Cloth Wipes

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I have recently discovered cloth wipes that are worth using, and I didn’t even have to buy them.  I took one of the many flannel receiving blankets that we have and don’t use, because they are way too tiny to actually wrap around a baby, cut it into 16 squares, and instantly had 16 wipes to use.  The edges have frayed in the wash, and eventually I will stitch some kind of edge on them to prevent that, but they get the job done, and can be tossed in with the rest of the diapers.

For the solution, I mix 1 quart of water, 2 squirts of baby body wash, and 3 drops of lavender oil.  Then I just dip the wipe in the solution, squeeze the excess out, and wipe my little ones’ bums.  To avoid contaminating the solution, we don’t double dip.  The lavender oil is to help soothe little bums when they have a rash, so if you don’t have any you can just use the water and baby body wash.

If you don’t want to make your wipes, Walmart has some cheap, but nice, baby wash cloths that are soft and already have a nice edge on them.  Or, if you do want to make them, but don’t want to chop up your receiving blankets, I suggest buying cotton flannel or some other soft material made out of cotton.

Healthy Eating – Ice Cream

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Part of healthy eating is understanding what your body really wants when you’re craving something you probably shouldn’t eat.  For example, a sugar craving usually means your body really needs protein.  It sounds kind of strange, but if you’re dying for some sugar, eat a piece of cheese instead.

In regards to ice cream, your body is craving the fat from the cream, salt, it’s in there I promise, and sugar, obviously.  So, find a different way to satisfy those cravings.  I have found that an orange and cottage cheese satisfies all of the cravings: fat and salt in the cottage cheese, and sugar in the orange.  You can use any orange-like fruit as well.  I really like this with clementines.  Plus, they taste pretty good together.

Covers

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Covers were the kind of cloth diaper that I never wanted to try.  I was avoiding them as much as I could.  I thought they would be hard, since they originate from the old school diapers people used to use.  But, since my attempt at making newborn pockets failed, I had to come up with a cheap option fast.  I gave in.  We bought four Thirsties Duo Wraps, size small.  They are just a piece of PUL with some elastic around the edge, and snaps as closures.

It turns out they’re not as hard as I thought they would be.  We use microfiber inserts for them, and I am in the process of making some 100% cotton inserts for them.  Flats and prefolds can, also, be used in them.  Basically anything that is absorbent will work when using a cover.

To use the cover, I lay an insert flat on the cover, and then slide the diaper in place.  I snap it closed on the sides, and then check to make sure the insert is completely covered by the cover.  For a wet diaper, I simply take the diaper off, put the soiled insert in a wet bag, wipe the cover with a wipe, and lay it out to dry.  For a dirty diaper, I toss the whole diaper in a wet bag.  (There’s no need to rinse, since it’s just breast milk poop.)

You don’t need as many covers as you have inserts, since you can reuse the ones that are only wet.  The covers are cheaper than other, fancier diapers, and the inserts are super affordable.  Plus, making a cover is just about the easiest thing ever and you’ll get about six for the price of one you have to buy.  Inserts are a little more challenging, but they are cheaper than buying.

There will be more to come on sewing diapers later.

My New Blog

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It may take some time for me to get the hang of this, but here is my new blog!

Some things to look forward to: Cloth Diapers!  101 Goals in 1001 Days!  New Recipes using Thrive foods!  Cooking Videos!

I’m super excited.  I hope you can bear with me as I will be messing around with the website quite a bit until I get it set up the way I want it, but I must write, otherwise the four years of journalism I had in high school will be a waste.

-k.stuff