10 Things I Use for Cloth Diapering

Real Me Monday

 

I started using cloth diapers when I had Miss Tickles. I am not an expert at all things cloth diapering, but I like what I use and am happy to share what I do with you.

Cloth Diapering

The reason I decided to start cloth diapering with my third child was when I realized how much money I had already spent on diapers/pull ups since becoming a mother. Just for one kid, using five diapers a day for two years at $.25 a diaper is almost a thousand dollars! And if you have kids, you know that only five a day is not realistic. I wanted to cut back on our expenses as much as possible.

My sister started cloth diapers with Songbird (not her real name) when she was born. She shared all her tips and tricks to make it easier. I had tried a couple of the all-in-one kind and wasn’t too sure about it. Her method worked a lot better for me. I’m thankful now that I went with the cotton flats with covers because the all-in-ones I had were all polyester and made Miss Tickles break out right away.

These are all the supplies I use to cloth diaper (each one will link to the kind I purchased):

1. 24 Cotton Flats

(We cut some small for the first few months when baby is little and then used size small for a while. We eventually bought the large size, which fit better with the size 2 covers.)

2. Snappi Cloth Diaper Fasteners – Pack of 3 (Light Blue, Bright Blue, White)

(If you are prone to losing them, I would suggest getting two packs.)

3. Cloth Wipes

(I cut up a few of my cotton flats into wipes size and serged the edges.)

4. Thirsties Duo Wrap Snap, Meadow, Size One (6-18 lbs)

    Thirsties Duo Wrap, Meadow, Size Two (18-40 lbs)

(We have about nine covers per size. Size 1 fit till about nine months old, and we now use size 2.)

5. Kissaluvs Diaper Lotion Potion 4 oz. Squirt Bottle, Concentrate

(It’s concentrated. I still have the original bottle I bought when Miss Tickles was born and still have a lot left. Put it in a spray bottle and spray on bum when changing. Wet cloth wipe with another spray bottle filled with water.)

6. Bummis Fabulous Wet Diaper Bag, Green, Medium

(I have two for the diaper bag.)

7. Thirsties Deluxe Diaper Pail Liner, White

(Use this in a laundry hamper to put used cloth diapers in.)

8. Diaper Safe Detergent

(I actually use the Melaleuca brand Laundry detergent that I use for all of our clothes. I put barely any in and run it through on hot super wash with a second rinse cycle. So far I haven’t had any big issues. If the diapers seem like they are getting a detergent build up, I wash them through a second or third time before drying. This always seems to work fine. My sister has boiled her diapers to get any funk out if the extra washes don’t seem to do the trick. Here is a good explanation on how to do that and why.)

9. Coconut Oil for diaper rash.

(It’s natural, diaper safe, and works pretty quickly. Lately I have been buying Barlean’s Organic Oils Extra Virgin Coconut Oil, 16-Ounce Jar.)

10. Disposable diapers for bedtime

(She gets too wet in the middle of the night and wakes up if I use cloth. We use huggies pure and natural or seventh generation diapers.)

Your start up cost will be around $250 by using all the products I have mentioned. The total cost after buying the larger size will be just over $400. That’s for your whole diapering years and can be passed on and used with another baby. Sounds a lot better to me than the $1000+ for disposable.

This is how I fold my diapers.

 

The beauty of cloth diapering is that it saves you enough money that if you have a crazy day or week, you can use disposables, and you are still spending less than you would using disposable full time. I haven’t noticed any increase in my water or electric bill since starting cloth diapers either. I wish I had known how to do this with my first, but I am happy to have made the switch. I like being able to toss them in the wash and not have to worry about a last minute run to the store if we run out of diapers.

What Does Sound Look Like?

Weekend WonderingsHave you ever wondered what sound looks like? Wait a minute. Sound is what you hear, not what you see. According to Wikipedia:

Sound is a mechanical wave that is an oscillation of pressure transmitted through some medium (like air or water), composed of frequencies within the range of hearing.

There is a whole field of scientific research called cymatics, which studies making sound waves visible. Watch the following video. You will be amazed at the beautiful, complex designs created by different sound frequencies. To create these, sand or salt is sprinkled onto a metal plate which vibrates according to the frequency of the sound waves. The sand or salt moves as the frequency changes.

Pretty amazing, isn’t it? Many of the designs that show up in these studies are similar to the designs seen in much of nature. Scriptures says that God spoke the world into being. We are probably only scratching the surface in our understanding of what is really involved in sound.

Evan Grant studies cymatics and shares more about making sound visible in this short TED talk:

The next time you hear something (music, spoken words, sounds in nature, etc.) don’t just listen. Stop and think about what that sound might look like!

