School Pictures

These are rather belated, but I had to post them! They were taken in August.

















Why, YES, I did take wardrobe changes to school pictures. Would you expect any less?

Cloth Diapering

I've had several people ask me about cloth diapering. I know this info is of NO use to 99.9% of my blog readers, but I'm going to post it so that I can direct people to the information when they ask.

I did tons of research, and the more I would read, the more confused I could get! There's SO much information and SO many options out there!!

I'd say the two most popular brands are probably FuzziBunz and BumGenius. Simply because I knew someone who had used them, I was leaning toward the FuzziBunz. Someone loaned me a stack of the small perfect size FB's, and I purchased 6 of the medium size. FB also makes a OneSize that grows with the child, and I have one of those. Overall, I'm not impressed. They are falling apart!! For a $20 diaper, I need something that's going to last more than a year.

I've heard good things about the BG's, but what leaned me away from them was the velcro closures. I do have a few dipes with velcro, and I don't like dealing with it at all. However, I think there are BGs out now with snaps. Those would probably be worth looking into.

My fave dipes have surprised me. I found a knock-off of the FBs at a local consignment store, and I love them! www.greenerbaby.com
The best part-- they are 3 for $25!!At under $10 a pop, they have been very reliable, and held up very well. I will say that for the first couple months, we had a lot of leaks. The leg holes just couldn't be adjusted small enough to keep her all together. I just saw it as an opportunity to change her clothes more often! :-)

I currently have a stash of about 20-22 dipes that I keep in rotation. That's enough to easily get me 2 days, and will usually stretch to three days between laundry. If you stay home, you'll need less than if you do daycare, just because they have to change them so often in daycare.

I definitely use 2 inserts in every dipe. I probably started using two when she was 5-6 months old. They do make her bum rather bulky, but we're just used to it. Keep that in mind, though, when thinking of clothing sizes. She's had to go into the next size earlier than she would've, just because her booty is bigger.

I will say that for overnight, she's a heavy wetter. I always grab the name brand FBs for night because they are a bit bigger, and will hold a thicker longer insert. I get those inserts at Mama's Hip in the highlands. I think they are the BG flip inserts.

For wipes, I bought a bunch of flannel on sale at Joann, and just cut it into squares. It frays on the sides a lot because I didn't stitch it, but for wipes, who cares? However, I wouldn't recommend that if you choose the velcro closure dipes. The bits of fray will get all in the velcro and make you crazy.

One major word of advice. Get a diaper sprayer for your toilet! It's just like a kitchen sink sprayer, but goes on the toilet to rinse the poo off the dipes.

I do still buy a pack of disposables every couple months. We keep them around for when I just don't get the laundry done or when she has a rash and we need to use cream. I've never purchased wipes. We still have some I received for showers.

You can find info on the net saying that you do or don't save money with cloth. I KNOW we've saved a ton. Further, I feel like I'm doing something good for LJ, and something good for the environment. That's all a win in my book. I really feared I would regret the investment, but I've LOVED doing cloth with her. I'd do it again in a heartbeat.

Trick Or Treat!

Lila's first Trick Or Treat season was SOOO much fun! We've always taken the kiddos at school trick-or-treating through the hospital. I'm pretty sure the people giving out candy enjoy it even more than the kiddos! I know I do! Lila's class got all outfitted up, and loaded into their grandiose chariot, and off they went!

The cast of characters:
Back row: Samantha the Owl and Lila the Sock Monkey
Middle row: Jillian the Cat and Meghan the Pumpkin
Front row: Molly the Duck and Elliott the Skeleton
Supporting Cast:
Twins! Michael and Emma the "M&Ms" (Side note: M&M share Lila's exact Birthday!!)
I think the whole crew had so much fun! Daddy came to trick-or-treat with Lila's class, and he was our photographer for the day. Thanks, Daddy!
Lila: "Um, dad, think you could bust me out of this thing? There's something on my head that I can't figure out how to get off, and there's a giant owl beside me, in case you didn't notice."

When all was said and done, the little friends had more treats than tricks, and they were all tuckered out. The owl slept part of the way back to school!
After all of that practicing Trick-or-Treating at school, Lila decided to join the BIG GUYS for some REAL trick-or-treating with Cooper and Collin. This picture just makes me SOOO happy!!! Thanks, Crouches, for inviting us to tag along! And thanks so much to Cooper and Collin for sharing candy and treats with Lila Jane!