Quotations

She: I think it was Thomas Jefferson who said, "Make water when you can."
He: I'll try to remember that when I make preserves next.
She: Not preserves. Water: "Make water when you..." Oh.
He: (pause) That was thoroughly satisfying.
She: (glare)

N.B. It was the Duke of Wellington.

How We Became Hippie Parents, Part 2b

I did mean to get back to this a little earlier, but, well, the whole parenting thing.

So, round two: more on cloth diapers.  Evidently I have become the spokesman among my friends and acquaintances (and even my family's friends and acquaintances, on occasion) for cloth diapers.  I keep thinking that I have a post to point them to on my blog, but never seem to be able to find it when I'm looking for it.  (Now I look for it and find it, but we've changed a few things, so I'll just leave what I wrote and you'll have to re-read or skip or give me snarky comments.)

When my husband and I first started looking at using cloth diapers, we considered a few things:

• cost
• ease of use
• environment

Cloth diapers seemed to win in all those categories except, well, the dealing-with-poo part, which wasn't going to exactly be avoided with diaper-changing of whatever sort.

We were fortunate enough to be able to go to a brick-and-mortar cloth diaper store in our area (which is now online-only, but still a good resource) and have a knowledgeable person to ask questions of, and to look at the physical diapers themselves.  We decided to get 24 BumGenius one-size pocket diapers, which then were only available with aplix (like velcro) closures (eight each of blue, green, and white).  We were blessed to have been given a large amount of money at the baby shower, but it was still a large outlay.

I didn't want to get the diapers with snaps because I wasn't sure that they would give me enough flexibility in sizing, but that turned out to be silly.  The aplix ended up wearing out after the first kid, so in my online wishing that we'd gone with snaps in the first place, I found that others wished the same, and there were plenty of conversion tutorials online.  We bought a few snap-installing supplies ($52.05 including shipping for pliers (with cosmetic defect), and way more snaps, caps and sockets, than we need (still), but they come in bunches of 100) and I ripped off the aplix patches (woo seamripper fun!) and my husband installed the snaps per the instructions online.  (Just Google: convert cloth diaper and look for something you can follow, or pay someone to do it for you.  Or, radical idea, just buy the ones with the snaps in the first place.)

The elastic in the legs had also worn out by the time the second kid was about due, and that wasn't someplace we could afford to have openings!  I found more tutorials online, and ripped out the old elastic and replacing it ($2.60 from Joanne's for thread and elastic, and lots of time).  I hadn't done any sewing project since I was six and in a sewing class, so all I needed were basic sewing supplies, including a thimble (which was a gift from Reve) that I'd never had occasion to use before, but was exceedingly grateful for.  It was easier than I had hoped, as the elastic is only affixed at each end, not throughout the length of the leg hole.

Another thing we bought when first getting the diapers was a cloth diaper-pail liner.  And then we got another one, because when you're doing laundry, the baby is still using up those diapers and you'll need a place to put them.  The great thing about the cloth diaper-pail liner is that you can stuff all of the laundry into the washing machine including the bag.

The best purchase, though, has to be the diaper sprayer.  If you're doing cloth diapers, and your toilet has a flexible connection to the wall plumbing, just get one.  It's easy to install (especially if your husband does it for you; he says it's easy to install).  All the solids go into the toilet quite easily.  My mother's and sister's houses do not have the flexible connection, so when I visit them, I am scrubbing away in the toilet and my children just don't seem as charming as usual for those moments.  (And unless you have a low place to sit, your knees and shoulders hurt after a surprisingly short while.)

We had been gifted with some disposable diapers and wipes, but gave away the diapers, keeping the wipes for a while.  Soon, though, it dawned on us that we had to walk to a trash can to throw those away, separate from disposing of the diapery things into the diaper pail.  My brilliant engineer husband just went and bought 24 washcloths, and we just wet those and use them, rinsing and washing them with the rest of the diapers.

I don't think we've figured out the best diaper pail situation yet.  We bought a metal step-to-open trash can from Target, but that rusted after a while and was hard to clean.  After the move, we got a too-small click-top plastic trash can, but that doesn't seem to suit the size of diaper-pail liners and the click-top is horrible, as is the smell.  It's what we're using for now though.  My husband thinks we should get some sort of laundry basket with holes in it, as keeping the smell in seems to lend it strength; I remain unconvinced on airing out the diapers in the larger area of the bathroom (with my nose and no fan, and, currently, a non-opening window).  If you have any excellent solutions, please comment.

My sister, whose nose is much more refined than mine, kept me and the children at her house for five weeks.  She insisted that I wash the diapers every day, and her way of doing laundry included using Borax, which I found to greatly improve the smell of the diapers overall.

