The scoop on poop. Don't be scared of washing cloth diapers!

I think the most common response to cloth diapering (CDing) is eww, that's gross, how do you wash them?  It's really not that complicated.  I mean, it's not like we're in the front yard with a bucket and a washboard.  We have washing machines!

Here is my wash routine.  I have tried lots of different routines and have finally found one that seems to work well. 

First, some background info.  I have very hard water, an HE top loader (TL), and I wash every 3 days.

1) Put diapers and diaper pail in the washer.
2) Do a quick cold wash with no detergent.  (This rinses the poo and pee from the diapers and makes washing more effective.)
3) Super hot wash with detergent and 1/2 cap of Calgon, cold rinse.
4) Extra cold rinse.
5) Hang to dry.  (Sometimes I throw them in the dryer, but I really try to line dry 95% of the time.)

Once a month, I will do an RLR treatment, but I will do a different post on stripping.

People are also quite concerned about what to do about poop.  When they are little and are EBF or EFF, no rinsing is required.  Once you introduce solids, you will need to rinse the poo off before putting in the washing machine.  I just use a Bumgenius Diaper Sprayer and spray the poo into the toilet.  Some people use flushable liners.  I am not a fan of the liners b/c G only goes every 2-3 days.  I don't want to waste a bunch of liners waiting on a poo.  After I spray the diaper in the toilet, I will spray it with some diluted BacOut to help prevent stains and smells.

The sun is a miracle worker for organic stains.  Seriously, just put the clean, wet diapers in the sun and it will get rid of the stains.  If you have a particularly nasty stain, put some lemon juice on the clean, wet diaper and put it in the sun.  There will be a slight lemon juice stain, but just rewash the diaper before using and the lemon juice mark will be gone.

And now here is photo proof of the power of the sun.  These are clean, wet diapers.

The diaper on the left is an organic Dream-Eze AIO and the one on the right is an old style Grovia insert.  Both of them stain very easily b/c they are organic.

Close up of the Dream-Eze.

Close up of the Grovia insert.

This is how I dry the diapers.  The collapsible racks are great b/c I can hang everything up in the comfort of my air conditioned house.  They are also easy to grab in case it starts raining.

This was 4 hours later.  Stains are gone!

Close up of the Dream-Eze.

Close up of the Grovia insert.

You can stick anything with an organic stain in the sun.  I have used it for tomato sauce and it worked like a charm.  If you don't have access to the outdoors, you can stick the stained item in a window or even on the dashboard of your car!  Super easy!  The sun also has anti-microbial properties and helps to keep the stinkies away.

Jealousy

As some of you may know, I was planning a med-free birth center birth for Genevieve.  However, that plan didn't work out and I ended up with a c-section.  This is something I am still struggling to come to terms with.

I guess I could be considered a birth junkie-I like reading birth stories and enjoy talking to women about birth.  However, I must admit that I am jealous when I hear what I consider to be a beautiful birth story.  Basically anything that ends in a healthy baby without a c-section is what I consider to be beautiful.  Even more beautiful are the successful birth center births.

I still go to the birth center where I labored for a weekly breastfeeding support group.  The group is held in the same room where I studied hypnobirthing and dreamed and prepared for my labor.  Part of me still has a really hard time going back there.  I know, it probably sounds crazy.  When I am in that room, I think back to my mindset when we were preparing for her arrival.  I was anticipating this beautiful birth and her birth wasn't what I consider beautiful.  Am I glad that the c-section was available, of course.  I don't know how to explain it.

I also follow an online natural birth board.  Since G's birth though, I can only read a couple of posts before I get too upset and can't read anymore.  I also feel like I have to over explain why I needed a c-section.  I remember before G was born that I would critique every birth story that ended in a c-section...Why didn't they have her change positions, why didn't they do this, why didn't they do that.  I know that c-sections are done at an alarmingly high rate in our country right now.  I hate that I am part of that statistic.

You know what else I hate...I will never be able to have a birth center VBAC in my state.  It is illegal.  I can have a HBAC (home birth after cesarean) or a hospital VBAC.  I am not comfortable with doing a HBAC, so the hospital it will be.  It just sucks.

Then I have this scar to deal with.  The stretchmarks I can handle.  The giant scar, well that is a little bit more difficult to get used to.  It is a constant reminder of my failure as a woman to be able to birth my child.  I feel like I did everything right during pregnancy.  I ate well, I exercised, I did my Kegels, squats, I only gained 28 lbs, etc.  I try to tell myself that by doing everything right, I helped G grow to be strong so that she was able to be born without infection or any other issue. 

