it's going to take me a little while to get the house in picture-worthy shape...and it's going to probably take me longer to find my camera. But we are 100% moved in to our very first house! We adore it. We love it so much we'd marry it, if we hadn't already married each other. And to tell you the truth, I suspect that if Andy could divorce me and marry the house - he'd think about it.
I'll post pictures as soon as it's presentable (and I find our camera). This is going to be a crazy week of unpacking/cleaning/working/mama-ing but they'll get up eventually, just keep checking back.
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Sunday, September 21, 2008
Cloth diapering in the real world
I know what you're thinking. Cloth diapering is insane. How do I know? well, mostly because you (I'm using the er, plural, nonspecific you) tell me all the time. I'm not sure why I feel so compelled to keep defending it - much like gay marriages, which I'm all for but can understand why you're not (again, the plural, nonspecific you), it's a lifestyle choice. I don't really care if you skip the whole independent toileting thing and encourage your child to spend her life from cradle to nursing home in diapers. Sort of a we come from dust, we return to dust kind of ethic - I can dig it. Maybe you've got your retirement funds sewn up in Kimberly-Clark stock. I don't want to see you destitute. Buy all the pampers you want then. I will happily explain the advantages of cloth diapering to anyone who asks, but I'm not out to recruit anyone. (Unlike those gays. Geez, those guys will say anything to get you on their team.)
But while I get that it's not for everyone, I just want to clear up the whole "it's insane" part. Because it's not, really. Like I mentioned in my previous post, I don't get my jollies out of creating extra work for myself, and domestic goddess I am not. So here's what I'm going to do: I'm going to explain to you how you can cloth diaper without any hassle, and then you can think about whether or not it matters to you from an environmental standpoint to actually do it. Because as the defense will show, it's really not any more work or mess than disposable diapers. If you don't think there are actual environmental advantages, or if you don't care if there are or not, (I'll accept both answers) then fine. But if you're one of the 50 people who have said to me since the birth of my son "Oh, I thought about using cloth diapers, but then I realized they were SO MUCH WORK/waaaaaaay too complicated/totally gross!/insert objection here" (or, in the short version "were INSANE") we're gonna setchoo straight, right here, right now. Reasons for using them: debatable. So much work: not.
Here we go! A primer.
First of all, pick a cloth diaper that's easy to use! Folding and pinning is SO 1953. (Shout out to Colleen M. - not that there's anything wrong with 1953. You rock on with your Ghandi fold). There ARE plenty of people who still use old school cloth diapers - those squares of cloth your dad still uses to wash his car with - which involve folding, some sort of fastening system, and usually a diaper cover. But I am not one of those people. For this reason, I chose to use an all-in-one diaper. A cloth diaper that looks just like a disposable diaper. The brand I use is BumGenius. Behold:
above is the bumgenius 3.0 all in one diaper. (note: bumgenius is not the only brand, just the one I use. there are others. I've heard Imse Vimse is great, too) It is essentially foolproof in terms of getting it on the baby. If you could put a paper diaper on your kid, then you could put this diaper on too. There's nothing to it. There is only one difference between this and your standard pampers or luvs - you don't throw it away when you're through. Clearly, this is the sticking point for most people. But I ask you, really, is it a fear of poop that's stopping you? Look, when you have a baby, there will be poop. Oh yes, there will be poop. If you think you can avoid it, you're deluded. Accepting poop as a baby given, here's how you handle it.
First of all, buy some of these:
these are diaper liners. They are basically a fabric/paper hybrid liner that you put in between baby and diaper each time you change the baby. They have major value in that they act as a poop catcher. When the baby pees, it just goes through the liner and into the diaper. When you change the (just wet) baby, you simply flush the liner or throw it away. But, if there's poop inolved, you'll really appreciate the liner. The liner protects the inside of the diaper from the majority of the poop, so you just fold it up and throw it away or flush it down the toilet. Flushing is the best option, as the whole goal is to eliminate landfill waste, but there are times and places when that's just not feasible (note: one of those times is when you have private septic. Just throw it away. you will thank me.) So far: No more work than a disposable, as you'd be throwing something away anyway, right?
