Gag Me With a Spoon

Cloth diapers and morning sickness don’t mix.

That should be the end of today’s blog post. I’m not the first or the last mom to deal with cloth diapers while suffering from morning sickness. I just don’t know how other moms do it. It feels like I’m in smell hell every day. Seriously. If I weren’t so yucky feeling, I would be putting BW going on the potty instead of having him go in his diaper. The poo kills me. I wish I could say, ‘here are some sure-fire tips to help all the suffering preggos but I have no tips.

Here’s what I do:

1. Beg Mr. GBE to spray poopy diapers.
2. Beg Mr. GBE to rinse overnight diapers.
3. Beg Mr. GBE to throw a load of diapers in the wash.
4. Beg Mr. GBE to change poopy diapers.

This is what actually happens.

1. I spray poopy diapers.
2. I rinse overnight diapers.
3. I throw in a load of diapers to wash.
4. I only change poopy diapers while Mr. GBE is at work.

{I would be lying if I didn’t say that Mr. GBE doesn’t do any of 1-3, but it’s not every time I beg like I wish he would. Beggars can't be choosers, right?! I love you bunches, Mr. GBE.}

The odds for not puking while dealing with poop are not in my favor. So I have had to manage some survival tips for spraying, rinsing, and washing diapers. I’ve started using Rockin’ Green’s Pail Fresheners to help mask some of the odor in the diaper pail, and that does take the edge off for me when I pop open the diaper pail. {For those of you without the super crazy preggo sense of smell, it does a great job destroying odors. I know this from past use...think hot, stinky, Tucson summers}. I’ve used GroVia BioSoakers and BioLiners and well, you have to deal with poop either way. It’s illegal to throw human waste in the garbage. So since both options still have me dealing with poo, it has now turned into a waiting game. I am now at 17 weeks, and I’m hoping the queasiness will soon fade away. Until then, I’ll be gagging my way through diaper changes. {Disclaimer: I gagged my way through diaper changes with my oldest, CW, while pregnant with BW. And I used disposables then. So it’s not using cloth that grosses me out. It’s just that poo and my nose do NOT get along at this time. Blech!}

Tell me I'm not the only one living in Smell Hell!! :)

Winter Sunbathing

Tucson winters are amazing. Lately, we’ve been blessed with sunshine & 70s. This means our days have been spent at the park or in our front yard soaking up the winter rays. The diapers have also been spending many an hour outside sunning themselves on the drying rack. Unfortunately, due to some wicked morning sickness, the diapers haven’t been making their trek outside before 3 pm or even later. So, the heat of the day is beginning to fade and the sun’s rays disappear just as quickly. I’ve learned a couple of tricks to make use of the winter sun. Hopefully some of these tips can translate to those of you that live where you really have winter!

• I set up the drying rack close to a wall that has been drenched with sunlight for a majority of the day. In this case, I’m looking to use the heat radiating from the wall to help dry the diapers, since oftentimes the warmth of the day is quickly slipping into a cool evening.
• My GroVia soakers and Thirsties AIOs take more time to dry than pocket inserts and prefolds. Anything that is backed with a waterproof layer means that it dries from the top down. To help speed up drying, I prop both diapers on their sides. This way, the heat of the wall and the remnants of sunshine can dry on both the inner layers and outer layers of the diapers. It really helps!!

Note the sunny wall. And I can't help but brag about my white diapers. Ahhhh....I love sunny Tucson winters!

• So this tip rarely works for me, but getting diapers out during the warmest part of the day mainly noon-ish or so is best. I wish I could get moving on laundry sooner, but it takes my nose and stomach quite some time to calm down before I can get myself near the pile of dirties. Ugh.

So I’m not against using the dryer for my diapers. I just never really think to use it since I’m in the habit of line drying them. Following the above winter drying methods, I’ve been able to avoid using the dryer. It’s a way for me to cut back on energy and keep my diapers from excessive wear. So for those of you with a 'real' winter…here’s hoping that Puxatony Phil doesn’t see his shadow tomorrow!

{CW wishes you all a very happy Groundhog's day. He's psyched to watch the news tomorrow to see if Phil sees his shadow or not.}

Brrrrr. It's Cold Outside!

