As promised, here is a video discussing really basic cloth information. I really hope this helps some of my readers with their cloth questions.

Happy Tuesday all!

♥- Leilani

Cloth Diapering 101

Yesterday was the one year mark for using cloth diapers with Ava. Due to this joyous milestone and the frequent requests I receive (on a daily basis), I decided to finally buckle down and write up a cloth diapering post for all of those parents that are interested in cloth diapers. This cloth diaper 101 list will ONLY go over the types of diapers we use (and love), what you need to start cloth diapering, and all the other cloth details. I will say that cloth diapering is definitely an investment up front, but if you invest in quality diapers, it's definitely worth it, so let's get to it!

    Left photo- two week old        Right photo - eleven month old

What type of cloth diapers do we use?

• Prefolds 
• Pocket diapers
• AIO (all in ones) 
• All in Twos 

There are literally a million different brands and different styles that you can choose from. I would recommend bum genius 4.0 pocket diapers for anyone that is trying cloth for the first time. It's a "grow with me diaper" and will fit (most) babies from birth to potty training. Pocket diapers are the most modern type of cloth, and they resemble disposables diapers. Prefolds are the most inexpensive diaper on this list, but they also require a cover. Prefolds aren't as modern as some of the other cloth options out there. 

How many cloth diapers do I need?

Honestly, be economical. You really only need 24 diapers. Aside from "eco-friendly" reasons, cloth is definitely a money saver. Don't get too caught up with "cute prints" because diapers can get costly, especially when you are buying solely for the cute factor.  

Where can I buy cloth diapers?

• Green Mountain Diapers
• Kelly's Closet
• Amazon

What do I wash my cloth with?

Here is a list of cloth diaper safe detergents you can purchase. We use rockin' green, and have never had any issues, but there are a ton of other options out there. 

What other accessories are needed to cloth diaper?

• You need 1 diaper pail to store soiled diapers (I purchased a garbage can pail for this)
• You need 2 large wet bags for the diaper pail (you can purchase these off of the websites listed above)
• I recommend purchasing two smaller wet bags for "on the go" and traveling purposes. Whenever one is dirty, you have a backup wet bag for soiled diapers. You can purchase my favorite brand of wet bags here.
• Since you can't use traditional diaper rash cream with cloth diapers, coconut oil is a perfect alternative. Ava has never had diaper rash, and we have only used coconut oil, and occasionally CJ's butter. 
• Cloth wipes! I cannot stress enough how smart of an investment these are. If you plan on cloth diapering, it makes sense to use cloth wipes. You can even use washcloths rather than actual wipes. Either way, if you are going to invest your time in cloth, use the wipes! Saving more is always smart. I would suggest purchasing 30-40 cloth wipes. 

I made a video of all the information listed and more. I somehow managed to delete my youtube account, but once I get a new channel up and running, I'll go ahead and post the video. Hopefully this information was a little bit more helpful and answered some of the frequent questions I get. 

♥- Leilani

Late night laugh

Finally knocked out the last of this week's homework, and I am feeling good! I've got my madre and my sister staying with me for the next few days, and things have been rather hectic in the Howland house. I don't think Miss Ava knew what to do with all of the lady hands that were trying to play with and tickle her today. I will say it's been nice to have another (make that two) extra set of hands helping me with Bug. Having Justin away really has presented it's challenges. There isn't anything I can't do with Ava, more like it takes more time to get things done with Miss Ava. Anyhow, I'm in the middle of trying to make a power point presentation for this convention Justin and I are speaking at in a couple of weeks. I decided to head on Tumblr for some motivational words, and I come across this:

It just kind of cracked me up, because I am sure there are a lot of women like this. Ironically, when I purchased cloth, Justin was in the "know" about how much they were. He's always looking at the bigger picture. His favorite life mantra? You have to spend money in order to make money. I see the logic in that. I'm getting really excited for my lifestyle session I have scheduled. I'm not sure if I talked about that at all, but there is an amazing photographer in my area, that takes such beautifully breathtaking photos. I'm getting shots of Ava nursing, baby wearing (with mom and dad), potentially some cute cloth booty photos, the works. It's so, so important to document these events when our kids are small. I want to be able to treasure this moments for the rest of my life. I'm almost positive that my mommy is buying me my first ring sling baby carrier. I'm pretty stoked because I've never had one. I won't lie, I feel like I'm cheating on my moby wrap just a little bit. Well anywho, I'm off! It's late, the baby is asleep, and I'm in the mood for girl scout cookies! Happy Sunday all!

