WNPO...Because partying is more fun with no pants on! (A little about our experience with cloth diapers.)

Just about everytime I am out with the Nug, I am asked one of 3 questions.
"How old is he?"
"Where did you get that baby carrier?"
"How do you like those diapers?"

The first question is a no-brainer (Happy 9 month birthday to Nugget as of this past Sunday!) and the second is really easy to answer - by far the best $15 I've invested in baby carrying-Snugglebug Slings, which is a "pouch-style carrier.

I actually used to carry cards with the website on it since I got asked so often.  I ran out after a week.

This sling is not meant for heavy duty baby wearing, but is PERFECT for running errands.  It's one loop of fabric that can be worn multiple ways, and it takes about 5 seconds to put it on.  No straps, buckles, ties or snaps.  Just slip it on, slip baby in, and you're off.  And you can pick the colors!  But I digress...this is supposed to be about cloth diapers. 

The third question is a bit more involved.

We LOVE cloth diapering.  You don't have to.  Diapering, like just about every decision you'll make as a parent is a personal choice.  I mean, it's basically baby underpants.  I wouldn't knock your choice of undergarment, and I don't expect others to knock mine.  Or our baby's.  Like I said, personal choice.  (There's nothing more irritating-and common-than other parents telling you why you should do something their way, or why they didn't do it how you did.)  This is our experience.

Why cloth? 

It's economical.  We have bought 4 packs of disposable diapers (called "sposies") in 8 months.  One was a box of Swadders for the first few weeks when the cord was still attached ($40).  We have 2 packs of size 2 diapers, one from Target ($12) and one other pack ($18) which we have barely touched.  One was a pack of swim diapers ($9).  So we've spent about $80 on sposies, most which were used in the first 2 months of Nugget's life.  I remember the prices because I was so surprised at how quickly babies go through a box of diapers.  (Experts say 6-8 changes a day once you pass that first few weeks, so a 36-count box won't last a week...again, that's just an estimate.)

Cloth diapers are cute!  The patterns and colors of cloth diapers are beyond adorable.  

Blue Giraffe!

And Nugster can wear "just a diaper" with a shirt and look clothed, while with sposies, it may not be quite as cute since sposies tend to be thin and... 

Sposies smell funny (to me).  I really dislike the smell of baby pee+disposable diaper.  Chemicals.  Ew.

Better for the environment.  Yeah, I do care about the environment.  Diapers stick around for a long time.  But actually that was the least compelling reason.       

Best Bottoms
The cloth diapering system we chose is called Best Bottoms.  I'm definitely not being compensated for this review (or any reviews I write), so this is an honest, unbiased opinion.  How do they work?  I'll let this picture do the talking. 

 
The Best Bottom shells come in a variety of prints, and are durable and thick.  It's an "all-in-2" system, meaning that the diaper uses shell and an insert.  They are one-size so they will work for Nugget through the potty training phase (they even make potty training inserts and side tabs).

The Stash:

8 shells (Moolicious, Green Giraffe, Blue Giraffe, Orange Sherbert, Chunky Monkey, Double Chocolate, Cookies-n-Cream and Very Cherry) some velcro, some snap.

25 inserts (some cotton, some hemp, some microfiber, in size med, large, and overnight/doubler).

We have 2 wet/dry bags with one at the changing table, and another on stand-by for laundry time.  The wet/dry bag holds all of the dirty shells and inserts.

Easy as...

#1-When Nug is wet, we remove the pad, put it into a wet/dry bag, wipe him, wipe out the shell, and snap in a new pad.

#2-(Because poo happens) Take off dirty diaper, put into wet/dry bag, wipe him, put on new shell w/pad.

You can also preassemble all your shells and inserts, and use them as you would a regular disposable diaper (take off wet diaper-put in wet/dry bag, put on new shell+insert.)  Awesome for babysitters/caregivers/daycare.

Ah, Laundry.  We do diaper laundry approximately every 3 days.  We use Boulder Wash additive free detergent (it's cheap at Costco) and we occasionally use Rockin' Green in Rage Against the Raspberry scent, but only when it's on sale.

Steps:
1. Dump the whole wet/dry bag inside out into the washer.

