Friday, March 30, 2012

Addiction

The title of this isn't a joke. I'm addicted... to cloth diapers. When I decided to do cloth for my son I was a complete novice and I bought all the wrong things. It made cding hard. Plus we lived in Korea so finding a company that would ship to our APO and not charge an arm and a leg was a task in itself. When I was pregnant I didn't shop on the economy which possibly could have made things much easier!

I had bough all fitted diapers. Mistake one. I'd also bough prefolds and fitted covers. Now, I don't think there is anything wrong with prefolds but when you have a big baby that out grows a size one only a few weeks after birth... well, it left me turning to disposable.

But things have changed so much in four years! I am completely smitten with one size pocket diapers. And truly, depending on the company you buy from, you won't break the bank. I've found that I really like Lotus Bumz the best for my daughter. They stuff quickly and the inserts are super absorbent. They don't have many prints right now but the few that I have are great! I was lucky enough to find them through a discount baby site and spent $30 on four diapers including shipping. I also love Bumgenius . I scored a few second hand diapers which saved me from having to prep the diapers. I do like and prefer buying second hand diapers for that reason - as long as the diaper is in good condition and was cared for properly.

It's becoming a whole obsession for me now. I'm always looking for deals on the internet and checking my favorite pages. I've been strict on what I'm willing to pay for diapers (otherwise I could really spend far too much money) but I just broke my rule the other day for the first time. I spent too much on a diaper simply because it was so pretty. I got this beauty from the baby beehind company. I've never heard of them which is a risk but look how cute! I might regret this purchase in the end...

When I first thought about using cloth I mostly did it because my mother in law talked it up so much. Plus I wanted to do something good for the environment. At the time those things were my main focus. I'm still concerned with practicing environmentally safe things but I've read about the health benefits for the baby with not exposing her to some of the chemicals in most disposable diapers. However, there is a new company called Honest that has alternative cloth diapers. I do use disposable diapers while on the go and I've been using Huggies Natural but I think I'm going to order from this company when I am running low on my current bag of Huggies (which lasts me a LONG time).

So without getting preachy (I'll save that for another post) on the benefits of cloth diapers, I'm leaving this entry just at my obsession for cute cloth diapers.

And yes, when my daughter starts crawling I'll be finding some with ruffles or pictures on the butt.

Friday, March 2, 2012

A Saving Grace

I have to say - I do not know how I went through raising my son for eight months before I got a moby wrap. I look back now to the nights that he would scream before bed and how I walked around holding him and giving him a gentle jiggle until he exhausted himself and fell asleep. When he turned eight months we booked a flight home from Korea to visit family. I knew I didn't want to run through the airport or race with a stroller all the time. Someone had recommended the Moby wrap and I decided to try it out. Finally my arms weren't exhausted anymore!

I made sure to pack it away so I could save it for my next child. Now four years later this thing is a life saver. My three month old has loved it since day one. I wear her almost daily. Now that she is a little older she is comfortable in the swing but it wasn't like that when she was born. There are some days that I wear her all day depending on her temperament. There have been a couple nights where she's screamed before bed... but five minutes in the Moby and she was out cold.

My daughter loves close contact - as most babies do. Without the moby I wouldn't be able to get anything done. With her wrapped to my body she gets the contact, the mommy smell from me and she can hear my heart beat. It's like being back in the womb when I use the newborn hug hold. And it leaves me hands free. I'm able to walk around and get things done in the house. I can fold laundry, do dishes, sweep, mop, vacuum. I can shop without a stroller or without lugging a car seat. I've tried a few other carriers but Moby is by far my favorite. With it wrapped around by body and hers I know she isn't going anywhere. I can feel her breathing and I can wrap her high enough on my chest to check her easily and frequently. And, when wrapped properly, I can nurse her in the wrap. Personally I enjoy sitting down for a little quiet one on one while nursing but I have used the wrap to nurse while out shopping before. Done right it can be very discreet.

I am a little bummed that my wrap shrank in the dryer back when I was using it with my son. I'm not able to fully stretch it over my daughter's back but it's still safe for her.

Wearing my baby isn't necessarily "green" but I classify it in the natural parenting category - which to some people goes hand in hand with being green.

Anyone else love their Moby Wrap?