The Big Decision to Live More Simply

Life is a balancing act

 The decision to begin to live a more natural and Eco-friendly way of life was more of a challenge then decision. To give you some back story I have mild OCD.  My compulsions mainly have to do with contamination and germs. While pregnant with my daughter I had to go on modified bed rest and I had no choice but to not clean and rest up but besides the bed rest I almost fainted cleaning the bathroom due to the fumes that I so dearly loved.  They made me feel clean. I was very dependent on my chemical commercial cleaners as most people are.

While on bed rest I saw a documentary called Chemerical.  The movie was about a typical American family and their challenge to live a more chemical free life.  They did all sorts of air quality testing and the testing showed that the air was toxic in their home due to the chemical cleaners she used that she "thought" were cleaning her home. I was a total skeptic that homemade cleaners could do the same job as my fumy bathroom spray.  They also showed and explained the ecological effects of the break-down by-products of the cleaners. In the end, the mother switched to all homemade cleaners. I took this as a challenge but I had to do baby steps to ease my way into it.

The second part was eating a more chemical free from the ground to my mouth way of eating.  This mainly started after I was comparing butter and butter flavored spread.  I was grossed out at the ingredients that I was putting in my body.  I attend nursing school and knowing what I know about chemistry I knew I had to make a change in the what I was putting in my body.

Besides not being 100% sold on it I also needed to save money or spend close to the same amount of money that I currently was spending on food and cleaning supplies. There was NO way my husband was going to go for any of this if I spent more money then I already do.

I also have to add that I am not "crunchy" and I loath the term.  I prefer semi-natural Diva!  I am not 100% all natural.  Living more natural for me was a balancing act. I do believe that sometimes the better alternative is the modern not so natural way.  I say alternative because that is how I see lots of modern technology..as an alternative not my first choice.  I try to find all natural alternatives but sometime cost or quality is an issue so I choose what I feel is best at the time. I do a lot of research to make educated decisions that leave me sleeping well at night. 

So to make my life more simple and more natural I decided to make a change but I needed the changes I make to do the following
* Cost very close or less then what I am currently spending
* Not be overly complicated to make or store
* Incorporate  items or ingredients that are easy to obtain
* A level of convenience

I hope you choose to try out a few of the small ways you can to live more naturally and Eco-friendly~

Adventures into Cloth Diapering : How to choose?

Hindsight being 20/20 I feel like I have good advice on how to find the right diaper for you and your little one.  Advice that I was given but did not follow but wish I did. Finding the "right" diaper is one of the harder parts of cloth diapering.  It is pretty hard to find stores that have cloth diapers so you can actually look at them so mostly, you will end up buying them online through Buy/Sell/Trade boards like  Diaper Swappers or through retailers.

Word to the wise..Do not..let me repeat..DO NOT just spend 100$ on one type of diaper you have never tried or seen. Yep, I did this and seriously regretted it. I highly recommend Googleing " Cloth Diaper Trial Programs" or you can visit this link from Diaper Swappers, Cloth Diaper Trial List.

This is how the trials typically work.  You place a deposit and they send you the diapers listed.  You keep them for a specified time ( 21-30 days typically) and return the ones you don't want, all of them or none of them.  They refund you per the agreement. Tip: make sure that who ever you pick refunds in cash and not store credit. I mean what good does store credit to a cloth diaper store do you if you decide you don't want to cloth diaper! 

These trials come in handy so you can find out what you like or don't like about a particular style of diaper or if your child (like mine) has sensitive skin and can't use a particular material.  I will give you my sob story of CDing.

