Breastfeeding two children. The tot is nursing before bed now as the only nursing session. I'm just not handling the tandem thing as I was hoping. I get fairly agitated with it and tot also likes to use teeth quite frequently. However weaning is not going to happen without a fight on his part because he's so stubborn about keeping the nursing. I think what I'm going to try tonight is putting on my headphones and listening to some music while I nurse him so that I can take away some of the irritation I feel with nursing him which is the sound of him nursing when he's actively doing it. This is so hard because I really feel so conflicted. Nursing has been such a great thing for him but at the same time it's also something I'm not enjoying and maybe that's because of the amount of stress we're currently under and also trying to make sure baby is ok and happy at the same time as well. The hubs gets his quality time in with her at that point and plenty of snuggles which he always enjoys. He also falls asleep with her fairly quickly so it's hard to get him up to go to bed and hand her over.
Tot is also not feeling so hot today so I'm guessing there may be an extra session in there as well. So, the get-sick-child-better instincts will kick in and hopefully give tot whatever antibodies he needs to feel better and keep baby protected as well. I will say though that after two and a half years I have finally gotten the pinching to stop on tot's part while nursing. After several months of telling him it hurts and that he's done if he doesn't stop and offering him my hand to hold onto instead, which has turned into my holding onto him completely, we've been mostly pinch free for about a month. So that is a success! Happy feeding!
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Monday, April 26, 2010
And the winner is....
Wilma!
True Random Number Generator
Min: 1
Max: 14
Result:
8
Powered by RANDOM.ORG
Edited to Add: I've sent you an email. Please respond within 48 hours to claim your prize or I will move on and draw another winner. :-)
True Random Number Generator
Min: 1
Max: 14
Result:
8
Powered by RANDOM.ORG
Edited to Add: I've sent you an email. Please respond within 48 hours to claim your prize or I will move on and draw another winner. :-)
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Earth Week Giveaway
I'm celebrating a couple things right now. It's Earth Week and I'd like to do something for that. My family has had some good news recently in the job department. And I've been going through some changes myself and a lot of reflection. With all of that I'm changing the look of my blog and I'm going to be adding some new changes to it over the next few months. I'm always happy to hear ideas if you have any. And with the changes I'm hoping to do a couple things. One of the things being is to bring awareness on a couple issues. The other is something I'll share at a later time once I get the idea fully mapped out. I'm also hoping to be able to voice ideas here on our upcoming move later this year and how to really become more ecologically friendly when we get where we're going since we've fallen to the wayside a bit being where we are.
A pair of cloth diaper inserts from SweetBottoms. One overnight hemp insert and one regular insert. The overnight insert is two layers but can be folded to give 8 layers of protection. The regular insert is two layers and can be used just for that extra bit of absorption in your baby's diaper when you need it.
There are a couple ways to enter the drawing:
Become a follower of my blog and post a comment here on how you and your family are becoming more green and what your plans are for Earth Day.
Post about the giveaway on a board where you frequent and post the link in a separate comment.
Post about the giveaway on a social site you frequent like Facebook or Twitter and post a link for that as well.
So, that's three separate entries to try and win this pair of inserts.
A winner will be drawn on Monday, April 26, at noon. Please be sure to check back then for the winner and also to make sure there is a way I can get in touch with you if you are the winner. I had trouble on my last giveaway with that. So, I can't stress that enough. Shipping is to the US only. And I will be doing some other giveaways in the following months as well. :-)
Sunday, April 18, 2010
It's Earth Week
I won't be doing as much to celebrate this year because of living situations. But, I am planning on doing a giveaway to at least celebrate. I will decide in the next day of what the giveaway will be. It will be a slightly selfish way to do things because I am also planning a move at the end of the year across the country and I need to lighten the load here. I am still holding stock of some hemp inserts and fabric even and I'd like to draw more business in thed long run. I'd also very much like earn more readers to my little slice of the blogging world as I continue to write more. I'd love to see more comments and what others are interested in for both the blog and my shop. I have a lot of ideas but often forget to keep writing instruments nearby so I can actually act upon them when I sit down for a few minutes.
I will update most likely tomorrow to see what I'd like to do to celebrate. I consider cloth diapering as part of being green. I'm not filling a landfill. I know that the washing of the diapers opens up the debate to some on that not being as green either. But, I'm already doing laundry. CD's (Cloth Diapers) are my only load of hot aside from towels. The diapers are now in rotation with two children and when I am done using them they will go onto someone else for more loving. Anyway, stay tuned to see what the giveaway is. Have a great night!
I will update most likely tomorrow to see what I'd like to do to celebrate. I consider cloth diapering as part of being green. I'm not filling a landfill. I know that the washing of the diapers opens up the debate to some on that not being as green either. But, I'm already doing laundry. CD's (Cloth Diapers) are my only load of hot aside from towels. The diapers are now in rotation with two children and when I am done using them they will go onto someone else for more loving. Anyway, stay tuned to see what the giveaway is. Have a great night!
