The Cloth Diaper Project

When I was pregnant with Monkey I swore that I would be faithful cloth diaper user. The reasons I want to do were pretty standard: It is better for the environment, large up front cost, but minimal cost afterwards, they look cute on babies bums, less diaper rash with natural fibers, yada, yada, yada. I spent hours and hours reading reviews trying to decide on the best style: One-sized, multiple sizes, All-in-ones, pocket diapers, prefolds and covers, snaps, pins, velcro... the options are endless.

Anyway, I finally settled and pick Bummis with the covers and prefolds. I got GeoDad to pick up a newborn starter kit when he was traveling in BC for work. Then we waited rather impatiently for Monkey to arrive so we could use them.

When Monkey did arrive her legs were too skinny for the leg elastic no matter how much I tightened the waistband. I was also way too exhausted too try and figure out anything better, so I used disposables. By the time she was about 2 months old her legs had thickened enough to use the cloth diapers, but I went on a 6 week vacation to see my Mom/Grandma/etc. I was not up to using cloth while I traveled, nor was I organized enough to figure it out while visiting and staying different places.

After my long vacation I was eager to get home and get using the cloth more consistently; and that is when my dryer started to die. It would take me 3 hours to dry a regular load of wash, never mind the thick prefolds that came with the Bummis diapers. I got a fancy new dryer for Christmas, but by then she had out grown the newborn sized cloth diapers.

Cloth diapering was a complete fail with Monkey, she is now potty training and hopefully will be out of diapers completely soon.

I thought I would give it a shot when LB was born. I waited a few days for him to get the very first tar like poo out of his system then I went for it. LB was in cloth 2.5 days out of 3 (I had to wash the diapers and it seemed easiest to do them all and the bag I kept the dirty ones in at once). The Bummis newborn sized covers worked really well with him until he was just over 3 months old. Then he got too long and they wouldn't wrap around his waist to close.

Since then we have been using disposables for both kids. It is costing us big time. So I am going to solve the issue by making some new covers that should fit LB for quite sometime and maybe even fit Monkey until she is done potty training.

BabyVille Boutique makes a line of super cute PUL fabrics that are great for making diaper covers. Now you may be wondering what PUL is:

"PUL is a polyurethane laminated fabric that is waterproof yet breathable. Because of its leak proof properties, it is perfect when sewing for babies and toddlers. PUL has a fabric side and a laminated side. Either side is suitable as the “right” side; it just depends on the project." - BabyvilleBoutique FAQs

Babyvilly Boutique makes it even easier by having a book of cloth diaper patterns: Cloth Diapers Made Easy. I ordered both the books and PUL fabric from Joann's Fabrics and ordered fold over elastic and snaps from www.wazoodle.com. I have had all this sitting around for a while now, and was waiting for LB's quilt to be done. I will be making pocket diapers so that I can continue to use the prefolds from my Bummis stash. I started cutting the first 2 last night, here take a peak:

Fancy mylar template that I made from the pattern in the book

Outer PUL layer with dinosaurs

Inner flannel - won't that be nice and soft on LB's bum!

Better get to it tonight. Snaps to add, then get inner and outer layers sewn together. Hopefully tomorrow LB can try one on so I can see that the pattern will work for him.

GeoMama

Paper Books Vs. EReaders

Before you get started into to this post please watch Le papier ne sera jamais mort/ Paper is NOT Dead (it is a short video and it should make you laugh).

This video got me thinking about the ease of reading on my eReader (I have a Kobo if you were wondering) versus the love I have for a good solid paper book. In the 15 months since I got my Kobo, I have devoured 17 novels. I have been able to read while nursing LB, in the car on long road trips and while waiting at the doctors office. I would not have read nearly that much if I had had to lug heavy books around (I carry enough stuff with me already... it is one of the side effects of having babies and toddlers).

In my former life as a student at university and then as a field geophysicist, nothing could beat a good page turner in paper form. Between GeoDad and I, we have 6 large bins of textbooks and 3 to 4 bins of novels. We used to keep most of these on our shelves until Monkey started trying to pull textbooks off (she was about 9 months old).

"Daddy read to me about Chemistry"

Although neither GeoDad or I read much on paper anymore (it is too risky - toddlers are not kind to books), we do want to have our children love books like we do. Most of the gifts we got Monkey for her first Christmas were board books and we make a point of reading to her and LB everyday.

Book shelves on Monkey's custom dresser (Made by WoodRefined Inc.)

Living in the Yukon has also allowed us to participate in a wonderful program called Dolly Parton's Imagination Library. Monkey (and now LB too) receives a book in the mail every month. Children are eligible to sign up from birth until their first birthday and the books will continue to arrive until they turn 5. That is 60 books, all for free. It is a pretty fantastic program to be part of and it is filling up our shelves in a hurry. 

So while GeoDad and I read most of our novels on eReaders, we spend a few minutes each day reading good solid paper books to the kids. If I want to read while in the tub, a $2 paper back is a much safer choice than my Kobo. And if you are lost in the woods, your paperback will make a much better firestarter (but please refrain from book burning unless it is a matter of life or death). 

In the battle of Paper book vs. eReader we have a tie at our house. What about you? Paper or electronic books?

GeoMama

My New Best Friends: Sam, Jeff, Anthony and Murray

Any other parents of small children probably know who I am talking about. For everyone else, I am talking about The Wiggles. The Wiggles are 4 Australian men who sing, dance, tell nursery rhymes, dress up in silly costumes and bring huge smiles to Monkey's face.
They have cds, dvds, tv shows, live shows, and merchandise. I bought one of their DVDs (Sing a Song of Wiggles) on iTunes and it has got us through many a cranky post-nap time. It has been nice to find something that I don't mind listening to repeatedly. Most things geared at toddlers has annoying voices/characters/songs whereas the The Wiggles DVD has mostly nursery rhymes that I remember from when I was little; much more tolerable.

