I found Smiling Tree Toys with surfing Etsy for wooden teethers. I was drawn in by the cute descriptions and family pictures included in every listing. I clicked. I looked. I read their story. They nestled into my heart. The coolest part about it is they are just as wonderful in conversation as they seem to be in their store.

We’re Justin and Kathleen, the smiling faces behind Smiling Tree Toys. We’re fun-loving kids at heart with a deep appreciation for living simply, being kind to Mother Nature, and creating thoughtful, handmade gifts.

Our family business began in 2010 when we returned to the U.S. after serving two years with the Peace Corps in Niger, West Africa. After living in a small, strongly-knit community in West Africa, we wanted the same for our new home in the U.S. We chose Kathleen’s family roots in rural southwestern Minnesota as our little place to call home. That’s where you’ll find us, where Justin enjoys the prairie views from his woodshop window, and Kathleen is happy to return to the wide open spaces of her childhood. Best of all, we love sharing it all with our one-year-old daughter Amana.

When we’re not in our woodshop, the three of us are usually enjoying family time, playing games, camping, skiing, and helping out on our family’s organic farm.

We like to say that we “work hard to play hard,” although most days in the woodshop hardly feel like work at all — come on, we get to make TOYS for a living!

And when they say their family’s organic farm, they mean their family’s fifth generation organic farm! It’s where the 100% organic camelina oil and organic beeswax blend they use to seal all their toys, comes from. The say that makes their toys one of a kind wonderful, and well I certainly agree! They offer all sorts of amazing handmade wood toys including teethers, rattles, blocks, and a great assortment of stacking & balancing toys; all of which are sealed with the camelina and beeswax blend from their family’s organic farm.

Another cool thing about this family, they donate to youth projects for every toy sold. In general they support Peace Core projects that promote positive youth health, development and education. They tend to gravitate towards supporting African countries, too, since their “hearts belong there.” The most recent project being Camp GLOW, you can read more about that here.

I received a personalized teether (personalizing is feature they added just this year!) of a dachshund for Roghan. When we received it, Roghan and I were actually out of town and so I had Travis open it for me over video messaging. (Yeah, I am that neurotic about cool baby stuff. What of it?) It came in a super cute bag with care instructions and a personalized note from Kathleen. Roghan’s name is perfectly set. As Travis read me the care card and note, he held the teether in front of the camera and rubbed it with his thumb. He stopped at one point to exclaim about how smooth it is to me! I couldn’t wait to get home to let Roghan have it as he began cutting his third tooth while we were gone. (These pictures were taken post Roghan laying claim to it, so it’s a little lived with already!)

Once he got his little fingers on it, he was hooked! He gnaws on it a good majority of the day and even began cutting a fourth tooth, so it was GREAT that he had this to chew on. Each teether has a little hole cut out of the middle of it, perfect for little fingers! Roghan totes it around with him all over the place. Since it has that awesome organically grown beeswax and camelina oil seal on it, I thought I would give it a taste. Crazy, I know. But hey, my kid is going to lick it, too! To the point, I tasted nothing but wood. I don’t really know what organic beeswax or camelina oil actually tastes like, so I can make no distinction about that to you…

It also has a cute little Smiling Tree Toys stamp on the back foot, perfect for rubbing little gums with some texture. I would say his favorite thing to do with it is share; he holds on to it and bites it a few times and then puts it by my mouth so I can bite it. It’s a pretty cute and silly process! Because of this I have no pictures to share of him chewing on it with you… He is very fond of his little friend though, we take it everywhere.

All in all, I would say this teethers are a major win! They are super smooth and lots of fun. I like the idea that once he outgrows teething, Roghan can still have his little puppy as a friend for future adventures. These toys are also extremely affordable for being handmade, natural and amazing.

Now, check this out: Naturally Mamas and Smiling Tree Toys have teamed up to GIVE AWAY a personalized teether of choice! That’s right, you can have any teether you want as well as have it personalized with your little one’s name! Follow the instructions below to be entered. Winner will be drawn and emailed on June 1, and has 48 hours to respond by email or a new winner will be chosen.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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(As written on my daughter’s birthday, 5/23/11)

Chris and I had sex the Friday before Callie was born (5/20) and I had some bleeding during my “clean up” shower. I mentioned it to Chris and I started having a few contractions. I got on my exercise ball and just rolled around. I felt fine, but decided to pack my bag just in case. At one point I told Chris it was time… but then I got in the bed and fell asleep.

