The weather outside is frightful...

The snow is SOOOO delightful. We were able to take the kids to BYUI today and go sledding. Ava had a blast. Teegan was tired, so, he just sat in a daze as the snow blew into his little cold face! Unfortunately, we forgot our camera. But not to worry....it's still snowing, so there will be more photo ops.

Snowing!!!

We came out of the local library this evening and it was snowing! As in, our car was COVERED within 20 minutes. Holy smokes! Well, this certainly isn't California! We do like it though. It's nice in it's own way.

FRUSTRATED!!!

I am looking for housing in Rexburg and getting SO FRUSTRATED!!! People aren't even responding to my emails when I say that I'm in California and relocating. When I leave out that little detail, they reply....the same listings! Argh! Any suggestions?

Big Things!!!

We have so much going on right now! And we are dang excited about it! Firstly, as you all know, we are moving to Idaho via Utah. We still don't know where we are going to live or if we're going to work or not while Ryan attends BYU-I, but we're excited to get going with life. Secondly, I am getting ready to launch an online business making and selling cloth diapers and wool covers. I am SUUUUUPER excited about this! I am very passionate about cloth diapering and the pants, shorts and soakers are A-freakin'-mazing! (if I do say so myself.) Just wanted to share the fun stuff and keep people in the loop! Oh yeah....my website is ekologybaby.com...check it out!

What an Idiot!

Me...seriously! I have been referring to my kids on facebook as A & T...as in T &A. Hello...what parent does that?! Why in the world didn't we catch that one when we were worried about possible nicknames and possibilities for being teased?! Steven Freebairn pointed this one out to Ryan at church this morning. So nice...the bishops son has to point this out to us!

INSOMNIA SUCKS

I am so frustrated! I can't sleep! So, I might as well be a blogger, right?! Anyway...as of today, my family is completely outfit for the snow! Boots, jackets, pants...check! Snowsuits for the kiddies...check! A way for all of us to move that we can afford....hmmmm. I'll have to work on that one. Anyway...Just had some time to kill...night all.

Moving on the mind

So, we basically are gearing up for moving to Idaho in November. I am SUPER nervous. I've never lived anywhere but Sonoma County and now I'm moving in the middle of winter to Idaho. I'm not quite sure what I've signed up for. Anyway, Ava is excited to be able to go to school, so is Ryan. Teegan and I will just freeze our fannies off! Anyway, We are in the process of taking pictures of everything and posting them to our blog. I had to buy an external hard drive because we had 32 mb available on the laptop...I couldn't even transfer the pictures I had taken of things to sell! Anyway...dejunking is good for us, but I am having VERY mixed emotions. Happy, sad, excited, nervous...you get the idea. Anyway...that's just what's been on my mind!

Idaho or Bust

For those of you who don't know yet, Ryan has been accepted at BYU-Idaho for the Winter/Spring track. We start school in the beginning of January and will be in school in Idaho through July. At this point we are planning on moving out at Thanksgiving because we are going to be in Utah anyway for Sprout's blessing. (BTW, R&J, I think Oscar might be ok...oldish sounding, not ending in an an, in, or en, or on for that matter, and doesn't sound weird with Mann....in my opinion...) Anyway, so if any of you know of a place to live in the metropolis of Rexburg, please pass along the info. Also, if you know of anyone out in Santa Rosa that is looking for a month to month rental, or a room on a month to month basis, we will be renting out our house when we leave. We also have a new blog called Idaho or Bust that we will be posting our stuff that we are selling, so check it out, have friends check it out and whatnot...thanks all!

Cloth Diaper Lovin'

So, this is per Rachelle's request.

I have been delving into the cloth diaper world with great gusto! And LOVING IT!!!! I really like the sustainability of cloth diapering and it works for our family.


We started CDing Ava when she was about 18 months old. We started out using Bumgenius 3.0 one size diapers with polyester microfiber inserts (came with the dipes) and we were quite happy. After a while, the liners began to retain STINKY odors and we had to "strip" the diapers using a little bleach, some VERY hot water and dawn liquid dish soap. We originally tried oxyclean. DO NOT ATTEMPT THIS. It ruins the elastic and makes the diapers even stinkier because it is super difficult to rinse completely out. This process was both time consuming and frustrating because I was washing diapers all day some days because of the washing instructions for BG. You wash cold, rinse cold, wash hot, rinse hot. Using 1/4 to 1/2 the manufacturers recommended amount of detergent. You also can only use specific detergents because of the synthetic fibers in the inner and liners. Too much hassle.

With Teegan, we CD'd from the start, also used BG OS and thought, "well, this is ok for us". Problem was, I was now washing like 40 diapers every couple of days...it was taking nearly 2 days if I forgot to switch diapers or restart the load right away. So, my dear friend introducted me to www.diaperswappers.com and I am addicted! It's a great place to buy, sell and trade your used cloth diapers. So, I sold off some BG and purchased some prefolds (these are the old skool dipes with the thick centers that most people use for burp cloths...only WAAAAY better than the one's Gerber makes and sells), pins and a couple of slightly used wool Aristocrats covers. We were doing ok, I didn't have enough covers for 2 kids though and I ended up resorting back to BG frequently, especially because Ryan is VERY resistant to change. Well, I kept acquiring (that's what we call them) in woolies: longies (think wool pants) and shorties (like the name suggests, woolen shorts) and soakers (like underwear, only 2 ply knitted wool). I've tried a variety of sizes and manufacturers. Felted and not. Tested for new companies and I covet a few very reputable woolies now.

