Cloth Diaper 20 Questions

     Recently Hubby's aunt spent the morning texting me questions about cloth diapers for a friend of theirs who was expecting. I'm not really surprised about being asked questions, We're asked A LOT of questions. We also get a lot of looks and some people who just don't get it.
     There were a variety of reasons we opted to use cloth - primarily that I thought it was cost effective and limited our waste. We had purchased some cloth diapers when Big Brother as little but didn't follow through with using them. When Froggie was born I had pushed to use them again.
     Let me stop here and mention types of cloth diapers. Yes there are different kinds. No, you don't need diaper pins (unless you want to use them) and no they're not just boring and white. We typically use prefolds with a cover (what you think of when you think of cloth diapers), pocket diapers, or all in one (AIO) diapers.
     With the prefolds you fold them in thirds and then set them into the cover, velcro/snap around baby, voila! Pockets have a microfiber insert (or 2) that need to be stuffed in between a soft layer and the cover before use but then you just velcro/snap around baby and voila! AIO's are the easiest by far, you just put them on!
     Next question, how do you wash them. Answer; in the washing machine. Seriously though, you just stick them in there ever other day with a dye free detergent and run a double rinse and they're clean. We need to strip our diapers soon which means we'll just run them without detergent. We also typically add Oxyclean free and clear to help with the staining as well. We hang the covers and AIO's to dry since they have a plastic-y lining and the rest goes in the dryer. I know a lot of people who hang everything, I think it's just a mater of space and preference.
     I should probably also mention that we use cloth wipes. By cloth wipes I mean I found a TON of clearanced out baby wash cloths for like a quarter a package at Wal-Mart and bought them out and now we use those. They work well and since we spent so little on them I'm not heart broken if they go missing or get ruined. I think this was a better idea than buying actual cloth wipes simply because they're expensive. People also make them out of the flannel of extra receiving blankets which are nice but I don't have the equipment to do this and make them last.
     Lastly, what happens to the poop? Well this may be the most complicated part of using cloth. As newborns everything really just goes into the wetbag and then into the washer. If you rinse them they probably get a little cleaner in the wash but we never rinsed Froggie's infant diapers. Once you start solid foods you just have to shake the diaper over the toilet. We don't have a diaper sprayer but may invest in one; they attach to the toilet and are like a little hose that you use to rinse the diaper before you put it in the wetbag.
     Well that's about the extent of my knowledge regarding cloth diapers. Hope it was helpful for anyone who wanted to know.

Bag Full of Bargains

     Twice a year there is a huge consignment sale at our local convention center and normally we go opening night to have the best opportunity to get what we may be looking for. They let the event volunteers shop an hour and a half before the doors open to the public are able to shop. This year they let military in half an hour before the sale started so we were able to get in and get a jump start on our searching - which is amazing since toting a 6 month old and a 2 year old through that kind of event once EVERYONE is through the doors gets tough!

The sale before the doors opened to everyone

The other side of the room

     We went in seeking cloth diapers, a toy for each kid, nursing covers, a few outfits and whatever other good deals we came across. There was a TON of stuff, most of which I would have loved to get for the kids but was not truly necessary. Hubby and Big Brother walked on one side of the table while Froggie and I walked on the other looking through the toys and baby supplies. Big Brother got a bag full of mini Cars (19 of them for $6! He has been carrying them around since we found the bag!). We then snagged a Little Tykes baby doll stroller for froggie to cart her baby dolls around in once she starts walking in a few months. I found a nice "new" nursing cover, a Taggies book and a Cars quilt for Big Brother. We struck out finding any cloth diapers but I think overall we got some great deals and a lot of fun stuff!

Racing his cars to our car!

The 19 new mini Cars

Nursing cover

Froggie Princess gloves and Taggies book

Big Brother's new quilt

Froggie's new shoes!