Saturday I worked from 9-5 and I did all my normal duties at work. I felt well and energetic. I went to Wal-Mart and got stuff for dinner. Got home, and I made my dinner and then got really mad at Chris because he wanted different dinner than I wanted, so I went for a walk around the block (twice) without him. I think that was about 2 miles.

Sunday morning we woke up and had to do a photoshoot at the covered bridge. We were following around a 3 year old, climbing across a little creek, and “hiking” across wooden bridges. I had a great time with our client and at the location. I asked Chris to take a picture of me, but he said he wasn’t really feeling well, and I honestly wasn’t feeling that great by then either. Anyways, we went to eat lunch and then went home and put Grayson to bed for a nap and I decided to take a nap too… except I ended up not napping, if you know what I mean  I did get in about an hour or so of a nap before I had to leave for work. So I worked from 5-10. For dinner I had some pizza and 2 cans of pineapple juice. When I got off work, I went by Wal-Mart. I contemplated getting some pads, but instead I got some castor oil and some stuff to make smoothies. I was not going to drink the castor oil, I was just going to try rubbing it on my belly.

When I got home from work, I ate some dinner and then Chris and I had sex again (3rd time that weekend!) – During my “clean up” shower, everything was fine. When I got out of the shower, I had to poop, and I did. I then, however, noticed a little blood. A few minutes after that, I started having some mild contractions. I think I had 3 contractions every 3 or 4 minutes. I was talking to a friend on AIM and pretty much using her as a log. I was pacing around the house and she told me to keep calm and breathe. I was probably in pre-labor and needed to hold out rather than go to the hospital and be sent home. Chris agreed and told me I should calm down and do my “ball thing”. Anyways, the last thing I said to my friend was “again” to let her know another one had started.

After that I had two intense contractions that were very close together and crippling. I couldn’t pace through these; instead, I got on the bed on all fours and rocked and rolled my hips back and forth… all the while screaming at Chris that I couldn’t do “this sh–”. When the second contraction ended, I felt a huge desire to poop again (which this isn’t out of the ordinary for me. I have bad stomach issues sometimes). I went to poop and I felt something coming out. Chris was in the bathroom with me telling me to hurry so we could get dressed and leave. Well, I wasn’t pooping… my water was breaking! Both Chris and I heard AND saw my bag pop and fluid gushed into the toilet and onto the floor.

At this point Chris kinda started to freak out, he was telling me to get up and get my clothes on because the hospital was an hour away and it was obviously time. I was still standing over the toilet and told him I couldn’t leave, that I thought her head was out. I reached down and felt myself, and I was definitely crowning. Chris didn’t really believe me but I sat down on the bathroom floor with my back against the bathtub and assumed “the position”… Chris took one look – “OMG YOU ARE! HER HEAD IS RIGHT THERE – YOU ARE GOING TO HAVE THIS BABY!!!”

I told Chris to get the phone and call 911, but he was more concerned with delivering the baby and he handed me the phone. As I called 911, her head started to come out. I don’t really remember pushing, just a lot of breathing and trying to keep calm while telling the dispatcher where we lived. As her head came out, I pooped on Chris. Because I was on the phone, I could not reach her (I couldn’t really reach her in the position anyways) but Chris HAD to wash his hands, so we rested her head on my ankle while he washed his hands really quick. When he got back, Chris says he put his hand inside to see if the cord was wrapped and it wasn’t. After that, her left arm came out and we heard her cry. Chris was very adamant with me getting the baby out at this point. I feel bad for the dispatcher, I wasn’t paying her a lick of attention. And then it happened, she was born and Chris gave her to me. To put everything into perspective, I had 3 contractions about 4 minutes apart, and 2 contractions one after another before my water breaking… so 18-20 minutes, and the dispatcher told me I called at 2:15am and her body was completely born at 2:16am.

