Winter Blooms

Posted by Sarah O. on December 8, 2009

It’s cold and dreary – and getting dark even though it’s only 4 pm, but it’s nice to have some winter blooms in the house.

My Lipstick Mona Lisa is the only thing blooming now – the Thanksgiving Cactus blooms have come and gone.

I think I overwatered it after I realized it was blooming, but the plant itself seems to be doing ok.

Of course I don’t remember how long the blooms normally last so it might have just been time for them to go.

We moved the Lipstick Mona Lisa into the bedroom because I got a Wandering Jew and a Hoya a couple of months ago, so I was pretty surprised that it bloomed.

It’s nice to have the blooms in the bedroom though.

Is anything blooming for you now?

 Out and About With the Baby K’tan

Posted by Sarah O. on November 19, 2009

We took the baby out for the first time, and I carried her in her pretty pink Baby K’tan.

I was a little nervous, since I’ve only seen a few people around here wearing their babies, and that was at the Fargo Street Fair, which actually does have a baby sling vendor.

I’ve also heard some stories about people who are told off for babywearing, so I wasn’t sure what the reaction would be locally.

I was pleasantly surprised at how many people said that they liked the Baby K’tan, and were glad to see someone wearing/snuggling/carrying their baby instead of toting them around in an infant carrier.

I loved that the Baby K’tan made it easier to carry the baby – she slept the whole time we were out – about 2 hours, and I didn’t have any back pain like I would have if I had been carrying her in my arms.

I also loved that I could peel back the outer edge of the wrap if I wanted to show her off, but that most people stayed far enough back so that I didn’t have to worry about them breathing on her, or touching her.

I did feel like I had to keep checking to make sure that the sides of the Baby K’tan weren’t touching her mouth and nose, and that she was able to get fresh air in the sling, and I also noticed that she seemed a little hot in one area of the store.

Fortunately, I was able to walk to a cooler area, and she was fine.

It is a little awkward to get her in and out of the carrier – especially when you’re in the store with a purse or a diaper bag and a coat.

Fortunately dh was with me, and he helped, but I still ended up putting my stuff on the floor.

Next time I think I will put her in the carrier before we leave the car.

 She’s here

Posted by Sarah O. on November 18, 2009

Time flies when you’re having fun – or when you have a new baby.

I had my little girl on Halloween at 10:44 pm.

She was 20 3/4 inches long, and weighed 6 lbs 12.7 oz.

She is adorable, and she’s a great baby, although it is hard to get anything done unless she’s sleeping – and then I have so much stuff that I want to do.

Hopefully I’ll be able to post here more soon.

But I couldn’t be any happier .

 Babywearing

Posted by Sarah O. on October 13, 2009

Are you a baby wearer?

I’m planning on wearing the baby – I never liked pushing around shopping carts in grocery stores, so I can’t imagine that I’ll like pushing a stroller everywhere.

Yesterday we were out in a small store, and I noticed someone carrying a 7 week old around in a car seat carrier.

We do have a car seat carrier, but I just can’t imagine walking around the store carrying the carrier.

It will be so much easier if all I have to worry about is her.

Of course the fact that I’m 37 weeks pregnant, and my back hurts so bad that I had my husband carrying my purse around might have something to do with how I felt, but I was really hoping that my baby would love the carriers so that we don’t have to worry about the car seat all the time.

Right now I’ve got a pink Baby K’tan, and my mother-in-law is sewing up a pouch sling for me.

I can’t wait to try them and see how they work, and how the baby likes them.

Are you a babywearer?

When did you start wearing your babies?

Any tips for a newbie?

 Cloth Diapers and New Babies

Posted by Sarah O. on October 4, 2009

Ahh, there’s less than a month left until the due date, and there are still so many choices.

Cloth diapers, disposable diapers, how to decorate the nursery – and where is the paint for the nursery anyways?

What else do we really need before the baby is born, and how big will she be so we know what size clothes, and diapers to get for her!

Ahh, it’s all so confusing.

I’ve been thinking about trying cloth diapering recently, so I’ve spent all morning looking at diapers, and trying to figure out what I need to get, whether it will need a cover, and if I should really get any before I have the baby and can measure her to see which kind of diapers are more likely to fit right.

We do have some disposable diapers, but I would like to try cloth.

When I was first researching cloth I read that you had to rinse them out in the toilet, and I decided right then and there, that there was no way that I was doing that.

I’m a bit of a germaphobe, and the thought of doing that in a public restroom …. no way.

About a month ago, I just happened to come across a few blog posts where people said that they didn’t rinse their diapers out, so I started looking into cloth diapering some more.

I found out that there are diaper sprayers that attach to your toilet so you can rinse the diapers out without dunking them in the toilet, and that there are disposable and reusable diaper liners, that you either toss, or dump out into the toilet so you don’t have to dump them, so I’ve decided to give it a try, and see how I like it.

But now the decisions …

I’ve got some Fuzzi Buns and bumGenious on my baby registry, so hopefully I’ll get some of those, and see what happens.

If not, then I’ll actually have to make a choice.

Should I get newborn size, one size fits all, all in ones, or what?

Any advice?

Do you cloth diaper?

What kind of diapers do you use, and where do you get them from?

How did you decide which type of diapers to use, whether they are cloth or disposable?

Any advice for someone with a soon to be born baby who’s never used cloth diapers, or even seen them used?

I’d really appreciate it!