Late Summer Heat Wave

     It's hot... again... I get pretty irritable when it's hot and so do the kids. So todays solution was a mid-afternoon water break. After stopping at a local produce stand we filled up the little pool with water and splashed around for a little while.

Our loot from the produce stand!

     At first Big Brother said he didn't want to get in, but after seeing Froggie splash around he asked me to put his swim trunks on. Since Froggie was already in the water and he was wearing gym shorts I just took his shirt off and sent him in.  Froggie sat up on her own and did a great job even though Big Brother kept dumping cups of water on her head.

     After our pool time we prepped our string beans and made dinner. This was followed by our bath time routine and a movie before bed so that no one was moving around too much. Tomorrow is going to be another hot one so we'll see what's on the agenda.

Splashing Froggie

After he decided to get in

Peaceful bathing for Froggie

One of many cups of water over Froggie's head. 

Hi everybody!

National Dog Day

     Apparently today is National Dog Day. We love our "fur babies" and they have moved around with us several times. When Big Brother was 6 months old we posed him with our dogs and took a picture of our three kids. We decided to try a similar picture with Froggie. So here are some pictures of our kids!

Big Brother with Jasper and Maya (6 months old)

Froggie and the pups

She loves them

Froggie and Jasper

Smiley Froggie!

Aviation Gala

     Froggie woke up drenched in sweat and I checked her temp for the 3rd or 4th time this weekend. Several times she's been really sweaty or felt hot and clammy but every time I take her temp it's right around 96 degrees. Hubby and I have decided we think the sweatiness is a by product of her most recent tooth coming through.
     Our local airport extended their runway and to celebrate they held a free Aviation Gala so that the public could come and seen a variety of planes, cars and booths as well as some kid friendly activities. After we were able to get ourselves packed up and out the door we headed for the airport. It took us a little bit to get into the parking area and then out of the car but Big Brother continued to exclaim he wanted to go to the bounce houses first!

Plane bounce house

     When we got there and headed for the smallest bounce house (which would have been perfect for Big Brother) they deflated it. So we headed to a similar one and he excitedly got in; however, he wouldn't jump. There was a bigger kid in the bounce house who Big Brother was afraid of so he wouldn't jump. The other kid about his size just sat in the middle of the house as well, I don't know if he was scared too or just had no intention of jumping. So he climbed out and wanted to go in an obstacle course one but since he would have had to go in himself we decided to move on to looking at the planes.
     By this time Froggie was starting to fall asleep in the Ergobaby. It's so nice to be able to stick her in the carrier where she's

safe and comfy and doesn't complain about much.
     We walked around and got to see all of the military and non-military planes as well as the classic cars that were on display.

Family picture with the precursor to a C-130

Big Brother with a plane used by the Tuskegee Airmen

Another family shot

Watching a plane come in. 

     It was a ton of fun and I still got home in time for our friend's sample sale on her shop's Facebook page. Her store is called Joyful Creations by Leza and she makes ADORABLE kids clothes! Check her out she still has some samples left (the link above should go straight to the sample sale)! I'm super excited for Froggie to have her 1 year pictures taken in the dress I snagged for her today!
     Froggie also tried her first mixture of baby food. She had turkey and mixed veggies for dinner and loved it! She's getting so big and I don't know where the time has gone!

We Have Another Tooth!

     We started our afternoon out heading to my 10 year class reunion. We got there pretty close to the start and there were only a handful of people there but we had lunch and Big Brother got to run around and play with one of my former classmates' sons. They bonded over sharing their Cars but when they had to leave Big Brother started exclaiming "I wanna go home!". I have learned that when a 2 year old starts yelling that they want to go home, it's probably time to go home.
     Big Brother passed out before we hit the paved road from the park but didn't make it to his bed. He laid down and watched a movie for a bit instead while Froggie slept. Once Froggie was up and we'd gotten some stuff done at the house we headed out and about to check out some things. After Big Brother decided to yell at me because I was quoting the movie Cars and apparently only the characters are allowed to say those things!