To prolong the life of the elastic, I started using a drying rack for the diaper covers.  When trying to be extra frugal, I was using it for all our clothes, especially during the summer, to reduce the amount of heat (and electricity) from the dryer.  Also, it takes a long while for the dense inserts to air-dry.  When using a drying rack for the inserts, I try to line things up so I'm putting the laundry on the rack around bedtime so they're dry in the morning and I'm not waiting for diapers.

We were very fortunate to be able to get a high-efficiency front-loading washing machine with a "sanitize" cycle.  It takes about two hours to wash the diapers with that cycle, but it does spin well enough so that in a pinch I can use a diaper cover straight out of there.  (The diapers come with a large insert and a small insert. If you're not using the small inserts daily, you can stick them in there, or any other absorbent cloth, in a pinch.)  We wash diapers about every other day, more with a newborn and less with an older child, depending on how many diapers are left available and whether we'll be out of the house during that time.

For the diaper bag, I never really found the travel cloth diaper wet-bags all that useful.  I use regular grocery bags, folded into triangles so I can find them by feel.

My mother was initially horrified by the high price (compared to the old-fashioned ones she had used on me, with the pins and the plastic pants), but after seeing me use them at her house, asked me to tell a few of her friends (with upcoming grandchildren) all about them.  My sister remains unconvinced entirely, but her youngest is seven-and-a-half, and I (thankfully, even when pregnant) am not as affected by smells as she is.

Preparing for using these same diapers with a third child, I'm looking into fixing one or two snaps (having fixed about six so far over the past 20 months, out of 24 snaps on each of 24 diapers is not so bad), replacing the elastic on two or three diapers' legs, and looking at the elastic on the backs of the diapers, too, which I have not yet replaced.  The fabric is starting to wear a little bit, but is still containing everything it needs to.  I don't know how things will go as far as having a newborn and an older child both using the diapers; right now we have things sized as large as they will go, but I guess snapping one or two snaps each time I change a diaper won't kill me if I don't let it.

Sorry for the repetition with Part 2, but I honestly didn't remember writing that one and was almost done with this one, and by gum, I'm gonna post it.  If I get on the ball, I might also post about the baby nose vacuum, using a mattress early rather than a crib, and using a cup early rather than a bottle or sippy cup.  But people keep asking me about cloth diapers (three in the past month), so it's been on my mind, especially considering I'll be Full Term on Thursday, and therefore eligible to have the baby within the next five weeks.  (Please pray that it's not during a liturgical service!  Our altar feast is January 7, and I think a bishop is coming.)

101 Things in 1001 Days

Shamelessly borrowing from my friend Reve and her sister, but with possibly less chance of success, I am going to attempt to complete 101 things in 1001 days.  The start date is Friday, December 7, 2012, and the end date is September 4, 2015.

One of the (many) things I love so much about Reve is that she doesn't wait around for other people to do things. She figures out what she wants to do (which can be difficult in and of itself), and makes the attempt, paying attention to what she's doing and how she's doing it, but, most importantly, doing something about it. Sometimes I feel enervated because I wait on other people to do things, so I am hoping that this list will help motivate me to act on my own amelioration. (Also, I have had some success with two recently started projects: a photo challenge and a reading challenge. I am behind, but still working, on another reading challenge.)

Health and Fitness (9)
001. Take a walk every day for a week (of at least a mile)
002. Floss teeth daily for a month
003. Go to the gym 15 times, working for at least half an hour [0/15]
004. Do midwife-approved strengthening exercises after giving birth *
005. Get a massage (two times) [0/2]
006. Visit an eye doctor and check my prescription/glasses/contacts
007. Go to the dentist yearly (three times) [0/3]
008. Set a bedtime and stick to it for 30 consecutive days
009. Take a multivitamin for 30 consecutive days

Learning (12)
010. Read the New Testament [1/27] (New Testament Challenge already started, although I am very behind)
011. Read the Old Testament [0/51]
012. Read a month's worth of Church Fathers (already started) [6/31]
013. Learn something in Romanian *
014. Learn the countries of each continent (sporcle.com quizzes, first time success in a day) [0/6]
015. Read 7 Habits of Highly Effective People
016. Memorize the first five kathismata (Psalms 1-36) [0/36]
017. Learn apolytikia for all family saints (Peter, Mary Magdalene, Theodore the Studite, Gregory Palamas, Lucia, Catherine, and two more to be decided in January...) in English [0/8]
018. Memorize the books of the Bible in order
019. Learn the 8 resurrectional apolytikia in English [0/8]
020. Learn the 12 great festal hymns: apolytikia and kontakia in English [0/24]
021. Learn to make a prayer rope