What happened to our fall weather? It must have skipped us here in Tucson. Our winter temps have arrived sooner than I would have liked. But fortunately for us desert dwellers, we still have plenty of sunshine during the winter {or fall since that is the current season}. Now that it’s much cooler, line drying is taking a lot more time than it did during the hot summer months. And I’m sure that many of you living outside of sunny AZ have been dealing with longer line drying times for quite some time now, unless you’re a punk & live in Hawaii {I’m talking to you little sis!}. So while you may be thinking the dryer is the way to go this time of year, remember that UV rays are still beneficial for your diapers. Even on cloudy days, UV rays still sneak through the clouds. Find a window and lay your diapers out on a drying rack, and let the sun work its magic. But do remember that it does take a longer time for stains to be removed during cloudy days, and it’s always best to sun your diapers while still wet. It helps stains to come out faster. And for those of us blessed to spend a gorgeous winter in Tucson, it is now safe to keep our diapers outside for longer periods of time. No more worries about having too much heat hurting the PUL/TPU waterproofing and elastics in our diapers. Yay! So bring it on Old Man Winter. I’m still sunning my dipes and doing my best to avoid using my dryer. While it may not be possible to avoid using the dryer for those of you in places where you actually have winter weather, do remember to use the UV rays to your benefit to keep your diapers stain free as much as possible. To read more about sunning your diapers click here.

Hook & Loop Care

It’s no secret that I’m partial to hook & loop/aplix. It’s actually a necessity with my alligator boy. But hook & loop doesn’t hold up to wear and tear like snaps. There are a few things you can do to help keep your hook & loop diapers stay strong. The most important thing you can do is to make sure the hook & loop is firmly put together on the laundry tabs before putting it in your diaper pail. Don’t put it together all wonky-like. Any hook left unattached has the potential to snag on other diapers in the wash, which will then pull apart from the loop. So not only will your hook & loop show wear faster, but they will also “eat” at your other diapers. Making sure the hook is secure on the laundry tab also prevents lint build up. This can be a pain to clean out, and keeps your hook & loop from being very “sticky”.  Another thing you can do to keep your hook & loop from wearing too quickly is to line dry. This keeps it from tumbling and potentially snagging other diapers while in the dryer. Line drying in general will also help in keeping your diapers from wearing too quickly. The lint you clean out from the lint trap is fiber from your clothes. Having a good size stash also keeps your diapers from wearing too quickly. You may only change 8 diapers a day, but constant washing, drying, and wearing is hard on the hook & loop closures and your diapers as well. {Minimum stash size is 24, if you're wondering.} Basic diaper maintenance and care in addition to using the laundry tabs properly will give your hook & loop a longer life. Yay!

Thirsties Duo Wraps, Fitteds, & Diapers have excellent laundry tabs that work well to keep the hook & loop “sticky”. I have Thirsties in rotation that have been used for over a year and still work great. GroVia has laundry tabs plus a loop to tuck the hook part and keep it hooked. This is a major improvement over the older GroBaby shells. I used to use a lingerie bag with my GroBaby shells inside to keep them from attaching to everything else. It made diaper chains obsolete. I highly recommend a lingerie bag if you’re having issues with your hook & loop diapers making diaper chains in the wash. It will help minimize wear and tear on your entire stash. And a lingerie bag is a must when washing your Bummis Swimmi. It’ll keep your suits from catching on the hook & loop. {Learned that lesson the hard way. Bummer.} At this time I don’t have any use for the lingerie bag for my diapers, but I do use it for BW’s bibs. No more snagged shirts & shorts when I do the boys’ laundry. My sister gave me that idea, and I remember she used a bag to wash tiny baby socks to keep the washer from eating them. So many uses for more than your lingerie.