I researched several brands but not nearly enough and decided I wanted to go with Cotton Babies. They sell Eco Bum, Flips, BumGenius ect...They were having a wonderful sale and if you know me I can't turn down a sale! So, I decided I would buy the Flip system.  This required me to buy Flip shells and inserts. I bought 6 shells and 12 micro fiber inserts. I stalked my mail man daily waiting for my fluff mail to arrive.  The day it got here I followed the prepping instructions and put my first cloth diaper on my daughter. I have never been so excited to change a poopy diaper in my life! I was super impressed. Her bottom was nice and dry and the system was very easy to use.....That was day 1. Day 2 I noticed that she had a redness to her skin that was the same shape of the insert. I made sure I was placing it in her shell correctly because one side cannot touch the skin because it will dry it out. I was placing it on her correctly but the redness continued to get worse. Day 3 I was worried and I Googled " Redness with microfiber inserts". Very quickly I realized she was sensitive/allergic to the microfiber!  I did a sorta patch test by laying her back on the insert and within minutes she had a red square on her back. I just spent 100$ on diapers my daughter couldn't use! Lucky me I had found a buy/sell/trade board for cloth diapers and I was able to sell the inserts (for less then what I paid) and repurchased natural cotton inserts instead.

The point of me tell you this is to say that had I listened to my friends that told me to do the trial package I would have figured this out with out loosing money which was the reason I wanted to cloth diaper..to save money not lose it!

So, try a few out..find out if you love aplix or snaps..If you are a all-in-one kinda girl or if you love pockets.  Find out if you love a particular brand or style and you can't do that if you don't try them...

Go out there have fun! Love your fluffy mail and love those fluffy butts!

Next...we will go over washing those lovely diapers!

My Stash of BGE's, Flip and Flip Organic Inserts!

Adventurers into Cloth Diapering : Types of Diapers

Now that you have had sometime to learn the lingo lets dive into part one of choosing a cloth diaper.  You need to know what kinds of diapers there are.

Prefolds and covers: These are pieces of rectangular cloth that are prefolded into 3 sections.  You place them on baby and hold with Snappies.  The cloth is NOT water proof so you need to cover them with a water proof cover. You will also see numbers like 4x6x4 or 4x8x4. These numbers are describing the number of layers of fabric in each third of the fabric. The higher the number the more absorbency. These are popular because they are probably the cheapest way to start cloth diapering. You can get prefolds for a few dollars and Snappies are equally as cheap. The covers can be very cheap if you go with simple PUL or you can use wool covers treated with lanolin to make them water proof but that is another post.

Unfolder Prefold w/snappi

Prefold as if it were on a baby

How to fold a prefold

One of my JuneBug mommies LO. This is a Prefold with a PUL cover :D

 AI1's : All in One diapers are exactly what they sound like. They are functionally just like a disposable diaper. You put it on the baby and secure with either aplix (aka the genric name for Velcro, in hind sight I should have added this term to the list) or snaps. When you need to change you take off the whole diaper and toss it in the diaper pail.

This is a BumGenius Elemental AI1 (my favorite!)

AI2's: All in two diapers are diapers that can function as a all-in-one or as a diaper cover.  They have a layer of PUL fabric which makes it water proof . You can typically remove the inner soaker that is attached by snaps or is laid in the cover and reuse the cover until it becomes soiled.  Many people prefer these diapers because you have less laundry. 

This is a Swaddlebees Econappi allin2

Pocket Diapers : Pocket diapers are two material sewn together with a pocket in the middle. The outer material is made of water proof PUL (polyurethane laminated) or a hidden PUL layer and the inside is made of different materials to wick away moisture from the skin. The material typically tends to be micro fleece but I am seeing many WAHM diapers that ingeniously use sport wicking fabric! Genius!!! There is an inside pocket between the PUL and the inside material that you can stuff with different material to absorb the wetness. These are popular for the ability to stuff the pocket with nearly anything you want. They are great for night time diapers.

This is a Happy Heiny's Pocket diaper

I tried to use several brands of diapers but I have to admit I am very bias to BumGenius/Cotton Babies products. I am trying to branch out but I haven't done so just yet. Next, how to choose from all of the choices!

