Cloth Diaper Ramblings... What To Do With #2

Be warned, this is a long post just for me to process 

what I am learning about diapers!

Diapers & babies go hand in hand... well, maybe bums instead of hands, but you know what I'm trying to say. Being environmentally conscious, I have done a lot of thinking about diapers now that I will have a brand new baby arriving in roughly 22 weeks!  I found this short clip from a documentary done by National Geographic regarding the consumption and waste in our country, specifically disposable diapers.  Some noticeable statistics were:

• In the U.S, each year approximately 3,796 diapers are thrown away for every child under 2 1/2  
• It takes 1/2 pint of crude oil to make the plastic waterproof diaper lining on one diaper alone
• In 30 months, the total amount of plastic in one baby's diapers totals over 715 lbs. of plastic 
• The soft padding of diapers requires the pulp of 4 1/2 trees per child 
• 18 billion disposable diapers are thrown away per year, enough to stretch around world 90 times!
• Disposable diapers linger in landfills for 500+ years before biodegrading, perhaps longer because scientists aren't completely sure how long this will take.

I have been wondering about the impact of water usage for cloth diapers and have found that although no type of diaper is without environmental impact, cloth diapers are obviously a better option, so that's what we're going with.  Other than being more environmentally friendly, other reasons I've found that support using cloth diapers are:

• parents who use cloth diapers report that their children are potty trained faster than those using disposables
• they are more cost effective (although expensive initially)
• many parents who use cloth diapers report less irritation & diaper rash (fewer chemicals come in contact with baby's skin)

I know there are some critics out there (busy moms with a million+ things to do) who will "poo-poo" (sorry, had to) the notion of a naive new mom talking about diapering without having experienced life with a newborn (and 8-12 diapers per day) but I'd rather think proactively & positively and do my part to try and be more eco-conscious than not try at all.  I know there will be times to use disposable diapers because of their convenience, especially if we're traveling or just away for the weekend, but we're committed to doing our part with cloth diapers.  

So, the cloth diaper brands I've heard of 
& am looking into are:

(you can click on them to visit their websites)

            Fuzzibunz                             Thirsties                     Grovia

            

       

                  Flip Diapers                    Happy Heinys            Lovely Bums

             

             G Diapers                          Raga Babe                BumGenius

 

                 Charlie Banana                Bummis                Kissaluvs

                 

             

                                  Swaddlebees                    Rumparooz

                                              

So far, I have had glowing recommendations from friends for Charlie Banana, BumGenius, Raga Babe (although I've heard they are the pricier option) and also a tip of using Fuzzibunz at night.  Now, I just need to do my research to figure out:

• Which brands are the best (& most affordable) 
• Which style/brand is best for newborns (don't rise high enough to irritate a healing umbilical cord)
• Which style: all-in-one (AIO), pre-fold & flatfold, one-size, fitted & contour, pocketstyle, etc... WOW!! There are a LOT of choices!
• How many to buy initially (in which sizes, if applicable)
• Are there brands that are size adjustable so baby can use them until potty training time?
• What kind of swim diapers to buy?
• Where to buy them: online, retailers... (etsy, hyena cart, diaper swappers, etc...)
• What's the best way to wash them (diaper sprayer, is that necessary?)
• Whether to buy now or wait until Baby C arrives so we know what works for him/her
• What kind of detergent works best?
• Which diaper creams are cloth diaper friendly, etc... 

There are so many things for expecting mamas to think about!  Any one with any advice about cloth diapers, feel free to leave a comment below and share your wisdom with me!

"I love these all natural diapers!" 
This makes me laugh because I am 
craving watermelon ALL the time!

18 Week Update & Photo Debut!

Ok... When I read blogs I look for witty writing and a personality that shines through, but I also want photos, and I'm sure you do too!  I have been thinking about creating this blog for quite some time, but the first 12-14 weeks of being pregnant I was pretty cautious, like most mamas out there, and just about held my breath, crossed my fingers, and prayed to God that the first trimester would pass with no complications or worries... luckily, here we are at 18 weeks and I can share my thoughts, ideas, and crazy ramblings.  I have been pretty terrible at taking pics leading up to now, but I do have a few. 

