Thursday, July 31, 2014

random

So it's been a while, which I suppose I should have warned you that this would happen. Life gets hectic and I forget to write, until I really want to.. which I do now, even though I don't really have much to say. I guess I will start by say that I am loving cloth diapering. It is the easiest thing to do and it really is cheap. I was nervous to use the cloth wipes at first but once I found Wee Essentials on Etsy, it got easier. She makes all natural soap bits, amongst other things, that are specifically designed for cloth wipe solution. There are tons of scents, some dyed and some un-dyed. Some have fragrance oils and some have essential oils. Basically you take on soap bit to a cup of water and you put  it in the micro for 30 seconds, and then pour over your wipes in the warmer, and you're all set. The supply I bought should last me up to 8 months if I am making a new solution every other day. I think that's awesome, not to mention it only cost me $17.50 plus shipping. So definitely no complaints on my end.
I also have started making Ansley's food for her. I bought a baby bullet and so far I have only given her bananas. Tomorrow is day four and then I will start her on green beans. She is doing an amazing job so far. She was definitely ready for solids, as I started her at 5 months. I tried cereal at 4 months and she wasn't into it so that only happened once. I must say though, I can definitely feel a difference in her weight in only 10 days.
New topic.. I really want to learn more wraps to wear Ansley in. I got a woven wrap a couple months back so I could do back carries, and I JUST got Ansley to willingly go in it today. First time. I did a double hammock and she loved it... so much so that she cried when I took her out of it. I was able to get dinner in the crock pot going. Pork chops with potatoes and onion and cream of mushroom soup. It smells amazing. But yeah... I think I may have mentioned before that I have several carries for her and I have really been turning to my Ergo lately, in the mean time watching lots of videos on different wrap techniques, and trying to get Ansley to enjoy them. So today was a big deal when she giggled on my back and I was able to do her diaper laundry and dinner. :D There is someone on facebook called Pretty Paisley Productions, and she makes AMAZING slings and wraps, and they are fairly cheap for wovens. Not to mention, she does all the dying and hemming and everything, and she has a rainbow ice-dye sling going right now.. You sign up for a custom one. I had spoken to her and told her I would get to her at the end of the week.. the sign up sheet was already full but she said she could add me to it... I am so tempted.. but do I really need another carrier? I can always do it myself but it is just so much work. I made one out of jersey knit.. only downside to jersey is that it is stretchy and therefore, considered unsafe for back carries. Does anyone have a clue what I am talking about? All I know is I have really wanted to be crafty lately. I even started crocheting a blanket for Ansley but ran out of yarn and haven't had a chance to go to get to the store to get more. Ay yi yi... Okay so I suppose this is the end of my random writing... like I said... I didn't really have that much I wanted to say.. lol just random thoughts.. I might start a movie. Until next time.

Thursday, July 17, 2014

Day One Complete

So I started last night with the cloth diapering and Ansley's first night went wonderfully. I laid her down at 9 with a fresh diaper and she didn't wake until 2, so I fed her and changed her and laid her back down and she woke up at 8. I couldn't even believe it, considering lately she has been getting up every 3 hours, sometimes sooner. I have no clue if I can attribute the longer sleep times to the cloth.. but I will definitely be keeping track and seeing if it becomes a trend.
The day today was also amazing. I was able to get an idea of how often I will need to be changing her, and it's actually no more than it was when she was in disposables... about every 2 to 2.5 hours. She hasn't pooped yet so I have no idea how they will stand up to that, or if there will be a blowout.. I am a little nervous for that, but so far no leaks or anything so I am not even going to worry about it until the time comes.
Something I was thinking about today.. how many cloth diapering families use cloth wipes? I have three packs of normal disposable wipes and I am using them, but what happens when baby poops? It's not like you can just wrap them up in the diaper and toss them out.. So I was considering cloth ones.. Not like I don't already have to wash pee and poop laundry.. why not add some wipes to the mix? But what happens when you have these shitty wipes? Next thing you know, you're swirling them around in the toilet too.. and its not like there is going to be poop all over the place, but still.. dealing with toilets and poop.. So I definitely am on the fence with those.. I mean I really am considering it but I have no idea if Zack would be on board with that. He expressed a little anxiety when I brought it up.. we will just have to see.
Lastly, since I am on the topic of cloth diapers.. I must say.. I AM OBSESSED. I mean, can't you tell? I just think they are adorable and my baby has the fluffiest little butt ever and she's just so stinkin cute, all I can do is look on Amazon at all the different kinds and fill my cart, and then empty it, and fill it, then save things for later. I want more diapers.. but when is enough, enough? My supply already seems like it'll last two days, and then ill wash on the third day.. I don't really want to keep a bag of dirty diapers more than two days.. does having a ton of diapers make you lazy? I think it would make me lazy, personally.. Plus I don't have that much storage space...

I need to stop.

Wednesday, July 16, 2014

I GOT MY FLUFF MAIL!

OMG am I in loooove!! So I got my packages just a little while ago and I had to go through  and open everything and take pictures! I am so excited to start cloth diapering, I wish I didn't have to do all the prep, but I do.

