Splash!

It's a well-known fact around here that water is Miss A's very favorite thing. Ever. Pool, tub, water table, fountains...you name it, she loves it.

After several days of too-hot-to-LIVE heat here in KC, we finally had a nice 80 degree day. Grandma Brown and I took Amy and her cousins, Luna and Alex, out to Crown Center, where they have a fantastic fountain area that kids love to run in and out of. The jets were a little too forceful to let Amy walk through on her own, so I carried her with me while we followed Luna around through the fountains.

We were soaked. It was so fun, and I felt like a kid on those days when the firemen would open the hydrants. It was awesome to hear Amy squeal with delight, and watch her put her hands in the 8ft high fountains.

She cruised around on the benches, and crawled around the perimeter, splashing in the puddles. Then, she let go of one bench and started toddling toward me...and didn't stop!!! She took 10 steps to me, and since that day has been walking non-stop.

The kids were spent, and all of them fell asleep in the car on the way home. Such a fun day.

I know, I know...

Yes, I know I have changed my template about a hundred times this last month. I could say it's because of my terrible lack of decision making skills...OR I can just blame it on the blog websites and the fact that they've had to reformat lately.

Yes. I think I'll go with Door #2.

I don't have much alse to say, so here. I will distract you from the change with photos of the baby. Sorry...the toddler.

This is how most pictures look these days...sitting still? What a crazy idea.

Miss Pouty-Face. So sad.

My girl and her Daddy. She was "saying cheese" for the camera. How cute is that?

One week in cloth

Well, here we are. One week into cloth diapering, and there have been things that have surprised me, and things that have not.

What has NOT surprised me:

1. Poop is gross.
2. I do like the Flip diapers. A lot.
3. It's definitely a laundry commitment.
4. George is still not a fan.

What HAS surprised me:

1. Cleaning poop off of cloth is still better than spending $$ on diapers.
2. I like cloth diapering.
3. Amy is just as comfortable, if not more so.
4. It is not as ick-inducing as I thought.
5. I liked it so much I went all cloth right away, instead of 1/2 and 1/2 as a test.
6. There is more laundry, but it's not hard to keep up with.
7. I don't mind previously owned diapers, although I am pretty picky about what I choose.
8. The investment was much smaller than I anticipated, thanks to #7, and factory seconds.
9. Her room smells SO much better with the zippered wet bag than it did with a trash can.

So, we've had two leaky cloth diapers so far...and those related to my losing track of time (usually around the dinner hour, when I'm trying to do 10 things at once) and not changing her soon enough. At first I was kind of nervous to take her out of the house in cloth, until I realized we've definitely got a couple of hours in between changes.

I actually really, really like it. And I'm happy that I took the leap and did it. I have four different types of diapers, and want to try a couple more. I have my likes and dislikes, and it's becoming clear which work best for my fairly lean kiddo.

All in all, I think the cloth is staying. George still thinks it's a phase. But even though the ick factor is big for him right now, he's still grateful for the money saved. And that's good enough for me.

Can it get any cuter?

A One-Year-Old.

Once upon a time, we had a baby.

First, the sleepless nights felt as though they would never end.

And it seemed like we waited an eternity for every milestone.

But then, we started thinking, "Wait! Stop! Don't...grow up so fast!"

And before we knew it, we had a one-year-old.

The End.

"For me?"

"Hmmm...I think maybe I'll try it."


"Onskmhbfmlsmpf"

Our big girl. Happy Birthday Amy-girl.

7 Quick Takes

Okay. A quick insight into our lives of late.





1. We hosted the Crossroads Pro-Life walkers the weekend of July 9th. We had anywhere from 5 to 12 people sleeping in our house (besides the three of us) over the course of three nights. They were great kids, and it was so fun to have such a full house, and to support such a good cause. Plus, we got to see my brother David, who was super excited to see Miss A, his god-daughter.





2. My friend Susan came to visit the last week in June. She and Miss A were best buds by the time she left. Seriously, I have never seen my kiddo try so hard to make somone laugh! Susan, Miss A, and I had so much fun checking out the Plaza and going to the pool. Hopefully we'll have another visit before it's been another year!