So hypothetically, you've opened the diaper and found either just wet, or poop surprise. In either case, you've either flushed or thrown away the liner, and wiped up the baby's butt. So far, where have we encountered more work than a disposable? we haven't. Just instead of throwing the whole diaper out, you just throw it in a diaper pail. And then, every other day or so, you just wash the diapers.
Since so far there's no difference between cloth and disposables (you take off dirty diaper, wipe baby's butt, and throw something away in either case, yes?) the hangup must be the laundry. It's not that bad. Believe me.
We're talking about one extra load of laundry every three days. And no, poop will NOT get in your washer. All you have to do is buy this:
this thing is fabulous - and listen, I know from fabulous. They don't call me JJFabulous for nothing. this is a nifty attachment to your toilet - it will spray off any poop that the liner didn't catch before you throw your diapers in the washer. That way, all actual feces get flushed into the waste water system (where it BELONGS, might I add) and your diapers enter the washer largely poop free. Thanks to the microfiber of the diapers, it's basically the teflon of the fabric world. The poop just doesn't stick. The sprayer gets everything off except the slightest of staining, and the washer takes care of that. When I tell you my diapers have been through 6 months of poop and look brand new, I am not exaggerating. This sprayer does it's job.
So we've sprayed the poopy diapers - and since babies only poop once per day, we're talking 2-3 poopy ones per load. The pee ones you just throw in without doing anything - and put them in the wash. here are the special washing instructions for diapers.
1) put diapers in the washer, with some detergent, on cold to prevent staining.
2) have a glass of wine
3) when wash cycle ends, thrown knob to "hot" and do another cycle, to disinfect
4) have another glass of wine
5) transfer diapers from washer to dryer
6) have another....um. go to bed and get up early and go to the gym. Yep. that's what I always do. really!
et voila. you're done. what's so hard about that? Then, after the diapers are dry, you just reuse them. Advantages: you never run out. You're always a load of laundry AT WORST away from having diapers. No 4 am runs to CVS for you. You save a lot of money - by my accounting, in 6 months I've already saved about $500 on diapers. You're doing something good for the environment - if you consider the entire lifecycle of paper diaper manufacture, from petrochemicals to shelf, the advantages of a cotton product you reuse are clear. And most of all, cloth diapers are cute! they come in lots of fun colors, and they're not covered in marketing images - dora and big bird and blues clues would never show up on a cloth diaper. because cloth diapers are classy like that.
so anyway, there you go. Cloth diapers are EASY. daycare tip: take a diaper with you when you ask if they will use them. Most places will hear "cloth diaper" and immediately think of the rags they wash their cars with. But if you show them your all-in-one, they'll realize how not a big deal it is. When they change the baby (which they'd do anyway) they just throw the used diaper in a plastic bag they give back to you instead of a plastic bag they don't give back to you (which they'd do anyway). Like I said, my daycare lady does it - and she's not one for extra work.
plus, if you take my earlier advice? the extra laundry you incur by washing diapers is more than offset by the laundry you save by feeding the baby naked.
One last product plug:
this stuff is the SHIZZ. Even my pediatrician says Owen has the best butt skin he's ever seen and asked what I use. I dunno what's in this stuff, but it's magic. Pricey, but worth it. Trust.
more pictures soon, I promise.
But while I get that it's not for everyone, I just want to clear up the whole "it's insane" part. Because it's not, really. Like I mentioned in my previous post, I don't get my jollies out of creating extra work for myself, and domestic goddess I am not. So here's what I'm going to do: I'm going to explain to you how you can cloth diaper without any hassle, and then you can think about whether or not it matters to you from an environmental standpoint to actually do it. Because as the defense will show, it's really not any more work or mess than disposable diapers. If you don't think there are actual environmental advantages, or if you don't care if there are or not, (I'll accept both answers) then fine. But if you're one of the 50 people who have said to me since the birth of my son "Oh, I thought about using cloth diapers, but then I realized they were SO MUCH WORK/waaaaaaay too complicated/totally gross!/insert objection here" (or, in the short version "were INSANE") we're gonna setchoo straight, right here, right now. Reasons for using them: debatable. So much work: not.