♥- Leilani

Cloth Diaper Stash

Since adding a specific email address to this blog, I have received a lot of emails pertaining to cloth, and what my family currently uses. Here is a video of (some) of the diapers we have in our stash. I believe I have over 32 pocket diapers, and just over 24 pre-folds for Ava's current size. I failed to mention that the prefolds in the video are red edge clotheez organic prefolds. They are the next size up from yellow edge (we retired those). We have stayed under our budget for cloth diapering ($400-500), and have received a few diapers from cloth diaper sponsorship. Whenever our families want to "gift" Ava, we always direct them to cloth items. This just ensures that we never go over our budget, and that cloth isn't becoming a spending addiction (it happens). If any of my readers have any more questions pertaining to cloth basics, different types of cloth, or "where do I start" questions, please leave comments below or email me at: Simplyhowland@gmail.com

Enjoy! Happy Friday all!

  ♥- Leilani

New car, 9 months, & the Changes

I don't quite know how I have the energy to write this right now, but here goes nothing. Today was such hectic day. I thought Thursday had plans of total relaxation for me and my sweet lover bug, but the universe had other plans for us. Justin got off work extremely early, due to the high volume of soldiers in processing at his installation. Apparently all the NCO's that were in processing got pushed back a couple days. This allowed for them to get the Joe's all squared away first. Justin had no complaints about that, and I don't either. It's kind of nice knowing that his impending field time is being delayed a bit. Any who, so with my husband getting off so early, we decided it was time to go car shopping.

I had researched a few car dealerships that I liked, and we came across this 2001 Hyundai Elantra that I Thought would be perfect for Justin to commute to work. Turns out I was right, because after test driving it and inspecting the car, Justin was sold. I am pretty proud of my negotiating skills. I was able to talk the car down to a very decent price. That price included the minor repairs that needed to be done to the car, and tax, title, and registration. Definitely money well spent on our part. I don't think there are too many things we hate more than car payments, so I'm glad this car is paid in full and set to go. The carfax we viewed couldn't have been any better. This vehicle only had one owner, and nine services. No accidents, or anything like that either. The entire car purchase process took about three hours, and we went to a dealership about an hour away from home. The car sales men who sold us the vehicle mentioned that Washington state has over sixty six percent of  car sales in that area. Clearly they are doing something right in Everett and Lynnwood!

Today was also the day I switched all of Ava bug's clothes over to nine months. It was actually kind of emotional for me. I have a true to size baby who will be nine months old on Monday, and I just don't know where the time is running off to. I'm having frequent flashbacks of my little newborn in her newborn clothes. It feels fresh, as if it were yesterday. We also scheduled some Valentine day pictures for bug and her daddy. Apparently Ava is only allowed to have one Valentine! I can't wait to see how their photos turn out. Bug is wearing a red tutu, with a be mine onesie. This is the first time she'll have had a studio session before, so I'm hoping all goes well.

Last night I also decided to try my first batch of organic prefolds and a certified organic workhorse diaper. I'm very excited about using my favorite type of cloth with Ava. Since we will be at home a lot of the time, I can utilize my covers again! I can't wait. I love Karen from Green Mountain Diapers. a family that built a company due to their love of cloth. Cloth diapering isn't some cool trend or fad for our family. It's not solely about savings, or trying to appear more natural or green. We cloth because we truly believe it's a better diapering system for Ava, and we love that it's helping our world stay a bit more green. I am constantly reminded of that when I purchase or receive cloth essentials from small companies.

Whoo! This was longer than I expected. I'm off all! Tomorrow is love day with my sweet man, and I've got a lot to do between now and then! If you know a Veteran, make sure to give em a smooch for Valentine's day!

  ♥- Leilani

Cloth, Cloth

So it looks like we are switching up our cloth routine, again (I'm really happy about this). When we change our routine, it's because there is a flaw with the previous one. The biggest challenge (which isn't very big) of cloth diapering is definitely the cleaning process for my family. Solids, like we expected, changed the game of cloth for us. The buildup has been a lot more frequent, and I refuse to let my child wear these awful smelling diapers. When we were in Texas, I stripped Bug's diapers and *poof* the buildup and smells were gone. After a few uses, the smells came back, even with the frequent use of Bac out. Luckily, for us we had to time to figure out another method for stripping. Whenever we travel we use biodegradable disposables, so Ava wasn't in cloth for a little over two weeks. As soon as we got our cloth accessories, I knew exactly what I wanted to change in order to keep Ava bug's diapers fresh and good. Instead of soaking cloth diapers, wipes, etc. in rock in green, we opted to use the rock in green, funk rock.

