I forget how many things I've said "I'll keep you posted" for here on the ol' blog, but today I remembered a few and I decided I ought to keep my word. So here you have updates on three things. I'll give you the details and current state of (1) cloth diapering, (2) the raking of the yard, and (3) The Compact.
First, diapering.
I've made a couple of updates so as not to leave you all holding your breath for too long. But you might actually want to hold your breath now, because when you start feeding a baby anything other than mother's milk, things get stinky. And gross. And more prone to diaper rash. We've learned a few things.
It only took a few days to realize that Evelyn's daycare was plowing through our all-natural, cloth diaper friendly, super expensive diaper rash ointment before we switched that to whatever is cheap and easily accessible at most stores in case we have to grab more to restock her school supply. But when the diapers came home the first day after the ointment swap, I quickly realized that we were going to have a real problem. Standard diaper ointments and cloth diapers do not mix. The ointments get on the cloth and render it pretty much waterproof - that's the job they do to the skin, so they just keep doing their job on the cloth. And a cloth diaper that doesn't absorb? Well, that's just not going to work.
I stripped the diapers (something that's recommended periodically for cloth diapers - learn more about it and how-to here) and then did some thinking on a solution. So far we've been sticking with these flushable diaper liners - which were all actually gifted to us by our super thoughtful family before Evelyn arrived. I just hadn't thought to use them until now. The liners have been great because they prevent the diaper cream from getting on the cloth, and they also keep some distance between the increasingly gross poop and the diaper itself. It makes cleaning the diapers so much easier.
Even with the liners, though, there are times when it would be super helpful to have a diaper sprayer, so tomorrow we're heading to a new store down the road a little ways to finally take the plunge and get this sprayer that we've been pining after for months. And next time there's an update, you can hear all about it.
Second, the yard.
Why would someone intentionally spread needles?! Well, I guess if you live in North Carolina you just have to realize that pine needles are mulch. They just are. I learned from my hours and hours and hours and hours of raking and bagging that the effort really did not seem to be paying off. I was feeling less triumphant than I had hoped. Much less. And I had a small mountain of lawn bags full of needles that I was not sure how I was going to deal with.
Solution? In my feverish daze this week, I noticed that our neighbors were getting their lawn done again. Their lawn is always perfect. And we share part of the front lawn, so there's always this line of a brown, thick layer of pine needles clearly showing where our lawn starts and theirs ends. So I went over before they left and, fevered and stuffy and pink-eyed and all, asked if they could please just make my front yard look decent. It's just a two-man crew and the main man walked around a little bit and said, "No problem. Thirty-five bucks." And not 20 minutes later, with the help of an edger, riding mower, and crazy powerful leaf-blower, the lawn was gorgeous. The needles were in neat little beds under the pine trees, and no where else. Spectacular. Best $35 I'd spent in a long time.
The back yard is still a work in progress - I've got just a little more work to do before I can say I've removed the top layer of pine needles from the whole yard. Then we'll probably have the lawn guys take all those needles and do some discussing with them about the best plan for our back yard. They seemed really reasonable and knowledgeable about needles and lawns and such from our first encounter, so we'll see!
Third, The Compact.
Clearly, since I just dropped 35 clams on our needles and we're planning to get a diaper sprayer tomorrow, you could say that I failed at my quest to buy nothing. Here are some other things I did: got coffee/tea more than 3 times per week, and took the car for an oil change at the dealership. But so far I think that's it. My downfall is definitely the "eating out" thing. There are lots of reasons for that - mostly convenience. We leave the house at 7ish and I feed Evelyn at 6, so there's a pretty limited amount of time in the mornings to get everyone up and ready to be out all day. We usually leave the house with 6 bags between me and Evelyn... Some days it's 2 PM and I haven't had 3 spare minutes to use the restroom, let alone eat, so I don't know yet what the best solution will be here but I'll work on it.
There have been lots of things I've wanted to buy. But the funny thing is that I want them and then two days later I can't even remember what they were. Seriously, right now I can't remember anything I've really wanted specifically. I just know there has been stuff. I haven't gotten it, and I'm fine. Oh wait, I just thought of one thing as an example - sometimes at the grocery store I get a People magazine or something else mindless as a special treat. So I've definitely wanted to grab one or two. But I haven't.