Next the dispatcher told us we needed to find a towel to wipe her off with and something to clamp the cord with. Chris went outside to his workvan and got some 550 cord from his hiking trip he went on 2 weeks prior. As he was tying it to the cord, the police showed up. All the cop knew to do was to ask if we had a booger sucker. We did not. Anyways, he had no business really being in the house by this point. No one needed to see me in all my glory… at least not a cop that had no place at a delivery. Anyways, while Chris was getting another piece of 550 cord, the EMS showed up. They brought in a kit with cord clamps and clamped the cord and Chris got to cut it. After that he brought me two receiving blankets to wrap her up with and I asked him to go get the camera for some pictures. I knew no one would believe the story!… Heck, I think I even needed some proof. (And yes, the EMS looked at us like we were crazy, taking pictures and all).

Chris then took Callie and called his mom so she could come get Grayson. I had Chris get me a robe so I didn’t have to ride in the ambulance naked. I got up and saw my pool of mess (it was so gross) and got some baby wipes and attempted to wipe off my thighs just a little bit. So I walked and got on the gurney and I was loaded up into the ambulance. Chris brought Callie to me and we explained to the ambulance that we wanted to go to OUR hospital. It was not the closest hospital and the EMS did not want to go all the way there, but we insisted. Chris’s mom also got there just before we left, so she got to climb up in the ambulance and check out our beautiful baby. Callie was fine and I felt great, so there was no problem going 20 extra minutes. They kept checking my blood pressure and temperature. They said if anything was fishy they would have to take me to the closer hospital on the way. Whatever. I also had an IV block or whatever on my hand just in case I needed fluids and didn’t have much movement (small hands, big needle)… anyways, I asked the EMS chick to help me get Callie to latch on, and we had no problems.

We got to the hospital just after 3am and my doctor got there around 4am to deliver the afterbirth. It was the most painful part of this birth. He had to push really hard on my stomach to get everything out, and I was holding Callie in one arm and trying to get away with my other arm. I felt more fluids coming out of me and I didn’t get to keep the placenta like I wanted to. I didn’t even ask.

Chris got to the hospital and shortly after they took Callie to the nursery. I had Chris go with them and he got a couple of pictures. Callie weighed in at 6lbs 6oz and was 19inches. While we were at the hospital, we had some mild complications and needed some monitoring. Turns out little miss’s white blood cell count was a bit high, but as time went on it stabilized. Most likely it was because she was born at home, which wasn’t “sterile” and also because we may have waited “too long” to clamp the cord (which I doubt was the case).

But anyways, she is here and she’s perfect. We are all so in love… especially daddy, who gets to be listed on the birth certificate as the birth attendant (where the doctor’s name usually goes). He is already wrapped around her little fingers. Welcome to the world, Callie Astrid!

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So, if you are worried about eating that peanut butter sandwich while pregnant because you don’t want your child to be allergic to peanuts- I say go for it. At this point, there have been studies that have shown both results- this means that the hypothesis and conclusion of the study is not repeatable and thus there is no correlation between eating peanuts and the child developing allergies. And the reverse is true as well, there is no conclusive evidence between eating peanuts and the child not developing an allergy. Remember- for science to be true it must be repeatable and peer reviewed.

If you or your partner has food allergies, this does not mean that your child will have the same allergies (or any at all). There has been no correlation between parent and child to show that they share common allergies. If you have allergies, your child is more likely to have them as well, but the cause of the allergy may not be shared.

Anyway, once your healthy baby is out of the womb and has progressed to the point where they are eating the solid foods, then you need to worry about the allergies.

I am sure all the parents out there have read the rule about food introduction- making certain that your baby is only introduced to one new food at a time and to wait three to five days between the introduction of a new food. This rule is all well and good, but there comes a point where it is impractical. When your child is only eating purees and finger foods, it is pretty easy. But what about the first time your child wants that sandwich that is in your hand? Think of all the ingredients in that bread or mayonnaise or cracker. Narrowing it down to a single item can be difficult.

For example, I am very allergic to palm trees- this means I am also allergic to Palm Oil. Walk down your grocery store isle and start looking at the ingredients in the food. How many of them contain palm oil? Probably 6 out of 10 items on a low end estimate. On a side note, I am also allergic to passion fruit. This is an allergy I discovered late in life. Apparently I am just not meant for the tropics, thus spoiling all my retirement dreams.

Usually, you aren’t going to have someone who is allergic to something like palm oil. But, soy bean oil could cause a problem. Soy is in the top 8 most likely allergies for a child/person to have. Usually, the oil doesn’t have any of the proteins that cause the allergy (the same is true for peanut oil)- butI am one to err on the side of caution.

