Tweety Bird...

For quite some time now T Rex has been asking to meet and hold a real life Tweety Bird. I think he may have even sneaked in this request during evening prayer one time. We tried taking him to a local pet store but those little finches are not able to be held.


He loves visiting the VW Bus at the mall that has a giant Tweety Bird at the wheel. That might be where the idea originated. We're really not sure. Regardless, the request has been made several times. Well, today his wish came true.


As we were eating our breakfast, I heard a dull thud at the front window. I know that sound all too well. A bird flew into the window. I could feel the dread filling my body as I rose from the table to assess damages. Since T Rex Dad is at work during the day time hours, I usually get the clean up duty when we have bird strikes. About 25% of the time they are fatal. Walking to the front door I could feel my legs dragging as I opened the door.


Lo and behold, the bird was alive and breathing. It was stunned but fine. I swept it into my hands as I have many times to other birds when this same situation has occurred. However, this time I had an idea. This tiny feathered friend was colored green and mostly yellow. Perfect for a Tweety Bird encounter.


With Bebe Sister happily eating her banana, yogurt, and waffle I called to T Rex to join me outside. Poor dear was still in his jammies and had bare feet but when I told him he could meet Tweety Bird he softly padded out the front door and joined me on the step.


There I placed a tiny little finch on his lap. As he held the bird he just beamed. It was a really amazing moment. He held his feathered friend for several minutes stroking it and talking softly to it. Then the bird started to wake up so we moved it to the near by bushes where it could rest until ready for flying. When we came in he ran to the phone and asked to call his dad to tell him about it. Later this evening as I was putting him to bed he offered a prayer of thanks that his Tweety Bird friend came for a visit and that it was alright after hitting the window.


I did manage a few photos and some video from this. I share them with you now. Enjoy.

 

Un-intentionally Green...

Recently someone deemed this blog to be green. I guess I never thought I was very green. Upon further reflection, I realize that, indeed, I am. But not so intentionally. 


Probably it was my small addiction for fluffy cuteness covering my daughter's derriere that started me down this road. Initially, we chose this option to off set living expenses as I am in graduate school to become a nurse practitioner and this kind of school is not inexpensive. We found we could save thousands of dollars by doing so. Later we learned about all the health benefits. However, we were not trying to be green. This has had a trickle down effect and introduced me to some more comfortable options during my normal time of the month. This option and this option were chosen because of the reusable nature and comfort. It just so happens they are considered green.


As I was making cloth wipes for diaper changes, I found myself also making cloth napkins for the kids and later the adults. Now we rarely use paper napkins. I've even taken some of my old cloth diapers and turned them into paper-less towels for the kitchen. This has significantly reduced our use of paper towels. Not entirely, but significantly. What about TP? Well, we have not departed from that entirely. However, I do have reusable "family cloth" for use with the kids when they use the facilities for number ones.


What about our eating options? We've been acquiring our beef for several years from a local farmer who feeds all organic grass and gives no antibiotics or hormones. If we eat beef, this is where it comes from. Additionally, any kind of dairy product we purchase is also hormone-free, free-range and organic. And the rest of our foods are about 85% organic. We choose this for our family because we do not wish to expose our kids to added chemicals, antibiotics, and hormones. We feel blessed that we are in a situation to do so.

When possible we purchase locally. All our canned items from this past year were local purchases - yes, organic, too. I had several people ask me for my canning recipe or wanting me to teach a canning class. I did teach a couple canning classes but honestly, I believe it was the organic fruit that makes the preserves so tasty. 

I've even noticed my crafting projects are taking on a green hue. I've recently gotten into upcycling clothing and my latest projects are made from all organic cotton yarn. Did I choose the yarn because it was eco-friendly? Gosh, I wish I could say I did but I chose it because it was the softest and I knew it would be safe for our little guy.

Clockwise - penguin, seal, and lion.

I made the seal and penguin at T Rex's request - he's really into marine animals at the moment.

So that's how we ended up so green. We do it because it makes sense and cents. I would love to say that we are out here trying to save our planet but honestly, at the moment, we am more concerned about making wise parenting choices for our family than letting carbon emissions dictate those choices. 


I'm not sure how much money we've saved - at least $100 just not having to buy diapers and wipes every month. What I do know is how nice it is to not load the Costco grocery cart with diapers, wipes, paper towels, and napkins every time we go shopping. 


(P.S. The dentist visits went great. You can read about T Rex's visit here.)


What kinds of intentional or un-intentional green behaviors do you practice?

Flats and Vacation...The End

Sigh...


That's me taking a deep breath since the Flats and Handwashing Challenge is done. It was certainly enlightening. In the end, I washed 41 diapers. It does not sound like much but when you're wringing each of them multiple times, it does add up. Of course, the weather could not cooperate this week but as you saw, I made do and the laundry room did fine drying them over night.