I have to boil all my bamboo inserts. I bought two dozen of them.


Now as far as I know I can either wash these 8-10 times to get all the leftover manufacturer's dirt/oil and whatnot off, AND to increase their absorbency to their highest potential.. or I can boil then about 5 at a time, and then add them to my last wash of all my diapers. I don't think I have to boil the microfiber ones.. pretty positive I can wash those with the diapers themselves.. speaking of diapers...


These are my Alva Baby diapers. I ordered off Amazon, and they were $59.95 for the set of six, plus two microfiber inserts per diaper. I loooove them.. the bottom far left one is minky. So soft <3


I ordered these off Amazon as well (both sets of 10), but these are not the way they came. (I mixed them up) I got one set that was more neutral.. it said it was a boys' set, but as far as I am concerned, the only one that was boyish was the baseball minky.. Other than that, I thought they were pretty gender neutral. The second set was obviously a girl set. The top row in the picture above are all minkies, and the rest are all normal diapers. All the diapers I ordered were pockets, seeing as they got good reviews. I know I probably should have ordered a variety, but I liked the concept of pockets after all the research I did, so let us hope they work perfectly. :D
The really cool thing about the two 10 piece sets, was that they were each $55 dollars (or right about).. and they are identical to the Alvas, down to the amount of snaps  and everything.. but they brand is actually Happy Flute, and they come wholesale from China. It's especially apparent to me that they are the same brand, because I got a few repeats between the two brands.. as you can see, looking at the pictures. All of these came with two microfiber inserts a piece as well.

 
As I have said before, I ecxclusively breastfeed my daughter, so as of right now, I don't necessarily NEEEEED flushable liners, but I purchased them anyway, because to be quite frank, although I love the concept of cloth diapering, I don't want to have to deal with the poo, so in trying to keep that to a minimum, I purchased these.
 
 
Awkward, long photo.
 
And finally, last but not least, I purchased a hanging wet bag that will stay by her changing station. I chose this over a diaper pail because I don't want to have to deal with smell, and the diaper wet bag zips shut. I also liked the pattern. ;)
 
 
Sooo, that is all my fluffy stuff. Time to get started on the laundry :D
 


 
 
 

Yay!

I am so excited! I am impatiently waiting for two packages from amazon, containing all I need to start my cloth diapering journey. I cannot wait. Pictures as soon as I have everything sorted out and whatnot. :D

Thursday, July 10, 2014

quiet day

That's the only way to describe my day so far. Quiet. I haven't gone anywhere or done anything. I haven't even showered. I woke up, made my scrambled eggs with salsa, and sat on my butt on the couch for about 4 hours now. Ansley wants to nap, and although I should probably be napping as well, I'm not. I'm stuck playing games on my phone and creating my next Amazon Prime order. I really should be showering....
Now even though my morning has gone extremely slow, that doesn't mean my evening is headed that way. I actually have four clients this evening, and my uncle and brother are in town and are leaving tomorrow morning.. so really I should be heading over there in the next hour or so just to visit before going to do hair. We tried to plan it so Zack (boyfriend) comes over to my aunt's house and takes over Ansley while I go work on my clients, then I come back to my aunt's and visit for a little while... hopefully that can run smoothly. It isn't THAT big of a deal because I was just up in the Chicago area visiting, and actually saw them while I was there, not to mention we both left for Florida on the same day.. me flying and them driving. So it wouldn't be the end of the world if I didn't get to visit long.. d just like a little time atleast.
Amazing life I live right? :D
Well actually it kind of is.. my daughter keeps it amazing. We are both constantly learning, and she just blows my mind with how smart she is and how funny her personality is and all these developmental leaps that she is taking. She can almost sit up on her own and she isn't even 5 months old yet. She just makes me so proud. I also have a friend who has a son that is only 5 days older than Ansley. His name is Paxten, and I watch him three days a week to help my friend out. Seeing him grow up is so fun too, especially to see how he excels more at certain things, and Ansley excels more at others. I think that really takes some of the stress off.. it makes you realize that every baby is different and goes at their own pace. Which is a good thing to know as a new mommy. Oh, I love both my babies so much!
OT.. I really can't wait to get more into cloth diapering. I'm actually already obsessed with picking out diapers, so I know I'm going to jump into this full force. That's usually what happens. I get into something, and next thing you know I'm obsessed. I got that way when it came to crocheting... and actually I have been intending on starting a new project soon.. I just have no idea what I want to make and I also feel like I just don't have a lot of time. Because I'm usually either nannying, or doing hair, or being a house wife, it just isn't top on the list, especially because I have two books going on right now, and those are currently ranking higher. I also have Ansley's four month check up tomorrow.. she has been four months for a while now but her appointment for her shots had to get rescheduled due to the fact that it fell on the 24th of June, and we were flying to Chicago on the 25th. I just didn't want a cranky baby on the plane. But yeah, I cannot wait to find out how much she weighs. A couple weeks ago I stepped on the scale with her and she was 17 pounds.. I just want the actual numbers and percentiles! At her two month check up she was in the 90th percentile for weight and head circumference and the 50th percentile for height. My short chunky baby. I love it. So yeah, remainder of my week is pretty busy. Just keep doing that mommy thing. I can't wait til the end of my week to place my diaper order! Then everything will be pretty much perfect for a while... I don't need much lol ;)