The top 8 most likely food allergies are: Soy, Cow’s Milk, Eggs (the egg whites actually have most of the things that cause allergies), Peanuts, Tree nuts (walnuts, almonds, etc), Fish, Shellfish and Wheat. You can look up guidance on when to introduce your child to these foods- it is easy to find on the internet and it is constantly changing, so just do a quick search to find the current guidance and suggestions.

Now, let us break down the symptoms of an allergy:

• angry red splotches on the skin or other rash
• hives (horrific looking red bumps/splotches that itch like insanity itself crawled under your skin)
• vomiting
• diarrhea
• flushed skin
• swollen lips, cheeks or tongue
• coughing or wheezing or other difficulty breathing

and the scariest thing of all:

• loss of consciousness

Most food allergies are minor, but they can get worse with each exposure to the food that caused it. If you see a rash, flush or red spots, you can probably just contact your pediatrician and see if you should be worried.

However, if you see facial swelling, your child has difficulty breathing or severe vomiting call 911 or get to an emergency room immediately. Food allergies are nothing to shrug off. They can be extremely serious.

If you find that your child has a food allergy you will probably be prescribed an Epi-Pen. Learn how to use it and make certain that it is always within the date of expiry (you generally need to replace them every 6 months). For some allergies, you may just be told to keep Benedryl around. Benedryl is magic and should be kept around anyway, but keep the children’s Benedryl around and familiarize yourself with the dosages so you don’t have to think about it too hard when the time comes to use it.

If you have a child with allergies go over to another person’s house, inform them about your child’s allergies or provide food for them. If the allergy is severe, provide the person watching your child with the Epi-Pen and Benedryl just in case along with any emergency information they need.

Food allergies suck for anyone who has them. But they are manageable if you are just aware of the food you are eating. Keep to fresh produce and foods rather than boxed or canned so you don’t have surprises. This is not only healthier, but will make dealing with allergies easier.

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Sewing your own cloth diapers can be a really economical way to build your stash. Plus, it’s really fun if you like to sew.

I apologize that I don’t have photos of this first part, but bear with me. What you need to do: Find a diaper that you like the style/fit of, and buy one used, practically falling apart, and please don’t spend more than $10 for it. You’re going to tear it up, so it doesn’t matter the color, pattern, etc. I used a Goodmama. (Please keep in mind that you should not make diapers and sell them if you’re using a pattern from a commercially produced diaper, even if it’s a WAHM. It’s possibly illegal and definitely rude.)  I had a serged edge GM, so I opened up the stitching where the elastic was sewn in and ripped out the stitches holding the elastic in place. This allowed the diaper fabric to relax and go out to its full length. You’ll want to do the same for whatever diaper you have. If it’s velcro, you can take the whole thing apart with a seam ripper and that will make creating a pattern even easier. GM’s have snaps, though, so it wasn’t possible.

Once you have the elastic out, you can lay the diaper on top of a large piece of paper, or several pieces of paper taped together. You want to hold it very still and trace around the outside with a marker or pen. This will be your pattern, so trace carefully! If you have a serged diaper, be sure to add a seam allowance! I found that tracing directly around the pattern and then cutting 1/4 inch from the line was helpful. It’s also helpful to cut little peaks where the elastic goes. I use a bit of fabric as my pattern instead of paper, but you can do what you like.

Lay your master pattern out onto your diaper fabric. I find it’s easiest to fold the fabric in half and place the pattern on the fold. Saves a lot of time cutting. Pin the pattern down well, and cut out the outer fabric.

You’ll want to cut out one outer fabric, one inner fabric, and one middle fabric, if you like. For this diaper, the outer is cotton, the inner is fleece, so I didn’t use a middle fabric. If you don’t want fleece on the inside, you can put fleece in the middle and use flannel or birdseye cotton on the inside. (The best thing to do is baste the middle and inner fabrics together so they act as one. Treat the middle fabric as the “wrong side” of the inner fabric.)

Go ahead and cut a few diapers out all at once, you can make them assembly-line style. For a goodmama style diaper, you need about 1/4 yard of a print. I buy the flat quarters from JoAnn’s and Walmart, and they’re the perfect size. I have a HUGE stash of them, so lots of diapers.