Here we go! A primer.
First of all, pick a cloth diaper that's easy to use! Folding and pinning is SO 1953. (Shout out to Colleen M. - not that there's anything wrong with 1953. You rock on with your Ghandi fold). There ARE plenty of people who still use old school cloth diapers - those squares of cloth your dad still uses to wash his car with - which involve folding, some sort of fastening system, and usually a diaper cover. But I am not one of those people. For this reason, I chose to use an all-in-one diaper. A cloth diaper that looks just like a disposable diaper. The brand I use is BumGenius. Behold:
above is the bumgenius 3.0 all in one diaper. (note: bumgenius is not the only brand, just the one I use. there are others. I've heard Imse Vimse is great, too) It is essentially foolproof in terms of getting it on the baby. If you could put a paper diaper on your kid, then you could put this diaper on too. There's nothing to it. There is only one difference between this and your standard pampers or luvs - you don't throw it away when you're through. Clearly, this is the sticking point for most people. But I ask you, really, is it a fear of poop that's stopping you? Look, when you have a baby, there will be poop. Oh yes, there will be poop. If you think you can avoid it, you're deluded. Accepting poop as a baby given, here's how you handle it.
First of all, buy some of these:
these are diaper liners. They are basically a fabric/paper hybrid liner that you put in between baby and diaper each time you change the baby. They have major value in that they act as a poop catcher. When the baby pees, it just goes through the liner and into the diaper. When you change the (just wet) baby, you simply flush the liner or throw it away. But, if there's poop inolved, you'll really appreciate the liner. The liner protects the inside of the diaper from the majority of the poop, so you just fold it up and throw it away or flush it down the toilet. Flushing is the best option, as the whole goal is to eliminate landfill waste, but there are times and places when that's just not feasible (note: one of those times is when you have private septic. Just throw it away. you will thank me.) So far: No more work than a disposable, as you'd be throwing something away anyway, right?
So hypothetically, you've opened the diaper and found either just wet, or poop surprise. In either case, you've either flushed or thrown away the liner, and wiped up the baby's butt. So far, where have we encountered more work than a disposable? we haven't. Just instead of throwing the whole diaper out, you just throw it in a diaper pail. And then, every other day or so, you just wash the diapers.
Since so far there's no difference between cloth and disposables (you take off dirty diaper, wipe baby's butt, and throw something away in either case, yes?) the hangup must be the laundry. It's not that bad. Believe me.
We're talking about one extra load of laundry every three days. And no, poop will NOT get in your washer. All you have to do is buy this:
this thing is fabulous - and listen, I know from fabulous. They don't call me JJFabulous for nothing. this is a nifty attachment to your toilet - it will spray off any poop that the liner didn't catch before you throw your diapers in the washer. That way, all actual feces get flushed into the waste water system (where it BELONGS, might I add) and your diapers enter the washer largely poop free. Thanks to the microfiber of the diapers, it's basically the teflon of the fabric world. The poop just doesn't stick. The sprayer gets everything off except the slightest of staining, and the washer takes care of that. When I tell you my diapers have been through 6 months of poop and look brand new, I am not exaggerating. This sprayer does it's job.
So we've sprayed the poopy diapers - and since babies only poop once per day, we're talking 2-3 poopy ones per load. The pee ones you just throw in without doing anything - and put them in the wash. here are the special washing instructions for diapers.
1) put diapers in the washer, with some detergent, on cold to prevent staining.
2) have a glass of wine
3) when wash cycle ends, thrown knob to "hot" and do another cycle, to disinfect
4) have another glass of wine
5) transfer diapers from washer to dryer
6) have another....um. go to bed and get up early and go to the gym. Yep. that's what I always do. really!
et voila. you're done. what's so hard about that? Then, after the diapers are dry, you just reuse them. Advantages: you never run out. You're always a load of laundry AT WORST away from having diapers. No 4 am runs to CVS for you. You save a lot of money - by my accounting, in 6 months I've already saved about $500 on diapers. You're doing something good for the environment - if you consider the entire lifecycle of paper diaper manufacture, from petrochemicals to shelf, the advantages of a cotton product you reuse are clear. And most of all, cloth diapers are cute! they come in lots of fun colors, and they're not covered in marketing images - dora and big bird and blues clues would never show up on a cloth diaper. because cloth diapers are classy like that.