So I'll say it's been relatively successful so far. It's at least encouraged me to be more mindful about buying things, and about how advertisers work to make us think we need their products... and that's a pretty important start.
First, diapering.
I've made a couple of updates so as not to leave you all holding your breath for too long. But you might actually want to hold your breath now, because when you start feeding a baby anything other than mother's milk, things get stinky. And gross. And more prone to diaper rash. We've learned a few things.It only took a few days to realize that Evelyn's daycare was plowing through our all-natural, cloth diaper friendly, super expensive diaper rash ointment before we switched that to whatever is cheap and easily accessible at most stores in case we have to grab more to restock her school supply. But when the diapers came home the first day after the ointment swap, I quickly realized that we were going to have a real problem. Standard diaper ointments and cloth diapers do not mix. The ointments get on the cloth and render it pretty much waterproof - that's the job they do to the skin, so they just keep doing their job on the cloth. And a cloth diaper that doesn't absorb? Well, that's just not going to work.
I stripped the diapers (something that's recommended periodically for cloth diapers - learn more about it and how-to here) and then did some thinking on a solution. So far we've been sticking with these flushable diaper liners - which were all actually gifted to us by our super thoughtful family before Evelyn arrived. I just hadn't thought to use them until now. The liners have been great because they prevent the diaper cream from getting on the cloth, and they also keep some distance between the increasingly gross poop and the diaper itself. It makes cleaning the diapers so much easier.
Even with the liners, though, there are times when it would be super helpful to have a diaper sprayer, so tomorrow we're heading to a new store down the road a little ways to finally take the plunge and get this sprayer that we've been pining after for months. And next time there's an update, you can hear all about it.
Second, the yard.
Why would someone intentionally spread needles?! Well, I guess if you live in North Carolina you just have to realize that pine needles are mulch. They just are. I learned from my hours and hours and hours and hours of raking and bagging that the effort really did not seem to be paying off. I was feeling less triumphant than I had hoped. Much less. And I had a small mountain of lawn bags full of needles that I was not sure how I was going to deal with.
Solution? In my feverish daze this week, I noticed that our neighbors were getting their lawn done again. Their lawn is always perfect. And we share part of the front lawn, so there's always this line of a brown, thick layer of pine needles clearly showing where our lawn starts and theirs ends. So I went over before they left and, fevered and stuffy and pink-eyed and all, asked if they could please just make my front yard look decent. It's just a two-man crew and the main man walked around a little bit and said, "No problem. Thirty-five bucks." And not 20 minutes later, with the help of an edger, riding mower, and crazy powerful leaf-blower, the lawn was gorgeous. The needles were in neat little beds under the pine trees, and no where else. Spectacular. Best $35 I'd spent in a long time.
The back yard is still a work in progress - I've got just a little more work to do before I can say I've removed the top layer of pine needles from the whole yard. Then we'll probably have the lawn guys take all those needles and do some discussing with them about the best plan for our back yard. They seemed really reasonable and knowledgeable about needles and lawns and such from our first encounter, so we'll see!
Third, The Compact.
Clearly, since I just dropped 35 clams on our needles and we're planning to get a diaper sprayer tomorrow, you could say that I failed at my quest to buy nothing. Here are some other things I did: got coffee/tea more than 3 times per week, and took the car for an oil change at the dealership. But so far I think that's it. My downfall is definitely the "eating out" thing. There are lots of reasons for that - mostly convenience. We leave the house at 7ish and I feed Evelyn at 6, so there's a pretty limited amount of time in the mornings to get everyone up and ready to be out all day. We usually leave the house with 6 bags between me and Evelyn... Some days it's 2 PM and I haven't had 3 spare minutes to use the restroom, let alone eat, so I don't know yet what the best solution will be here but I'll work on it.
There have been lots of things I've wanted to buy. But the funny thing is that I want them and then two days later I can't even remember what they were. Seriously, right now I can't remember anything I've really wanted specifically. I just know there has been stuff. I haven't gotten it, and I'm fine. Oh wait, I just thought of one thing as an example - sometimes at the grocery store I get a People magazine or something else mindless as a special treat. So I've definitely wanted to grab one or two. But I haven't.
So I'll say it's been relatively successful so far. It's at least encouraged me to be more mindful about buying things, and about how advertisers work to make us think we need their products... and that's a pretty important start.
Comments
Hope you and the babe are well!
Flit
-Flit