2. Do a cold rinse, no spin (about 10 min-I usually fold other laundry in the meantime).

3. Run a hot or warm wash with detergent. We found this chart to be helpful when choosing a detergent.

4. Another cold rinse (wash/rinse time about 70 min).

5. Inserts can be dried on gentle dry and shells can be line/hung dry.

Breastfed baby poo is water soluble, so until Nugster started solids we didn't worry about stains.  Even now, with him eating everything under the sun, we rarely get a stain on the inserts.  If there is a stain, we line dry that insert.  The sun naturally bleaches out stains.  Even blueberry poo.  Pretty amazing.

Other advantages.
Nugster has never had a problem with diaper rash, except in a disposable diaper.Also, with the exception of once, no leaks. Because of user error (I was chatting with a friend instead of rushing home to do a diaper change) it (poo) actually stayed in the diaper so well that it erupted out of the top back of the shell. The leg gussets on Best Bottoms are fantastic.  Nugster had some pretty chunky thighs from 3-8 months and we just adjusted the diaper accordingly, with no problem with red marks or rash.  My friends who use disposables seem to have more "blowouts" than my friends who use cloth.
 
Other diapers
Soft Bums Echo - it's a waterproof, fleece-lined shell that has snap-in "pods". You can really only use the shell once before you need to wash it, since the fleece shell absorbs moisture.  It looks and feels great though-very trim and the pods are nice.   I use them in the Best Bottom shells.  This is a more expensive diaper-around $30 for a shell and pods.

For travel we put a g diaper biodegradable insert into the Best Bottom shell. I've heard good things about the cloth g 
diapers too. 

 We acquired a few all-in-ones which took forever to dry, didn't hold up so well in laundry, and were not one size (adjustable).  These are our laundry day/last resort diapers.
With pocket diapers you have to stuff an insert into a little pocket.  Not too bad, but time consuming.  We also noticed that the insert bunched up while Nug was wearing it.  He's a very active little guy. 

We kinda have thing for giraffes.

If you're considering cloth diapers, wondering about Best Bottoms, or just curious as to why some parents choose cloth, I hope you've learned a little something!   

Wicked easy recipes using baby oats!

This is the time of year when I find myself missing home (New England) more than usual.

View from the summit of Cadillac Mountain, Acadia National Park, Maine

To combat this, I do a lot of "Autumnal" cooking/baking.  My homemade iced pumpkin spice latte tastes about the same as what can be had at a certain Seattle coffee shop...and is dynamite with a scoop of vanilla protein powder.

In the realm of baby food, I've made two new foods for the Nugster, who recently turned 8 months old.  I wanted to share a few easy uses for baby oats (oat flour).

(I make a lot of flour, since I follow a gluten-free diet.  Regular wheat flour would work fine in these recipes too, but oats are just so healthy!)

How to make your own oat flour:

I mill rolled oats into a fine powder in the food processor.  This is so easy!  Just scoop the oatmeal in, grind with a few pulses, and you're done!  

What to do with oat flour:
1. Drop small pieces of prepared fruit (I use cubes of frozen mango, and sometimes poached apples or peaches) into a cup of oat flour and shake.  When coated, serve fruit as easy to pick up finger food!      

2. Homemade (ridiculously inexpensive) baby cereal!  Just add milk or water, heat, let cool, serve.

3. Baked oatmeal cup cakes. (vegan, sugar & gluten-free)

Healthy, yummy, and they make the house smell so good!!

Also easy!  
Mix:  Equal parts oatmeal flour and water (or bm, milk, whatever liquid you are comfortable serving your baby).  
Soak overnight, which makes the oats more digestible.  
Next day: If you wish, stir in cinnamon, and "pour" into mini muffin tin. (I lined with silicone baking cups.)  
Top with fruit.  
Bake at 375 for 20-30 minutes*.  When cool, cut into small pieces and serve as finger food!  
*Since I'm at high altitude, baking is a trial and error thing.  And if you're not much of a baker, don't worry!  It's not possible to undercook these, since the recipe doesn't use egg, and the oatmeal flour is edible raw. 

I served this as Nugster's 8 month birthday cake.  To his delight, I continued to serve them for weeks after, as part of his breakfast.  Let's be honest, there's nothing better than birthday cake for breakfast!

4. Baby pancakes. (vegan, sugar & gluten-free...but feel free to use the flour of your choice)

The ingredients.  Well, most of them.  I forgot to take a picture of the blueberries.