All it took was 60 minutes of soaking in our tub (you can use the washer or sink) and our diapers smelled better than when we first put them in. The final step was adding a rinse cycle, than washing your diapers like you normally would. As soon as the diapers were done with the rinse cycle, I took one out, and I smelled NOTHING. I was so pleased that the funk rock worked so well. The true test was using them and then washing again... NOTHING! We did switch our wash routine around a little bit, so I'm curious if switching the amount of detergent, wash routine, and new stripping method is the new cause for our diapers being stench free. 

Wash Routine

Normal Cycle w/ two scoops of rock in green 

Warm Wash

Rinse

Normal Cycle w/ one scoop of rock in green

Hot Wash

Rinse

Extra rinse w/ no detergent at all

Stripping Routine

Toss all cloth accessories in tub,sink,or washer

Add hot or warm water to soak the cloth accessories in

add 4 tbsp of rock in funk to the hot water

allow cloth accessories to sit for 30-60 minutes (for best results soak overnight)

rinse diapers 

Wash like normal, with your desired cloth friendly detergent. 

Overall, I'm really pleased with our recent changes. Before we changed our stripping routine, our diapers spent hours soaking in the tub. The amount of time has downsized, and the smell is even better. Hopefully there aren't too many more surprises in our cloth journey. I'd like to get our routine perfected for future Howl babies! If any of my readers ever have any questions or concerns, I'm always willing to lend an ear, or answer in anyway I can. A lot of people contact me via facebook (which is great), but you can always comment on the posts I publish. 

Happy Monday all! 

♥- Leilani

Stripping!

After six solid months of cloth diapering, I am finally stripping Ava's cloth diapers. I definitely think solids changed the game of cloth for us, but it hasn't been too difficult of a change. We finally said good bye to Ava's small sized prefolds (they've joined her newborn prefolds) and we will be adding medium sized prefolds to our stash (thank you grandma). Prefolds still remain my favorite and I cannot believe that we are moving onto the next size that green mountain diapers provide. Justin has been super giddy about all of our fluff lately. He knows that Howl baby # 2 will be all set with their diapering needs. Although I attempted to cloth diaper Ava from the time we were in the hospital, I know that I'll feel even more confident using cloth from day one to potty training with our next child.

Our Stripping Routine

1. Remove all inserts from pocket diapers, remove all covers from prefolds, and make sure everything is separated and ready to go in the tub
2. Spray all stained inserts, covers, or pockets with biokleen's bac-out and allow them to sit for five minutes
3. Fill the bathtub with hot water, and add four scoops of Rockin' Green to the tub (or desired detergent)
4. Add all cloth wipes, prefolds, covers, pocket diapers, etc. to the hot, soapy, tub
5. Agitate the cloth every thirty minutes
6. Allow the cloth accessories to soak for 2.5 hours
7. Rinse all the water from the diapers
8. Take the cloth to the washer
9. Rinse cloth in COLD water
10. Repeat rinse at least 4-5 times to get all the suds out

** Bac out is extremely safe on your cloth diapers, and I encourage everyone to use it if you are facing odor problems or stains. 

I hope all my fluff mom's are able to use this as a starting guide for stripping their diapers. Diapers do not need to be stripped nearly as often when you have a great wash routine! 

♥- Leilani

Lifehouse

Thanksgiving could not have been more perfect. The food was great, the company was awesome, it was just an overall great day. I haven't had that many people in this house.. like ever. It felt like grand central station, with people coming and going. It was nice though. We had a couple soldiers that were 3 weeks out of basic show up as well. It warms my heart through and through that they were able to have Thanksgiving at our home. The thought of any soldier cooped up in the barracks on such a joyous holiday.. it doesn't sit well with me. This year was also the first year I have never had Thanksgiving leftovers! All of the food we made was devoured with a quickness. Justin and I were pretty stoked about that (moving in like 4 days) because we don't have to throw out a whole lot when moving day comes.