Adventures into Cloth Diapers : The Lingo

One day I was on Face Book talking with my Momville aka the June Bugs and the topic of cloth diapering came up. I have to be honest I never even considered cloth diapering my three year old and therefor never consider doing it with my newest addition. I have never been more confused about a baby product in my life. I asked question after question and scoured the internet for information. I instantly felt like I was totally over my head and I nearly gave up on the idea.  Learning about cloth diapers was in a sense like being thrown into a new Country where I didn't know the language or culture but being the determined type of person I am I just took a deep breath and powered on.  I want to make these post easy to understand and I feel that doing that means breaking the post up a bit.  It seemed to me during my research that if the information would have been in smaller bite size chunks that I might not have gotten so overwhelmed and nearly gave up.

When you go to a new Country the first thing you may want to learn is the language and this is no different when it comes to CD's....See, right there is a perfect example! You are thinking what is CD?!? I have compiled a short list of some of the language when it comes to CDing aka Cloth Diapering.  Just put this list in your back pocket as we move forward into the world that is CDing. Try not to put too much though into what some of these words mean just yet. This is just your introduction into the culture...Think of it like you need to know how to pronounce the words before you really understand how to use them..These are most of the helpful abbreviations and words that I came accross when on my adventor. I am sure I have missed some but this will get us started...

AIO - All In One cloth diaper, has a soaker pad and waterproof material sewn all together like a disposable diaper

AI2 - All In Two cloth diaper, waterproof cover with snap in soakers that can be used more than one time

CD - cloth diaper

Chinese prefold- made of high quality cotton, requires a cover

Dry Pail- A diaper pail where you keep dirty diapers until they are able to be washed

DSQ - Diaper service quality

Fluff- cloth diaper

Fluffy Mail- cloth diaper package in your mailbox

Fluffy Butt- a cute little cloth diapered baby bum!

HE - High efficiency (when referring to washing machines)

Hyena - A term for hard to get, popular diapers that are stalked by diaper hungry moms

Indian Prefold= A type of prefold that is not as soft as cotton but durable

MF=Microfiber. A type of fabric that wicks moisture away from the skin leaving the skin to feel dry

OS= One size fits most diaper

Pail Liner- A liner for your diaper pail

Prefold- A tri sectioned prefolded cloth diaper you pin or snappi on, requires a cover. You will see numbers like 2x4x2 which refers to the number of layers of fabric in the prefold.

PUL - polyurethane laminate, a material used to make diaper covers/wraps

Snappi- An ingenious little three sided stretchy fastener used to hold prefolds or flat diapers closed. The Snappi eliminates the need for pins.

Soaker- the area where you want to accumulate moisture.  These can also be added material to enhance the absorbency of the diaper.

TLer - Top loader washing machine

WAHM - work-at-home mom (Usually refers to diapers made by mom’s who work from home)

Wet Pail- A diaper pail filled with water

Wicking- The movement of moisture

It's Fall! Bring on the Pumpkin...and Pumpkin Spice Lattes

Sweet Lord it is fall!  There are so many things about fall that I just love. Cool air, crisp leaves, sweaters, Ugg boots and.....pumpkins! Babies in pumpkins, pumpkin picking, pumpkin pie and PUMPKIN SPICE LATTES!  Every year I take Trey and now Aubrey to a pumpkin patch and we take pictures and pick out a pumpkin and I seriously can't wait for that.  I will add that I fully intend on buying a huge pumpkin hollowing it out and sticking my child in it and taking adorable pictures. I can't wait to share them with you all! I have already purchased two..yes two, pumpkin pies.  I usually would make my own but I was feeling extra lazy.

Now, on to my favorite part of life..coffee! I am a super coffeeholic. I have Keurig Special Edition Coffee Brewer that I get more use out of then my oven or refrigerator.  I have never been a huge Starbucks fan but who can afford 5$ for a latte (my favorite drink of choice) two times a day and I happen to think their coffee is bitter.  So, I started to make my own.  I purchased a milk frother and was good to go! So, I will share with you my tips to an awesome latte and my favorite homemade pumpkin spice latte recipe.