Mix: 3/4 cup Baby Oatmeal (Oat Flour)
       3/4 cup Rice Flour*
*You can use whole wheat flour in place of the rice flour.
       Optional: dash Sea Salt, dash Cinnamon
Add: 1 1/4 cup Water
        1 T Coconut Oil* (or applesauce or any other oil.  
 *Since coconut oil is a carrier for Nugster's vitamins, we know he is not allergic.  Because coconut oil is so healthy, we prefer it over other oils.  Infact, we use it to treat rashes, dry skin, cuts and scrapes, and even as a hair treatment!) 

Coat skillet in your choice of oil/spray.  Pour batter and add blueberries (or apples, banana, avocado, etc). 

Cook on first side until large bubbles form.

 Since the batter is thick,  when you flip it, let it cook for a minute or so, and then split the pancake with your spatula.  This way you can watch as the center cooks through.

Still wet in the center...but vegan, so no risk of illness from "raw" batter.

Your pancake should be a bit crispy on both sides, and soft in the center.  This recipe made 3 adult-sized pancakes.  Since Nugget is eating this as finger food, I cut each pancake into small pieces and froze half, put half in the fridge for the week, and set aside a few for this morning.  After the pieces cooled, Nugget gobbled them up!

Mmmm! Pancakes!

This recipe, if you add 2 T of sugar, or 1 T of agave, would make a fabulous stack of pancakes for that special vegan in your life.  Of course, sans sweetener would be ok too, but I've learned that most adult palates aren't accustomed to sugarless pancakes.

Enjoy!

Mommybliss: Homemade Iced Pumpkin Spice Latte

Being a mommy means that a trip to Starbuck$ is both crucial and logistically difficult.  My solution is to make my own.   In large batches. Over ice.

My version is caffeine & gluten-free and uses non-dairy milk.  Substitute your choice of chai and milk to make it your own!

Mix equal parts of this:

 and this:

then stir in 1-2 Tablespoons of this:

and if you want, add this (or similar):

Pour over or blend with:

 Drink and enjoy!

Mommy's Day Off :)

Haha, just kidding.  Maybe in 17 years and 5.5 months.

I decided that at least for the blog, I'd take a day off from writing about baby stuff.  A little something for my friends who are supporting the blog even though they really don't care much about breast feeding or baby poop. (Yes, I'll probably write about Nugster's little  poop nuggets at some point.)

Recently, while out with a friend (and babies in tow) I wondered aloud, "What did we do all day before we were mommies?"  And that got me thinking about the last few indulgences I've allowed myself.  Over the past 18 months, I must have heard 100 times, "Make sure you take care of yourself," or "Do a little something nice for yourself," or "Take some YOU time."  Well, I'm about to share with you two me-focused experiences I've granted myself since becoming a mommy.

Beautificationation
  In an effort to save money and time, I've found a "low maintanece" hairstyle that really works for me as a mommy.  I have a low tolerance for blowdryers (I distain loud noises) and a limited amount of time to spend on myself each day.  My current long, layered hairstyle with blended highlights is about as maintenance-free as it can get.  It looks pretty good curled or straightened (insert non-existant photo of hair down and styled), but works just fine in a "mommytail"  (pony with strays pulled out by Nugster).

Sporting the Mommytail while exploring a KC-97 refueling plane-turned-restaurant.

After an expensive, time-consuming experience at Sephora, I've opted for a simple make-up routine.  Minimal, yet still enough to make me look, and more importantly, feel "done up."  This feeling is also more likely to get me out of the house in real clothes (vs workout clothes).  

#55, spritz with a touch of H20

In order of application: Olay Regenerist Serum, eyebrow pencil, Garnier tinted caffeine-infused undereye roller in Deep, a pea-sized amount of Makeup Forever HD foundation #128 applied with Sephora Pro Airbrush, Burts Bees Lip Shimmer in Champagne.

That list seems like a lot of product, but it truly only takes 5 minutes. 



Something to look forward to...besides the next naptime!  
 In my 20's, I was a lot more active.  I was a rock climbing instructor.  I played tennis (badly). I ran (painfully), sometimes long distances.  I did gymnastics. I taught gymnastics. I danced. A lot.  I was a bit of a gym rat.  As I entered my late-20's, I became more of a "jogger" and I tended to fall asleep during yoga.  And then came pregnancy and mommyhood.  Talk about a complete shock to the system.  