so anyway, there you go. Cloth diapers are EASY. daycare tip: take a diaper with you when you ask if they will use them. Most places will hear "cloth diaper" and immediately think of the rags they wash their cars with. But if you show them your all-in-one, they'll realize how not a big deal it is. When they change the baby (which they'd do anyway) they just throw the used diaper in a plastic bag they give back to you instead of a plastic bag they don't give back to you (which they'd do anyway). Like I said, my daycare lady does it - and she's not one for extra work.
plus, if you take my earlier advice? the extra laundry you incur by washing diapers is more than offset by the laundry you save by feeding the baby naked.
One last product plug:
this stuff is the SHIZZ. Even my pediatrician says Owen has the best butt skin he's ever seen and asked what I use. I dunno what's in this stuff, but it's magic. Pricey, but worth it. Trust.
more pictures soon, I promise.
Saturday, September 13, 2008
Confessions of a terrible housekeeper.
If there are any truths about babies and food, then this MUST be one of them: no matter how you try and play it, there is no avoiding a giant mess. That's the idea behind bibs, of course. But let's be honest here: they don't make a bib that truly keeps the mess off the clothes. So really, when you put a bib on the kid, you're just creating an additional item of laundry per feeding. So my brilliant realization of the morning was, of course, feed the baby naked! He was gonna need a bath anyway, right? Et voila, less laundry for me. Bibs are for suckers.
So anyway, I got some sympathetic emails after one of my earlier posts offering to buy us some disposable diapers. Ok, people, let me introduce you to the concept of exaggeration: we are not so destitute (yet) that we could not purchase diapers if we wanted to. And yes, there has been a level 4 terror alert poop situation or two since Owen's palate has been expanded. But really, REALLY - cloth diapers are working for us. Even my daycare lady uses them without protest, and let me tell you - love to ms. debbie and all that, but she doesn't exactly lie awake nights thinking of ways to accommodate me, you know? Cloth diapers are simply not that much work - and trust me, I don't really do things that are a lot of work. You're talking to someone for whom "putting the laundry away" means tossing the pile of clean clothes on the dresser. Fer cripes sake, I just told you I feed the baby naked so I'll have less things to clean!
I felt the need to defend my cloth diaper use because everyone gave me a lot of guff for it when I was expecting. I can't tell you how many times I heard the comment "you're going to use cloth diapers? heh, yeah - let me know how that works after two weeks." well, I'm here to tell you that it's now been six months, and things are going just fine. And it IS significantly cheaper than buying disposables, but that's not why we do it. I spent pretty much my entire pregnancy researching the diaper issue (I'll spare you an expanded treatise on my eco-guilt, but let's just say it is a canyon that runs deep and wide) and I have read probably every printed existing word on the subject. And the answer is unequivocal: the best thing, from an environmentally conscious standpoint is to not have a kid at all. And if you're going to go ahead and have one anyway, then cloth diapers are a much more sustainable choice than disposable UNLESS you live in an extremely arid region, such as Arizona or the Sahara. Which we don't. So we cloth diaper. And it's working fine.
So anyway, I got some sympathetic emails after one of my earlier posts offering to buy us some disposable diapers. Ok, people, let me introduce you to the concept of exaggeration: we are not so destitute (yet) that we could not purchase diapers if we wanted to. And yes, there has been a level 4 terror alert poop situation or two since Owen's palate has been expanded. But really, REALLY - cloth diapers are working for us. Even my daycare lady uses them without protest, and let me tell you - love to ms. debbie and all that, but she doesn't exactly lie awake nights thinking of ways to accommodate me, you know? Cloth diapers are simply not that much work - and trust me, I don't really do things that are a lot of work. You're talking to someone for whom "putting the laundry away" means tossing the pile of clean clothes on the dresser. Fer cripes sake, I just told you I feed the baby naked so I'll have less things to clean!