I have learned some new songs to sing to the kids and Monkey has learned some sweet dance moves! She dances to a song called Joni Works with One Hammer. Here is a short video:

The only downside to listening to nursery rhymes nearly everyday is that I when I wake up in the night to tend to LB I have silly little songs stuck in my head on repeat. Small price to pay for having a much happier toddler.

Monkey is waking up so it is almost time to go hang out with my new best friends.
GeoMama

Monkey See, Monkey Do

Let me set the scene:
Sunday afternoon at Grandma's house. Grandma is vacuuming the living room. LB is on GeoMama's lap on the couch. GeoDaddy is on the loveseat finishing his coffee. Monkey is helping to push the vacuum and making vacuum like sounds 'bbbbbbbbssssssssssshhhhhhhhhh' or something like that. 

Grandma vacuums near GeoDaddy, GeoDaddy lifts his feet so she can vacuum under them. Grandma vacuums near GeoMama, GeoMama lifts her feet so Grandma can vacuum under them. 

Monkey runs around. Grandma gets near Monkey with the vacuum. Monkey sits down on the floor and lifts her feet so Grandma can vacuum under them. 

This reminded me how much children learn from watching the world around them. Monkey was keen to start using her potty because she watched me using the toilet. She went through a faze where we had to trade forks at dinner because she wanted to use mine. She wants a travel mug (of water) in the morning while GeoDaddy and I drink coffee. She wants to put diapers on her stuffed animals, and wants wet wipes when she changes them. When the dogs barks outside she runs to patio door and bangs on it, wagging her finger at them . Back at home if we let her into the fridge she would open the crisper drawer to get peas out, then try to push it shut with her foot, just like she has seen us do countless times.

Today was just a healthy reminder to keep what I do to things that I wouldn't mind seeing repeated in public by Monkey (and eventually LB) and to model behavior that I want them to repeat.

GeoMama

Spoons

There are so many actions that we do every day as adults that we take for granted. We walk, we stand, we sit, we drink from a cup and use spoons and forks to feed ourselves. All these skills we learn in our first couple years of life.

It is not just as simple as picking up a spoon and eating from it. Babies must learn to swallow things other than milk or formula. Not an easy task. Once they learn how to swallow, they can gradually move to foods that are thicker, pureed veggies and fruit. Then chunky foods, and maybe some easy to chew and dissolving things like rice crackers or arrowroot cookies. But still they lack the motor skills to effectively feed themselves with a spoon.

Anyway, this week LB took his first sips of rice cereal off a spoon. Most of the cereal ended up on his bib, or chin, but a little bit was swallowed. The second day more than on the first day. Its a big step towards growing into a busy toddler like Monkey.

Monkey has been eating off a spoon for 15 months now. She doesn't need my help anymore, but hasn't completely mastered it. I know she will with time, you don't see many adults that dirty after a bowl of yogurt.

LB's first day eating off a spoon

Monkey 15 months of eating off a spoon. Clearly she has not mastered it.

So while spoons may look like the simplest of utensils, remember that we all started out not having a clue how they worked. 

I need to go make sure I have some clean wash cloths before I feed the kiddlets again.

GeoMama

My children drive me to drink...coffee

Now don't go getting yourselves in a huff because I am mother who drinks because of her kids. I do have days where I think a beer would be great at the end but they generally drive me to drink coffee. Lots and lots of coffee.

As I mentioned in my first post, Monkey is not a good sleeper and LB is gassy in the mornings. Last night was both and one of our worst night in a couple months. Here is how it went:

7:30 - LB into bed and asleep
8:00 - Monkey gets ready for bed
8:45 - Monkey finally asleep
10:00 - GeoDad went to bed
10:30 - GeoMama went to bed after nursing LB
1:00 am - LB nurses, Monkey wakes up (Grandma sits with her for a few minutes, until I go in)
2:00ish - Monkey still awake... wants to go potty. Pees in the toilet. Lays back down in her bed, wants to hold my hand. Tosses and turns
3ish - Monkey still awake. LB wakes and wants to nurse again. Too gassy to lay back down. I sit holding Monkey's hand in her bed with LB on my lap sitting until he falls asleep.
4ish - Monkey asleep. LB asleep. Ahh, I get to go back to bed at last.
4:10 - Monkey awake again. Too thirsty and hungry to stay sleeping I guess. I get her a glass of water and a banana. She enjoys both and wants to go potty again. Finally she is ready to lay back down and try sleeping again.
4:50 Monkey asleep. I crawl into bed.
5:00 - LB wakes up. Grunty/gassy/needs to poop. I try to settle him and cuddle him in our bed. No luck
5:30 Take LB downstairs and let him play on his tummy on the floor. He poops, a bit. Still gassy and now wide awake.
6:00 I turn on some Baby Einstein for LB, this way he can sit still on my lap and maybe get tired.
6:30ish LB and I finally fall asleep on the couch.
7:45am Monkey wakes up, GeoDad gets her breakfast and sends me up to bed. LB stays awake.
9ish - GeoDad brings LB up to me to nurse and have a nap.
11:20am - LB wakes up from his nap. I figure it is probably time for me to get up and start the day.

Needless to say my 2.5 hours of sleep at the beginning of the night and my 4 hours in morning don't add up to a proper night of sleep. I need coffee.

It turns out that sleep as broken as last nights can't be fixed by a single cup of coffee... GeoDad and I finished one pot since I got up and he is out on a coffee run for some lattes.

GeoMama is off to drink another cup of coffee before kiddos wake up from their naps.