I feel like my labor was a tease.  It seemed like she was going to be born at the birth center-they even had the birth supplies on the bed.  But it was just a tease and she wasn't born there.

Then I hear stories from women who didn't take care of themselves and didn't prepare for labor-these are the women that seem to have the easiest labor and delivery.  Oh, the best stories are the ones that go along the lines of "I really wanted an epidural, but there was no time (or whatever), so I HAD to have a med-free birth."  Ugh-talk about rubbing salt in a wound.

My new found love of prefolds

Okay, I'll admit that I did not like prefolds in the beginning.  They were bulky and I just really didn't care for them.  Well, I have found the prefold love in the last few weeks. 

I love them for a few reasons:
1) They are cheap.  You can get a dozen high quality prefolds from www.greenmountaindiapers.com for less than $35.  That's a steal!

2) They are very low maintenance.  With some diapers (mainly those with microfiber), you have to be very careful about your wash routine or you can end up with the "stinkies."  Prefolds are 100% cotton, so they are pretty resilient.

3) They dry fast.  I line dry my diapers 99% of the time and the prefolds are usually dry within a couple of hours.

4) They are easy to use.  I typically just trifold a yellow edge prefold and use it with a Flips cover or a Thirsties Duo cover.  To trifold, you lay the diaper flat, and then fold in the two sides.  All of the fluff is now in the middle.  Then you just place it in a cover.  Easy peasy!  I will say that the trifold method isn't the greatest for holding in poops, but the cover will hold the poop in, so no worries there.

I have actually sold off part of my CD stash because I use prefolds so much.

Bed-sharing: Why it works for us.

First off, I feel that every woman and family should be able to do what works for them without being judged by others (as long as it isn't a form of abuse).  I feel the same way about birth and most things in life.

That being said, bed-sharing works for my family.  Before I was a mom, I said that I would not say that I would never do something.  I had the philosophy that I would just go with the flow and do what works for my baby, my husband, and me. 

I had secretly always wanted to bedshare.  However, when we got home from the hospital, Genevieve slept better in her pack n play next to our bed.  I was disappointed mainly because it was a few weeks before I could actually sit up or get out of bed.  It would have been so much easier to have her in bed next to me, especially in the beginning when she was up every hour and a half to eat.

Starting at around 6 weeks, her sleeping at night became very difficult.  She would wake up 5 minutes after being put down.  We finally decided to bring her in bed with us.  All 3 of us slept so much better!  She would typically give me a 6-7 hour stretch each night of sleep.  That is amazing for a breastfed baby!  Since she was in bed with me, I could tell she was about to wake up before she actually did.  This allowed me to easily feed her and both of us would fall right back to sleep.

Another reason this was fantastic is that my husband was working overnight shifts as a sleep lab technician.  Needless to say, I was exhausted.  When he was home during the day, he was sleeping and I needed to keep G quiet.  I was on my own for nighttime.  Bedsharing saved my sanity and allowed me to sleep.

I am sure some people think I am spoiling her and that this is a habit I will have to break.  I disagree.  Studies show that just like breastfeeding, babies will wean themselves when they are ready.

I want her to know that sleeping is a safe thing and isn't scary.  Perhaps this desire stems from my experience as a child.  I was absolutely terrified of the night and going to sleep.  I used to sleep with a lamp on until my Grandmother told me that if someone were to break in to our house, they would head straight to my room since that is where the light was.  Yeah, then I started laying there in the dark terrified of being robbed, or worse.  It was not fun.  I still suffer from awful nightmares every single night.  They are quite horrific and I tend to remember them all.  Most of my nightmares scare the living daylights out of my husband when I share them with him.

I digress...another reason I am okay with bedsharing is that it just feels natural.  G sleeps right up against me with her head in my armpit.  She sleeps on her back and doesn't thrash around or move.  I also don't move when she is next to me.  She spent 9 months in the womb where she listened to my heart 24/7.  I think it is comforting for her to be with me still.

If you bedshare, there are some safety things you should be aware of:
1) Never ever bedshare if either you or your husband have been drinking, doing drugs, or take medication that affects your sleep.  It is dangerous.
2) Keep covers and sheets to a minimum.  Covers should not go above your waist.
3) Keep pillows away from the baby.
4) If possible, put your bed against a wall.  This isn't possible for us.