I felt the need to defend my cloth diaper use because everyone gave me a lot of guff for it when I was expecting. I can't tell you how many times I heard the comment "you're going to use cloth diapers? heh, yeah - let me know how that works after two weeks." well, I'm here to tell you that it's now been six months, and things are going just fine. And it IS significantly cheaper than buying disposables, but that's not why we do it. I spent pretty much my entire pregnancy researching the diaper issue (I'll spare you an expanded treatise on my eco-guilt, but let's just say it is a canyon that runs deep and wide) and I have read probably every printed existing word on the subject. And the answer is unequivocal: the best thing, from an environmentally conscious standpoint is to not have a kid at all. And if you're going to go ahead and have one anyway, then cloth diapers are a much more sustainable choice than disposable UNLESS you live in an extremely arid region, such as Arizona or the Sahara. Which we don't. So we cloth diaper. And it's working fine.
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
daycare.
Today, I got up at the break of dawn and prepared for the big day: Owen went to daycare for the first time - by himself, that is. Yesterday I was THAT PATHETIC MOM that took the day off from work and went to daycare WITH the baby. I know, mock amongst yourselves.
Anyway, so I pack up my entire house - I mean, I pack up no less than:
2 complete changes of clothes
1 sweater
3 5oz bottles of expressed milk
1 backup can of formula
1 empty, backup bottle
2 large packages of baby wipes
1 tube of sunscreen
8 jars of babyfood
1 box of rice cereal
2 pacifiers (daycare directive: MUST BRING BACKUP PACIFIER)
10 diapers
1 bag to put the dirty diapers in
1 package diaper liners
baby spoon, plastic containers and a sippy cup
So, I have all of the above organized, labeled and packed neatly into a paper shopping bag with handles - like a large Macy's shopper or a Bloomingdale's "big brown bag". I get up, double check I have everything, pack up the breast pump, my lunch, get ready for work, put the baby in the carseat, and go. And I shockingly arrive a few minutes before the daycare even opens. So far, so good. day one off to a good start. Owen and I shared a few sweet minutes of pre-daycare bonding in the backseat of the car.
I pick up the baby, and the big paper shopper and walk up the driveway of Ms. debbie's house. And the bottom of the bag busts open, depositing the entire contents all over Ms. debbie's driveway. Awesome. In a panic, I put the baby down and start chasing after the bottles, jars of babyfood and every other damn thing that are rolling down her driveway into the street. Owen, who now can sit up for ages and ages without a hitch, decided that this morning? he didn't know how to sit up. So he toppled over and bonked his head. And that is how I was introduced to two of the other mom's that use my daycare, frantically trying to grab all my crap before it rolled into the street/got covered in dirt while my kid was splayed out screaming in the driveway.
It was awesome.
I finally got him and all his belongings scooped up and safely deposited in ms. debbie's basement, where the sheer wonder of every piece of plastic ever manufactured by Fisher Price in China distracted him from his crying and when I left he was drooling enthusiastically on ms. debbie herself. When Andy picked him up at the end of the day he got an A+ for adjustment. Apparently he ate, napped and eliminated on schedule, which is all you can really ask of a baby.
I, of course, was miserable all day. But I suppose this is just the first in a long line of times that I'll have to let the kid go. I understand that. In fact, I'm already working to help enhance his college application:
I think the admissions officers will be impressed, don't you? Hopefully by that time I'll be able to restrain myself from attending college for a day before letting him go himself.
Anyway, so I pack up my entire house - I mean, I pack up no less than:
2 complete changes of clothes
1 sweater
3 5oz bottles of expressed milk
1 backup can of formula
1 empty, backup bottle
2 large packages of baby wipes
1 tube of sunscreen
8 jars of babyfood
1 box of rice cereal
2 pacifiers (daycare directive: MUST BRING BACKUP PACIFIER)
10 diapers
1 bag to put the dirty diapers in
1 package diaper liners
baby spoon, plastic containers and a sippy cup
So, I have all of the above organized, labeled and packed neatly into a paper shopping bag with handles - like a large Macy's shopper or a Bloomingdale's "big brown bag". I get up, double check I have everything, pack up the breast pump, my lunch, get ready for work, put the baby in the carseat, and go. And I shockingly arrive a few minutes before the daycare even opens. So far, so good. day one off to a good start. Owen and I shared a few sweet minutes of pre-daycare bonding in the backseat of the car.
