The Diaper Decision......

I know that all of you have been on pins and needles waiting for me to make my big diaper decision....so here it is:

We have decided to make every effort of cloth diapering our little one.  It's really been a difficult decision to make and I have gone back and forth about a thousand times.  But, I have one thing going for me that is most women's biggest battle....my husband is 100% on board!  I am so thankful for his support...I could not ask for a better father for my child!! And while I am speaking out about support, I will give a special shout out to Erin at Growing a Foosa and Ashley at The Pollock Potluck for their helpful videos and answering my silly questions!  They both have inspired me so much and helped to make a decision that will be best for baby, the environment, and most of all OUR WALLET!

There are soooo many types of cloth diapers out there (which I think contributed to my anxiety about the situation).  I have done a ton of research and am still by no means an expert.

I have decided to go with FLIP's when Owen is with us, and pocket diapers when he is at daycare or grandma's house.

The FLIP diaper is a very cost effective way to cloth diaper and consists of a water proof cover that looks exactly like a disposable diaper and a prefold (your mother's cloth diaper) to go inside.  With these, you just change the prefold when baby is wet/ dirty and reuse the cover (as long as it has not been touched). 

This is what they look like:

I have bought 6 covers in super cute colors and intend on buying about 20-24 prefolds (not sure which kind yet).

The other type of diaper that we have chosen to go with is a pocket diaper.  This diaper looks and acts exactly like a disposable, it just has a cloth inserted inside the diaper for extra absorbtion.  When the diaper is wet/dirty, you just take the whole thing off and slap on a new one.  The only difference is that you put it in a wetbag to be washed instead of throwing it away.

Easy Peasy.....

This is what they look like:

I know that most people are turned off by the thought of cloth diapering their children.  I'm not really sure why????  I get that doing poopy laundry is not the most appealing thing ever, but I would like to speak with just one mom that has never washed anything poopy.  All babies poop and all diapers leak at some point or another.  It's really no different.

One advantage that I think that we have going for us is that I work from home 2 days a week and Darren is home 1 day a week.  So we have the extra time to do extra laundry.  I can absolutely understand where it would be difficult for someone with a full time job who doesn't get home until 5:30 and then has to feed, bathe, and put baby to sleep would not have much time for laundry....but for us, it just works out.

I know that this is going to be a challenge.  I know that there will be days when I will want to give up.  I know that it is not the traditional way of doing things (these days anyway).  But it is what we have chosen to do.  So if you know me in real life, please just accept the fact that we are going to try this route and don't try to be negative about it.  We are going to give it 100% and if in the end it doesn't work out, then at least we tried.  And if it does work out....then I promise not to gloat!  :)

25.

A little behind as usual, but here is my 25 week update.

Things are still going great! I had my 1 hour Glucose test on Wed and surprisingly, the juice was not that bad! I had prepared for the worst, so ..... The worst part was the hour that I had to wait to get poked and proded. While I was waiting, I got to meet with Dr. C. I am up 11 lbs pre-pregnancy. "Not too bad" if I say so myself... The scary thing is that I am packing on the pounds now and I mean quick! At this rate, I will be about 80 lbs overweight by the time Owen decides to come.

According to The Bump, Owen is the size of an eggplant. An eggplant????? Those things are HUGE....... I can't believe that! How can something that big be in my little belly bump?

He is still moving around like crazy, but I am so glad that he is. It is so nice to have the reassurance that he is still in there and moving as he should. Helps to ease some of the anxiety.

I have started getting a little bit of heartburn, but nothing too bad. Nothin' a little Tums can't cure.... I am very thankful for that!

Sleep is still going ok if you minus the crazy ass dreams and the frequent bathroom trips.

All in all...I am still going to classify myself into the "blessed" category for pregnancy symptoms.

The bump..... (this was Thanksgiving Day before the Turkey feast)

Glucose results....

Good news:  I passed!

Bad news:  My blood came back low in iron, which means that iron supplements are in my near future.  If I wasn't pooping before, I can forget about any plans to now...... 

I guess if this is really my only pregnancy complaint so far, I shouldn't complain!

Something to "brighten" my day

Lately, I have been going through...oh should we say, a decorating identity crises.  We have been in our home for a little over two years and as with every homeowner, there are so many things that I still want to do around here.  The chandelier over our dining room table was my subject of the month.  I knew that I didn't like it, but wasn't sure what I wanted.  Just our luck, my aunt wanted that chandelier for her dining room and offered to buy it from us so that we could get what we wanted.  Woo Hoo! 