You’ll also want to make a soaker pad. This is two layers of ZORB topped with a layer of fleece. If you have terry towel or microfiber, feel free to use that! (Just make sure to top it with something bum-friendly.) How big you make the insert is up to you and the size of the diaper you’re making. It’s good to make it about 2 inches shorter than the length of the diaper, to account for the gathering of the elastic. I sewed a straight stitch around the outside, then trimmed the edges and zig-zag stitched around the outside to stop fraying.

Sew the soaker to the liner fabric. Again, I used a straight stitch and then zig-zag to reinforce/keep the edge down. I only sewed one edge to help the diaper dry faster.

Pin your outer fabric to the inner, right sides facing together. (A soaker sandwich, if you will.) Sew 1/4 inch from the edge all the way around, leaving a gap big enough for your hand to fit through at the TOP of the diaper. (the part against baby’s tummy.)

Feel free to grade and trim the edges if you like, but don’t cut off the elastic peaks, those are for later! Turn the diaper right side out.

Top stitch around the WHOLE diaper, but leave the hole open. You’ll also want to sew 3/4 inch away from the top stitching on either leg and at the back of the diaper to make an elastic casing. DO NOT SEW THIS ALL THE WAY AROUND THE DIAPER. You’re only putting elastic in 3 spots.

Thread a length of elastic (Measure the elastic that came out of your master diaper, use the same length.) through the casing and sew the ends in place. Go over each end several times to make sure it’s secure. Repeat for the leg elastic.

Top stitch the hole closed, and you’re done!

Obviously, this diaper has no closure. You can add snaps or velcro/aplix if you like, but I’m super lazy. I’ll just use a snappi or a boingo to close the diaper.  This pattern/technique will only work with sized or fold-over-rise diapers. One size diapers will work too, if you feel like adding a snap rise. Start to finish, it took me about an hour and a half to make one diaper. If you were doing each step multiple times (making diapers in an assembly line fashion) it would take a bit longer. I think it’s totally worth it. You can customize the types of fabrics used, make them as absorbent as you need, and save a ton of money!

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Who hasn’t thought these would be way cooler in a non-ketchup-mustard combo?!

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If you actually go to the board, you’ll see I had quite an obsession with pringle can projects…

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Though, I would hope you wouldn’t just have a diapers box laying around.

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I know… Soda. So uncrunchy. Grab some Kern’s for this one, not perfect, but you’ll feel an insy bit better.

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The link to this one has been lost, but it seems rather self-explanatory to me!

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Looks easy enough, but if you want a how-to I sure hope you have a webpage translator….

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The only issue I see with this: where in the heck do you find this kind of light bulb anymore?!

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Now this one is my absolute favorite!

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I shared eight mostly kid friendly ideas here, I have sixty-six pins in this general category of recycling. Check it out. Surf pinterest. Find. Create.

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The plants in the home made containers failed. Well they did and they didnt. My kids were over excited about watering and soaked the paper bags till they fell apart. The seedlings. I tried salvage what i could, but they didnt make it.

However our cut off containers made from milk jugs and juice bottles are doing great. We have 2-3 inch tall tomato plants! I really hope that they continue to grow and get stronger.

Our Tomato seedlings

A Sunflower

And our pot of onions.

Onions are a really easy one to grow. We buy bundles of green onion at the store. I cut off the bottoms and plant them and cut off the tops to eat. Then they grow in a pot till we want onion. Usually in the evenings at dinner, the kids pop off a few onions and munch on them.

To start our foods outside, the nights have to stay above freezing. We have been sitting at about 36 degrees at night so i decided to go ahead and plant our potatoes.

This is my huge Whiskey Barrel. Last year we had 7 potato plants in it! Its about 3 ft across, i know it dosent look like it from the pictures but it is big.

And this was my totally inspired, i need more containers to grow potatoes in, container. It was previously used as a toy tub in the garage for outdoor toys.

Yes i need more soil. Probably 3-5 cubic feet more soil, but im stranded carl-less 30 miles from the nearest store i can buy soil so they will have to make do.

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I don’t. I just want that to be clear before we continue. You may choose to define it how you wish. But the purpose of this article is the eventual removal of the boob. I have already talked about finger foods- and really, most people call the introduction of finger foods and the baby’s self-feeding to be Baby Led Weaning. Call it whatever you want. The name doesn’t matter. For me, it was just the introduction of finger foods to a hunger fuss face boy. For another mother it may be Baby Led Weaning.

