Sand Trap!

The problem: Dirt munchers keep tossing all of the potting soil out of my pots.

The answer: Build a sand trap.

That's right. What better way to distract one's toddlers from the pots filled with potting soil but duct tape them to the side of the house to give them their very own container filled with sand.

"The twins need something to do on the deck while I'm outside working." sez Me. "I bet they'd like a sand table! You there! Lazy Husband! Build me a sand table!"

And Lo! He built a sand table using the disused cat litter box I suggested (after I cleaned that sucker back to Factory Clean levels of clean), some scrap lumber and a few wood screws. I then set off for the store and paid $3 for 50 lbs of play sand, since "all purpose sand" appears to not have as many purposes as you may have thought (May contain silica dust. Do not inhale. Not for use in sandboxes.), put it all together and took it out for a test drive.

As for the twins reaction to the sand trap table:
They loved it.

Just think of all the great things they can learn from a sand table!

Wind + sand = downwind hazard zone.

Sand: good for playing, not so good for drinking.

Sand: pours like a liquid, but you don't get wet.

Sand toys = anything you have. Tiny pots with holes. Cups. Spoons. Forks.

My personal favorite thing learned: Sand keeps babies from munching dirt. Instead, they munch sand. Win-win for all involved!

Second favorite: That husband guy is a handy little thing to have around!

Later, in the summer, I will pull out the sand box and put in an identically sized box that has water in it. That way the twins can splash around to their heart's content and (even more importantly) stay out of my pots!

Reduce, reuse and recycle, baby! This may have been the best $3 I've ever spent.

Easter Egg Bums

Guess what finally came in the mail?

A box full of bum wraps. (Pa-dum-bum-psssh! I'm here all week folks!)

The long-awaited, seriously back-ordered Bum Genius 3.0 cloth diapers! Thanks Grammy!

Climbing, but still not walking.

They come in far more colors than just white and pink, however they are all pastel shades and while they have cutsey, trippy names like "Twilight", they're really just white, pink, yellow, blue and green. It's like Easter has landed on tiny baby bums.

Pink and yellow tushies!

I'm not a big pastel fan (As a matter of fact, we almost didn't buy the house we live in because it was originally pastel yellow. Bleah!), but I am a fan of a product that works and these work. We've gone cold-disposable-diaper-turkey around here since they arrived on Friday. Yes, we're doing more laundry, but in our house we do laundry just about every day anyway, so an extra load - albeit a stinkier one - is not a big deal.

"Emma, whatchu tink 'bout dese new dihpahs?"
"Dey OK. Mehbee a purple wud be nice. Or poneez."

We're learning that during the last diaper change of the day we need to slide in an extra layer of absorption or face multiple wakings at night, but other than that these diapers rock!

Well, in as much as a diaper can be considered Rockin'.

"I comin' a getcha!"

One of the best parts about them is the fact that they are adjustable so that we only have to buy the one size and expand them as the twins grow. Ca-chiiing!

I'm not going to get into the cloth vs disposable debate here, in case you were wondering (Previously discussed here after starting here.). If you search like I did on "environmental impact disposable cloth diaper" you'll get a ton of hits. I read the top five, just for grins. You'll want to do your own research, search your soul and your pockets and decide for yourself. What I will tell you is this: from my reading, it appears as if many of the studies that have come out have been funded by the diapering industry. I don't know about you, but I have a hard time trusting in a study that is paid for by the industry itself, as opposed to a neutral third party.

I think, like formula, disposables have their place. Not everyone will have the time or the desire to wash cloth diapers. Financially, cloth is a big expense up front, but over the diapering life of the twins it will be much cheaper in the long run. The environmental impact for the plastics involved in disposables is also a long term issue, as opposed to cloth diapers, unless you want to start discussing how heavily managed a crop cotton is and its excessive use of pesticides and herbicides. However, going down that route can also start a discussion about the oil used in creating disposables and the wars fought over access to cheap oil. (The cost of the war exceeds $538 trillion, as of this writing, according to the National Priorities Project.)

However, everything we do has a cost. Everything we purchase has an environmental impact. I'm just trying to keep mine down for the long term by switching to cloth, laundering it myself in my ultra-low water use washing machine with my eco-friendly detergent, hang drying when possible and selling them off when we're done (Cloth diapers maintain their value for quite awhile if they are in good condition when you're done with them. Check eBay for yourself.).

