A few people have asked me how the whole cloth diapering thing is going, so I thought I'd give a little update. But lets start with how I got here. The decision to cloth diaper is a personal one for most families. And for families that can't even fathom it, they might think I'm insane. I'm not insane, though. Just extremely suggestible. It was pretty easy for me to get sucked in since I was already a breast-feeding, baby-wearing, baby-food-making sort of Mama. But while I did get sucked in, I wouldn't say I necessarily got here easily. For those of you who didn't know, we have been cloth diapering since sometime in July. The subject had come up while I was pregnant, and maybe a few times when Jack was very young. My Mom had done it for years - with the help of a diaper service - and I remembered the folding and pins and pull on plastic pants. No thank you! I wanted no part of it. Especially since those diaper services were all but extinct unless you lived in a major metropolitan area.
And then in February we gave Jack some homemade banana puree with a little lemon juice in it to keep it from browning. That is when it all started. We tried to treat the ensuing diaper rash, but it just kept getting worse. Then, we saw the pediatrician. Four tubes of Nystatin later, we were driving 90 minutes to a dermatologist in Indianapolis. She gave us some sort of super cream that killed off the "super yeast" that had been attacking Jack's butt for 2 months. When I took him back 2 weeks later, the yeast infection was gone, but we were now dealing with some sort of allergy. She made me swear off everything but plain water, Vaseline, and a steroid she gave me. She wanted me to switch to cloth diapers, too, but I had to draw the line somewhere. If these measures didn't work, I promised I'd consider it. Once the rash healed up, I was allowed to add things back in slowly until I found the culprit. Hopefully it was just all the yeast infection creams and our old routine wouldn't have to change. So I was excited when his little butt was finally clear again. The first thing I added back in was the baby wipes. That whole washcloth thing HAD to come to an end. Sadly, however, the redness came back almost immediately. What on earth do you do when your baby is allergic to baby wipes?! Mike shook his head as I ran to my trusted advisor, Google, and what I learned there opened my eyes forever.
First of all, baby wipes have not always been around. But babies have pooped for as long as there have been babies. Apparently, the commercial baby wipe is not the critical tool I had always imagined it was. Gasp! Moms can actually make their own! Fairly easily and cheaply, too. It was as simple as cutting a roll of Bounty (not the cheap paper towels) in half, soaking them in a solution, and sticking them in a container. In fact, an old commercial baby wipes container works nicely. I could do that! And I did. It worked well. Until, that is, he started getting caustic poo from teething. My Dad swears to me that, from a medical standpoint, teething does not cause caustic poo, but I swear to you it does. I don't care what medicine says. Maybe they just haven't paid enough attention. Teething = caustic poo. At that point, the diaper rash started all over again. Not even the dermatologist could fix it. Any exposure to that caustic poo literally ate holes in his skin. But there were a few things that helped. The chlorine-free Seventh Generation Diapers helped heal the redness tremendously. I don't know how. Maybe the caustic poo was reacting with something in the diapers. Maybe not. Regardless, the rash got better faster when I used them. The problem was that they were ridiculously expensive. $10 for 35. That was even worse than the Pampers. And considering Mike and I were bums living off the kindness of our parents, we couldn't really even afford the Pampers. I turned back to Google.
While researching the homemade diaper wipes, I came across many, many, many sites touting the cloth diaper revolution. I hadn't paid them any attention before. Now I was desperately seeking them out. Cute boutique after boutique popped up. These were not my Mama's cloth diapers. Things had changed. Cloth diapers were pretty. They came in fancy prints and colors. They even came in drastically different styles; some were just like a disposable but you didn't throw them away. The invention of something called the Snappi had made those nasty pins all but obsolete. The covers were more like wraps, with Velcro and snaps to hold them together. They felt like fabric even though they were waterproof. So many dazzling images danced across my computer screen. The prices made me wary, but you only have to buy it once. You use it over and over. I found calculators that showed you how much money you could save, particularly if you planned to have more than 1 kid. The savings could be in the thousands!
I was tempted, but there was 1 nagging problem: the poo. I would have to actually deal with the poo. Disposables are nice. Wrap it up, toss it out, and forget about it. But did you know that you are supposed to shake out your disposable diapers? I didn't. Apparently, it is against the law to put human feces into a landfill. Oops! Shouldn't someone have mentioned that? And did you know that disposable diapers will take over 500 years to biodegrade? And that is assuming they have things like air and light, etc to help them along. Do you know what elements are missing in a landfill? Yup. Those things aren't going anywhere. AND they are filled with poo. Alien archaeologists will have a field day! Could the guilt over what I had been doing to the environment be enough to make me agree to come into even closer contact with my son's poo? It was enough to make me agree to try the reusable swim diaper. Just a toe in the water. Just to see what it was like.