Regular latte

Brew a very strong 1 cup of coffee..On the Keurig I use the cup up from the espresso size.
Put 1 cup of milk in the micorwave and nuke it for a minute.  I give the milk a run though with my milk frothier and pour it into my coffee....Voile!

Now on to the Pumpkin Spice!!!!

Pumpkin Spice Latte

Ingredients:

1 cup whole milk
1 tablespoon unsweetened canned pumpkin puree or pumpkin flavored syrup
1 teaspoon packed light brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice *If you don't have pumpkin pie spice in your collection of spices, make your own! Mix equal parts of cinnamon, ginger, allspice and nutmeg- and measure from there.
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup hot brewed, strong coffee
2 tablespoons half & half cream
1 teaspoon granulated white sugar, or more to taste
whipped cream, optional
ground nutmeg

Directions:

All the yummy ingredients

Mix together

1. In a glass measuring cup or microwave-safe bowl, whisk together milk, pumpkin, brown sugar, spice and vanilla. It smells amazing BTW!

Whisk in Milk

 2. Pour the pumpkin milk into a tall mug or glass and microwave for 1 minute and run your milk frothier through the mix until foamy. Add hot coffee. Pour in the cream. Add a teaspoon of sugar(or more if you like your coffee really sweet like I do). Stir, and taste.
3. Optional, but oh so good... add whipped cream on top and a sprinkle of nutmeg. Serve immediately!

I multiply this recipe by 4 and put it in a airtight container in my fridge.  I use 1 cup at a time.  I also use lactose free milk and I don't like the whipped cream..but this is why it is so awesome to make your own.  You can adjust the recipe to your taste. ENJOY!

Tip: If the mixture is too thick for your liking or to thin add or cut back the amount of milk you use or you can use pumpkin flavored syrup instead.  I prefer the real pumpkin because I feel like it is healthier.  Also, my son LOVES this milk.  I will heat it up for him and he thinks he is a big boy drinking coffee just like mommy.

Left over pumpkin and my yummy pumpkin milk...sorry for the nasty fridge I swear it is on my todo list :)

Traveling and Family Vacations with Kids: Step One Packing

My husband and I love to travel.  We were together less then 6 months when we took our first trip together.  We went to Jamaica.  It was the first time I traveled out of the Country and I loved it.  I had been happily bitten by the travel bug.  We even had a destination wedding in Ocho Rio, Jamaica.  We have regularly taken a vacation roughly every six months since then.  I truly believe that in a relationship or family you need to travel and vacation together.  It doesn't matter if it is a long weekend a few hours from home or across the globe it is great to spend time just the two of you or as a family.  You can create wonderful memories and reconnect as a couple or family.

This year we decided while I was still pregnant with our daughter that we would take a family vacation to Disney. I have to admit I was a tiny bit nervous to travel with a 3 year old and a 3 months old.  The whole thing kind of sat uneasy with me..How would they do on the plane? How do I keep two kids occupied? How do I breast feed on the plane? I decided to take it one step at a time and step one for me was packing.  I needed to make sure that we brought everything that we might need for two reasons. #1 the cheap person I am I hate having to spend money on necessitates on vacation and they always seem to cost 10x's more then they would at home. 2) My OCD : I really freak about not being prepared and I tend to over react to situations like not having what I need..I like to be organized and ready.

I started by using a corner of my bedroom to pre-pack about a 10 days before we left. I would place items that we would need as I thought of them in the "vacation" spot.   Some people might use a list but for me list don't work well.  I need to see the items in front of me.  Most of these items are things I knew I would over look as we pack essentials.  This pile included toys that I didn't want to buy at Disney.  We bought items at Disney.com on a deep clearance discount before we left.  I also purchased glow in the dark necklaces and bracelets.  This pile also had our fans, sunscreen, laundry detergent and a stroller cover for the airplane.