Favorite Refrigerated Pickle Recipe Made Healthier

Foody FridayFor years I have made refrigerator pickles from the following recipe. It’s from one of those fundraiser cookbooks where everyone in an organization contributes favorite recipes.Original Pickle RecipeThey were super simple to make and tasted delicious. Since I have cut out using white refined sugar in my cooking, I wasn’t sure if I would be able to make these pickles any more. When the one cucumber plant that actually grew in my garden decided to start producing, I wondered how I was going to use cucumbers in other ways besides chopped up on salads. Melinda challenged me to try to make my favorite pickle recipe more healthy. We decided to use honey instead of sugar and less of it as well.Ingredients for healthy pickle recipeSo here’s the new version for Healthy Refrigerator Pickles:

8 cups sliced cucumbers
1-2 onions, sliced thinly
1 cup white vinegar
1 cup honey
2 tbsp sea salt
1 tps celery seed

Heat the honey and vinegar in saucepan over medium low heat to melt the honey. Layer the cucumbers, onions, salt and celery seed in large jar until full (or you could make in large covered bowl.) Pour the hot honey/vinegar mixture into the jar. Refrigerate and eat when cool (but taste even better after 2-3 days.) Will keep in refrigerator for many weeks. Pickles in jarPouring liquid into pickle jarThey turned out great! And because I know they are more healthy, I think they taste even better than before. If you like sweet pickles, give this recipe a try. It just might become one of your favorites too!Healthy refrigerator Pickles

Start a Hobby: Crochet or Knit

Thoroughly Thrifty ThursdayI learned how to crochet from my mom and grandma when I was a little girl. I didn’t get much past dishcloths at that point. While I was in college, crochet became a big thing among some of my fellow students. It was pretty common to see a group sitting together at the cafeteria or the dorm lounge areas with at least one or two people making scarves–and guys were among them. My roommate and I decided to get into it, somewhat motivated by the need for christmas presents for our family and a lack of funds. It would be a scarf Christmas that year! Since then, I have moved beyond the scarves to blankets, hats, toys, etc. I even started a business for my crochet creations a few years ago–Nia Bug Designs.

My sister taught me how to knit a few years ago, and after much practice with small blanket lovies and dishcloths, I just moved on to headbands last Christmas. It’s nice to go back and forth between knitting and crocheting because they use different muscles I think. It helps keep my hands from getting overworked with just one motion.

Crochet and/or knitting are great hobbies to start because they require such a small amount of equipment. If you have a small budget and a small space, all you need is a bag to keep all your supplies together. No need for large cabinets of space (unless you become a yarnaholic like me).

These are the basic supplies you need to crochet:

  • Yarn (worsted weight light colored acrylic or cotton is a good place to start) $2-5
  • Aluminum Crochet Hook (Size G or H are good basic sizes) $2
  • Small Scissors $2
  • Tapestry Needle (I recommend aluminum over the plastic) $4

Total approximate start up cost for Crochet: $10-$13

Crochet Basic Tools

Get started learning how to crochet by watching videos and reading these instructions. And practice! Don’t give up! You’ll get it.

Eventually, as you get into making hats and toys and such, these stitch markers are helpful in keeping track of your rows.

Ring Stitch Count Tools

Stitch markers are helpful for crochet and knitting. They cost about $2

Here are the basic supplies for knitting:

  • Yarn (worsted weight acrylic or cotton yarn) $2-5
  • Knitting needles size 8 (Circular needles–I like the ones that are attached because you can’t lose one! Also they help if you are doing a large project because it stays on the needles easier) $5-7
  • Small Scissors $2
  • Tapestry needle $4

Total approximate start up cost for knitting: $13-$18

Knitting Basic Tools

Here are some videos and instructions for learning how to knit.

As you get the techniques mastered and are ready for some projects beyond scarves and dishcloths, Ravelry.com is a great place to get patterns in all ranges of difficulty.

For my project bags, I use the packages that most sheets come in. They protect your project as well as keep all your tools together in one spot for easy transportation.

Yarn Project

 

Happy knitting, crocheting, and creating!

Sketch a Dish

Draw with me Wednesday

I pulled a dish out of my china cabinet and inspiration hit me. It dawned on me that the designs on some of the glass dishes would be fun to sketch. Perhaps those designs would inspire other creative ideas.

China Cabinet

I picked out a some dishes with simpler designs to start drawing.

Glass DishSketch Dish Design 1Glass DishSketch Dish DesignGlass Dish Sketch Dish DesignGlass Dish DesignSketch Dish Design

I have several old dishes with beautiful designs, which belonged to my grandmothers. I plan to try sketching some of those designs. Do you have old dishes just sitting in your cabinets waiting to give you some inspiration? Pull them out and start sketching!