Surprisingly, Jack only pooped in his swim diaper once. We were in a creek. There was no one else really around. I just dumped it out, rubbed the fabric together a little, and it looked good as new. That was easy. I could do that. This would be a piece of cake! Did you hear that sucking sound? That's when it happened. (To be continued...)
Homemade Baby Wipes
Roll of Bounty paper towels cut in half (or cloth wipes)
1 c DISTILLED water (not spring, mineral, or tap)
8 drops Lavender Essential Oil
4 drops Tea Tree Essential Oil
Mix together with a whisk, pour over the half roll of paper towels (stuck into an old wipes box or some sort of plastic container), and when the roll has become saturated enough, pull out the cardboard center. At this point, you can also spend a little extra time to refold the paper towels so that they go back and forth instead of around and around. It'll save you aggravation later. There are tons of different recipes, but this one is very basic and doesn't put any extra chemicals on your baby's butt. And it works great. The distilled water is essential to be sure that nothing starts growing in there. The Tea Tree oil does all sorts of good thing. It has antiseptic and antifungal properties, which will not only keep your wipes from getting moldy, but will help your baby's butt as well. It is great for healing wounds (a bonus when your kid has open sores on his butt) and some even say it has antiviral properties. And the Lavender Oil is not only calming, but it also has antiseptic and pain relieving qualities as well. And it helps the wipes to smell nice. Tea Tree oil can come on kind of strong all by itself.
Jackson was watching his favorite TV show, Jack's Big Music Show, have a marching band. So, he went to his room, dragged out his drum, and got in on the fun right along with them. And when they weren't drumming, his drum made a very handy seat!
This is my invisibility helmet. I really like it a lot. When I put it on, it makes everything turn orange and then Mommy can't find me until I take it off again. It is so much fun! Sometimes I like to wear it when I'm doing something I know I'm not supposed to, like playing under the TV. Other times I do it just to be silly. Mommy looks all over the place for me, and then I laugh and take it off and she says "There's my silly bucket head!" I like to be invisible. (I guess I'm not invisible from the camera, though. Don't tell Mom or she might try to take pictures when she's trying to find me!)
A couple of weeks ago, my cousin Emma, her friend Olivia, and I all went to the Children's Book Festival in Rochester near where Emma lives. It was lots of fun! I got to meet Darth Vader and some of his friends. On the TV show, he is a bad guy, but he was pretty nice in person. I don't really know why he was there. I guess he just really likes books! Mommy and Daddy bought me a lot of really nice books to look at. My favorite has a whole bunch of weird designs in it. There are lots of pretty colors and shapes, too. We also heard a story and I got to meet a Bush Baby. He is an animal that can jump really really far. I can't jump at all. I bet next year will be even more fun when I can pick out my own books and sit still for more stories.
Ok, Auntie La. I'm back. Sorry it has been so long. I've been very busy. First, Uncle Joey came to visit me. We carved pumpkins and made Jack-o-lanterns. That was lots of fun! Pumpkins are very squishy inside, but they don't taste very good. They are very pretty to look at, though. We also went to the Anchor Bar. Everyone else ate chicken wings, but I discovered KETCHUP! Oh, it is soooo tasty. Uncle Joey shared his with me and it was awesome! I never liked it before, so I'm glad I tried it again. Mommy said you'd be very happy to hear that I like ketchup. 
playground. Daddy met Mommy and I there, and we got to play on the swings, and a dinosaur, and a slide, and a seesaw. There was even a sandbox with lots of cool shovels and trucks in it! I had lots of fun on Election Day! 
frozen.) but he also ate an entire half grilled cheese sandwich. We had had a small amount of luck with grilled cheese at the very beginning, but he quickly decided it wasn't worth his time. I've sort of been pushing them, though, because they are really easy for me to make. Today, instead of making a whole one and cutting it up into little bite-sized pieces, I saved myself the bread and just made half a sandwich. 
Then, going out on a limb since the kid has no concept of "one at a time" and frequently ends up with more in his mouth than he can swallow and has to spit it all out, I gave him the whole thing. I held it for him at first, but he quickly got the hang of it and started holding it on his own. He was even taking reasonable-sized bites. And the best part was, he finished the whole thing. I think it is the first time I let him feed himself where he got more than 1/3 of it in his belly. So that was exciting for us.
Also, (and Laura, you will be happy to hear this) brushing his teeth is one of his new favorite activities. We haven't been doing it for too long, but he really likes it. I don't know if the baby toothpaste just tastes a whole lot better than adult toothpaste or if it is something else about it that he likes, but he gets really excited when I bring him into the bathroom and he sees that cute, tiny little toothbrush come out. Hopefully, that sentiment lasts. 