In the process of preparing I decided to add a pile in the kitchen of items to occupy my 3 year old on the plane and 45 minute ride to Disney.  I was dreading having "that kid" on the airplane.  I didn't want him to be to terribly disruptive to other passengers.  I also started training him early on about using our inside voice and soft touch, not kicking the seat ect...he has a sensory delay issue which makes this extra difficult.  He is not autistic but has similar issues.  He has difficulty processing incoming tactile or auditory information unless it is at a level 10. This makes him extra loud and he wants to touch everything! So, I packed items to help him.  Crayons: to color, a camera: he loves to take pictures and this feeds his need for phyical stimulation by touching the camera and auditory by the sound of the camera snapping the pic, Velcro : this was a life savor! the feeling of the rough and smooth sides of the Velcro coupled with the ripping was entertainment for 20+ minutes!

I set a deadline for packing. My deadline was 11pm the night before we left. I organized all the clothes on the bed by kid and parent..everyone had their own pile organized by outfit.  I also had to bring blankets, lovey's, laundry detergent ect...I brought almost everything to our bed to check, double check and recheck before packing.  Once I was satisfied that I had everything we needed it went in to the suit cases and a big surprise to me was that everything for my husband, kids and myself fit in 1 large suitcase, 1 medium and 1 small. 

So, the hard part was complete and we the next morning we were on our way! My next post will be about the tip and how much fun we had!

How to Generate Income and Make Money For Your Family : Part 2

Besides coupons and cutting cost by making our own house hold cleaners and laundry supplies I have taken to the internet and my cell phone to make some extra cash.

Internet

I knew there had to be a way to earn a small amount of legit money from the internet.  First, I Googled " how to make money from home" I read an blog post about survey sights that listed the pros and cons.  Pros: You can make money just giving your opinion in your spare time.  Which is perfect for a SAHM with very little time on my hands.  Con's: It is not a ton of money but every dollar counts.  Then I Googled reputable survey sights. I found some very reputable internet survey sites and signed up. My favorites are E Poll, American Consumer Opinion and My Points. Much like blogging this is in no way a get rich quick type of endeavor but I earn about 100.00 to 150.00 a month in gift cards.  You can use PayPal but I prefer to not use the paypal deposits because they charge you to redeem your cash. Typically, I request Amazon online credit and I can then purchase items on my extensive Amazon wishlist.  The E Poll site requires you to complete surveys to earn points that you can redeem for gift cards ect. Super-points and My Points site also have surveys you can complete but with they also add an email feature.  They send you emails that you just read and click on and you can earn points for simply visiting a particular website. You are not required to purchases anything or give your email address to these site to earn points.  You can also use both of these websites when you do purchases items online and you can receive points for every dollar you are already intending to spend.  For instance, I purchased items from Macy's website and when I used the site I was able to receive 10 pts for every dollar I spent.  I was already going to buy the items.  I look at it like a shopper card.  I receive points for what I buy then I can get gift cards.

Phone

The way I am using my cell phone to make money is by far my favorite.  You have to have a smart phone FYI...I down loaded an app to my phone called Viggle.  This site awards points for television that you watch.  It works like Shazam or other tagging applications. I am already home with the TV playing so this works really well for me.  You just hit a button and tag into a TV show.  You then earn the points.  Once you accumulate a certain number of points you can redeem them for Amazon credits, Starbucks gift cards ect...So far, I have earned 4 5$ Starbucks cards and 2 25$ Amazon credits!  They often offer bonus points for watching a particular show and my favorite is the Play Along feature when the ask questions that go along with a show where you can also earn more bonus points.  There are rules like you can't tag more then 12 hours of TV in a day or accumulate more then 6000 points in a 24hr period but it is still worth it to me to earn points for something that I am already doing.