Easy Peasy Summer Shorts

Transform it Tuesday

As we have mentioned before, My Princess outgrew a lot of her clothes this year. She had hardly anything for summer for a while. Knowing how quickly she has grown this last year, I wasn’t sure if keeping her 5t clothes for this winter would work. Since she might outgrow them, I decided to go ahead and turn some of them into shorts for the summer.

I didn’t take any before pictures, but here are the finished transformations.

Even if you aren’t much of a sewer yet, turning pants into shorts can be pretty easy. It can be as simple as cutting them a couple inches longer than the length you want and then folding them up twice like I did with an old pair of her brother’s jeans. Shorts from Jeans

Or if you like the hipster look, you can just cut them off and leave them. I added a zigzag stitch of pink and a zigzag of orange around the bottom to give it a little decoration and prevent too much raveling.

Shorts from Jeans

This pair of leggings took a little more effort. I cut them to capri length and added a lace trim to the bottom. These were her favorite after I showed her the new shorts. They look pretty darn cute on her too.

Shorts from LeggingsShorts modeled
Cutting pants into shorts yourself is a great way to have control over the length. I prefer longer shorts for myself and my girls, so if I can’t find them in the store, this is an easy alternative.

 

Baby Doll Bunk Bed

Real Me Monday

A few weeks ago our daughter, who lives too far away, sent her Dad (Pa) some plans for a doll bunk bed, asking if he could build one for our “just turned two” granddaughter. He enjoys these new projects because his motto is: New Project = New Tool. Before we knew it, the doll bed was sitting on the kitchen counter.

Unfinished doll bunk bed

He used a pocket hole jig to make the angled cuts so the screws are hidden. Then he filled the holes with wooden plugs.

Doll Bed builder helper

Ninja Boy had fun helping Pa in the workshop!

He turned it over to Melinda and I to finish. Once we got started on it, I think he was not too sure he should have! We had different ideas in mind than he envisioned.

Doll in bunk bed

Of course, before we could get started, Miss Tickles had to try it out with the baby dolls.

We primed it and then painted the whole thing white. Then we decided the ladder should be pink. Melinda and I have been having so much fun decorating with scrapbook paper, we decorated the bed with it as well. My daughters are loving the small vintage flower prints these days, so that’s what we used. Melinda covered the side boards with strips of paper, attaching them with mod podge. When that dried, we covered the whole thing with many coats of acrylic finish to seal it and make it two-year-old durable. We think it turned out pretty cute.Doll Bunk Bed

I found some cottons and flannel that coordinated with the paper prints on the bed and sewed a mattress, pillow and rag quilt for each bed.Doll BeddingI had enough material left over to make my granddaughter a matching rag quilt for her own bed (actually, I had that plan all along.)Rag quilt

Time to try out the beds.

Dolls in Bunk BedDoll SleepingDolls in bunk bed

The baby dolls at my house are happy with the new bed. Unfortunately, they will have to talk Pa into making one for them because this one is being sent out east. We’ll see how my granddaughter’s babies like it!

Become Like Child

Weekend Wonderings


“…become humble as this little child…” Matthew 18
:3

Kids playKids playMy kids saw a pile of dirt on the driveway at Grandma and Pa’s house this spring. They plopped down and started drawing pictures with their fingers and with sticks. They didn’t care about getting dirty. They just thought it would be fun. They experienced sensory play without having anybody set it up for them. Nothing had to be bought. They just took an opportunity that presented itself and had fun.

As adults, we need to humble ourselves and stop thinking about getting dirty, or that something is too simple, or that our life is too complicated to slow down. Go outside and stick your feet in the dirt, poke around with a stick. Simplify your life for a moment and just enjoy using your senses. Maybe a little more peace will come your way in the midst of your crazy schedules, opening up your mind to some new creative ideas.

Kids play

 

5 Reasons Why You are Not a Good Cook

Foody FridayHave you ever seen the Food Network show called Worst Cooks in America? They take a handful of the worst cooks and turn them into chefs. I loved watching these people transform.

When I hear people say they are not good cooks, that show will often come to my mind. I believe that there are people out there that are really not good at cooking, but I feel like everybody has a chance at becoming good if they try. Maybe you won’t be a chef for a five star restaurant anytime soon, but you can make a decent meal for your family. Being a bad cook does not have to be a badge you wear forever.

Here are the reasons why I think people end up being bad cooks. . .