No, you can't say that!

     The kids fell back to sleep in the car so Hubby stayed with them while I ran into a couple stores looking for toys. It's funny how, once you have kids you go on hunts for the toys they like. We're currently seeking out Disney Cars and Planes for Big Brother and Disney Princess babies for Froggie (as well as whatever else she may like).
     Once the kids were awake we went to another store to look for a shirt, vest and tie to go with Big Brother's tux for my sister-in-law's wedding. We found him a shirt but no luck on the vest and tie so we'll have to order one. We did pick up an plane and I got some things to be crafty and make some head bands  and Big Brother got some stickers.
     We got home and had dinner and sent Big Brother to bed. I struggle to figure out how he sleeps in his bed when he insists on taking all of his cars with him. I feel the need to mention that he only takes his "eyeball cars" (Disney Cars characters and 2 Planes characters) to bed with him and he gets really upset if you even suggest that they "sleep" someplace else. He even makes me tuck them all in before I leave the room!

Big Brother and his "garage"

     I figured I'd check on Froggie's upper tooth since she had her run in with my knee earlier in the week. I'll have to check to make sure her gums don't swell back over but...
     Froggie has a 3rd tooth!

My pretty little Froggie

Check out that tooth!

Cutting teeth is tough work!

Froggie's Baby

     First, here is some Froggie cuteness from work today.

Looking in the mirror

Snoozing Froggie

     Froggie got her first baby doll today! We had some time to waste while we waited for Hubby to get out of work to go see his parents this evening. So we went to a local consignment shop after we got out of work and I decided to pick up a toy for each of the kids (Big Brother had gone on the potty at school again and Froggie was just cute). Big Brother picked out some Cars that are legos so he's super excited about his lego cars! Froggie got a Disney Princess Baby doll (Snow White) which is adorable.
     She seems to be intrigued by her doll and it's pretty funny to watch her play with it. I think we will be getting her some more of these as we come across them (I may have to head back to the consignment shop and see if they have any others - can't beat a $2.50 doll!).

Checking out her new doll

She was pretty interested in her

Happy Froggie!

     She snuggled with her dolly the whole way home and was sleeping and holding her hand when we got out of the car.

Snuggling with Snow White

Pretty Piggies

     First an update about Froggie's mouth (Eruption Hematoma) - By this morning the bruising had almost disappeared. The only spot left was towards the under-side of her gums. Her tooth seems closer to breaking through as well so we may be seeing a new tooth soon.

     The other day while we were out shopping I found a set of nail polish intended for children clearanced out for $1. Despite the fact that one of the 5 bottles appeared to have leaked I thought this was a screaming deal. Froggie's nails are still WAY too tiny to use the regular nail polish brush so we needed something smaller. This set was meant for detail so the brushes were super tiny which was perfect. I hadn't gotten a chance to paint her nails though until tonight.

Prepared to paint!

     Once Big Brother had laid down Hubby and I started to watch 42 while I nursed Froggie. She started to doze off so I had hubby grab the nail polish so that I could giver her a tiny pedicure when she wasn't so squirmy. Mission Accomplished! She doesn't seem bothered by the nail polish and it looks pretty good. We have 3 other colors to pick from in the future!

Check out those pretty piggies! 

Eruption Hematoma?

     It's time to add another oddity to our list of medical concerns/injuries. This time it's not Big Brother with the bruise - it's Froggie! My baby girl is 6 1/2 months old and has just had a rough go with teething (compared to Big Brother). Her first two teeth came in amidst a TON of drool and frequent orajel dosages but they have come in completely and she hasn't seemed to have a problem since they broke through. We've been expecting her top incisors to break through any day since she's got two big lumps where they should be, chews on EVERYTHING, and occasionally seems upset for no discernible reason. 

     Well, tonight she decided that she wanted to chew on me! She was sitting on my lap and kept leaning towards my knee. I would sit her back up and she would do it again. The last time she did this she actually reached my knee which startled me. Shortly after I lifted her up she cried for just a few seconds and that was that. 

