My loves...

Monday was a rough day...worked all night Sunday night into Monday morning and got no sleep until Monday night at 10 pm.  That was a rough one...but I did have a few very wonderful moments that day!  I got to go to Grace's preschool Valentine's party with her, I got to take a very good friend of mine to lunch for her birthday, I got to spend time with my mom (who helped me out tremendously!  I don't think my kids nor I would've been fed dinner had she not been there to cook it), and I got to reminisce!  What fun that was...I started a tradition when my Grace was just a wee one.  She got a HUGE bear from her daddy for her very first Valentine's day and I took her picture with it (that picture has since been lost because our hard drive crashed and we lost all of her pictures up to 15 months)!  That bear was bigger than she was, but the next year, she got bigger and then bigger and added a brother, and then they both got bigger and then they added a sister!  I decided to put them together in a collage...here it is...2008, 2009, 2010, and 2012.  I don't know why I skipped 2011...just forgot I guess.

It all could have been gone in an instant...

Some of you know and some of you don't, but, a week and a half ago my husband fell about 8 feet from our roof onto our front porch...GASP...I was on my way to meet some friends for breakfast and got a phone call from him saying "I fell off the roof, come home!"  I immediately jumped into panic mode.  I didn't know what to do...all my sanity left me and I was a hysterical mess behind the wheel with three small kids in the back seat.  All I could do was start asking my husband questions...the first one..."Are you breathing?"  Of course he is you idiot was all I could think to myself...he's talking to you.  The next one..."Are you bleeding?"  As I start to gather myself I am mentally assessing his possible injuries based on what he's telling me.  All I can think..."He's broken!"  I've got to get home and get him to the hospital!  After what seemed like the longest drive home I pull in to see my knight in shining armor in a crumpled heep on our front porch.  As I get out of the car I smell burning rubber...guess I was going faster than I thought!  I was able to get him up and into the car.  The bad thing...I was thinking...Is this a life and death emergency since he's breathing and can walk...do I take him to the ER because my insurance might not pay a dime if they don't deem it a true emergency.  Or do I take him to urgent care where they can't give him narcotics for the pain and run all the necessary tests to see if my husband is OK!  I started out going to med one but as I thought about it more my instincts told me that I needed to take him to the ER...they need to see him...NOW!  Every move that car made sent him writhing in pain...I couldn't help him...I felt so helpless!  I was sure his arm was broken!  As we got to the ER he was rushed to the back and assessed...the nurse there was sure his humerus (large bone in his upper arm) was broken.  He was sent to xray...NO BROKEN BONES!  WHAT?!?!?  SERIOUSLY?!?!?  I couldn't believe it and neither could the nurses and doctor.  He was having so much pain that they wanted to work him up for worse injuries...OH NO!  Doctor mentioned internal injuries, more severe...YIKES!  By this time the endorphins running through my husbands body were on let down...he was coming down off that high and starting to become weak...I was alone with him in the room while he was sitting on the side of the bed.  I was holding the baby and he started to go out on me...I couldn't put the baby down but my husband needed me.  So I yelled...I yelled loud!  They couldn't find me...so I yelled out the room number...They came running!  All I could think...shock...bleeding...surgery...the worst!  We were waiting, waiting for test results to confirm...but when the doctor came in and said the CT scan was clear...again...WHAT?!?!?!?  They did find a cracked rib...very posterior...close to the spine.  "You are lucky."  That's what I kept hearing...but what I kept thinking, God was watching out for my husband! 

As I reflect back on the events of that day I can't help but think that I could've lost my husband that day.  He could've died.  He could've been paralyzed.  He could've been hurt so much worse.  All he got was a broken rib...lots of pain...and lots of stress.  I can handle a broken rib, pain and lots of stress.  I've started looking at life a little differently these days.  I can handle the little things, with help...Phillipains 4:13!

It's been a while...

So, I've been told I need to update my blog.  Yes, I know, I've been neglecting my creative outlet.  Who cares if I blog?  I mean, honestly, who would really give a rat's patutie if I ever blogged again?!?  Apparently, my husband does...According to him I am a "smart and fun person"...!!  So, this one's for you honey.

Most of you may not know but my husband is pursuing his master's degree and one of his classes is marital counseling...funny!  At a few points in our marriage I thought we could use some counseling and now he's learning about marital counseling.  I find that quite ironic. 

For this class he was required to watch a movie, "The Story of Us".  I know he was putting it off and putting it off because he HATES chick flicks...which is what this was.  It kind of got me thinking about our "Us" story.  What it all really boils down to...you're going to have ups and down, hills and valleys, good and bad.  But, are you going to stick with each other through those times and work it out or run at the first chance you get?  I choose to stay, no matter how rough it gets, no matter how much I want to run and never look back.  I am going to stay, why? Because I love him and all his craziness!  That's it...I LOVE HIM!! 

Cloth Diapering ...This is how I do it!

So many people have asked me about my system for cloth diapering, so, naturally I am going to post about it so that I can refer all those people directly here.  There are so many ways to cloth diaper and my way is just one of the many ways.  My system of choice consists of prefolds, snappis, and wrap style covers.

 The prefold that I use is a chinese prefold from Green Mountain Diapers.  This is where I buy all of my cloth diapering supplies.  The one pictured is for my lil one who is currently 8 months old and around 16 lbs. 