Where do I go from here? Well, I've opted to switch out all my pocket diaper inserts and fold the flats into them. I like my microfiber inserts - they are super trim. However, they do hold some stink and I have noticed the natural fibers like cotton do not. Plus, the flats dry faster and absorb more. They are a bit more bulky but nothing too bothersome.


I did notice this challenge did motivate me to have our daughter practice elimination communication more frequently. I think I only counted 3 or 4 BMs in her diaper this week. She usually does 2-4 per day so that's actually about 75% to 80%. We're doing good. I think she enjoys the story time on the potty. Lately she's been signing to go potty but I think it's because she wants to have one-on-one reading time because she knows Brother is not allowed in the bathroom with us. (Don't worry, he gets his morning privacy and reading time, too.)


What did this challenge demonstrate to me? Well, cloth diapering on a very tight budget is possible. It is possible to cloth diaper a baby from birth to potty training for less than $150. This would buy flats, covers, and soap with some extra for water and power usage expenses.


Something I thought of while I was writing this posting was, the old proverb, 

"Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today.  Teach a man to fish; and you have fed him for a lifetime”—Author unknown 

Let me change this up a bit : 

Give a family a box of disposable diapers, and they can diaper their baby for a few days. Give them a box of cloth diapers and covers, and they can diaper their baby for its lifetime.  


I think this was the key point of the challenge from my perspective. It is possible to help low income families keep their babies dry and clean and it does not have to cost thousands of dollars and waste tons - literally - of resources. 


There you have it - my take on the flats challenge.


The vacation was lovely. For four days no cooking or cleaning for me. Bebe Sister and I pulled a couple of all-nighters as she is teething but T Rex Dad was wonderful about letting me sleep in and catch up on my rest. And I did finish one more small project during today's nap time. I'll be previewing this week.


In the mean time, a shout out to all our service men/women past and present. Thank you for the freedoms I enjoy. Even just being able to write my thoughts and opinions in this blog is something I do not take for granted. And thank you all for listening to my opinions and being supportive. Some of you are so wonderful to me - I know you don't use cloth diapers or even have an interest, yet, you support me. I cannot tell you how much this warms my heart. 

Now, I'm off to enjoy the last few precious moments of vacation time with T Rex Dad before tomorrow comes and he's back to work. Me? Well, I'm still out of school for the summer but I have a shower to scrub, strip, and reseal as well as some items to drop at the consignment store. Plus, T Rex and I have our dental appointments this week. We'll keep you posted.


If you've read my postings this past week on the Flats and Handwashing Challenge - what do you think?  What do you think of my quote from above - "Give a box of cloth diapers..."? Would it work? Why or why not?

Flats - Day Six...Vacation Day 2

It's been wonderful having T Rex Dad home for the past couple of days. I haven't had to cook or clean in two days. And the adult company has been very welcome, particularly when it's my favorite person and very best friend.

The only work I have really done is diaper handwashing. An update on how the diapers did drying overnight. The ones hanging over my hamper bins dried no problem. The ones hanging over the laundry baskets on the floor, were about 80% dry by morning. The covers were about 75% dry. After I assessed the situation, I took down the dry ones and put up the damp ones on the hampers. They dried within a couple of hours. And a good thing to. We were down to one cover. And, by the way, it is still raining and raining and raining. The neighborhood pool is supposed to be opening but with nighttime temperature dropping to 42 degree F and snow in the foothills, I am not the least bit interested in trying out Bebe Sister's adorable swim suit in these cold conditions.

Thus far, I have washed 31 diapers in the past 6 days. Tomorrow should probably be wash day, however, I think I have enough diapers in the stash to wait until Monday. There will probably be quite a few to wash, but maybe I'll have some sunshine by then. That's the Flats update. Now onto the vacation update.

Lately when T Rex Dad calls to check in with us during his work days, I have been telling him about the kids and their dress up adventures. Well, since he's been home these past couple of days he has been able to experience it first hand. T Rex is just starting to get interested in dressing up but Bebe Sister really loves it. She comes up with some pretty interesting combinations.

For the past several months, T Rex has been asking his dad to take a trip to HobbyTown USA to purchase a rocket to launch at the park. We would always tell him in the spring, we would do so. Well, it did not feel like spring today but we decided, it was the day. T Rex looked at all the styles and simply stated, "I want to wait." Bebe Sister and had a great time looking at furniture for our doll house. Still, just looking. As T Rex would say, "Those are chocking hazards, Mama." Indeed.

We wrapped the daylight hours of the day with a three year old birthday party where, of course, T Rex insistently and very politely declined cake but asked for carrots on his pizza. Seriously, where did this child come from? 

Now, the kids are tucked in the beds and T Rex Dad and I are watching a favorite movie with some popcorn and lemonade. I'm taking tomorrow off so my last Flats update will be on Monday.

Enjoy your weekend. I know I will.

Flats - Day Five...

It's been raining...


Raining a lot.


No break long enough for me to dry diapers.