3. I have been working very hard the last 6 weeks to have my house in a constant state of clean. I feel more peaceful when it's tidy. But this goes against my nature (as well as the nature of a toddler), so it's still a struggle some days, but I am happy to say that most days I'm successful.

See? This is my living room at the end of the day.

4. I'm going to learn how to sew. I'm pretty excited about it actually. George's aunt is going to teach me how to use my sewing machine. Hopefully I'll be able to make some things for Miss A before too long.



5. I have not started cloth diapering yet, but it's on the horizon. I'm actually getting pretty excited about it. I think I might phase it in with disposables the first couple weeks (1/2 and 1/2) just to get used to it instead of going cold turkey.



6. We thought we might be moving to Greenville, SC. But we're not.



7. Yet.

Gone and Done It

Well, folks. I took the leap and bought some cloth diapers. The local natural baby store here in town has a diaper swap every 3 months. Moms bring in their outgrown/homemade/excess cloth diapers and sell 'em for cheap. I've perused the diaper swap websites before, but I'm glad I went this route. I could see them, handle them, really know what I was getting prior to buying.

I got a couple different brands/styles. Most moms I talked to at the swap said their collections of cloth are a mish-mash too. I have slightly less than half of what I need for a full two days worth of dipes. I only bought 7, because I didn't want to go too crazy right away. I saved 60% from what I would have spent on all of these new. It's hard not to buy used when you see the savings. The ones I got are totally stain free, and in great shape (not all used dipes are that way). I got there an hour early, since the last time I observed the swap (when buying shoes for Amy), I noticed that people tend to pop in to the store - which opens 2 hours before the swap starts - and start buying before the designated time.

So with Amy strapped into the Ergo on my back, we browsed and bartered. And I walked away with a few to try. So, we'll see how this goes.

4 Flip covers (in which I will use prefolds), 2 one size All-In-Ones, and 1 medium BottomBumpers All-In-One.

What Women Want

As I was listening to Dave Ramsey's radio broadcast yesterday, a gentleman called in asking Dave's advice on what to do now that his wife of 30 years wanted a divorce. He was a former police officer, and had been disabled for 8 years. As Dave is wont to do, he asked why the man's wife wanted a divorce after all that time. He always asks that, because he is a big believer in keeping a marriage together if at all possible. And he always recommends counseling with a pastor or priest, etc. But then...oh, then.

The man proceeded to tell Dave that he had been completely blindsided and loved his wife very much, and that he didn't understand why she wanted to leave him...he was audibly in tears and obviously devastated. I was a little teary myself. Listening to him tell the reasons his wife had listed for her wanting to leave, what I heard was that this woman had been miserable. She had clearly been unhappy for some time. But he had had no. idea.

Now, in this day in age, most people would probably fault the husband here. He didn't do enough to make his wife happy, he didn't consider her needs, yadda yadda. But let me tell you what hit me the hardest. He told his wife that he loved her, that he was in love with her. And she said she just couldn't do it anymore. So I don't think this husband withheld anything from his wife that she needed. His grief was so raw, it was very clear that this was a man who loved his wife, who wanted her happiness. At one point he said "I would have quit that job if I had known she hated it! I would have quit!"

His wife withheld what she was feeling, because that's what so many of us women tend to do, isn't it? We bottle it up and stew about it, waiting for our husbands to read our minds about what we want from them, be it help with children or around the house, emotional needs, or even the things that are bothering us about our relationship. Where does it get us?

And it made me think for a long time after I turned the radio off about the times that I do that. The times I get so. angry. waiting for my husband to realize that I'm angry. But you know, he has no idea. And that man had no idea. And I would bet a hefty sum that she never told him. She just let it boil up until she couldn't carry around that anger anymore. And then she felt like her only option was to leave.

After a couple of minutes, it was clear that this man was losing it. He called a financial advisor but what he really needed was someone to talk to. He had it all built up, and the floodgates opened when Dave asked him why she left. Wisely, Dave put him on hold to set him up with a pastor in his area who could help. But man oh man, it was one of the saddest things I've heard in a long time.

So, if there's something on your heart that's bothering you, share it with your husband. Tell him if you're angry with him. Tell him if you need his help with something. Because if that call was any indication, he has no idea you need it unless you ask. And thirty years is way too long to wait for him to figure it out.