A letter to my last ...

A while ago I read a blog I think it was called the last one. It tugged at my heart strings, every word read true.

So with Erin being our last little one it got me thinking about the things I'm going to miss.

 

The day you were born I knew it was true, that was the last day that I'd count as two.

The last time I'd ever feel that overwhelming pain, even though it was worth every gain.

Right now my little one you're still really small, though it wont be long until you start to crawl

Not long until your first word and then you'll be talking

Not long until your first step and soon after - walking.

 

Right now you hold my finger to fall asleep, one day you wont need it - the thought makes me weep

The worst thing is I won't even know

One day you'll need it the next day you won't

 

Right now you sleep in the crook of my arm, warm and cosy and safe from harm

One day you'll get bruises from climbing up trees, coming home with scrapes on your elbows and knees.

 

Right now you love every hug, snuggle and kiss,

One day it'll embarrass you, your kisses I'll miss.

 

You're growing up every day , growing big and strong

I'll miss you my baby, it won't be long.

 

One day I'll miss tripping over your toys in the hall....

and cleaning your sticky hand prints off all the walls.

 

I'll miss all the tantrums and screaming to come

The last time you say Mummy and just call me Mum.

 

So right now little girl I'll cherish every first and last

Right now it's the future but will one day be the past.

 

I'll hold you a little closer and kiss you some more

Spend more time with you playing on the floor

 

So please grow up slowly but keep your own pace,

Because right now my baby the lasts I can't face.

 

 

'Hold her a little longer, rock her a little more.

Tell her another story, you've only told her four.

Let her sleep on your shoulder, rejoice in her smile.

After all she's only small for such a little while'

                   -author unknown-

For the love of cloth !

Me again ...

So my latest venture (and love) has been cloth nappies.

I must admit when I first looked into them the thought of scraping poop off nappies REALLY put me off !

That was until I watched a few videos and read up on a few great sites and eventually decided to take the plunge - and I'm so glad I did !

So before I explain my cloth ways I must mention that there are a number of variations, styles and each will work better for some than others.

I use 2 different types of nappies:

Tots bots easy fit

 Tots bots come in a gorgeous range of styles, a lot of them being nursery rhyme themed. I have a few including Hey diddle diddle (pictured) Incy Wincy, Three little pigs and a few more ... as far as cuteness goes they are over the top. The easy fit range are easy to use with poppers for adjustable sizing from birth to potty. Some come with extra pop in extras to easily bulk up absorbency.

Personally I find these a little on the pricey side in comparison to my pockets, which I also find to be a lot better but these are just my views tots bots are loved by many

(The new tots bots star has arrived it is literally the easiest nappy I have seen no inserts to add just pop it on and go .. I can't comment much as I have only drooled at one and not actually purchased one - YET!)


Moving on to my other (and favourite) cloth nappy

Pocket nappies (Dudey baba)



Pockets also come in a variation of styles and fabrics (i.e minky) these too have adjustable poppers for sizing and are also birth to potty. They are also a lot cheaper than Tots bots. Like the Tots bots nappy they are also available with a Velcro fitting. I find for us these are less likely to leak and we get a better fit. These don't come with any liners attached like the Tots bots so there is a lot more 'stuffing' involved, though I find this very simple anyway. My other half prefers these nappies too.


So if you are still with me at this point you are obviously either a cloth lover yourself, curious or intrigued lol. It can all be a little confusing at first.


So we get to inserts/liners....
Like the nappies there are a lot of different types , which all do their own job :)
I personally use Bamboo, Microfiber and fleece liners. There are other options such as charcoal and hemp etc..

Bamboo

 



Bamboo is a very absorbent insert. It is my last line of defence - it goes furthest away from babies bottom.

Microfiber

 

 

Microfiber is another absorbent layer I put this on top of my bamboo closer to babies skin.

 

 

Both Bamboo and Microfiber go inside the pocket at the back of the nappy.

 

 

 

Fleece- the poop catcher

 





 

 Fleece liners are the poop catchers (you can also get disposable liners, though I haven't personally used them) these go next to your babies skin in the nappy but not in the pocket. For younger babies poop (my 3 month old) I just shower the fleece liner and wallah done. For my 2 year old I let any 'solids' fall off into the toilet and shower , that's it ! ...

...its all very simple though can sound a lot to take in.

 

Storing dirty nappies

 

 

I find a bucket with a fitted lid is perfect for this job, though you can buy actual nappy buckets. We just take out the inserts from the pockets and place them and the nappies in a bucket and pop the lid on to keep in any smells.

 

 

Washing nappies

When it comes to washing your nappies it's very simple just put them in the washing machine on a cold wash. To clean off most of the waste.
Then add your non-bio powder and wash at 60 degrees.
In no time you will have fresh nappies to use all over again.

Why cloth ?

 

• Cloth nappies are Eco friendly - no more adding to already over flowing land fill.
• After the initial purchase you save money not having to buy nappies every week !
• It's better for baby - no nasty chemicals by your babies precious skin.

  I'm adding some links that I found very helpful when choosing and starting off cloth:

 

Everything you need to know about all different types of cloth nappies  

 

How to put on a cloth nappy (very helpful) 

 

 

 

Back to blogging ....

So I've been away for a while...


I've been a busy Mama looking after our latest edition :)

Introducing Erin Rae Hobbs who decided to arrive (rather forced out) 11 days overdue on New Years Eve !

She is perfect , such a happy spirited little lady. She is now 15 weeks old (yes serious blog neglect oops)

Other than getting totally (and understandably - look at that face!) distracted life has been pretty normal. Erin has slotted in perfectly to the family. Her older siblings adore her.

So now I'm finally back to blogging I have a few new blogs coming up .. mostly about breastfeeding (mixed feeding), cloth nappies (which I am totally addicted to!) and just general daily life ups and downs .... keep watching :) xx