This past weekend, our friends Corey and Taryn came to visit us. We had lots and lots of fun! On Saturday we had a picnic at Niagara Falls, and I got to see lots and lots of water. It was moving very fast, and even though it was sunny it was rainy right next to the water. I got all wet! I wanted to get out of my stroller and splash in it, but 
Mommy wouldn't let me. They did let me ride on Daddy's shoulders though. That was almost as good. I like it when Daddy runs really, really fast. 
climbed up really high in the trees and brought down lots of tasty apples. I love apples! We also got to play with goats and climb in the straw. I snuck a taste of this stuff called garlic that Mommy was eating, but it was yucky! I kept 
trying to get it out of my mouth, but I couldn't. And we also got to pick out pumpkins. I love my pumpkin! It's a really nice orange color. I even helped carry it to the car. All in all, it was a very fun weekend, and I'm really glad Corey and Taryn came to visit.
Not too much happened today, but I wanted to show everyone one of my favorite toys. This is my green Kawasaki from Aunt Kelley. It has a horn that goes "beep beep" and it makes a cool "vroom vroom" noise. It even reminds me to hold on when I climb on to ride it. The best part is the fun song that it sings. Thanks Aunt Kel for my cool ride!
On Sunday, Mommy and Daddy took me to a place called the Niagara Power Project right next to Daddy's school. They had lots of cool things to see there. I got to see really big birds like hawks and owls and vultures, little lizards, and a monkey who liked to play peek-a-boo just as much as me. He was so silly! They even had a lion suit that didn't have a lion in it. But my favorite were the really pretty birdies and fishes hanging from the ceiling. They were so nice to look at, and not quite as scary as that big, ugly turkey. Mommy says we eat turkeys, but he looked too mean to eat! It was a fun day, though. I can't wait until I'm bigger and can explore it a little better.
Uncle Joey sent me an awesome birthday present today. It was a black shirt that has lots of tiny holes in it and a great big 7 on the front and a bright yellow bib. Mommy tried the shirt on me, and I would not let her take it off. I look sooo cute in it! Uncle Joey says I have to wear it on Sundays, but I'm not really sure why. Maybe because it is so holey? And the bib is such a nice color, I just didn't want to put it down. I carried it around with me for 15 minutes before Mommy finally just put it on me so I didn't have to hold it anymore. It was getting tricky to hold it and drink from my cup at the same time. My hands are just tiny! Mommy read the words on it to me and it says "Terrible Toddler Towel," but I don't think it is terrible at all. I just love it! Oh, and I'm finally starting to figure out this whole balance thing. It's still tricky, but I was able to manage it a few times today. It's a lot easier to just stop in the middle of the floor than to walk over to furniture all the time. This picture is actually of me and Mommy clapping when she saw me standing by myself for the first time. Yay!
Well, almost back. We still don't have internet at our house. Hopefully all that will change very soon - just as soon as the cable guy can squeeze through the front door, past all the boxes, and over to the TV. But it's true. We've officially moved to Niagara Falls, and so far we're really liking it. 
After Mexico we were still busy with lots of stuff, and then went camping in Pennsylvania for a few days with our DC friends. That was lots of fun. We were down in Big Foot country (no, seriously, the guy honestly thought Big Foot lived on his land) and had acres and acres of mountaintop to ourselves. We also had a really nice creek to spend our days swimming in, which was good because it was much too hot on top of that mountain. 
past lots that were. Our house could probably use a bath, though. It is pretty dirty! There was lots and lots of rain, bright lights, and loud booms all night long. It was hard to sleep, but I did alright. 
Mommy says it is because I'm really a Lorenzetti at heart. I always thought I was just Jackson! Anyway, Aunt Mimi is here to play with me because Mommy and Daddy are too busy playing with boxes. We play lots of fun games and practice our roaring. I like to roar! I'm so scary when I roar.
I love packing! Mommy and Daddy let me play in a big box. It was so much fun to crawl into and out of and to play Peek-A- Boo in. Mommy couldn't find me at all! I'm a very good hider. They tell me we are packing to move to Nona's house where I'll get to see her and Papa all the time. That sounds great! I just hope we get to bring this box.
Mommy has been giving me some fun new foods lately. The other day Mommy gave me these super tasty grapes. They were juicy and squishy and sticky and tasted so sweet! She has also been feeding me blueberries. They turn everything purple! My oatmeal is purple, and my yogurt is purple. They even turn chicken purple! But I like them. I like them almost as much as banana'cado!
