activity: emptying everything. She takes the books off the shelves, the garbage out of the basket, the napkins off the table, the containers out of the kitchen drawers, and on and on in every situation you can imagine.

Here is our typical experience sitting at the desk, notice the half-empty drawer and the pens on the floor:

I've heard that the next step will be putting things away, but not necessarily where you'd like them to be put. Check out New Urban Habitat's post about her toddler to see what I mean.

My Ideal Diaper Bag - WAHM Series

2010-01-11T12:23:00.000-08:00

This is the first in a series of posts about products I've gotten from work-at-home-moms (WAHMs).

Two days ago I was thrilled to receive my new diaper bag in the mail. It is the exact colors I wanted, the exact size, has the exact right number and size of pockets, and included a matching changing pad and wipes case. Similar bags that I have looked at cost around $150, but my bag cost me much less and was made precisely to my specifications. How is this possible? Well, the bag was made by WAHM who I connected with through diaperswappers. (You can check out her facebook page, Drea Designs, here.) I bought the fabric and sent it to her, and she sewed it together based on a pattern she had created when making a bag for herself. It has lots of great features, like a clip for my keys, and pocket toward the top on the inside for my cell phone. I am constantly misplacing (or losing, depending on your point of view) these items, so this is a biggie for me!

I got a couple of great diaper bags at my baby shower that have served me well over the last nine months, but the most-used one was getting pretty worn out, and they were all too small for the amount of stuff that I need to cart around sometimes. My ideal was to be able to pack everything I would need for a full day out with Sweet Pea into one bag, and this one can do it. A full diaper bag for me includes:

three to four cloth diapers
one wet bag
one complete outfit change for Sweet Pea: shirt, pants, socks, shoes
wipes
changing pad
bottle of water
jacket or light blanket for Sweet Pea
baby carrier (ERGO)
cell phone
keys
wallet and checkbooks
snack

General review: I love it! Love the size, pockets, strap, and design. The only thing I wish I would have done differently is maybe alternated the fabrics so the flap was the same as the inside fabric, just to break up the pattern a little. Or maybe a border edge around it - different colored stitches, or ribbon - or something. Totally my issue since I picked the fabric and Drea Designs suggested the fabrics be switched for the flap. But again, that is just a very minor thing. She was very easy to communicate with, always got back to me quickly and was great about asking me specific questions to make sure the bag was going to be precisely what I wanted. Overall I am very pleased with the look, functionality, and craftsmanship of this bag, and I expect it to last me at least until we no longer need diapers. But then you need to carry other things, right?

Here it is, with the top open, empty:

And here, full of all my important belongings:

The key clip detail. This can hang on the outside or be tucked in.

Finally, with the flap down:

Lovely, isn't it?

Planning My Cloth Diaper Party

2010-01-10T15:39:00.000-08:00

A while back, my cloth diaper mentor sent me a link to information about hosting a cloth diaper party. It looked interesting, but I didn't think too much about it. Suddenly, in the last week, I've had three friends writing to me asking for advice about cloth diapers, and recalled the diaper party idea again. So, I've decided to do it! In about a month (date yet to be determined) I will be unpacking a big box of a wide assortment of modern cloth diapers, and talking about them to my friends and anyone else who shows up. If anyone buys anything at the party, or through my affiliate link, I get a commission! If no one buys anything, oh well, I get to spend an afternoon playing with diapers with other mamas. I can just send the whole box back, and I'm only out shipping costs. Seems like a win-win. There will be at least one prize for a lucky attendee, and I'm thinking about making cloth wipes to give away, and possibly playing a game too.
There are a couple of companies that do the cloth diaper party thing, but I like the diaper options best in the "booty in a box" from Cloth Diaper Superstore. I have never done anything like this before, so please share any advice or ideas you have for making this the most fun it can be. Thanks!

Mastitis

2010-01-08T15:16:00.000-08:00

At this point, breastfeeding is generally easy and enjoyable, and a nice time of one-on-one connection with Sweet Pea. It is good for her and my health and well-being, and has so many benefits. There are just a few drawbacks, compared to the many many positives. One thing I have always hoped to avoid in my breastfeeding experience is mastitis: the painful lump that leads to the fever, aches, chills, and fatigue is something to be avoided at all costs. I had my first experience with it this week, and it was every bit as bad as I imagined.

Mastitis usually starts as a lump in the breast, a clogged milk duct, and can progress to an intense illness very quickly. The clogged duct could be related to engorgement or not emptying the breast of milk often enough, or it could have no apparent cause. I have heard that mastitis is more common during cold and flu season and that it is usually related to over-stress on a mama's body. Well, Sweet Pea, Average, many members of my family that we were around over the holidays, and I have had a cold over the last weeks. Sweet Pea's cold hindered my sleep, and guests and traveling added a mental and physical strain. On Monday, my body gave me a big sign that it was time to slow down, way down. At noon I started to feel some pain on the left side of my left breast, at 1:00 I nursed and then pumped for good measure, took some vitamins and applied heat. By 3:00 I was experiencing body-shaking chills, muscle aches, and intensified pain in the large, deep, lump. I knew it was likely the onset of mastitis, and knew that I needed to rest and get some remedies and possibly get started on antibiotics as soon as possible. If mastitis is untreated, or doesn't respond to treatment, it can progress into an abscess. Unfortunately for me, I'd been missing my cell phone since Saturday night and we no longer have a home phone. I felt stranded alone with Average at work, and no way to call him. In a way, the Internet rescued me from this bad situation. I was able to find out what I needed to do online (from diaperswappers breastfeeding forum and kellymom.com), then reached a friend through facebook chat, she called Average, and he got online to chat with me. Another friend gave me the names of the homeopathic and herbal remedies she had used successfully to combat mastitis, and I passed the information back to Average again. He came home from work early, picked up Sweet Pea, and headed to the local natural store to pick up supplies while I lay in bed doing nothing. You know that crazy feeling when you're really sick where you can just lay there and not read or watch t.v. or sleep, and yet you don't feel bored at all? I was there. Out. Of. It. I was doing everything I had heard of that might help. I took vitamin C, grapefruit seed extract, raw garlic, Red Root tincture, and phytolacca homeopathic remedy. I massaged the area, nursed as much as possible, took a hot shower, and other than that just laid in bed, occasionally picking up a magazine. By 11:00 my fever (which only ever got to 101, not bad compared to some I've heard, but still not pleasant) broke and I felt a little more normal. I was more aware of what was going on, and the skin on my entire body was no longer painfully sensitive to touch. What a relief. The lump still hurt, and was still there, so I knew I wasn't totally out of the woods yet. I spent most of the next day on the couch, besides the time I spent heating food, feeding Sweet Pea, changing diapers, or bathing. The next day was even better and I threw in a load of laundry and logged some internet time. Today (Friday), I feel pretty much back to normal and have no more lump but I still feel like I want to be careful to get myself plenty of rest. I feel extremely grateful that I was able to avoid needing antibiotics and an expensive trip to the doctor. Luckily I knew what I was dealing with and was able to get what I needed quickly. Mastitis can come on quite suddenly, so all of us breastfeeding moms should be prepared to deal with it. The main advice that I got over and over was to REST REST REST to recover the most quickly. Hopefully this experience will help a reader or two to take steps to avoid a plugged duct, or at least recognize the signs to react quickly. Please share any other tips you have in comments!