Social Ties (7)
022. Have a dinner party
023. Invite others on a ladies' night out
024. Invite Matthew to visit our family
025. Make a birthday list and send out birthday cards to at least five friends (namedays also count) [0/5]
026. Set up five playdates [0/5]
027. Send out annual letter (twice) [0/2]
028. Host a Lego party

Better World (7)
029. Volunteer at the library
030. Donate blood
031. Donate to Matt and Tara in Niger
032. Put together and send kits to IOCC; put together some "blessing bags" to keep in the car
033. Volunteer at the soup kitchen with Philoptochos
034. Visit a nursing home with the children
035. Buy a cow/goat/bees from the Heifer Project

Homestead (20)
036. See about southeast corner landscaping/drainage
037. Get gutters cleaned (install gutter guard?)
038. Put up outdoor Christmas decorations (wreath, lights)
039. Get chimney/fireplace inspected and put in working order
040. Replace bathtub drain (main floor)
041. Secure the threshhold for the walk-in door to the garage
042. Properly mount the safety reverse on the garage door (eyes)
043. Figure out what all electrical switches go to
044. Replace light in street lamp
045. Add light to upstairs closet
046. Install a programmable thermostat
047. Fix main floor bathroom sink flow issue (clean aerator?)
048. Replace shower heads
049. Fix upstairs bath handle leaks
050. Stick with bi-weekly cleaning day (laundry, cleaning bathrooms, dishes) for four instances [0/4]
051. Plant Lucia's Christmas tree
052. Introduce ourselves to each of the neighbors on our street/block [0/14]
053. Get a free energy check-up for the house
054. Sort through and organize ALL clothes (his, mine, and the children's) for what fits, what needs repair, and by season (store, donate, repair as needed)
055. Unpack everything from the move ... and put it away

Computer (7)
056. Organize desktop icons
057. Organize files
058. Make wedding photos more accessible (i.e., find them)
059. Upload photos from computer to online albums
060. Select and order photos from online albums for physical albums
061. Update physical photo albums
062. Completely clear out gmail inbox

Car (3)
063. Clean out car, including vacuuming and car wash [0/3]
064. Clean out minivan, including vacuuming and car wash [0/3]
065. Transfer minivan title to Iowa

Crafty (7)
066. Finish knitting (Teddy's) toddler pants
067. Make epitrachelion
068. Make a dollhouse church
069. Write a children's story about a family saint
070. Make (liturgical) seasonal notebooks (New Year to Nativity Fast, Nativity Fast to Triodion, Triodion and Lent, Pascha to Pentecost, Apostles' Fast to end of liturgical year) [0/5]
071. Replace the elastic in all the white diapers (legs) and all diapers (backs) [0/8; 0/24]

Food (5)
072. Make a fasting menu plan for a week
073. Make a non-fasting menu plan for a week
074. Eat salad four times a week for four consecutive weeks
075. Make a meal with the crockpot
076. Work on Auntie Leila's "Happy Home: Food Organization" list every day (even a little bit) for a week

Activities (7)
077. Find an Irish dancing school near Cedar Rapids
078. Play the flute for half an hour every day for a week
079. Play the fiddle for half an hour every day for a week
080. Find a piano teacher and something to practice on
081. Go to see live theater with my husband and no children
082. Go to see live theater with the whole family (children's performance)
083. Attend a retreat or icon workshop (no children)

Travel (6)
084. Visit a monastery with the family
085. Visit three different museums [0/3]
086. Go to the zoo
087. Go to the park with the children 20 times [0/20]
088. Ride a train with the children
089. Go to the St. Emmelia Homeschooling Conference

Miscellaneous (12)
090. Have a baby (this one is definitely already started)
091. Make a passwords book
092. Get children a tape player and record three books on tape [0/3]
093. Make a will
094. Have a written funeral plan (find out about laws for green burial, transport across state lines, burial at monastery)
095. Make to-do list for Romanian paperwork for children's citizenship
096. Read (or re-read, to be in order) all the Newbery Medal books (assuming there will be three more as this 1001 days goes; ordered holds on the first three to be picked up at my local library) [0/94]
097. Complete a monthly photo challenge (already started, and I'm counting doubles and skipping one so far) [6/31]
098. Get new Iowa credit union account(s)
099. Participate in {phfr} on "Like Mother, Like Daughter" for four weeks in a row [0/4]
101. Make/find/buy a homeschooling curriculum
101. Sort through and cull the filing cabinet

*I need to be more specific about this goal (4 and 13).