How to Generate Income and Make Money For Your Family : Coupons

I am currently a stay at home mom (SAHM) but I am really a full time student and my area of study is nursing.  I will begin my clinical study in the fall of 2013.  I can't wait! But..until then I will be staying at home with our new little baby and it is a blessing.  I am able to exclusively breastfeed among other things.  One of the "other" things I am doing is trying to generate income for our family to allow me to finish school.  I have found that there are more ways to generate income then actually bringing cash in the door and I would love to share my secrets and journey with you all.

Let's talk coupons!

I LOVE coupons and trust me they are not just for groceries.  I use coupons for everything from clothes to make-up.  I have found that the key to getting coupons that you actually want to use is applying for frequent shopping cards at all the places you love to shop weather it be groceries, clothing or make-up.  Yes, when you sign up for the frequent shopping cards and programs they will ask for your email but don't worry about your inbox filling with junk.  All you need to do is unsubscribe from the email and they will stop but you will still receive your valuable money saving coupons in the mail.

Grocery Cards:
I have shoppers card for our local grocery store Kroger and along with saving money at the register on in store deals they also track my most frequent purchases and send me coupons in the mail about once a month for those items.  In addition to those in mail coupons I also downloaded the free coupon app they have to my phone.  I can load e-coupons to my card before I head to the store...TIP* be careful about this. You cannot combine e-coupons and paper coupons for a single item and most stores will double your paper coupon but not the e-coupon..So, if you have a paper one you will probably save more money!  

Frequent Shopping Cards for Retailers:
My favorite frequent shopping card by far is for Express! I love getting coupons in the mail for their store. I love their clothes and practically live in black legging from their store and my husband LOVES their pants and shorts.  Typically, about once every 6 weeks I get a coupon for x amount of dollars off a 30$, 75$, 200$ ect..purchase.  The last time we shopped their I had two of these coupons we spent 500$ but after the discounts it was only 210$ out of pocket!  I did have to split the purchases in to two but it was so worth it.  In addition to the great deal I received I was able to order some items that were not in the store in my size I received FREE shipping to my home!  I also received points for my purchases and once I accumulate a certain number of points I can get cash to spend at the store.

I also LOVE Sephora.  Their card works a bit differently.  I get a free gift on my birthday and I earn points for every dollar I spend and once I spend 'x' amount of money I get a gift.  I am currently saving enough points to get a collection of full size Bare Essentials lip glosses.  

I suggest signing up for these cards where ever you can.

General Coupons:
Personally, I don't like websites like coupons.com or others like that. I never find coupons for things I actually need in my home.  We don't eat a ton of processed foods, chips, or frozen products and usually that is all I run across. Also, I have been meaning to get a Sunday paper subscription for over a year now. I totally get that if I subscribe for a year that I will save .50 cents a paper on Sundays but I keep forgetting to do it.  I also know that not every Sunday paper has good coupons or some at all! Sunday papers that are distributed over holiday weekends like Easter and Christmas DO NOT have coupons so to me that paper would be useless.  The rule of thumb is that if the bank closes there will be no coupons.  Instead, I get a paper two times a month.  I save the coupons in a folder like this one (Jokari-US 55047 E-Z Coupon Holder - Taupe ) and I always take a few minutes to flip though them before I make my list.

Here is the BIG way I save money on groceries without extreme couponing.  I mean honestly what mom has the time to clip coupons for hours and troll the recycling centers for inserts. I have a screaming three year old and a newborn who eats every 2-3 hours. I keep a running list on my refrigerator and we do not deviate from the list.  This is great for two reasons. First, it makes the shopping quick and I usually can get in and out of the store before any major melt downs occur.  Second, It totally helps us stay on budget and I don't fill the house with crap that we don't need.  Right before we run out the door to do the shopping I thumb though my coupons and phone app and add the coupons I want to my card.

These are not ways that I am bringing money into my home in the traditional sense but every penny I save us on things we were going to buy anyways frees up money to be spent in other places.  These are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to my penny pinching ways..Much more to come later!