Monday, February 6, 2012

Samweli's Room - House Pics Post 1

To be honest, before we got our 16-week ultrasound, I was positive I was going to give birth to a precious girl. I really didn't care if our baby was a boy or a girl, I was just very sure I already knew - girl.period.girl. I guess my mother's intuition needed a little more maturing. I was very clearly wrong. We had planned to go shopping that afternoon to register for all things baby in celebration of our little one. Unfortunately, I had the baby blues and picked more of a gender neutral theme than Samweli's daddy would have preferred:


As you can see, it's cute, but it doesn't really scream BOY. Samweli now has a room that his daddy can be proud of, and he loves it! By "he" I mean Samuel, but you could take it as "Noe" if you want. They are both in Baby Boy Heaven.

Here is Samweli's new Hunting Room:
***Caution - if you are against the hunting of animals, don't continue on. My husband loves -  and my son will soon love - to shoot things.***

This is his room looking from the door. We found a great camo rug on clearance,
and the camo blanket was actually a shower gift from a friend, Jolene.
She recently started selling her ultra-plush blankets since everyone
LOVES them. You can check them out here.
I found this awesome wood sign with a bear on it and decided to incorporate bears
along with the ducks and deer I had originally planned on doing.
And the framed "art" idea came together thanks to Emily.
(They are just those vinyl wall stickers put on white paper.
Don't tell anyone though, they look like prints.)
Noe and I both found these metal signs which
I think look really cool in his little boy room. :)
The deer antler sign over the dresser says "HUNTING".
He knows what each animal on his wall is.
I still need to get a plain green changing pad cover,
and you can't see it, but the lamp shade has ducks on it too.
My mom got the light switch plate in Tennessee
and the (fake) antlers were a perfect spot to hang
his camo jacket.
"Little Bear" ended up being the perfect addition
to his bedroom. It's a tree carving from Tennessee
that was picked out by his Grandma, Babu, Bibi,
and Aunt Stacey. It's the one thing in his room
that's too heavy for him to push around,
but he loves giving him hugs. So sweet!

There's one more corner of his room that needs finished, but I have ideas for it. I've just got to decide how to mount the Benjamin that Samweli's Pop gave him to hang in his room.


Well, that's one room in the house finished. Only the rest of the house to go! That doesn't sound too overwhelming, does it?

Sunday, February 5, 2012

Newborn Stash

This is what you've all been waiting for (dun, dun, dunnnnnn). Really, I know you're just excited because I'm so excited, but it doesn't matter - I love that you're looking, I don't care why. Here are the pics and details of the (fingers crossed) awesomely perfect newborn diaper stash that I sewed up for my friend. I'm so grateful that she trusted me to guide her into the world of cloth diapers AND that she had enough confidence in my sewing to rely on me for her entire newborn stash. I hope they fit for more than 2 weeks. :)

Diaper Pail Liner (for home) and Wet Bag (for on the go) 
FOE Bound (2) and Turned & Topstitched (3) Covers:
The FOE bound are 1 layer of PUL so the inside is wipeable.
The T&T covers are PUL outer with suedecloth inner.
I used BaaBaaBaby, Bramblestitches, and Chloe Toes Side Snap patterns.
Shar's Umbilical Scoop Newborn Pocket Nappy (5)
I loathe pocket diapers, but since so many mamas use them,
I thought it was only fair to let her try some out.
She's just going to stuff these with some small washcloths.
The checkered ones are 2 layers of flannel.
The camo one is a cotton outer and crushed panne inner,
so it will feel dry even after baby wets the diaper.
EZDipe (6)
These are AWESOME. I might even sew some of these up for Noe to use on Samweli.
They are the perfect daddy-diaper. There is only one snap on each side,
and they can't be put on backwards or inside out. Daddy-Proof!
I've put 2 layers of Zorb inside each diaper.
QSFW with added leg and back elastic (2 of each print)
These are just 2 layers of flannel each, but when all folded up
they become 6 layers in the wetzone.
These are easy - plus, I get to use my serger. :)
QSFW all laid out - just so you can see how cool it is.

Because we used a lot of old flannel, coupons for expensive PUL, and fabrics that I found on-the-cheap, this whole stash only cost about $30-$40. And the pail liner and wet bag will be able to be used for years. I'd say that's pretty good!

Here are a few tidbits about newborn cloth diapering, just in case the cuteness didn't pull you over to the eco/wallet-friendly world of CDing yet.

  • Exclusively breast-fed babies' poop is 90% water. This means you don't have to rinse before throwing the diapers in the wash. This includes the meconium poop - absolutely NO RINSING!
  • Newborn babies poop pretty much every time they pee, so you're changing them a lot - meaning you don't need a lot of fabric for absorbency!
  • Many CDing mamas believe that in the early weeks of life, babies learn that they don't like the feeling of being wet. If you feel the inside of a disposable diaper, you'll notice it feels pretty dry (unless it's soaked). Wet cloth diaper = earlier potty training.
While I don't know if there is a factual basis for the third claim, the other two will get you thinking. And just for the sake of saying it - cloth diapering doesn't have to be an all or nothing way of life. Try using cloth at home and disposables when you go out. OR skip the newborn stage completely and start diapering when they fit into one-size diapers. After feeling the hit to your wallet from the early diapering days, you'll be glad you switched over to the world of cloth.

Be blessed!

Friday, February 3, 2012

I'm Back

I'm back - at least for a while anyway - I mean, I'll try to write a little more, promise. I feel like I've got tons of stuff to share since I haven't updated in so long (since like, August). Anyways. So what's been going on with us?

Well, in October we bought a house here in our hometown (if any of you old friends of mine remember where the Michalks' lived, it's right next door to their old house). Unfortunately there was a good bit of work to be done before we could move in...the biggest thing was gutting/remodeling the bathroom. :) We moved in with my parents, again - I love you, mom and dad - so we could have time to finish up after we had to be out of our rent house. In November, Samuel turned 1 year old. We had a great birthday party that I put a ton of work into. I decided that my next baby that turns 1 is getting a big bouquet of balloons for decoration - and a bouncy house - no theme needed. It's easy, and what does he/she care? We also got to see my family from Washington, who came down for Thanksgiving. In December, we got moved into our new house and decided to take a break from all projects. January came and went all in a blur. I had a big diaper stash I was working on for a friend, and I finally finished it (2 days ago). They'll be all delivered tomorrow. 23 fitted diapers, 6 covers, a pail liner, and a wet bag. Yay! I can't wait to try them on that newborn tushie.

Hmmm...well, I guess it doesn't sound like we've been doing too much, but really, we have. Now that we're finally getting geared up to finish this house, I'm hearing all my mom friends talk about how it's time to start the gardening - what? I thought that wasn't until spring. That just shows how much I know - which is not much.

Those are all my thoughts for now. I'll try and do a funner post next time, and yes, it will include pictures. :) Oh, and just for the sake of letting you know, I am even enjoying doing laundry in my new house. Well, I don't mind the washing, but I still dislike folding and putting away. Actually, if someone wanted to do my laundry for me, I wouldn't stop them, but at least I'm not avoiding it like the plague anymore. :P

Be blessed!