Making baby food just got waaay easier for me. For my birthday, all I really wanted was one of those immersion blenders. So instead of paying bills with my birthday money, I bought one. (Thank You, Poppy!) It is truly amazing! It makes quick work of just about everything. 3lbs of blueberries were mush within seconds. The long, tedious process of pureeing peas was 
basically eliminated. Just cook and whirl, all in the same pot. Uncle Joey will be very happy to learn that Jack's food no longer requires any (or if it does, very little) breast milk. I wish someone had explained to me how amazing this thing was 4 months ago. I've been a little slow in my baby food making lately, largely due to the fact that Jack is TERRIFIED of the blender and food processor (and vacuum cleaner and shredder and pretty much anything loud.) If he's awake, he starts screaming uncontrollably and if he's asleep, he wakes up to do the exact same thing. It's nuts. But my new magic wand is quiet and FAST. He doesn't mind it at all. I really wish I had started this whole process with one. And anyone who is ever considering making baby food NEEDS one of these little wonder machines. I have the Cuisinart Smart Stick, but it's not so much smart as magic. 
As you may or may not know, my Daddy found me a pet turtle about a month ago. At first, Mommy was calling him Michelangelo (because he was orange? I don't get it. Anyway...) Then, Daddy announced he wanted to call him Bear. Fine. But then all Daddy ever called him was Turty, and that is what stuck. Anyway, Mommy 
and Daddy said that Turty couldn't come live at Nona's with us. They told me Nona has a big doggy that would gobble him all up. I'm not sure I believe her, but since they wouldn't let me play with Turty anyway, I said it was ok if we let him go. 
So yesterday we went to the park and let Turty go in the lake there. I think Daddy was sadder than me. I was ok because Mommy and Daddy took me to the playground when we were done. It wasn't the same playground with the swing and the slide. This one had lots of fun toys that bounced up and down and spun around and around. They were so fun! There was a frog that went back and forth, a long thing that went up and down, and a spinny thing that spun Mommy and I around in circles so fast that everything was spinning even after we stopped. I hope we can let Turty go again so that we can go back to that playground!
Mama's little boy is 8 months old. He's getting so big so fast! He gets into everything. We had to take a few of his toys down because he kept pulling them down on top of him. I think the DVD tower is going 
to have to come down, too. (I suppose we need to pack it up anyway...) And while he figured out how to clap a few weeks ago, in the last few days he has decided that its a really, really 
fun thing to do. We clap for everything nowadays. He eats, we clap. He crawls, we clap. He catches the ball, he drops it so we can clap. It's very cute! And here are a few cute pictures. Everybody clap!
We went to Washington, DC this weekend to go to Daddy's George Washington University Graduation ceremony. Mommy says that Daddy is a doctor, but not a doctor like Papa and Dr. Lilly. He's a math doctor, but I don't really know what that means. When I figure it out, I'll let you know. Anyway, we had to go to a lot of places with lots of people where me and cousin Mads were supposed to be quiet and not cry. Lucky for us, Grandpa Barg and Aunt Kelley would rather find places to play on the floor, so it wasn't so bad. Madelyn and I had crawling races down the hall, and Great-Grandma Barg bought us new toys to play with, and I even got to play with my friend Drew and my new friend Rutherford. Rutherford is a lot littler than me, 
though, so he couldn't race. The only bad part was that I never got to see Daddy because he was never sitting with us. I only got to see him afterwards. He was always wearing funny clothes and a funny hat. I got to wear his funny hat, but it was too big. It had nice strings to play with though!
Mommy gave me hot, dry bread today. She called it "toast." She eats it all the time, so I thought I'd ask her if I could have some. She gives in so easy! I don't know how tasty it was, but it was pretty fun to eat. Mommy said she was happy just to have me sitting still and not getting into anything. I guess I did have a pretty busy day...
pretty slow coming to get me after my nap, too. Since I wasn't supposed to eat the little green light, I decided to play with the big light next to my crib instead. It made a really cool noise when I banged it up against the wall. Apparently, I'm not supposed to do that, either. It seems like there are lots of things I'm not supposed to do. I'm not supposed to pull myself up on the swing. Something about falling down and going "boom" when it rocks back and forth. I'm also not supposed to climb up on the couch even though she's the one that left the pillow on the floor for me to use to climb up there in the first place. And don't even get me started on all the things I'm not allowed to play with over by the TV. It's hard being a baby! 
Yesterday was a day that Daddy said was called Mother's Day. It was a lot of fun! I got to help Daddy make a card for Mommy with his pretty pencils. It was the first time he actually let me play with them, but I wasn't allowed to eat them. He just wanted me to drag them across some paper, which wasn't as much fun. I also helped Daddy make pancakes for breakfast. He wouldn't let me eat those, either. Soon, though. I seem to be wearing them down. They let me have some of their breadsticks when we went to Pino's for dinner. Pancakes can't be too far away! I think Mommy had a good day. She keeps taking me to smell the pretty flowers Daddy bought her. They smell so nice. I bet they are really tasty, but I 
haven't been able to find out yet. I'll let you know if I manage it. I've been going for the big pink ones, but I may need to change my strategy to the tiny purple ones. They might be easier to get into my mouth.