Friday was a good day. I didn't participate in any black Friday shenanigans, and that was completely fine with me. We woke up kind of early to try take two of our family pictures... they were a success! I couldn't be more pleased with how they turned out. We should have them in about a week or so, but I'm debating whether or not I want to share them (I want to frame some of them). Yesterday, I was introduced to a cloth diapering/eco-friendly store, here in Georgia (thank you Victoria). I was so ticked, I hadn't found this store prior to having Ava. I purchased a couple more cloth diapers for Ava bug, and I bought bug her very first security snuggle. It's made by Aden and Anais, and it's called bamboo musy mate lovey. Ava loves this thing already!

Oh, Ava's currently in sposies until we move. I washed all of her cloth, all that's left is packing it up. We are using bamboo nature again, and I am in love. Super absorbent, no rashes, and they fit her great. It's weird not seeing a fluff bum on my child, but sposies are going to make our Texas move just a little bit easier for me. In our final days in Georgia, Ava is getting her "my first Christmas" photos done, and I'm feeling nervous about those. Her Thanksgiving photos didn't come out how I'd expected. No smiles from her! Hopefully this round of pictures is better than the last. 

It looks like my day is going to consist of cleaning,homework, and more packing. Packing is so not fun. I seriously start lactating every time I pack a box. I'm getting more emotional about the move. I really go back and forth. Some days, I'm all excited and ready to leave, other days I'm reminded that I'm leaving the only state I've been married in! It's kind of surreal. Either way, I'm trying to accept that sometimes change can be really good. On a happy note, I have managed to stay on top of my thankful Novembers, and as of tomorrow, we roll into Dedicated December! It's not an official thing, but I figure, I should keep the momentum flowing. Alright guys, It looks like I'm off for now. Justin will soon be walking through the door with breakfast, and I need some energy food! Enjoy your Saturday all! 

Day 29- I am thankful for truth. Without a doubt, the truth always sets us free. 

Day 30- I am thankful for sports. Without them, I don't know how Justin would feel about his Sundays. 

♥- Leilani

" What's in my diaper bag"

Okay, I've finally got a few free minutes to put this up! A ton of people have emailed and called me about this particular baby essential! Instead of writing every single item in a blog, I made a video :) Super short six minute video on everything we keep in Ava's diaper bag. A lot of people have come to me with cloth questions and I LOVE it! I encourage cloth with all parents that are looking for an alternative for diapering. I show my favorite fluff for cloth diapering Ava on the go. Enjoy!

Cloth and Breast

A lot of changes are being made in our home this month and I couldn't be more thrilled. For starters, cloth diapers. YES we are still cloth diapering Ava. We will continue to cloth diaper her until she is set for potty training. Ava just recently outgrew her newborn stash of prefolds. Justin is so excited because this means she finally fits into ALL of her pocket diapers we purchased for her! (He now favors them over any other diaper) I tried a birth to potty training diaper on Miss A and her bum looks so stinkin' cute in them. We have decided to continue to utilize the newborn prefolds by using a different fold method:

tri-folding the prefold and inserting it into a diaper cover. The neat thing about diaper covers are that they have a designated flap on the front of the diaper were you can tuck the prefold in. Just ensuring that any waste is being kept inside the diaper. Once Ava outgrows the absorbency we will retire the newborn stash and use them with baby # 2. So far everything with cloth diapering continues to be a breeze, even on the go. In fact, my husband changed our daughter while on the go for the first time yesterday. We ate dinner at the Olive Garden and they indeed have a changing area in the men's restroom. He carted Ava, her infant seat, and our diaper bag into the restroom and had no trouble. Diapering on the go is different anyways, diapering with cloth adds more steps. I was so proud of him for feeling confident about that. A lot of people have asked what my wash routine looks like with my HE washer and dryer, so here it goes:

On a medium light cycle (I wash every other day)

Two tablespoons of rockin' green

Normal cycle

cold wash

Two tablespoons of rockin' green

Normal cycle

hot wash

No soap

rinse and spin

tap water 

Dry on high heat

two cycles to maximize quilts in prefolds

I do not dry inserts, covers, or pocket diaper shells. I continue to hang dry them. 

I'm feeling extremely confident about cloth and continue to spread the word about how much better of a diapering system it is for little ones. A friend of mine mentioned how much money we would have spent by now on disposable diapers, diaper rash cream and formula, I calculated it with just a generic brand of diapers and even then the savings were outrageous! 