This was taken via my laptop and it's not the greatest, but hey,
that's my little baby just around 8 weeks, like a tiny little alien  jellybean :)

And this is the ultrasound we had just days before
Christmas, around 12 weeks :)  We wrapped up copies to surprise
our families during the holidays :)

Now, contrary to what might be indicated above, I take pretty decent photographs, it's just that I'm never in them!  So, I'm going to start some self-photography for this lil' blog.  During my snow day off from school, I got busy with a nifty chalkboard project created out of truly hideous framed photo of a Mallard Duck I scored at Goodwill for $3, then spray painted the nasty wooden frame and coated the wooden backing with chalkboard paint.  (No, I cannot claim credit for the brilliance of this idea, I saw it on pinterest, of course!) I should have done a before and after photo session, but was too busy painting (aka making a royal mess!) Here's the finished product and a current pic of yours truly.

Sorry this is king of grainy, I had to rig up a tripod out of a bookshelf for my mediocre camera.   
I want to give credit for the awesome chalkboard idea to the talented & creative Jessica Garvin over at Little Baby Garvin, go check out her blog, it's amazing & she rocks :0)  

Reflections this Week:

How Far Along?: 18 weeks, it's hard to believe time is flying by this quickly!

Total Weight Gain: 2 lbs.

Clothing: I sucked it up and bought some things last week, but wearing most of my regular tops & jeans, but need to wear more comfy dress pants to teach in, my pre-baby khakis are DONE! 

Catching Zzzzs:  I dream constantly and they are such vivid dreams that when I wake up I wonder if they were real, I am not waking up at 3 am as often anymore, which is nice :)  

Best Moments of the Week: Meeting with a mortgage broker to give this house-buying business a swift kick in the behind so when nesting strikes, I have a place to do it! 

Miss Anything?: Snowboarding & coffee (okay, okay... wine too!)

Movements: At first just tiny little flutters but now we have our very first KICKS! :) I love them... even though they've rendered me very nonproductive today, every time I try to accomplish something I stop to focus on little Pele's kicks, it's even better than I imagined!

Food Cravings: Nothing really, still loving fruit, especially carambolas and I could eat watermelon any time, any place, too bad it's not in season :(

Queasy/Sick: Not anymore :) yahooo!!!!

Gender: We find out on February 9th, the day before my birthday, what a present!

Labor Signs: Heck no!

Symptoms: my belly is growing, but so are "Thelma & Louise" a select few people know the inside story, crazy adventures sailing in Jost Van Dyke ;)

Belly Button: acting like normal

Wedding Rings: sparkling right where they belong

I'm feeling: Happy, happy, happy!!! I feel so incredibly blessed!

Looking Forward to: Our next ultrasound, not just because of the gender reveal (which is so exciting boy or girl) but because we get to see our little baby and that's absolutely breathtaking.  I can't wait to see Kev's face during the ultrasound when he lays eyes on our little baby :)

"Hey Mama, look what I can do!" 

 adapted from babycenter.com

  

Just another busy week in here!  Now I am the size of a sweet potato, about 8 inches long and I weigh over 5 ounces.  I'm getting used to flexing my arms and legs and you can see my blood vessels through my skin, but that's gonna change as I get older.  I am passing the time rolling, kicking, yawning, sucking, swallowing, hiccuping, and enjoying this cozy little hacienda of mine.  My major accomplishment of the week? My ears are where they belong now, on the sides of my head, which is nice, otherwise that might have been awkward when I make my grand entrance, although I know my parents will love me no matter what!  Something else I'm doing that's amazing, oh, just growing a layer of myelin around my nerves and that will keep happening until I am a year old, cool, huh?