Also, the biggest environmental impact is not whether you choose cloth over disposable. It was whether or not to have a child in the first place. We chose to have these children, assuming that in the long term they would have a positive impact on society that outweighs their environmental impact.

So far, so good!

The cuteness cannot be denied!

"I look good in yeh-yoh, dontchu tink?"

Baby Clothes: The Rant

Got a baby? If you do, chances are they're probably wearing something other than just a diaper. Unless it's warm where you live all the time, in which case - more power to you!

For the rest of us, choices need to be made. I'm here to help. So if you're buying for yourself for a first baby or buying for a friend and you don't know a thing about buying baby clothes, this post's for you! For all others, let me know what you find essential in the comments.

• Coming Clean.
  First up: it must be machine washable. I don't care how darling that outfit is: if I can't throw it in the wash when it gets pooped, peed or vomited on, then it's just a Single Serving Outfit to me. If I barely have time to shower, do you really think I'm going to have time to take this thing to and from the dry cleaners? Also, the expense of dry cleaning is guaranteed to exceed the value of the outfit in just a couple of trips.
• Material Matters.
  Cotton is King when it comes to baby clothes. Soft cotton, please! That which has to come into contact with the world's softest skin should be soft to the touch, shouldn't it? If it feels stiff or like I wouldn't want it touching my skin, I'm not going to buy it or want it for my child.
• It's All About Style.
  In the summer Caitlin was born, she pretty much lived in onesies. The twins, on the other hand, need full coverage since it's cold. We have come to love one piece outfits that are fast to get in and out of since we spend a lot of time stripping vomit-covered outfits off. Sleep sacks seems nice, with their instant diaper area access, but they ride up which leaves a fall/winter baby cold. Multiple piece outfits are fine, except that the shirts ride up. Pairing a onesie with a pants outfit is just yet another layer you have to strip away before diapering, which is bothersome for the fumble-fingered in the middle of the night.
  
• Closing it Up.
  Considering we spend an awful lot of time drunk with exhaustion as new parents, anything tougher than a zipper is probably going to be too complex for us to handle on reduced brain power. However, since not everything comes with zippers, here are my preferences in order: zipper, snaps, ties, velcro, buttons (if you absolutely must). Personally, I can't button or unbutton anything from 1 am to 7 am, so those outfits tend to get left at the bottom of the pile until everything else is dirty.
• Collars.
  It might seem weird to have a collar preference, but I do. I like outfits to have minimal collar action. If the collar is so large and round that I start thinking about Elvis (fat era) or characters from Buck Rogers in the 25th Century (Princess Ardala), that collar it too darned big and is just going to become a collection point for the fluid du jour.
  

Well, that's my list. What's on yours?

Hey...now that I'm done, I think I'm going to catch a little video. Wow! The stuff we used to watch on TV!

Let's talk dirty

Dirty diapers, that is.

A friend of mine pointed out to me that there is a long term consequence of choosing short term convenience (disposable) over long term savings (cloth). My friend is correct. We are talking about paying for your diapers in one of two ways: either by paying for the convenience to use thousands of disposables, adding to our environmental burden, or using cloth diapers which also add to our environmental burden - in a different way.

There are lots of different studies out there that say that it's either a toss up or that disposables are the sum of all evil. The problem comes down to: Who are you willing to believe? or How much time and money are you willing to spend backing up your eco choices? The book that I had used for my initial research was The Consumer's Guide to Effective Environmental Choices. Written by the Union of Concerned Scientists, they don't strike me as propagandists.

Six years ago, when we were first starting out with Caitlin, we started with cloth diapers and experienced many frustrations and ickiness. I have a weird quirk/habit about having icky hands. (Ask my mom, this has been going on since pre-kindergarten. She'll tell you all about how they had to convince me to finger paint.) Changing her diapers twenty times a day meant we went through a lot of cloth diapers. Wet, drippy, messy cloth diapers. A blowout for her meant she would be soaked and screaming, her clothes would be soaked, her bedding would be soaked and if either Eric or I were holding her at the time, we would be soaked. But not screaming. All of this leads to a lot of clothes washing and water use. Using a service meant that we didn't have to do the washing of the diapers, but that someone else did. There's no getting around the water use issue.

Oh and in 2002 Colorado experienced a helluva drought. We dropped our water use significantly in compliance with local codes. This drought was also the spur for the xeric garden, replacing 1750' of bluegrass lawn in my front yard. However, that's another story.