Thirsties Duo Wrap with Aplix



Thirsties Duo Diaper with Aplix



GroVia OS Shell with Hook & Loop



I have little desire to convert to Team Snaps. Hook & loop is the best choice for me. Even though BW tries to take off his diaper when he’s pantless, he’s mischievous busy like that, it makes diaper changes so much easier for me. A little extra effort to make my diapers stand up to constant wear and tear if definitely worth it. And if I’ve totally turned you off to hook & loop, no worries. I agree with you that snaps are awesome. We don’t do naps & nights without them. I may love the ease that hook & loop gives me when changing a diaper, but I’m not a fool to think that BW would never make a poo masterpiece if given the chance. If you’re a snap lover, Thirsties makes their entire line in snaps {the Duo Diaper in snaps is their newest addition}, GroVia Shells, Newborn, and All-In-Ones come in snaps, BabyKicks 3g & Fitteds are only in snaps, and of course the entire FuzziBunz line is snaps. And if you’re a fan of hook & loop, Thirsties entire line and GroVia Shells come in hook & loop. The choice is yours. Feel free to mix and match to suit your diapering needs.

On the road again

Last month’s traveling really took me out of the habit of blogging. Now that I’ve been back these past couple of weeks, I’ve found plenty of excuses to keep me away from writing. So I’m back. I have a lot of new things that I found at the ABC Kids Expo, and I’ll be sharing them with you in the coming weeks. But first I’d like to share my experience of traveling with my 3 year old and 17 month old boys.

washing in the sink

GroVia’s hybrid option made packing BW’s diapers easy. The BioSoakers took up less room than cloth diapers and disposable diapers. The GroVia shells that I took also hardly took up any space. I knew I wasn’t going to have the time to hand wash cloth diapers in the sink or tub, and I don’t believe in beating myself up about using BioSoakers. Yes, they are disposable, but they are made up of compostable materials. I also love that they are fragrance and dye free. BW never had a leak daytime or nighttime with the BioSoakers. The covers were washed in the hotel sink one night. And they did not dry overnight. Ack! So I used the blow dryer in the morning to dry one for him. The others air dried in the car the rest of the day. The reason it took so long to dry was because it rained constantly. Every day we were there, it rained. Blah. {I love sunny Tucson!} The rest of the time that the shells were washed was with our regular laundry, and then they were hung to dry. It was so nice to have a healthy alternative to cloth diapers for BW while traveling.

I also will fully disclose that I used Huggies Overnights on my oldest, CW. It sucked! He leaked every night. Poor him. Poor me. {I shared a bed with him.} But I knew we were going to be so busy that we just had to suck it up and deal with it for a few nights. And I did call Huggies once we got home and complained. I am getting my money back. I don’t know what I could have done differently for him, and if you have a suggestion, please share.

Two other “cloth diaper” items came in handy while on vacay. The first was detergent. I packed 2 samples of Rockin’ Green to wash the GroVia shells and our clothes. And the second thing was a pail liner. I am soooooooooooooooooooo glad I packed a pail liner. It made the best hamper. Dirty clothes weren’t strewn about in the hotel rooms, and laundry time was made easy by having it all in one place. It was also nice to have our dirties separate from our clean clothes in the suitcases.  I didn’t have to be anal and rewash our clean clothes because there wasn’t any mingling with the dirties. {I’m weird like that.} Rockin’ Green washed our clothes up amazingly. Stains were non-existent in the boys’ clothes without my usual pre-treatment. I’m seriously considering using it as our everyday detergent. And to be totally honest, I did use a sample packet of Tiny Bubbles {GroVia’s detergent} one day for laundry. I couldn’t find the Rockin’ Green I packed, and I had a sample from the ABC Kids Expo. It washed our clothes just as well. It’s nice to know that once my cloth diapering days are over, I’ll still have use for my pail liners and eco-friendly detergents.

How do you travel with cloth diapers? Please share your experiences or lack thereof. I’d love to hear how other families travel with cloth or maybe don’t travel with cloth.

Mr. GBE washes diapers

So while I enjoyed my time in paradise with my sis, {boy, did we tan up after we spent 2 mornings snorkeling!} Mr. GBE was stuck happily taking care of the mundane chores of caring for the boys…meals, cleaning, preschool drop offs & pick-ups, and laundry. And yes, he did all laundry including diapers!