After much research, I found what I wanted.  One of my favorite blogs, Iheartorganizing.com, recently did a project where she took a plain white drum shade and made it into something with a lot of pizzaz.  I knew right away that this would add the "fun" and "whimsical" element that I have been looking for.  So, I went for it!    

It was super easy (although a little time consuming), but I LOVE IT!  Here is a before shot...
 

And after.....



This was so simple and if I can do it, certainly anyone can!  We simply bought a plain white drum shade from Ebay for $125 and then purchased the mum decals from Etsy for an additional $25.  So for $150, we now get to eat, study, chit chat, etc....under this amazing light!

If you are interested in the steps, visit Jen over at Iheartorganizing: Here

V-Day

You didn't think that I was going to go this whole week without recognizing that it is "V-Day" week, did you? What is V-Day, you ask? The 24th week of pregnancy is known as VIABILITY week and any pregnant woman is ecstatic to make it this far, including me!!! I am far enough along that if God forbid something was to happen and Owen was to make his appearance, chances are greater that he could survive. Now it's obviously not a 100% chance, but I will take what I can get and every little milestone gets me through to the next.


I am still feeling really good!! I have started to get a bit of heartburn the past few days, but I am not sure if it is something that I ate, or the dreaded symptom is starting to show its ugly face. I am up 9.5 lbs total from my pre-pregnancy weight and he is still moving around like crazy. I have gotten to where I love it when he rolls over vs. when he kicks or punches. Sometimes the kicks are very uncomfortable and I know that the worst has yet to come. With that said, I am by no means being negative about feeling my little miracle move inside of me, I am just stating the facts.


I have also been experiencing some pain in my pelvic bone while sleeping. Sometimes when i turn over, I can feel it, but it usually goes away by morning. I am just going to assume it's my body getting ready to push out a 6-7 (hopefully) lb baby. I truly can't complain though....I am so blessed and loving every minute of this amazing time in my life!


With that I will leave you with my latest and greatest belly shot! 24 weeks!

Back on the fence

One thing that you will learn about me as you follow my journey is that I am one of the most indecisive people that you will ever "meet".  I posted a while ago about my desire to use cloth diapers on my little Owen's bottom.  I was Gung Ho about it and even went ahead and purchased 5 Bum Genius one size fits all gently used on Craigslist.  I got the diapers in the mail and after the excitement of how cute they were faded away, the fear set it....why? 

I was scared to use them, I was scared to wash them, I let the nay-sayers get to me.....  So, what'd I do?  I re-sold them.  :(  At least they hold their value and I got what I paid for them back.  :)

There is so much to it all: special soap, special diaper cream, special wipes.....  It really is scary to take the leap over to the "cloth side".  But lately, the more and more I think about it, it really is good for the baby, the environment, and most of all...my wallet.

I have been following blogs of cloth diaper mommies for some time now and am so inspired by their choices.  So with that, I guess I will sit on the fence a little while longer (until I get pushed one way or the other).  Darren will be so upset when I tell him that I am back on the band wagon, but oh well.....

23

I know, I know....it's been awhile and that is oh so dissapointing to my "26" followers... Sorry, I have been busy and blogging is well, kind of like going to the gym. How you ask? Well, once you get out of the habit of doing it, it's just easier not to. So, I am biting the bullet and although I am not getting my ass in gear at the gym, I will try to burn some calories with my super fast lightning speed typing fingers. ;)


With that said, here I am at 23 weeks. You will have to excuse the sweat pants with the dressy shirt. These days as soon as I get home from work, the pants come off and the sweat pants go on. My belly needs to breathe!




Things are going really well! Our last appt was last week and Owen weighed in at 1 full pound! Can you believe it? My baby's getting so big...sniff sniff.... I am up 8 lbs from my pre-pregnancy weight, which I know to some is REALLY good, but I have gained 2 of those pounds in the last 3 days, so....where does that leave me for the last 17 weeks of my pregnancy? Hopefully not overweight.


He is still a mover and I swear sometimes he's having a dance party in there. I get so tickled sometimes, it's such a funny feeling. But as funny as it feels, it is the most amazing feeling that I have ever had. To be able to feel this child growing inside of me is truly incredible. Darren is finally able to feel Owen moving on most nights and it's so nice to just spend time together as a family enjoying this new life that we have created. Even Burton joins in sometimes... :)


OK, I guess that is enough catch up! Next week is a special week....I am so excited! Stay tuned.