We switched to disposables and experienced fewer deluges and stayed with them until she was potty trained at nearly 3. Now, it is true that her diaper use slowed down as she got older and was definitely spotty during the potty training stage, so it's hard to tell you exactly how many diapers we went through. The short answer is a lot. However, as I've learned with all manner of other parenting issues, time and personal experience will wear away zealous thinking faster than anything else. For example, I was a zealous advocate for 100% breastfeeding and got to be a pain in the ass about it. However, I also learned lots of lessons along my breastfeeding journey and learned to self censor myself over other mom's breastfeeding choices. Parenting is tough enough without other mom's (myself included) performing Mommy Drive Bys on the choices of other mothers.

Back to diapers.

It's now 6 years later and there are lots of new choices in diapering. My sister mentioned gDiapers and I've heard about new disposable liners for cloth diapers and I believe that Ed & Val were using Seventh Generation Chlorine Free diapers when they used disposables. I also still have our diaper covers that we used the first time, a few from Val and a pile of cloth liners. My plan is to use both cloth and the newborn sized disposables that we received. We're willing to give the new versions of cloth diapers and diaper covers another try, but we're also very aware of the fact that we're going to have two tiny tushies to change on a near constant basis. And we're going to be tired. A lot.

Being Green, being an environmentalist, is not an all or nothing situation. There is a spectrum that we fall across and I have learned to accept that there is always going to be someone greener than me, just as I am always going to be greener than other people. There are folks out there that always use cloth diapers, all cotton or hemp clothing, never eat anything but local, organic and free trade food. They never yell at their children, drive electric cars and make most of their own food or goods.

I'm not that person. We have two cars, although we only really drive my Accord. I rant about SUVs on the road that only have one person in them, but I also have family members that own and use SUVs all the time. I'm not a big shopper, but I'm related to some. I compost, recycle, use CFC bulbs and go to the library rather than buy my books (these days). I try to encourage friends and family members to do the same and I consider each change they make another win for the environment, but in the end it is all about choice. I'm trying to make my choices as consciously and conscientiously as I can.

I appreciate being called out on the cloth vs. disposable issue. Hopefully we can pool our knowledge and all make good choices together.

Essential Baby Gear

This one's for Ali. Feel free to add what you find to be essential in the comments!

I'll try to group them in a logical fashion:

Bath: Safer bather (or bathtub insert thingie), wash cloths, towels (really soft ones, go for all cotton), organic/natural cleansers and lotions (Burt's Bees, etc.), a little tiny scrubber brush to handle "cradle cap". They may give you one at the hospital, if not, look for something that looks like it was meant to remove corn silk from corn - very very soft bristle brush.

Illness: nose suckers/bulbs (yucky but necessary), drops for gas, baby pain killer for fevers/illnesses. You may never need them, but better to have them on hand than not. Baby diaper ointment - we liked Weleda. Q-tips for umbilical cord care. Thermometer - we never could get a proper reading from the ear thermometer, so we went with a regular digital and used it under her arm. Tiny nail clippers, if you don't want to tear them off manually.

Bedroom: cotton fitted sheets - several sets for diaper "blowouts" or illness (4 or so. How often you do laundry determines the number needed.), a mattress wrap if you're paranoid like me, water proof mattress pads (2) also for "blowouts". If you have a baby that likes to be bundled you'll need a few receiving blankets (4-6). Receiving blankets are also great as burp cloths. A crib set is fine if you're going for a theme, if not, no biggie. Crib bumpers are good until the kid starts ripping them down. A good crib with sides you can lift up or set down with one hand. Important! You won't have two to do this with. A good brightly colored, multi-dimensional movement, musical mobile. Useful for distracting grumpy babies.

Diapers and wipes: choose whichever type you like best - cloth or disposable. The jury is still out as to the long term environmental impact of one over the other (Professional cleaning = water + chemicals + drive time to and from your house. Disposables = sitting around in a landfill.). Cloth may be best if you are doing all the laundering on your own, but as an exhausted parent, the concept of having to wash messy diapers was too much for us. We had a service for a pair of months and then turned to disposables. I'm hoping that my eco-karma out weighs our share of diapers. The size you will need may change quickly - will you need newborn or the next size up at birth? all depends on how big Little You is.