Even though we will be using biodegradable disposables for our trip to New York in a couple weeks, I already budgeted that into our diapering costs, and that's for 10 days. I feel better knowing biodegradable diapers won't end up in landfills.

Speaking of breast feeding...

I'm over 6 weeks in and I continue to love all the benefits of sole breastfeeding. I went back and forth with this decision and sadly, my exclusively breastfeeding journey is coming to an end. We are still breastfeeding, but starting SOON I will be pumping and expressing milk into bottles for Miss A. Even with Ava still being so tiny Justin wants to be able to have that bonding time that feedings present. I feel like that's fair. I know having a bottle will be a little easier than nursing all the time. I'm also going to start up a freezer stash! We decided not to invest in a bottle warmer. They are so unnecessary if you are patient. I'm going to defrost by allowing the sealed milk to soak in lukewarm water. That's the plan for now anyway. 

I love how financially aware parenting has made Justin and I. We are firm believers that there never needs to be a penny of wasted money. I've noticed a lot of new parents invest in items that really aren't needed or used. I've lost the whole, "but, it's cute" factor while out and about. Rather than splurging on something sweet that will last Ava a couple months, I'm investing that money into her college savings.  

This whole, "investments paying you back" ordeal has taken a huge toll on us. 

Also, I was nervous to share. Going back and forth with mixed feelings about publicly breastfeeding with my husband caused me to shy away from being daring with breastfeeding photos. He is slowly but surely coming around more and more. Feeling comfortable with me feeding in public was his challenge. Here is a photo from the Father's day shoot we had! 

Ava started fussing. And I, feeling comfortable as ever, pulled my dress down without cover in tow and fed her. I was so proud of myself this day.

Week 3 & Daddy Day

Justin is off to work and Miss Ava is in a morning slumber; This leaves me with a moment to brainstorm via blog. For starters, my little sprout will be three weeks old on Friday and we continue to become more familiar with Ava's tendencies. We've definitely got her "poop face" down packed. Her little face gets so serious and she has these wrinkles that come over her forehead. Diaper changes with cloth are still a breeze. Exclusively breastfeeding leaves us with over a dozen diaper changes a day. I can't tell you how great It feels to see our investment with cloth actually pay us back. I'm in the mists of trying out some new folds for the pre-fold diapers. I have even ordered more fuzzi bunz xs pocket diapers. We hadn't really planned on using pocket diapers until she was a bit older, but these diapers fit her so well. They start at 4 lbs and they go up to 12 lbs. Which means she'll be in them for awhile. This investment still leaves me well under the $500.00 diapering budget! I'm excited to prep these diapers today!

Let's see, what else has changed? Our sleeping beauty's slumber habits have changed since last week. We see more of her eyes opened and alert throughout the day, which is great! I love seeing my little girl awake. We currently wake up twice during the night for feedings and changing, which isn't bad at all. Justin and I have been going to bed at ten, which is ironic because Ava wakes up around this time. Then she'll wake up again at 1 a.m. and then again at 4 a.m. and then at around 645 a.m. but we are up for the day at that point, which leads me to brainstorming Father's day plans for Justin. Since this is his first Father's day I want to make it REALLY special. I'm already ordering customized gifts and a customized card through a company we use all the time. Justin is a coffee drinker, so I thought what better gift than a personalized mug and I phone case? I wanted to choose things he'd actually use that wouldn't collect dust. I was thinking we could start his special day out with breakfast at a restaurant of his choice. Knowing my husband, he'll probably choose I HOP because he loves their blueberry pancakes. 

 I want to get "daddy and me" pictures done of Ava and her daddy the same day. Thanks to Carter's I found some super cute outfits for my princesa, and among those outfits I found the perfect shirt for pictures. I haven't completely decided on the bottoms yet, but I have time to figure that out. I haven't decided on how to end Justin's special day. We run on Ava's time so being out for a good chunk of the day could present some challenges for us. So far I think i've got a great start on how i'd like the momentum of Father's day to be. I haven't discussed anything with my husband because I want it to be a surprise! It's crazy how well he knows me, because he's already made comments about me going above and beyond to make this holiday one he won't forget. If only he knew how correct he was! 