So, here's what we are using and really liking right now:

• Sustainablebabyish one size diapers - these are awesome during the day, and are one size, so they will last quite a while.
• Sustainablebabyish organic cotton and bamboo diapers (aka the magic diaper) - FABULOUS night time diaper...I want a million! however, I can't afford a million, so...
• unbleached prefolds from www.little-lions.com - these are good for around the house when frequent changes are easy. Make sure to get LOCKING HEAD diaper pins..no pokes that way!
• Aristocrats soakers - these are a fairly good soaker. They have softish wool and absorb really well.
• Babyology longies - these are slightly more scratchy than aristocrats, but are really good for night use. Especially when felted...they're bulletproof! We've gotten these second hand from DS and brand new on ebay. If they're brand new, you have to lanolize them...that's a whole process, but not terrible. Just takes a little time.
• Kestlyn one size cover in interlock wool - these are very trim and work reasonably well under regular clothes, however, tehy aren't super absorbent, so you can't run errands all day with them...at least not without a million diaper changes.
• Disana soakers - these are the SOFTEST wool I''ve touched so far. I'm still lanolizing htem, so we'll see how they are soon.
• Disana sleep sack - great for night time, when you might want extra wool for wicking. Or, if you want the baby to be able to not have a cover for a nap.
• Ewe Need It wool wash bar - AWESOME at getting out poop spots in between washings. Never had a problem getting a spot out! (check them out on www.hyenacart.com)
• Wool Ones Wash liquid wash - great for washes when the woolies start getting stinky.
  

Here are the things I'm dying to try out:

• Sustainablebabyish pants, shorts and soakers - I hear these are worth the $64 per pair of pants...yeah, now if I could just convince Ryan of our "need".
• Wild Child Woolies - also interlock like SBish, only slightly less expensive...hmmm.
• Lansinoh lanolin - yes..the stuff for your nipples when you breastfeed. This is pure lanolin and can be used to lanolize your woolies. Google search lanolizing with lansinoh for instructions.
  

Here are the things we've tried and aren't so fond of:

• Bumgenius 3.0 - they just get too stinky, but are good for a CD newbie (or daddies resistant to CDing).
• Flats - these are the SUPER old skool diapers...birds eye cloth in a very large square that you have to fold creatively and pin in place. They're not terrible, but our poops seem to leak out the front...pretty nasty on the 5 month old and the 2 and a half year old.
• Recycled wool - think someones old sweater that they accidently felted in the dryer and decided to make into a diaper soaker. Sometimes they work great, sometimes not. If it's your own sweater, go for it...what have you got to lose. If you're buying it, you had better LOVE the pattern or be prepared to use them for pants alone.
• Cashmere soakers - I thought these would be awesome...supersoft, natural fiber. Yea, no wicking properties. Maybe if your baby doesn't pee like crazy like mine, but try at your own risk.
• Hand knit woolies - I have had mixed results with these as well. Sometimes great, sometimes not. It totally depends on the quality of wool yarn used. Beware.
• Sudz n duds liquid lanolin - WAY too liquidy. I have not used their other products though, so those may be awesome.
• Wool Ones Wash solid bar - it does and ok job getting the woolies clean, but doesn't touch the above mentioned bar at getting out the poop stains.

Here are a few tools to make this endeavor slightly easier:

• A large wetbag for hanging in your bathroom on the back of the door handle (obviously with a handle for hanging). Get a good one because you want it to keep odors on!
• At least one small wetbag for the diaper bag, car, and whatnot. We have two and they rotate nicely when one is washing.
• Wool wash. We use liquid for regular washing (about monthly or every couple of months) and bar (for spot treatments).
• A good strong drying rack.
• A diaper sprayer for spraying solids into the toilet...very nice to not touch the poop.
• A good soap like planet or charlies soap. Charlies gave my kids BAD rashes, but to each his own. Planet's been good to us. I've hear eCover is good too.

I think that is all of my CDing knowledge at this point. I will probably update this in the future, as my experience and repertoire expands! Happy diapering!

Bummer

I am so sad...I broke my second sewing machine since being married. I use it ALL the time and I am bummed out because I know I need to get a good one, not the walmart specials I had previously purchased. But seriously, I don't have $500 to $8000 (Yes, you read right...no typos there) to spring for a new machine. Maybe the sewing machine fairy will kindly bestow one on me. Anyway, just needed to be sad a moment and lament my loss.

Sundays are the best!

I personally enjoy attending church, my children, apparently, do not. We ran out of the house this morning with no shoes for Ava and Teegan fussing to go back to sleep. I swear, it's been about a month since I've been able to be on time to church and take the sacrament. I FINALLY got it today, but then had to come home and get TG to bed...ah, the joys of parenting.

Why does barf always come at 2 am?!!!

Seriously, I know I am ridiculously behind on posting to my blog, however, I just needed to vent on this particular issue. I HATE 2 AM BARFING...

Ava seems to always contract some NASTY stomach bug and come into our bedroom at 2 covered head to toe in vomit. I'm talking in her hair, on her face, down her pj's, in her pj's, on the soles of her feet. Honestly....did she say to herself, "I think I'll smear this all over my body before I go crying to my parents so they are forced to bathe me at some unholy hour in the middle of the night"?

And then, my darling of a hubby went to the store at 2:45 so I wouldn't have to trudge there with barffy Ava and sleepy Teegan this morning. Ah, the joys of parenting.

And Teegan slept through all of the fiasco.