Catching up: Belly pics

Okay, I know, I am a bad blogger. Being a mommy is quite time consuming!  I know I never posted all of my belly pics, so here is a pregnancy recap via photos.

18 Weeks:

19 weeks:

20 Weeks

21 Weeks:

22 Weeks:

23 Weeks:

24 Weeks:

25 Weeks:

25 Weeks 5 Days:

27 Weeks:

28 Weeks:

29 Weeks:

31 Weeks:

33 Weeks 4 Days:

35 Weeks 6 Days:

36 Weeks 6 Days:

39 Weeks:

40 Weeks 3 Days:

41 Weeks:

Labor started at 41 weeks 3 days and she was born at 41 weeks 5 days. 

Just for fun, here is 2 weeks post-partum.  It was amazing how quickly my stomach shrank back to normal.  I was at my pre-pregnancy weight by 4 weeks post-partum and was back in my pre-pg clothes by 5 weeks post-partum.

The "C" word...

No mom wants to admit that their baby might have the dreaded c word...colic.  I knew Genevieve cried and screamed a lot.  It was awful.  I was always nervous when people would come over because who wants to be the lady with the crying baby?  Going out in public...next to impossible.  I would pray that she would be asleep or that I would be somewhere that I could breastfeed her constantly.

She would also cry and scream when she had to poop.  It would also take her a long time to poop, usually a couple of hours from the first grunt and sign of discomfort.  We called her pediatrician and were told that it is completely normal.  We were also told that babies cry and it would pass.

She also started having a skin issue.  It looked like a chemical burn to me.  There were dry, raised, rough patches on her arms and her legs.  It wasn't eczema and it looked awful.

She also would not nap during the day.  I was lucky to get 2 fifteen minute stretches and I had to be holding her.

Since I was having a hard time emotionally post-partum, I went to my mom's house for a couple of weeks.  Chris was working overnight shifts as well as still serving, so he wasn't around much to help.  While at my mom's house, she confirmed that Genevieve's crying and screaming wasn't normal at all.

I started researching like crazy.  Everything I read pointed to colic.  My question though was what exactly is colic?  Colic is really just a term that is given to babies who cry when there is no other medical diagnosis.  Basically colic is just like IBS or fibromyalgia...there is something wrong, but no one really knows what.

While doing research, I came across several studies that said there was a 95% success rate in reduction of fussiness in colicky babies by using probiotics vs only a 7% success while using gas drops.  95% sure seemed like a good number to me!

Okay, now I need to research probiotics.  I came to the conclusion that it needed to have 3 strains: L. Reuteri, lactobacilius, and bifidobacterium.

Chiropractor treatment was mentioned as well, so I scheduled an appointment with the chiropractor who was able to get me into labor since she specializes with infants and children.

I started the probiotics on a Tuesday and noticed an improvement the next day.  You could no longer feel bubbles of gas moving around in her tummy.  You could no longer hear the bubbles either.

She went in for her chiropractor appointment on Thursday.  Dr. S examined her and asked me if she had trouble moving her bowels because she had some locked vertebrae in her lower thoracic upper lumber region.  Dr. S also did some neck adjustments which was supposed to help with reflux.  The doctor then did a muscle test on Genevieve.  Genevieve sat on my lap while I held out my right arm.  Dr. S. had me hold my arm strong while she pushed down while pushing on various spots on Genevieve.  She determined that there was an issue with Genevieve's immune system, particularly in regards to bacteria.  She gave me a homeopathic to take for 5 days.  (I breastfeed so the homeopathic would go through the breast milk to her alcohol free.)

Genevieve actually pooped and fell asleep before we left the chiropractors office.  She took 2 three hour naps that day and slept well that night.

I am happy to report that Genevieve no longer cries and screams during all waking hours.  She still cries, but is easy to calm 99% of the time.  She also naps during the day.  Typically she takes 3 two hour naps, but not all the time.  She sleeps at night from 10 pm to 6 am, eats, and is back asleep until about 8 am.  For a breastfed baby, this is awesome!  She no longer has "silent reflux."  Silent reflux is where you can hear stuff coming up after a feeding but the baby doesn't throw up.  She no longer arches her back during and after feedings.  Also, her skin issue cleared up a week after I started the homeopathic.