Changing station: You don't need a dedicated changing table. That's a waste of money (to me). Instead, get a good dresser that is at a good height for you and your honey to change the baby on and get a changing pad and affix it to the top. Then you'll need about 2-3 changing pad covers. All cotton and soft is best. If you have something on the ceiling or the wall over hanging your changing spot, Little You will be less frustrating to change. This way, as your kid gets bigger, it's just his dresser and you don't need to buy an extra piece of furniture.

Diaper disposal: The "need" for a diaper genie is a toss up. You waste a LOT of plastic "sealing" each diaper in. The alternative is just a regular trashcan and toss diapers on a frequent basis to keep the smell down. In case no one has told you, breastfed babies poop really has very little smell to it, unlike formula. Once they go on solids, phew!

Diaper bag: Get one with a changing pad, pockets and zippered plastic bag for soaked clothes that neither you nor your husband will feel humiliated carrying around. We liked the one we got from Land's End, 6 years ago.

Seating: A rocker/glider to soothe/nurse/play. A foot rest is good, too. A small table next to it to hold snacks and liquids for you. Space for a phone, maybe even a book or the TV remote once you get the hang of one handed nursing/bottle feeding, is ideal.

Lighting: A night light or dimmer switch on your main room light. You will need to see to put the baby into the crib or get him for a night feeding, but you don't want to turn all of the lights on.

Clothing: Again, size is dependent on birth weight. Style is dependent on time of year. You won't go wrong with 0-3 month sizes, but he may "swim" in them for a bit if he's little at birth. Or grow out of them instantly if he's huge at birth like Oliver (0-3mo = up to 11lbs). Onesies are your friend, as are baby sleep sacks. Anything that lets you get to the diapering area ASAP is a good thing. Anything that needs special cleaning: forget it! Cotton. Cotton, cotton, cotton. Nothing with too many snaps, buttons take too much time, velcro can be either scratchy or startlingly loud to small fry. Depending on the weather when he's born, you may want a snowsuit. Generally babies take lots of layers rather than heavier clothes.

Little tiny mitten thingies to keep him from scratching his face off after birth. Or else socks, but they keep falling off. Trust me on this. Caitlin shredded her face the day she was born with her tiny fingernails after they air dried and hardened.

Car seat/baby carrier. Required by law before you can leave the hospital. Now is not the time to go cheap, either, as your baby will live in this for months. We did our research with Consumer Reports before purchasing ours. By the way, whatever outfit you take him home from the hospital in needs to have legs so that he gets strapped into the car seat/carrier safely.

Baby containment devices: all optional, but some have been life-savers for us. Vibrating bouncy chair, swing (when they're a little older 2-3 months?), immobile exer-saucer (3-4 months), Boppy pillow, sling to carry on your chest (tons of options here from giant pieces of cloth to Baby Bjorns - test drive some in the store with a stuffed animal), carriage or carriage frame that you snap your carrier into (very light weight), portable play pen "pack 'n' play" for traveling crib action (can also wait, not an immediate need). I've heard good things about the Baby Bumbo chair, but again that's for after the baby has head control and before they can sit up on their own (3 mo?). Much later on, a good high chair. We liked the Chicco Mamma which was expensive but excellent. They last, too. Val got a pair for her twins and is loaning one to me, so they're pretty tough.

Video camera.

If you're planning on breastfeeding: you will need washable breast-pads to stop leaking all over the place. Disposables don't breathe well enough, I found. Nursing bras you can undo with one hand, no underwire, very comfy. Lanolin for chapped nipples. Clothing that lets you access your breasts ASAP. A sleep bra (or 2) that you can also pop pads into. Trust me, you'll leak in your sleep and wake up in a puddle. Le sigh. Ask me how I know that.

Toys and books: Optional. Your baby won't care about much other than nursing for a few months. However, soft is best with black, white and red being colors/contrasts newborns see best. Keep an eye out for recall listed items. Don't let anyone give you anything that makes too much noise. You'll want to kill it after its song/noise plays for the nth time! Remember that whatever the toy is, eventually it will wind up in your son's mouth, so caveat emptor!

If it seems like a lot of stuff, it is. You can break it down to the short list of must haves, leaving out lots of baby containment devices, but you must have a video camera. You'll be amazed at how fast they change and how much you will forget, just from month to month.

Anyone else have anything to add? Toss in your 2 cents in the comments.



Disclaimer: I kept referring to he since that's what Ali is having. So if you are having a girl, don't feel left out that I didn't switch sexes and refer to she.