So tonight, I washed and hung them in my laundry room with the hope they will dry by morning. The temperature is still cold enough to be running the heater unit. This will hopefully assist in the drying process. We'll see come morning.

These flats are big. Really big. I could use a couple of them as a table cloth for my 6 seat table. As you can see from the photos, I used up most of my laundry room real estate. There is still the counter top space but I did not think they would dry well laying flat.


I am NOT enjoying the handwashing component of this challenge but I really like the flats. After this week, I am planning to switch all my microfiber inserts in my pocket diapers to flats. My hands are really starting to dry and crack from all the moisture and the washing. I have one more wash before this is complete.


It's late. I'm tired. But the diapers are clean. Now pardon be me while I go use my favorite hand cream to soothe my aching cracking hands.


What are your remedies for cracking hands?

Flats - Day Four...Plus Some...

We're at day four - a little more than half way in this Flats and Handwashing Challenge. The flats part has been easy but the handwashing/air drying not so much. This morning we washed the diapers. There were only seven to wash. This was two days worth of diapers but because our daughter has been doing so good with elimination communication, we're way down on diaper use. I would say washing seven was significantly easier than washing 14 as I did in the previous handwashed load. Lesson learned - if handwashing, do it before the load gets too big. The kids were kind enough to "help" me hang them before we left for our errand.


Bebe Sister had her nurse appointment for another vaccine. I choose to have my kids vaccinated. However, I am learning that we like to spread them out so not too many are given at a time. Thus, if we have a reaction, we know what caused it. We went to the appointment leaving the diapers outside to dry and knowing it could rain. The sky looked mostly clear so I was not terribly concerned. Alas, this is Idaho. The weather changes about every 20 minutes. I should have known better.


Well, the pediatric office moved and is located adjacent to T Rex's favorite park so, of course, we had to stop there for a little play time. As we played, the wind started to pick up and our long sleeve clothes were not enough to keep us warm. We loaded into the car and headed home.


Sure enough, when we arrived home, it was raining - lesson two learned. Not too much but enough to dampen the diapers. Funny thing, I was not grumpy. Why? I had three thoughts. One - I'm on vacation with my kids and I had the best time at the park. Plus, T Rex Dad starts a four day weekend after today. (Insert smiles from all of us.) Two - I am always worried the diapers have not been rinsed enough so add another rinse to the cycle. And three - I can blog about this.


How odd that since I've been recording our adventures in this blog I seem to have a different perspective on life and some of the not-so-great moments that affect us. The good ones are also most definitely "blog worthy" but trying to take a not-so-great situation and write about it so it's more humorous has certainly made my perspective change. As my long time blogger friend Kim said in a message to me: Isn't it funny what blogging has done to our attitudes? I'm constantly looking at seemingly irritating things and wondering how I can write about it. So true, my dear friend. One of her recent postings was published on another blog today. She is a beautiful writer and a mommy to two charming little guys. Please stop by and read her recent publication about "not being a good stay at home mom" - it is well done.


With that note, T Rex Dad is officially on vacation for the next four days. We have nothing planned except for lots of family time and a birthday party for T Rex's little friend up the road. She's a sweetie. She'll be receiving a T Rex Mom original. I promise after this week is done, I'll post some of the completed projects. For now, look at these and smile with me. They are photos I love and have been wanting to publish but I don't have especially interesting stories to go with them.

She is such a girl - she picks her cloths and LOVES shoes. And he is such a boy - look at that ball in his hand.

I thought this was a cool family photo.

Do you think blogging has changed your attitude about life's little bumps because you know you can write about and share them with others?

Flats - Day Three...

We did fine today - at least in the area of cloth diapering. Other areas - debatable. In the end, though, I think it was a great day. There were lots of smiles and as I put T Rex to bed he gave me the best kiss and said, "I love you, Mama." And in the end, that's what it's all about.
I received an excellent suggestion on a flat diaper fold. You can see the video here. It is more of a trouble shooting idea. We used it during nap time. I was quite concerned about leaks as we had one on an outing the previous night. I've never had a leak with my pocket diapers on an outing EVER so I was really surprised yesterday. However, I am dedicated to this challenge so we will push forward.

No leaks utilizing the tip with the origami fold. But her bottom was really damp - more so than with the pad fold we have been utilizing. I'll give it a couple more trials to see. Then at least I can say I gave it a try.

Origami flat diaper fold.

Our struggle with this fold is just that our daughter has a really tiny waist and skinny little legs. The baby in the video has a little more surface area for coverage and tying. And yes, I used a pin to secure everything in place.

She loves being my diaper model.



I did manage to not stick our daughter with the pin. However, she did have a day of many other firsts - first split lip, first electric shock, and first whipped cream beater. You can read about her Day of Firsts here.

For now, it is my break time. Time for some crafting and, of course, blogging. But mostly crafting tonight. I cannot wait to show you what fun project I've been working on.

What do you like to do during your precious, well earn free time?