Weaning: to teach the sucking child to feed otherwise than from the breast

I do believe that weaning is a gradual change, but the end result is that the child is no longer suckling at the breast. When you choose to do this, is up to you. Yes, the introduction of solid foods is a step to getting your child off the boob. I have to be honest though, I have not started the process of removing my son from the breast or actively trying to. He eats solid food, but I still offer him the breast first when I know he is hungry and I am home to do so. He is also only 9 months old and I don’t plan on even starting to try until he is a year old.

It is recommended by most that you should continue breastfeeding (or giving formula) for at least the first year of life. Even when you have introduced solid foods into the diet of the child, the infant receives most of their nutrition from the breast or the bottle. At around 6 months of age, the infant begins to develop the “chewing” reflex and will bite instead of suck food from a spoon. They start to lose the sucking pads from the inside of their cheeks and they are getting manually dexterous with the pincher motion.

Now, many people say that so long as baby is sitting upright, you can give them as many foods as they want and they won’t choke if they feed themselves. If they had ever seen my son eat, they would know this is a dirty, dirty lie. I tried this with my son, putting his food bits on the tray in front of him while we sat and ate. He promptly stuffed as many as would go into his mouth and choked. After the split second freak out I had, I promptly scooped food out of his mouth and gave him the squeeze and he was fine. This is why you should never leave your baby unattended with food.

Since then, we worked on this issue. I started by only giving him a couple of food bites in front of him and then slowly increased the number. We have been working on giving him more until he doesn’t overstuff his mouth. We are pretty much able to give him all his food at once now, but that took a month of working on it.

So, we have been introducing solid foods to him. If you want to work toward removing the bottle or the boob from your baby, you would make sure that you have several meals together a day, removing the bottle or breast feedings as you introduce them. I would suggest starting slowly with one meal replacing a bottle or breast. I think those people who use formula are more likely to want to wean faster. Formula is expensive and sort of a pain in the rump. So, introducing solids to a child to get them off the bottle sooner is an eventual goal for most formula fed babies.

When you are ready to remove your child from the breast, instead of giving them the breast first, give them the breast after some solid food. Then, slowly stop giving them a breast at all after the solid food. If you baby fusses for the boob, go ahead and give it to them. You don’t want to cause them stress over it and if they are really fussing for the boob, they probably aren’t ready to go off of it. Eventually, you can wean your child down to less milk. This will be nice for both your baby and for you. As you produce less milk, the milk itself changes and adjusts to your child’s needs. It becomes fattier and the enzymes change, preparing your child for their new diet.

Soon, you may find that your child only wants an evening feeding. If you feel you are ready to break them of that, change their night time routine. Instead of giving them the breast to help them sleep, maybe give them a bath or a cup of water. Have your partner start getting them ready for bed instead. Or just stop offering your breast. If they ask, give it to them, but don’t go out of your way to give them the breast. The key here is to be comfortable in your choice and to make your child comfortable with your choice.

Don’t let anyone dictate to you what to do or how you should feel. If you and your child want to continue breast feeding, then by all mean, go for it.

I can already see my future. My son has started to take the breast less and doesn’t seem overly interested in it unless he happens to be both tired and hungry- then the only thing he wants is the boobies. I suspect he will wean himself off the breast at around 18 months the way he is going. He prefers solid food. He likes to play with it and feed himself. He enjoys the independence of it.

Allow your child to set the pace. The real key to natural parenting is to do what is natural for you and your baby. Not what any book or any one person says is natural or normal. Each mother/baby duo (or trio or whatever as the case may be) is different and has a different need and want. Do what makes you happy and what feels right for you and your child. Don’t force them off the breast, but at the same time, don’t force them to stay on it either.

[[I shall share with you my dirty little secret as a natural mama- I am not fond of the LLL. Every person I have spoken to in the group has been either condescending with a superiority complex or has been overly militant about the issue of breastfeeding. And this is not based on a sampling of 1 or 2 people. I am talking more like a sampling of 20-30 people from 4 different groups.  If I want to nurse with a cover for my personal comfort, I shall do so. If I want to give my baby puree peas on a spoon before finger foods, I will. If I have to go back to work and pump instead of being a full time mom, I am going to do that. If my husband is going to be our child's primary caregiver, there is nothing unnatural about that. End Frothy Rage Rant. (Feel free to criticize me over this, I don't care, I wear big girl panties and can take it.)]]