     Until I noticed her gums about an hour later! She has a big purple spot on her upper gum where her right incisor should be coming through. First thing was first I had hubby hold her so we could check it out and take pictures. I typically take pictures of any injuries involving bruising so that I can monitor whether it's getting better or worse in the hours/day following the incident that caused it. I also decided to search the internet a little. 

     I found Eruption Hematoma and Eruption Cyst as results that looked like Froggie's mouth; however, the description of an Eruption Cyst didn't seem to fit since they seem to be "squishy" with fluid build up. For all I know they may be different names for the same thing... Since she seems to be unfazed by the bruising and is eating fine I probably will just take a "wait and see" approach since she has a doctors appointment next week unless, of course, the bruise gets worse or sticks around for more than a few days. 

     Anyone have any experience with something like this?

Sleepy Froggie

     We're quickly coming up on being completely harness-free for 2 weeks! This is amazing to me because it felt like the harness was a part of our life for so long even though it was only really a few weeks in the grand scheme of things. We will know better in the beginning of October whether Froggie is completely done with treatment for her hips or not but for now we can resume life as "normal".
     Froggie was very eager to be done with her harness and pretty much told us that she was done whether it was time to be harness-free or not. She was not sleeping well and seemed very uncomfortable, much like her first couple days in the harness. Her fussiness was easily remedied by removing the harness so her last few nights in the harness were not really full nights since she lost her harness sometime before morning.
     Since being harness-free Froggie has slept well and has amazingly continued to sleep with her legs "froggied". We've got our fingers crossed that this means we'll get a clean bill of health for Froggie come October.

Froggie legs!

Sleepy Froggie!

Bumps, Bruises and Boys!

     Hubby and I are convinced we will be headed to the ER before Big Brother turns 5... I swear he spends more time getting up and brushing himself off than anything (except maybe falling down). He ran halfway home on our walk to and from the ice cream stand and managed to trip and fall into the coffee table 5 minutes before bed!

He LOVES to run!

The bump

Our trusty Spiderman ice pack!

     After some ice, checking his pupils and some observation time (as well as some extra snuggling and kisses) Big Brother was able to go to bed. He'll probably have a lump for a few days but this is definitely not his first bump and I'm 100% positive it will not be his last.

     Froggie has become pretty attached to her froggy wubbanub and she likes to hold its hands while she sucks on the binky, if she's not chewing on its feet! Froggie also sported her hand-me-down UNC shirt today and I had to post it for all to know - well some to know, and they know who they are...

Loving her Frog

UNC!

All Good (and Fun) Things Must Come to an End

     We dragged our feet again this morning... Hopefully tomorrow morning wont be so difficult! Once we were up and moving and got some things done we decided to head up to the mall to check out their superhero meet and greet. We forgot about it yesterday and missed Spiderman but we got to go see Thor today. Big Brother was pretty scared/shy at first and instead of just a picture of he and Thor the whole family got in on it cause he didn't want to go unless I held him.

The family with Thor!

     The picture turned out surprisingly decent and "Thor" was very nice and understanding - he even offered to give Big Brother a high five to make him less scary, though Big Brother didn't want to.
     We were pretty bummed that the play area was overrun by kids who were clearly unattended and older than the intended audience, so we opted to go to the zoo. Big Brother was pretty bummed about it too until we reminded him there was a place to play in the zoo. We ran into some of our friends on the way out of the mall and chatted for a bit while Big Brother continued to be shy.
     Once we got to the zoo Big Brother had a blast! I'm pretty sure he knows the zoo like the back of his hand and he led us around to all the places he wanted to go, including the play area.

Big Brother on his lilypad

Checking out the alligator

Froggie and the frogs

She liked them!

The kids in the play area

Our attempt at a picture of the kids

comfy Froggie

Froggie likes the zoo

Big Brother and a lemur