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Orange Curry Shrimp
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon dried parsley
Then in a pan:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 medium onion, chopped however you prefer
1 lb of shrimp (I used the small precooked-deveined-no-tail-guys this time)
1 1/2 TBSP curry powder
1 TBSP Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup fresh squeezed orange juice (I use the juice from the two oranges I zested...so really every bit of juice you get out of that is what you use)
orange zest from 2 oranges
Heat oil in a medium skillet over medium heat, and stir in the onion until it has sweated. Mix curry powder, Worcestershire sauce, 1/2 cup water and 1/2 cup of the OJ into the skillet. Bring to a boil and let cook 3-5 minutes on medium high to let the flavors come together. Reduce heat, and simmer about 10 minutes until some of the water reduces. Stir in the orange zest and shrimp and continue cooking for 3-5 minutes depending on size of shrimp to heat or cook if using raw shrimp. Mix in the rice to serve. Garnish with more parsley and segmented orange slices if desired. Very tasty.
As always, adjust seasonings to your taste. We love the taste of curry. I recommend getting a good one that has more than just the three ingredients of coriander, fenugreek and pepper in it. We use one that we picked up from Whole Foods. But McCormick makes a decent curry if you get the one in the plastic jar surprisingly. The one in the glass jar only has three main ingredients and really is a huge disappointment. The great thing about this recipe is that is an easy step into Eastern foods. I'm sure it can be further modified to really get a true Indian flavor, but I don't have anyone that can show me more of how to authentically cook that way. So, I just experiment. Enjoy!
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Repairing BumGenius Elastics
I've been meaning to make this post for a long time but, well...procrastination got in the way. I know there is a tutorial on Diaperswappers.com but I get a virus every time I visit that site and hubs is tired of running AV software on my computer. So, for those of you that have the fear of that site as I do then this is for you. And by the way, I'd love to visit the site without worrying about viruses because I have diapers to trade and am looking for a very specific diaper as well, but it's just not going to happen until I can go on there more than half the time without getting one.
If you're handy enough with a seam ripper and a sewing machine you can do this in about an hour for both legs. Add in the back and it's probably two hours from start to finish. The reason for that I've noticed is that the back elastic seems to have been caught in the sewing process so you generally have to open the entire casing, sew it back down then put your elastic through and close it up. And I am offering this service as of right now on my etsy shop for those that aren't inclined to sew or don't have a machine. But, that's another story.
So here it is without further adieu....
Step 1)
Take the diaper you want to repair the leg elastic of. On the outside of the diaper at the start of the leg curve/casing gently rip of the seam for about an inch on each end of the legs going towards the crotch.
Step 2)
When you turn the diaper inside out you should be able to see where you've opened up and some of the elastic showing as well. This will be what you're working with.
Step 3)
Cut your new elastic to about 4 1/2 inches long. (The diaperswappers posting I believe says that from the back of a ballpoint pen to the bottom of the cap is the length needed. I have a toddler who loves pens and I have no idea where he hides them or the caps.) Thread a hand needle with some thread. I used a bright color thread for this. And keep a small crochet hook on hand just in case your current diaper elastic breaks.
Step 4)
Take the threaded hand needle and sew the end of your new elastic to the end of your old elastic. Once you've done that you can gently pull the old elastic on the other end of the leg to bring through the new elastic. Make sure you don't pull too far or you'll lose the new elastic from where you started.
Step 4.5)
If the old elastic breaks while pulling to bring through the new elastic use your small crochet hook to help bring the new elastic through. What I did was use the length of old elastic still sewn to me new elastic. I sewed another piece of thread to the old elastic to make a loop I could grab with on the hook. I then gently pulled that through and kept on with business.
Step 5)
Turn your diaper inside out and sew the casing shut on where you started to pull through the elastic. A tip so you don't lose your elastic doing this is to actually lightly hand sew the ends of the elastic to the strip of serging inside the diaper. I don't do that because it is a pain in the butt and my hand needles don't like doing it. So I half turn the diaper inside out to start the one end and slowly make my way down the crotch of the casing to the other opening making sure I don't catch any other part of the diaper in the machine. I slowly sew down the casing line until I get to the other open end and then sew that shut as well making sure I have all of my new elastic up to where I'm sewing.
TIP: Use a size 10 needle in your machine along with good 100% polyester thread. I am using Gutterman now after mistakenly using Coats & Clark which for some reason caused wicking on me. I use Coats & Clark for other things, but not on my diapers.
Step 6)
Sit back and admire your like new leg elastic....then get cracking on the other side if it needs to be done. Don't forget to throw the diaper in the dryer to make sure the PUL seals around the thread.