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However, just a few years after the establishment of the holiday, Anna Jarvis found herself campaigning against it.

Why?

Commercialization.

She saw the commercialization of the holiday as ruining it. She detested printed Mother’s Day Cards and boxes of candy and even flower. She spent her fortune campaigning against what the holiday had become. She was even arrested in 1948 while protesting the holiday. By this time, she wished she had never created the holiday because it had become so commercial and against what she saw as the spirit of the day and the sentiment that it was supposed to hold.

To her, Mother’s Day was a day to celebrate your mother; to show her your true feelings and respect. The commercialization of that idea was and is detestable. In fact, had it not been for the commercialization of the holiday by greeting card makers and florists, it likely would have faded into obscurity like Children’s Day, Liberty Day, Plant a Flower Day or National Anthem Day.

So, this Mother’s Day, think about what the day really means before you go to the shop and pick up a card or a bunch of flowers. Think about what your Mother has really given you. Think about all those people whose mother is no longer with them. Think about how you would feel if your mother was no longer with you and what you really want her to know. Think about what it means to you to be a mother and what is really important. Is it things? Or is it the love and respect of your family?

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(Review and Giveaway after the JUMP)

I like the i like book for women. – When I had originally read about it, I had actually imagined it to be a book telling me things I should like about myself. Like those desk calendars that have a new quote every day. Well, the i like book is sorta like that, but it was actually designed to make you think about yourself and the things you like. The pages have a month heading and room to write a short blurb each day. Each right-page has a week’s worth of “i like…” prompted entries, and every 31 days, you start over again at one. This makes it easy to keep up with, and you can start any day of the month. There’s enough room for an entire year. At the bottom of each right-page is an example “i like….”

Each left-page has some typography – usually a quote or statement. Some of the left-pages just have a floral pattern. I found these pages to be inspiring – one of my favorites is “Find out who you are, and do it on purpose” from Dolly Parton. These pages always brought a smile to my face.

In order to complete my  i like book for women, I set a daily alarm at a time I would be home most frequently. I’m a busy mama, so it was important to me to sit down and take the time to fill out my book every single day. I think it defeats the purpose if you don’t do it daily. Each day, I wrote something that I liked about my life: my marriage, my children, my passion, etc. It was really easy for about a week or two… it started getting harding after that! That sounds silly, I could only come up with one week’s worth of things I liked easily – but really, that is the purpose of the book. To make you think about the things that may not be easy to remember that you like, to take five minutes a day and rediscover yourself.

It’s been about a three weeks now, and I am still filling out the book daily. It does make me feel good about myself. Some days I get so caught up in school, life, work, and family that I truly forget about myself. The i like book for women is for women – no one else – to help you rediscover yourself.

On more thing about the book that I really enjoy, since we are Naturally Mamas, is that the i like book is printed on 30% recycled fiber/acid free paper and printed with a soy based ink. The i like book is also made right here in the U.S.A. There are also other i like…  books, including one for couples to fill out together and one for kids.

We also have a giveaway! Enter below for your chance to win the i like book for women!

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That doesn’t mean that I haven’t gotten some killer deals, because I totally have. I bought a Moby wrap at a store closing and only paid $25 for it. I buy generic baby legs on Ebay, or wait until they have a really good sale and stock up. (I have like 20 pairs of baby legs because of sales.) I got a Seven Sling because they keep having coupon codes for free ones. (Seriously, use the code ‘breastfeeding’ and get a free sling from Seven or a free nursing cover from Udder Covers.) Diapers are no exception. So I thought I would share some of the deals I’ve scored as well as photos of my current stash, and how to get the most bang for your buck when it comes to cloth diapering.

First up, the Itti Bitti Tutto pile. You might notice I have several. Seven, in fact. Five were purchased from Kissed by the Moon during a buy 4 get one free sale. Bitti Tutto’s are $26.95, which is WAY more than I would normally pay for a diaper. But when you add in the free diaper, you’re only really paying $21.56 each, which is a bit more reasonable. So, my first tip- Stalk the sales. Subscribe to your favorite cloth stores’ newsletter. The other two Bitti Tutto’s were purchased off of BabySteals for around $16 each. BabySteals is a daily flash sale site. Usually around 9am, they post an awesome deal on something baby related. The only down side to that is that they have a huge customer base and things sell out really quickly sometimes. Tip two- Subscribe to flash sale sites. Baby Steals, Baby Half Off, FairyTaleDeals, etc.