I pick up the baby, and the big paper shopper and walk up the driveway of Ms. debbie's house. And the bottom of the bag busts open, depositing the entire contents all over Ms. debbie's driveway. Awesome. In a panic, I put the baby down and start chasing after the bottles, jars of babyfood and every other damn thing that are rolling down her driveway into the street. Owen, who now can sit up for ages and ages without a hitch, decided that this morning? he didn't know how to sit up. So he toppled over and bonked his head. And that is how I was introduced to two of the other mom's that use my daycare, frantically trying to grab all my crap before it rolled into the street/got covered in dirt while my kid was splayed out screaming in the driveway.
It was awesome.
I finally got him and all his belongings scooped up and safely deposited in ms. debbie's basement, where the sheer wonder of every piece of plastic ever manufactured by Fisher Price in China distracted him from his crying and when I left he was drooling enthusiastically on ms. debbie herself. When Andy picked him up at the end of the day he got an A+ for adjustment. Apparently he ate, napped and eliminated on schedule, which is all you can really ask of a baby.
I, of course, was miserable all day. But I suppose this is just the first in a long line of times that I'll have to let the kid go. I understand that. In fact, I'm already working to help enhance his college application:
I think the admissions officers will be impressed, don't you? Hopefully by that time I'll be able to restrain myself from attending college for a day before letting him go himself.
Sunday, September 7, 2008
The end of Supermom.
Uncle. I've caved. Now that Owen has started going to daycare, and the process of me going to work no longer involves waiting for the babysitter to show up (and OH MY GOD, seriously? The amount of things that need to be packed up, organized and cleaned/labeled for one day of daycare is mind boggling) I have given up on making Owen's baby food. I talked a pretty good game there for awhile, what with the hippie food introduction charts (amaranth is the perfect first grain!) and the ice cube trays and the copies of "wholesome baby food" and "super baby food" I checked out from the library. None of that processed junk for us, no sir.
Well, yeah, whatever. Cut to me throwing those overpriced little jars into the cart at 10 pm with wild abandon. Because I'm too busy to feed myself these days, so you can forget about making baby guacamole. What's more, the weaning process is beginning. Owen's going to start getting (horrors!) formula. This is a big step, as I've been a bit of a breast feeding....enthusiast. (some, less charitable people might say "maniac". ) Formula and jarred baby food! My god. Why don't I just throw some lunchables and cheez whiz in the blender and feed him that? We are still cloth diapering, but frankly, that has a lot less to do with any earth-mama street cred and a lot more to do with the fact that we actually can't afford disposable diapers. (thanks to our shady mortgage broker, but that's a story for a different day). The advent of solid food has - how to put it delicately? - worn the novelty right off our cloth diapers.
I do, however, reserve the right to continue wearing my "super mom" pajamas.
I have some pictures (including one of the aforementioned pajamas) but they're not loading for some reason. I'll put them up tomorrow.
Owen is six months old next week. I can't believe it.
Well, yeah, whatever. Cut to me throwing those overpriced little jars into the cart at 10 pm with wild abandon. Because I'm too busy to feed myself these days, so you can forget about making baby guacamole. What's more, the weaning process is beginning. Owen's going to start getting (horrors!) formula. This is a big step, as I've been a bit of a breast feeding....enthusiast. (some, less charitable people might say "maniac". ) Formula and jarred baby food! My god. Why don't I just throw some lunchables and cheez whiz in the blender and feed him that? We are still cloth diapering, but frankly, that has a lot less to do with any earth-mama street cred and a lot more to do with the fact that we actually can't afford disposable diapers. (thanks to our shady mortgage broker, but that's a story for a different day). The advent of solid food has - how to put it delicately? - worn the novelty right off our cloth diapers.
I do, however, reserve the right to continue wearing my "super mom" pajamas.
I have some pictures (including one of the aforementioned pajamas) but they're not loading for some reason. I'll put them up tomorrow.
Owen is six months old next week. I can't believe it.
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