Here is a link to an article that kind of sums everything up: http://www.healthychild.com/digestive-problems/treating-reflux-and-colic-in-babies/

One of the things I am now wondering about is the use of antibiotics during labor and birth and the incidence of colic.  I ended up having an emergency c-section (read about that below if you are interested) and was given a lot of antibiotics via IV b/c I was showing signs of infection after having my water broken for 36+ hours before delivery.

Also, I wanted to avoid using Zantac because there are a lot of potential negative side effects when used on young infants.  I would have put her on it if nothing else worked, but I wanted to try alternatives first.  I also had to eliminate dairy from my diet.

Baby Stuff Reviews

Okay, this will probably end up being a long post.  I have debated about how to organize this, but I have decided on reviewing items by category.

Items will be rated on a scale from 1-10.  1 being absolutely useless and 10 being I can't imagine having a baby without said item.

Also, I am by no means an expert.  These are just my opinions from the first 11 weeks of being a mom.  : )

Breastfeeding Supplies:
*Milk Maids Reusable Nursing Pads: 9
I have the OBV (organic bamboo velour) luxury ones and I love them.  These are great because they are large (5 inches in diameter I believe) and are made with a step down process.  They are also PUL backed, so you don't have to worry about leaking.  They are super soft (a good thing) and they don't get cold when wet (another good thing).  I put the link to the FB page b/c these are super hard to find.  She will announce where and when she is stocking on FB.

*Bamboobies Reusable Nursing Pads: 9
I love that these are made of bamboo, backed with PUL, and are thin.  The heart shape also makes them less visible under clothes.

*Green Sprouts Organic Reusable Nursing Pads: 2
These are very, very thick, scratchy, and get cold when wet.  Also, they aren't PUL backed, so you they will leak.  They are so thick that there is no way you can wear them under a shirt without them being completely obvious.  Just skip these.

*Lansinoh Disposable Nursing Pads:3
I don't care for disposable products like these.  I actually only used them once and just didn't care for the itchy papery feel.  Definitely go with the reusable product.  Also, the disposable pads have chemicals in them (similar to those in disposable diapers) that I didn't want on me or going in baby's mouth.

*Ameda Purely Yours Breast Pump:9
I am thankful that I had a breast pump before G arrived.  However, I strongly advise on sterilizing and knowing how to use your pump before your child arrives.  Some people advise on not opening the pump until you know you are going to successfully breastfeed.  Let me tell you, when you are so engorged that your child can't latch and it takes 3 hours to get him/her latched on, you will wish you had that pump ready to go!  The Ameda PY works well and I like that it is a closed system. A closed system means that no milk goes through the membranes, so this is one that is actually safe to buy used.  It works just as well as the Medela, but costs half as much.

*Boobs: 10.  Haha!  Just kidding, but, they are super important for breastfeeding.

*Ameda Hydrogel Pads: 10
Hopefully you won't need these.  However, I was given very bad BFing advice in the hospital and ended up with cracked, bleeding, blistered nipples.  They were going to give these to me in the hospital, but were actually out.  I had to drive to Babies R Us the day after I got home from the hospital to buy these.  However, they were a life saver!!!  They allowed me to heal.  They may seem pricey, but they lasted 5 or 6 days for me and allowed me to continue breastfeeding.  The $16 these cost is a lot cheaper than having to switch to formula!

*My Brest Friend Pillow: 4
I got this pillow b/c everything I read about nursing pillows said this one is recommended by lactation consultants.  Honestly, I discovered I didn't need a nursing pillow.  I have a short waist and the nursing pillows were putting her up too high.  If I needed one in the beginning, I would have chosen this one.  It is nice that it is nice and firm which makes it easier to properly place a newborn to latch.

*Boppy: 6
The only reason I rated this higher than the Brest Friend Pillow is that it has other uses.  It is great for propping up G or during tummy time.  I do use it for "lazy" nursing (meaning I want to be hands-free).

Bottles:
I am not going to say much here other than have several different kinds and don't open more than 1 at a time so you can return them.  I now have several bottles that G won't take and I can't return them.  She has decided she only likes the $9 per bottle Tommee Tippee bottles.  We have one and that is plenty for now.

Baby Containers:
*Graco Lauren Crib: 6
G hasn't slept in her crib yet, but this crib seems like it will do the trick.  We got it in white and some of the paint seems to be wearing away.  Kind of like the wood wasn't primed before painting.