The Rumparooz was purchase full price, because they rarely go on sale. Part of the reason I only have one, lol. The GroVia was purchased from EcoMom with a discounted gift voucher that I got from MamaSource. MamaSource is kind of like Groupon for mom deals. I was able to purchase a $40 gift voucher for less than $20 on MamaSource. I put it toward a few fluffy related items, including that GroVia. Check the discount sites, like MamaSource. There are also the ‘member only’ deal sites like EcoBabyBuys, Zulilly, and Totsy.

Then there are the generic diapers. The very top diaper is a GoGreen pocket Champ. It’s on the mid-range of the price scale, coming in at $15.95, and I paid full price, which again is why I only have one. That and I found diapers that are exactly the same for less. Which brings me to Alva Baby diapers. Alva Baby is a Chinese company that sells directly from the factory to the consumer. Their diapers range in price from as low as $4 to around $9. They aren’t the greatest quality, but they are perfectly fine to use. Especially if you’re on a budget! You can often find Alva co-op groups and get an even better deal. Buy in co-ops to save even more! They have lots of different colors and prints, and come in several styles. Buy generic. Alva, Sunbaby, Kawaii, etc. Join co-op groups on Facebook. Alva Baby Color Snap diapers are EXACTLY the same as GoGreen Champs, with the exception of the actual color of the snaps. (Champs have a rainbow of snaps at the waist, the Alva’s have groups of different colors.) Also very similar are Lovely Pocket Diaper Raves and Bumfetti. ($12 and $12.50, respectively) LPD also has a very inexpensive option, their original line which is $7-7.50, depending on if you get solid colors or prints.

The BumGenius were purchased in a store sale. One for some holiday last year, and one for Earth Day this year. I paid under $14 each. Happy Heiny’s were purchased full price. (And I love them, they might be the only diaper I’d regularly buy full price. haha.) The Fuzzi Bunz was purchased from a flash sale. Hiding underneath it is a Charlie Banana, which I won in a giveaway. Yes, seriously. I NEVER WIN ANYTHING, but I won a giveaway on the CB Facebook, of all places. (That swim diaper at the bottom is also a CB, won in the same giveaway.) Enter giveaways, even if you don’t think you’ll win. You might be surprised! The brown Oh Katy diaper was purchased used from a cloth diaper swap group. It’s in perfect condition with no staining, and was a killer deal. I think I paid $11 with shipping for that one. Buy used! Save a ton of money and help out some other mamas. The other two OhKaty’s were purchased in a normal store sale.

Fitteds are a type of diaper that are really difficult to find on sale. Most of the better ones are WAHM brands, and while you might find the occasional discount, it’s rare. You can combat this by purchasing used fitteds through diaper swaps. This is how I purchased the GoodMamas I have. GM’s are regularly $35. I didn’t pay more than $15 for the two I have. The white one is in perfect condition, and the flower-y one is in play condition, but that’s not a bother to me. You can also hunt for inexpensive WAHM made diapers. BC Fleecy diapers are extremely well priced at $16 each. The downside is that she only stocks about once a week, 5-6 diapers per stocking. She occasionally has custom slots available as well. Do your research and find well made diapers that are regularly priced cheap. The last fitted is a random WAHM brand with no tag, I bought it used.

I have 35 cloth diapers, which is a fairly complete stash. I’m not anywhere near done, though. One of the ways I’m helping my future self is by purchasing a large stash now. When it comes time to use the diapers, I’ll not only have a lot of options, but I’ll have a good rotation going. The bigger your rotation, the less each diaper is used, which means each diaper can be used longer. I’m doing this so that I’ll be able to use these diapers for all my children, and never have to purchase a bulk of diapers for any one child in an ‘emergency’ situation. I’m about to purchase 15 newborn diapers in a co-op, and spend $75. These diapers look EXACTLY like a Rumparooz Lil’ Joey, but at less than half the cost. This combines two money saving tips- buying generic and buying with a co-op. My goal is to eventually have at least 100 diapers. Crazy, I know. But fluff is addicting. (So is saving money!)

Did you purchase diapers before getting pregnant? How many diapers are in your stash?

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