                                                                                             

We made the switch

Ava finally fits into her pre-fold cloth diapers and I couldn't be more elated! I remember mentioning in a previous post that I was going to use disposable diapers until my little sprout packed on a bit of weight. I'm so glad that day came ! Disposable diapers were a nightmare for me. I understand the convenience of being able to toss out your infant's waste, but for me that factor alone wasn't enough to win me over. The main thing that annoyed me about disposable diapers were the leakage. Ava has woken up with a side of her shirt drenched from her leaky diaper. We've had leaks at the doctors office as soon as I've undressed her to get weighed. Her urine saturated the white tissue paper on top of the medical seats. We've had leaks that have saturated her receiving blankets as well. I can't tell you how frustrating it was to diaper without proper absorbency. We were using Pampers preemie and newborn sized swaddlers for disposables. I'm not sure if it's an issue with the brand or what, but I don't have any happy reviews to give. I do however have some positive things to say about green mountain diapers! Oh my lanta ! I absolutely LOVE my orange edge pre-folds ! The absorbency, the lack of icky chemicals on Ava's skin, and of course the "going green" factor cloth diapering presents.

 

This is my little girl in her cloth. Believe it or not pre-folds are my husband's preference with cloth diapers. We invested in pocket diapers ( we aren't using these until Ava is a bit bigger) and for some reason he prefers the diapers that aren't so "daddy friendly." I think Justin's initial turn off with cloth was dealing with the poop and urine. Shockingly, he changes his daughter without disgust of dealing with feces. In fact, this afternoon, as I'm watching him change Ava's cloth, he asks me to hand him another cloth wipe. Miss A had gotten poop in like the crevice of her leg and he wanted to make sure he had done a thorough job ! Am I a lucky gal or what? I guess when it's your child's waste it's not a big deal. I have washed a few of these orange edge pre-folds from our hospital stay and the dark, tar, meconium poop that did touch her cloth, did not stain the diaper. I am so excited we are finally getting into the parenting styles we opted for !



cloth, cloth, cloth !

Can I just say I LOVE cloth diapers. After prepping my pre-folds, covers, and cloth wipes, I realized how easy the washing process really is. When I ordered my orange edge newborn pre-folds ( 100% cotton) from greenmountaindiapers it came with a four step prepping process pamphlet. The pamphlet has all kinds of information about detergents, stains, etc. After the prepping process my pre-folds came out super absorbent and ready to use.

The steps I used were:

1. In a cold wash, use one teaspoon of detergent and wash cotton pre-folds
2. In a hot wash, use one and a half teaspoons of detergent and wash cotton pre-folds
3. Dry cotton pre-folds on the normal setting
4. repeat steps 2 & 3 twice more, remembering to dry in between washes. 

I used rockin green detergent in my HE washer and dryer. Even with the eco friendly system I use, the amount of water was perfect. I immediately started practicing different types of pre-fold techniques and I found a video that helped me tremendously ! She goes over a bunch of different prefold, folds. The newspaper, angel wing, jelly roll, etc. 

My favorite right now is the angel wing fold, apparently great for newborns !

pre-folds do require covers, I just didn't add them in my photos. Also, snappi's are great. I thought I was going to have a difficult time attaching them to the diapers. No problem at all. I'm excited to put my cloth to use. A good friend of mine reminded me of how important cloth really is to me. I will be cloth diapering from Ava's first diaper in the hospital. With the arrival of my daughter will come sponsored reviews on certain pocket diapers, vlogs about a day in the life of cloth diapering a newborn baby, and other little tid bits I pick up along the way ! 

Prepping Fluff & Pregnancy Stuff !

Today I got my rock in green motley crew detergent in the mail. I was nervous because I keep forgetting I have to use an HE efficient detergent with my HE washer and dryer. Sure enough on the front of the bag there's the little "he" symbol. I am so excited about this detergent because I can use it on Ava's baby clothes as well as her cloth diapers. It is dye free, It contains no fillers, no enzymes, or optical brighteners. All of the information is actually listed right on the front of the bag, which is helpful when you are looking for a certain type of detergent !

I plan to update everyone on my cloth diapering routine once I start exclusively cloth diapering Ava when we get home from the hospital. I know it was really tough for me to find other cloth diapering moms with HE top loaders, So I'm hoping I can be a helping hand for moms that have been trying to find a routine that will accommodate their cloth diaper needs.

Tonight I am going to prep my GMD orange edge prefolds, 

my thirsty covers, and a variety of different pocket diapers. 