*Fisher Price Snug-a-bunny swing: 10
Love this!  It plugs into the wall (a big plus!), plays music & nature sounds, has a mobile with a mirror, and has 3 different seat positions.  This is how I get G to sleep if she is fighting it (which happens a lot)!

*Fisher Price Snug-a-bunny bouncer: 8
This is definitely nice to have, but not a necessity.  It moves around the house with us and it is a nice place to put G while I am cooking, eating, or taking a shower.  It has vibration, music, and nature sounds.  G loves to look up at the little birds too.

*Fisher Price Rock n Play Sleeper: 10
This is another life saver!!!  Our friends got this for G and I don't think it was even on my registry.  Many nights G will sleep in this and she takes a lot of naps in it as well.  She is also content to hang out in it while I fold laundry, do dishes, etc.  The nice thing about this is that it folds compactly and is easy to take with me if I am going out of town.

*Graco Pack n' Play with Newborn Napper: 9
G slept in the newborn napper for about the first 6 weeks.  The vibration and music feature on the napper and bassinet are great.  The light also comes in handy.  The changing table was great for in the beginning for middle of the night changes.  We had to stop using the changing table when she reached 11 lbs because it started to lean.  I like that the vibration thingy works on the bassinet part too.

*Uppababy Vista Stroller: 10
I feel like this is the BMW of strollers.  I love that it has a bassinet included (we even have a stand for it so we can use it in the living room).  It rides smoothly and the front wheels lock so you can jog occasionally with it without worry.  It has a regular seat too which can face you or away.  We also purchased the car seat adapter, so our car seat fits with no problem.

*Graco Snugride 35 in Logan: 8
I love everything about this except the fact that it is hot.  I don't know if other car seats are better or not with this though.

Baby Carriers:
*Beco Butterfly II:10
I don't know if I could survive without this!  It is great to use during shopping, cleaning, walking, whatever.  What I really like about this carrier is that it is easy to do a back carry with a younger child.  G falls asleep in this thing all the time!

*Boba: 8
I don't use this one much yet as G is still a little too small for it.  It will be great when she is older though.  I like that it has stirrups so that her feet won't dangle when she gets older.

*Moby wrap:  4
I just didn't care for this because it was soooo hot!  G and I would both be super sweaty within minutes.  If I had had the Beco when she was first born, I would have just used that with the newborn insert and been just fine.

Clothing:
Seriously, you will probably get a lot of clothes if you are having a baby shower.  We had a lot of NB sized clothes, but G was only able to wear them for maybe 2 weeks before she outgrew them.

*Carters Side Snap Shirts: 10
I found the side snap shirts to be much easier in the beginning than onesies.  G didn't like onesies going over her head and the shirts rubbed her umbilical stump less than the onesies.  Buy the Carters over the Gerber ones.  The Gerber ones shrink and won't last as long.

*Towels: We were given a few of the special baby hooded ones.  They are nice but not necessary.

*Mittens: Another thing I got because I was told I needed them.  G never had a mitten on her for one day.  She didn't scratch herself once either.  They are actually not great for motor development.

*Socks:  Ditto mittens.  I *think* she wore socks once or twice.  She is a hot baby and doesn't really need or want them.

*Hats: Ditto mittens and socks.  G hates hats with a passion.  In the hospital they kept putting hats on her and she would start screaming.  I would remove the hat and then they would come in and put it on while they were checking on her.  Screaming would commence.  It was a fun cycle, let me tell you!

*Sleeping attire: In the beginning, I loved the gowns with elastic at the bottom.  They made all of those middle of the night diaper changes much easier.  There is no way I could master those crazy snapped ones at 3 am.  We then switched to footed sleepers which were nice.  I definitely recommend zippers over snaps (see previous comment about snaps).  Now she sleeps in a long-sleeved onesie with a halo sleep sack.

*Aden and Anais blankets: 9
Make sure to get the expensive "boutique" ones, not the ones from Target or BRU.  The boutique ones are 47" x 47" and are more stretchy and soft than the other ones.  I got one of the boutique ones free from a cloth diaper order that I did on Black Friday.  G doesn't throw up or leak out of her diapers (yay for cloth!), so one of these blankets has been enough.  I would love to have more but I am cheap.  Keep an eye on www.babysteals.com, because these come out all the time.  It isn't as good of a deal as it seems though because of shipping.