I’m the kind of mom that does a thing a certain way and wants it to only be done that particular way. A good & wise friend once told me that she doesn’t stress over how her hubby cares for their child. He can do it his way and she can do it her way as long as the outcome is the same. Pretty much telling me nicely, as long as the kids are alive & well, get over the fact that he’s going to do things differently from me. Slowly, I am easing up in that department. So, without making a big deal about the laundry to Mr. GBE, I just made a laundry chart. Normally I would have gone over every detail with him. And really, what did I care about how he did laundry while I was away? I was going to spend my time squeezing my nephews and drinking mai tais at lunch in Hawaii. I knew Mr. GBE could handle the laundry.

And handle the laundry he did! Mr. GBE went from never rinsing a diaper in the toilet to rinsing, washing, and drying like a pro. He makes washing diapers look easy, even when it isn’t. Poor Mr. GBE. He ran into a slight problem…he fixed our water softener. How is that a problem? A very handy Mr. GBE unknowingly changed the amount of soap that was needed to wash the diapers once the water got softer. He only called once and asked me if it was normal to have to rinse so many times to get the bubbles out. Uh…no. After a quick troubleshooting call, I was back to smooching my nephews and annoying my sister. And he was back to washing diapers.



Ignore the fact that E & I are blurry, just take in that gorgeous sunset.



I am so blessed to have a hubby that graciously took time out of his busy schedule to take care of our boys while I was off on a mama-cation. A big virtual *smoochie* to Mr. GBE for being so great. I know the boys had a great time livin’ it up with their Dada. {For the record, CW made it known to Daddy about how the daily routine was to go on school days. Ahhh, I love knowing that he thrives on routines as much as I do.} It was great to have the time to go visit my sis and her fam. {It was the first time I got to meet lil’ E.} I think I should have a mama-cation every year!

Mr. GBE takes on Mr. Mom

Aloha! I’m packing my bags and heading out to visit my sister and her brood in Hawaii this week. The joke around here is that all I need in my bag is my kindle, mp3 player, & grass skirt & coconut bra. I can’t wait to fly off alone, {I know you’re jealous.} and spend a glorious week with my sis and her two boys. Adventures await!

On the home front, I’ve been preparing for Mr. GBE for his new role as Mr. Mom. And the highlight of his stay-cation, as I like to call it, is laundry. And to be even more specific, diaper laundry. As per our unspoken cloth diaper arrangement, Mr. GBE only changes diapers. And on a rare occasion snaps in a GroVia soaker onto a shell. That’s it. Now he’s going to have a week full of diaper laundry…washing, drying, and sorting. Ack! And like I’ve mentioned before, my stash is quite eclectic. Yesterday, we sat down and sorted the clean diapers together. He wasn’t thrilled with the variety, but he’s up for the task. There were also a few comments that he’s going to pick up a pack of Luvs. Ha ha *dry, sarcastic laugh* This just reemphasizes my belief that the more uncomplicated your stash is the better it is for when you leave your babe. Now that we sorted laundry, my next task is to show him the wash routine. And to keep phone calls to a minimum {a 3 hour time difference will not allow him early morning, laundry phone convos!}, I’ve made a list with laundry instructions. And to make everything even easier, I made a list with all laundry instructions, boys’ clothes, dog things {she’s had surgery recently, and needs fresh bedding daily}, sheets, and Mr.GBE’s clothes. My hope is to plow through a majority of laundry today, so dirty dipes will be his only laundry chore. I think I deserve a pat on the back, but since I’m going to Hawaii for a week, I won’t ask for one.

On another note, I’ve never left BW for longer than a day. He’s going to freak. I’m going to freak. But at least I’ll be freaking out in paradise. He’s such a mama’s boy, and I do relish his baby love. His open mouth, drool kisses are to die for. He’s going to have to call me every day and tell me how much he misses me.

CW, on the other hand, is going to survive without me. I’ve left him for a week when he was BW’s age. We both survived the time apart. And now that I leave him 3 days a week for a few hours at school, it’s like he’s turned into Mr. Independent. I am going to miss out on a whole week of chasing him around the house pinching his “biscuits”. It’s our fav thing to do! He’s going to have to call me every day and tell me how much he misses me.

Paradise calls…

{And by the way, Mr. GBE will be filling orders from the store. He thinks he deserves a raise!}