On a pregnancy update, Ava's monitoring continues to stay great and she continues to be healthy. I'll be 35 weeks on Thursday and she is still head down, which makes me relieved. There is always time for her to go into a breech position, and I would LOVE it if nothing else posed as a threat to the "ideal" labor I am dreaming of LOL. 

Today I packed Ava's hospital bag and my hospital bag, so we are good to go there. Oh ! I also have an induction date ! May 16th. I will be 39 weeks. They still want her to come out a little early just to be overly cautious of my smaller growing sprout.

My frustrations Lately

I've been having some doubts about the middle name Madeline. I think I'm going to go with Leilani. Justin and I KEEP discussing this ! We wanted to give her a strong name. I think Ava Leilani is strong. We keep going back and forth, So I'm thinking only time will tell so it's a good thing we've got 4 weeks to decide !

Driving an hour to and from Savannah twice a week for Ava monitoring, but still getting the option to deliver at the Army hospital ! Today I had to wait 2 hours for my appointment due to them being short staffed. Normally, I wouldn't complain, but who wants to drive an hour and then wait 2 hours and then drive an hour to get back home?  I can understand that this high risk clinic has more efficient equipment for monitoring, but I'm going to contact Tricare and see if there is any type of reimbursement they are able to give for all the mileage and gas ( a friend of mine mentioned this to me today, It couldn't hurt to try)

I've noticed my tolerance level and annoyance level are at an all time high. It doesn't take much for someone to irritate me or for me to get upset. That's actually out of character for me. Hopefully once Ava gets here and pregnancy is a mere memory on the journey to meeting my miracle baby, my emotions won't be raging as much as they are now.

Army, Deployment, Pregnancy

I originally created this blog as an outlet for my deployment emotions. Shockingly I have done much better with the distance and deployment worries than I ever imagined. So i though i'd do a little update for all my family, friends and fellow bloggers.

ARMY- A lot of you already know that due to the needs of the Army, and my husband's most current reenlistment, we are headed to Fort Hood. From my research it's a HUGE installation, and it's a cavalry division. Which is better for my husband's career. Although our move will be a little bittersweet, ( leaving my deployment buddies behind) I know this new move will be a good move for our family.

DEPLOYMENT- We got some not so happy news from my husband's brigade; He will not be home for the birth of our daughter. We knew this was a big possibility before he left. To my surprise, I had never had high hopes that they would bring him home, so it wasn't a big shocker. My husband is REALLY bummed about everything, but I plan to do everything on my part to make sure that he is apart of the experience, even in his physical absence.

PREGNANCY- I am really close to starting my 3rd trimester, and other than the GI problems I have been having here lately, I feel and look great (in my opinion) I'm enjoying my bump ! I'm enjoying being able to confidently shop for Ava with minimum worries in my mind. I have even finished my cloth diapering stash.

I am MUCH more confident about cloth diapering, cloth wipes, and breast feeding than I was in the start of my pregnancy. Ultimately, every decision I make is beneficial to her being healthy, our finances, and the environment. I have definitely had a "mommy switch" ignite in me ! 

One thing that I have really embraced through Army life, Deployment, and Pregnancy are the things we come to fear, never come to pass. I think that quote alone has gotten me through the times I thought i'd never come out on top during.

Cloth Diapering

I've been researching cloth diapers, even before I got pregnant. All the information out there can be overwhelming, and ultimately turn people away from trying cloth diapers. The best way to prevent yourself from getting overwhelmed, is to stay organized and form a plan. The first thing I did was identify the types of cloth diapering methods that are out there. Then I decided which methods would be best for me and I came up with an economical cost efficient budget plan.

My stash will mainly consist of prefolds and covers. This is the most economical way to cloth diaper. I purchased 12 orange edge prefolds (for newborns) and 2 thirstie covers all for less than $60.00. I received my shipment in two days, and I couldn't be more thrilled with the quality of these diapers, or the raving reviews.
https://www.greenmountaindiapers.com/

I am going to get a variety of pocket diapers as well. I ordered 12 pocket diapers for $60.00 as well. The shipping does take over a month, because the manufacturer is based out of China. I have heard mixed reviews about this product, but I won't know what's going to work for Ava until she is here. So I decided to invest a quarter of the amount that most do when cloth diapering. Just because a cloth diaper is more expensive doesn't mean it will have great absorbency or prevent leaks.

http://sunbabydiapers.com/

Once Ava arrives I will try other brands, but for the first few weeks of her life she will be in prefolds and covers.