Fast-forward to present day.  I was craving some non-baby related fitness, and happened to make a wonderful friend who, like me, spent hours a day pushing a stroller and trying to run with a dog.  She invited me to join her team for the Dirty Dash.  Ah! A 5K with mud and obstacles and beer rootbeer (thanks Celiac disease)!

Mmmm....mud pit!

  I hear there are pigs and it ends with a giant slip and slide, and spectators get to bomb us with water balloons!  Plus, a chance to see attractive guys covered in mud take a therapeutic mud bath?  I'm in!  AND it benefits the American Cancer Society/Climb to Conquer Cancer, which I did last year!  Awesome!

Our team races at 10AM this Saturday at the Pikes Peak International Raceway, so if you're in the area, come on down, buy some water balloons, and aim for the 8 ladies with the day-glo outfits!  Talk about a great Mommies' Day off! 

Making Baby Food - The Who and Why

Who:  Not just for hippies. We are a fairly food conscious household to begin with-but by no means are we crunchy hippie types.  I say this to point out that making your own baby food is not just for "hippies"!  We eat gluten-free because of my celiac disease, and Steve is a fan of lean protein because of his bodybuilding/wrestling background.  I kept a gluten-free pregnancy, and plan to avoid gluten for the Nug until he is schoolage and even then, we will introduce gluten with great caution.  However, those who know us would say our favorite foods are doritos (me), peanut m&m's (Steve) and red meat (both of us).  
Anyone can make their own food, it takes very little extra effort if you are already comfortable in the kitchen, and saves us a ton of money.

Who else: Why, Nug of course!  While Nugster still thinks that BM is the tastiest thing going, he showed great interest in solid foods around the age of 6 months.  (Around 5 months we fed him a bit of avocado, more for our amusement than his nutritional needs.  Since most of it ended up on his hands and clothes, we can hardly count that.)  I still nurse him before every meal, but he now (at 6.5 months) enjoys solids for breakfast and dinner as well.  

Why: As a proud owner of a Baby Bullet, I was beyond excited to begin making my own baby food. 

Good for more than just baby food (ahem, margaritas  mango smoothies anyone?)

I've probably lost a few of you with that statement, but let me share a few benefits.

Health: Jarred baby food has a shelf life of 2-3 years.  I actually found one brand that had an expiration date that was a whopping 5 years away.  I don't know about you, but I wouldn't want to eat a banana/carrot/chicken/squash that had been sitting around for 5 years!  Yes there is organic jarred baby food, and yes, it is expensive.  The bottom line is, when I make the food, we know exactly what is in it and can be sure of the freshness.
 
Cash money:  Babies are expensive.  With the cost of diapers, gear, toys, clothes, etc, even those with disposable income want to save a buck. Jarred baby food is about $1/jar. A jar is about 4 oz.  If Nugster ate jarred food, his food budget would be about $50/month.  While that may not sound like much, let me show you the math for making our own food:

2 sweet potatoes ($1.50) = 60 oz of food ($60+ worth!)

1 bag of organic frozen mango ($2.97) = 15 oz of mango puree ($15 worth)
2 avocados ($1) = 10 oz of food ($10 worth!) 

You get the idea. So, for less than the cost of a grande soy with whip, we feed Nug for over 2 weeks!

   
Time:  Instead of going to the store, selecting foods that baby may or may not like, hauling it home, and then storing it, we simply pick what foods we want the Nug to try for the week (more like 10+ days) and then blend it to perfection.  It takes less than 5 minutes to puree an avocado or banana.  It takes less than 30 to prepare a months worth of chicken-carrot-spinach dinner for the Nug. 

Fun! It's incredibly rewarding (Mommy Bliss!) to make baby food for the Nugster.  Choosing what new food he will try next, and how to prepare it (bake, chop, puree, blend, steam, boil, peel, mash...)  He looks forward to each meal, and we are more dedicated to sharing mealtime with him because we invested time into making his meals.

Nugster enjoying some pureed squash.

My next post, since Nug is waking from his nap, will be about what makes for yummy homemade baby food!

How do you save money as a mommy (or daddy)?  Have you tried making your own baby food?