The covers that I ADORE are the thirsties wrap style covers.  This one is a size medium and also fits my little one currently with some extra room.  This cover gets reused several diaper changes unless it's wet or soiled.  I can usually use one all day depending on how messy my lil one gets.

 A snappi is used in place of diaper pins.  It's an elastic band with claws at three points that grabs the prefold and holds it in place.

 This is how it all goes together to fit on the lil ones...
Place the prefold under the babe and fold the corners into the middle (I didn't want my babes bum all over the internet, so I used Ragedy Ann!)

Then you gather the edges towards the middle like so...

Flip the diaper up over the babe and spread the top out so you have wings to attach the snappi to.

Attach your snappi starting on the babies right side first then stretching it over to the left and then pull it down the middle and attach it.

Place your cover and VOILA you have a successful placement!!

I'm not going to stop here.  I am going to tell you have I go about disposing of the unwanted and how I launder my diapers. 
When I was exclusively breastfeeding my lil one I could throw the soiled diapers both #1 and #2 directly into my diaper pail, I use a dry pail system.  The #2 from breastfeeding is water soluble and requires no rinsing.  However, once I introduced solids I had to rinse the #2 but I still throw the #1 only directly into the pail with no rinsing.  Mr. V had the solution for my #2 rinsing that would require minimal handling...a DIY diaper sprayer.  I don't know what link he used to find how to assemble it, but I know you can GOOGLE it and you'll find it. 

Once the diaper is rinsed it goes directly into the pail.  Here's my setup in the bathroom, right by the toilet.  The covers and my wash cloths I use as wipes go right in here too.

You can order the pail liners from the above mentioned website.  I just have mine in your ordinary kitchen trashcan.  The best thing about this liner is that it goes directly into the washer with the diapers and you don't have to handle the soiled diapers very much to get them into the washer. 
When it's time to wash the contents I just pull the pail liner and march it out to my washing machine.  I dump them in and the first thing I do is run a cold rinse.

You'll want to make sure it's COLD for the first rinse so that no stains set in.  I also add a little Borax to this rinse.

Once the rinse cycle is complete I run a HOT/HOT wash/rinse with an extra rinse cycle. 

To this cycle I add my free and clear detergent (essential so that your diapers don't have a funky smell due to the enzymes and dyes in other detergents that build up in your diapers.)  I also add more Borax and some white vinegar.  The vinegar softens the diapers and also neutralizes the pH.

Once the wash cycle is complete they all go into the dryer and I run them through two drying cycles.  Then they are ready to use again. 

Frequently asked questions...
How often do I wash diapers:  every other day.  I usually wash them once lil one is in bed so I have a fresh stock to start the morning. 

Does your lil one have diaper rash:  NOPE!  I haven't had the first diaper rash with her.  This was a problem with my other two babes when I used disposables.  One major reason I decided to cloth diaper this one.

Does your husband do it too:  YEP!  He's awesome!

Do you cloth diaper at night: Yes and no.  I still tend to use a disposable at night just because I don't have enough larger covers so that I can double...however, when I cloth diaper at night I have NO LEAKS and when I disposable diaper, I have leaks :(

As I mentioned, I use wash cloths as wipes!  I spray them with homemade wipe solution and use that in place of disposable wipes.  There are several recipes out there for wipe solution but I wanted one that didn't use soap.  Here's my recipe:
2 c. tap water
1/3 c. witch hazel
1/3 c. aloe vera juice
5-6 drops of tea tree oil
I mix this all together in a big spray bottle.  A bottle will last me for a while!  Very cost effective.

SodaStream

Mr. V has been talking non stop about this gadget for quite some time and after doing the math I decided that it would pay for itself so I told him he could get it.  I wanted to hold out and get it for him for Christmas, but he's too impatient!  It's the neatest thing I've ever seen!  It takes ordinary tap water, carbonates it, and then you can add whatever flavor within their wide variety of choices to the carbonated water.  As the title says, this nifty little gadget is a Sodastream. 

 Kinda cool!

EggNog Pound Cake

I can't take the credit for this recipe, so I'll start by sharing where I got it from : EggNog Pound Cake  I love egg nog and I love pound cake...so naturally why not combine the two!  When I was reading the recipe it looked simple enough.  Here's everything you need :

 Easy enough right!  I thought so.  I decided to make it into mini loaves instead of one big loaf because I am going to give it to the neighbors with some of my homemade strawberry jam for Christmas presents.  I love to give them something homemade, to me it's more personal and I always enjoy things that others put their time and love into.  Because time is so precious to everyone and well, Love, it's the best ingredient of all!

And, of course, while I was making the pound cake I had to have a taste of the eggnog...love that stuff!  But, as you can see...I had to share it!  He likes it...just like his momma!

As I type this I can smell the yummy goodness filling my house and I can't wait to share it with my neighbors.  I hope they enjoy it!

Gingerbread House

Today we did something that I've never before done in my life...it's been 29 years and I have finally made a gingerbread house!  I've always wanted to make one and I was given the opportunity!  My MIL bought us a kit so I just had to put it together :)  The kids are just the perfect age to enjoy the creativity that comes along with it.  BUT, I had one major hang up that I had to get over...it wasn't going to be perfect like the picture on the box, it was going to be decorated by a 5 and 3 year old...I had to let that go and I knew that starting out.  So, I let it go...and you know what...it's PERFECT!!