Wednesday, July 9, 2014

My Nursing Journey

So Sunday, Ansley will be 20 weeks old, and that means 20 weeks of nursing. I feel like I wanted to do an entry about our journey together so far. (I actually wrote this in my journal first, and decided I wanted to share) The beginning was difficult. The first day in the hospital, I tried to assist Ansley in latching, and was holding my nipple the wrong way, which resulted in an awful sore that ended up blistering, scabbing, and bleeding. It took a good three months for it to grow back.. there was a legit chunk missing. (As you can see now, I have no filter, so if you don't want to read this, don't read it. This is just real talk.) Well because of my injury and the immense burning raw pain that came with it, I favored the opposite side. In doing so, I created one breast that gets massive, and the other that only fills about half way, AND an issue with supply sensitivity.. meaning ANY and EVERY time I am stressed, my supply in the "bad boob" virtually disappears, and I have to go through a whole routine of trying to bring it back. I pump constantly, don't ever supplement with anything ever.. and drink plenty of Mother's Milk tea. I only discovered it about a month ago. There were several times while in pain from the initial latch injury that I thought I would have to stop nursing, but I suffered through and am glad I did. Since I've been healed though, there has been three distinct times that I didn't think I would get my supply back. I even tried to give formula one night because Ansley was losing her mind, but she completely refused it. Any nursing mother who has dealt with supply problems knows its a vicious cycle of stress causing problems and those problems causing stress and then next thing you know, you have only nursed three months and you have a supply issue and completely give up.. which can be devastating, especially if you had a goal in mind for how long you wanted to nurse to begin with.
Well good thing my daughter was persistent and wanted to feed often and we always got my supply back. she is very sensitive.. its almost like she legitimately NEEDS to nurse to be in a good mood. There have been times where I had to go do a client's hair and my boyfriend stayed home with her and fed her a bottle and she literally would be in the worst mood when I would get home and would want to be on me for hours and would refuse to sleep. I can only imagine if she strictly got bottles.. Yikes.
I guess the whole point of writing about nursing, is that despite all the drama and difficulty we have had so far, we always manage to get through it, and I just love nursing her. It's just as good for me as it is for her, and so I wanted to really write down the things I love about it so that later on down the line and I can read this (in my hard copy journal) and remember all the sweet memories we had.

1. Getting up in the middle of the night, in the dark, getting her out of bed and laying in the spare bed and just feeling so relaxed and at peace as my baby girl suckles away and falls back asleep at my breast. Then waking up and seeing her precious, relaxed face, sleeping face, as she cuddles up to her mommy she loves so much and relies on for protection.
2. When she reaches up and touches my mouth so I give her kisses. Ever since she was a newborn I would hold her little hand and give it kisses while I nursed her, and now she willingly reaches up so I kiss her. I just think it's the sweetest thing in the world.
3. Sometimes, based on her mood, she grins while she nurses, and tells little stories while still latched on.
4. Sometimes, if she is REALLY into her story, she pulls off and babbles forever, telling me all about her dreams and how happy she is that I am holding and feeding her. ;)
5. It may be annoying to some, even to me occasionally, but if she is really hungry, she HATES it when I try to burp her between sides and will have a huge fit. She bitches til I take the other boob out, but as soon as its out, she stops, grins, and does this little wiggle and scrunches her nose before she latches. Her attitude is hilarious, and so much like mommy.
6. Finally, I love that it is a bond for us specifically, and I know some will say that sounds selfish, but once you push a baby out of your crotch, you should be allowed to have something just for the two of you.. your own special thing that no one else can be a part of. I have no problem with other people's choices on how they want to nourish their little ones, but nursing is for me and I am so thankful that I have been able to do it as long as I have, and hope to be able to do it for several more months to come.

Hi There!

Let me introduce myself. My name is Anessa. I am 26 years old, and I have a 4 month old daughter. I haven't blogged in a long time, and was just writing in my journal, when I realized.. I kinda write in a style like what you would find in a blog. I always like to go back and read my entries.. so maybe others would enjoy that too.. why not blog?
So, here I am, again, attempting ANOTHER blog.. maybe it'll work out better this time.
A few things about myself. I exclusively nurse my daughter. I am just beginning to get into cloth diapering.. which, now that I have finally researched everything on the topic, I realize I was a fool not to try before. I also am very into baby wearing. I have an assortment of carriers.. a moby, a few stretchy wraps I have made myself.. hemming and dying. An Ergo, a mai tei, and a ring sling. I also just got my first woven wrap. I knit and crochet.. I am a hair designer, make-up artist, a beginner hula hooper, and I finally decided to get into yoga.. we shall see how that goes.
I just feel like I would love an outlet, a way to maybe inspire other young women or mothers. I also want a place to rant if I need to, cry if I need to. Whatever. We shall see. Love it or leave it. This is my life.