1. You are distracted

When you start cooking and get interrupted by your children, husband, facebook notification etc., that makes you lose track of how long something has been baking, boiling, sauteing etc. It’s easy to let something get overcooked or even burned to a crisp.Burnt Food
And to let you know it can happen to anybody…I’ve made quinoa so many times I can’t count. One morning, I started making it and walked away, distracted by who knows what. I didn’t realize till I smelled something burning that I had put something on the stove. Mmmm burnt quinoa!
It happens. Sometimes it’s not our fault and we have to stop what we are doing to pull the sister off the brother before someone gets hurt or you have to stop the toddler from eating toilet paper out of the toilet. I understand. However, the best way to get the correct results out of your meal is to stay at the stove and be able to focus on what you are doing. If it helps, set a timer to check back in a couple minutes so you don’t completely forget about it.

2. You don’t slow down

It’s easy to mess things up if you are in a rush. The best way to make a good meal is to have enough time to accomplish the task. If you are constantly starting dinner at 5pm after everyone is already in upset hungry mode (the term my family uses when we are so hungry we start getting angry with each other too easily), it’s easy to rush and pour something in before it was supposed to be poured in, start cooking on a pan that’s too cool, or pull something out of the oven before it’s fully cooked. Give yourself enough time to complete every step in the right amount of time. You are not on Chopped. Nobody is making you make dinner in 30 minutes or less. Even if you only have 30 minutes to cook, prep some of it earlier when you do have time. Slow down long enough to plan ahead and keep your mind clear enough to think straight.

3. You start the recipe before reading it all the way through

Mom and I made waffles a couple weeks ago on their new waffle maker. We decided to try the recipe that came with it. Unfortunately, we didn’t read through it all the way and once we got to the last step, realized that it was supposed to sit for an hour before cooking the batter. If we had read it all the way through first, we would have used a different recipe. It didn’t turn out so great.

Have you ever started a recipe and halfway through realized you were missing or were short on an ingredient? It’s even worse if it is something you can’t or shouldn’t stop part way through.

If you read the recipe ahead of time, you will know what ingredients you need, how long it is going to take, and what step will be coming up next. You can prepare or measure some of the ingredients ahead of time so they are ready if they need to be added quickly. You will be prepared for each step as it comes.

4. You don’t watch

I haven’t always cooked like I do now. When I was younger, I lived on boxed macaroni and cheese. In college and when I first got married, I had plenty of ramen, Hamburger Helper, and frozen meals. Our first year or two of marriage, the hubby and I watched a lot of Food Network shows. We learned a lot from Alton Brown’s show Good Eats. It got us thinking about food differently and empowered us to try new things. We tried new techniques when cutting food and tried new ingredients that we hadn’t used before. You can watch some Food Network shows on YouTube.

To get your food ideas cooking (wink wink), you can also listen to a new podcast by Alton Brown.

You don’t have to watch Food Network shows to watch people cook. When you are at someone’s house for dinner who you know is a good cook, watch carefully what they do. Maybe even ask how they do something and get information that way. As you eat your food, ask what spices or techniques they used if you like it.

5. You don’t practice

If most of what you eat is packaged foods or go out to eat more often than not, then you aren’t allowing yourself enough practice cooking. You have to remember that you will make mistakes. Your family will probably have to eat a few meals that are, well, not so great, but keep trying. Keep practicing and you will get better. All it takes is a little determination and lots of practice. Every time you make a recipe, you will gain confidence and learn better techniques to get tasty results.

Being a bad cook is not permanent! Just keep working at it and take care of some of these issues. You’ll be making great meals before you know it!

A few weeks ago, there was a great post on Becoming Minimalist about enjoying cooking. I had already been thinking about writing this post, but after I read this one, I thought it would go right along with it.

Five Reasons Why You Are Not a Good Cook

Cookie Cutter Gift Tags

Thoroughly Thrifty Thursday

Need a quick gift tag for a package? Look in your cupboard for your cookie cutters. Unless you bake a lot of cookies, they probably sit in the back of your cupboard hardly ever used. You can probably put them to use more often as stencils for crafting projects. A big tub of cookie cutters is also more economical than purchasing crafting stencils. Melinda got this big tub of 100 cookie cutters for $10.Cookie Cutters

You can trace the edges of the cookie cutter onto the back of scrapbook paper, cut out the shape, and then embellish the front (if you have time). Write on the tag and tape it to your present. The recipient of your gift will think you are amazingly creative!

Here are a few tags we made and added a some ribbons, buttons, beads and wood cutouts to embellish them.Cookie Cutter Gift TagsGift Tags

 

Special thanks to a friend (you know who you are) for this wonderful suggestion!