Now, if you need to repair the waist elastic at the back... I don't have pics but can take some next time I do one. It's almost the same thing. You have to open up the seams (make sure the elastic wasn't sewn into the casing which usually is fairly obvious I've noticed) and have 5" (I'm still figuring this one out but 5 isn't too bad) of new elastic. Do your pull through and sew shut.
One more hint with your diapers.... Every now and then turn the diaper tabs inside out and clean them out. You'd be surprised at the amount of lint and nastiness that gets stuck in there! Enjoy!
If you're handy enough with a seam ripper and a sewing machine you can do this in about an hour for both legs. Add in the back and it's probably two hours from start to finish. The reason for that I've noticed is that the back elastic seems to have been caught in the sewing process so you generally have to open the entire casing, sew it back down then put your elastic through and close it up. And I am offering this service as of right now on my etsy shop for those that aren't inclined to sew or don't have a machine. But, that's another story.
So here it is without further adieu....
Step 1)
Take the diaper you want to repair the leg elastic of. On the outside of the diaper at the start of the leg curve/casing gently rip of the seam for about an inch on each end of the legs going towards the crotch.
Step 2)
When you turn the diaper inside out you should be able to see where you've opened up and some of the elastic showing as well. This will be what you're working with.
Step 3)
Cut your new elastic to about 4 1/2 inches long. (The diaperswappers posting I believe says that from the back of a ballpoint pen to the bottom of the cap is the length needed. I have a toddler who loves pens and I have no idea where he hides them or the caps.) Thread a hand needle with some thread. I used a bright color thread for this. And keep a small crochet hook on hand just in case your current diaper elastic breaks.
Step 4)
Take the threaded hand needle and sew the end of your new elastic to the end of your old elastic. Once you've done that you can gently pull the old elastic on the other end of the leg to bring through the new elastic. Make sure you don't pull too far or you'll lose the new elastic from where you started.
Step 4.5)
If the old elastic breaks while pulling to bring through the new elastic use your small crochet hook to help bring the new elastic through. What I did was use the length of old elastic still sewn to me new elastic. I sewed another piece of thread to the old elastic to make a loop I could grab with on the hook. I then gently pulled that through and kept on with business.
Step 5)
Turn your diaper inside out and sew the casing shut on where you started to pull through the elastic. A tip so you don't lose your elastic doing this is to actually lightly hand sew the ends of the elastic to the strip of serging inside the diaper. I don't do that because it is a pain in the butt and my hand needles don't like doing it. So I half turn the diaper inside out to start the one end and slowly make my way down the crotch of the casing to the other opening making sure I don't catch any other part of the diaper in the machine. I slowly sew down the casing line until I get to the other open end and then sew that shut as well making sure I have all of my new elastic up to where I'm sewing.
TIP: Use a size 10 needle in your machine along with good 100% polyester thread. I am using Gutterman now after mistakenly using Coats & Clark which for some reason caused wicking on me. I use Coats & Clark for other things, but not on my diapers.
Step 6)
Sit back and admire your like new leg elastic....then get cracking on the other side if it needs to be done. Don't forget to throw the diaper in the dryer to make sure the PUL seals around the thread.
Now, if you need to repair the waist elastic at the back... I don't have pics but can take some next time I do one. It's almost the same thing. You have to open up the seams (make sure the elastic wasn't sewn into the casing which usually is fairly obvious I've noticed) and have 5" (I'm still figuring this one out but 5 isn't too bad) of new elastic. Do your pull through and sew shut.
One more hint with your diapers.... Every now and then turn the diaper tabs inside out and clean them out. You'd be surprised at the amount of lint and nastiness that gets stuck in there! Enjoy!
Monday, April 5, 2010
There's no more butter!
I miss butter. I love butter. Butter is my very good friend. I use it in baking/cooking and on bread or toast. Since that is a no go right now I need something for my bread and butter or garlic bread cravings. And I'm also lacking fat in my diet to some degree because I don't eat much meat and now I have no dairy in it. So needless to say some days this past week I've felt a little funky mentally. I got it in my head that I really wanted some Italian bread one night last week. And hubs who really does try to come to the craving rescue went along with helping me figure out what would work. My solution to this was to make dipping oil. You know...the stuff you get served in really good Italian restaurants. This turned out pretty good although I'm still trying to debate the flavors I want when I grow tired of this combo. But, it has garlic in it so I don't know if that will happen. I might have to try and roast the garlic just a wee bit some time to see how that flavor is.
1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 small cloves garlic minced very fine
1/2 tsp Italian seasoning blend
pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
Mix all of these together and let sit for an hour before serving up for dipping. The flavors come together and you'll be fighting everyone else for it. Not the best picture but I was being pulled on by a toddler who wanted very badly to help.
1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 small cloves garlic minced very fine
1/2 tsp Italian seasoning blend
pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
Mix all of these together and let sit for an hour before serving up for dipping. The flavors come together and you'll be fighting everyone else for it. Not the best picture but I was being pulled on by a toddler who wanted very badly to help.
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