Slings vs. Strollers...

When I found out I was pregnant one of things I was so excited to purchase was a stroller.  I researched, researched and researched some more.  I finally found the perfect stroller, I was in love!  It was the perfect color, it had all attachments and accessories a girl could want.  My husband laughed at its' size and wondered aloud how on earth I was going to haul it around.  I was actually surprised myself at how much room it consumed in the back of our truck and getting it into the trunk of the car good luck! 
During my pregnancy I also purchased a ring sling, a pouch sling, and a baby trekker.  I had done a little bit of research on using them but I had not really educated myself all that much about babywearing. 

When I brought Everette home from the hospital I tried using the pouch and the ring sling.  I could not get comfortable using either of them.  I used the baby trekker a few times but it was the same I was not totally comfy with it and I found it a little cumbersome to use by myself.  My best friend was pregnant at the same time as I was and I bought her a Moby wrap as a gift, why I did not buy myself one I am not sure.  After she raved about how great and comfy it was I decided to buy one.  I was in love after the first time I used it. 

At this point I was struggling to haul the stroller around.  Loading it in and out of the truck I will admit was not fun and I cursed that stroller more than once. 

I loved my Moby and I used it everyday.  The stroller found a place in the garage and that is where it has stayed.  Thanks to my friend Jana I discovered woven wraps, and The Babywearer.com.  I now have a total addiction to babywearing and it the last year I have maybe used my stroller 4 or 5 times.  I love to wear Everette! Now that he is to big too wear on my front I wear him on my hip or on my back.  He loves it and loves that he can see everything going on. 

Babywearing has many benefits for both Mama and baby. If you are interested in more info please check out these articles on the babywearer.

Babywearing Benefits

I have also include some links to some of my favorite baby carriers.

http://www.mobywrap.com/

http://www.kindercarry.com/category_17/Kinderpack.htm

http://www.bamberoobaby.com/

http://www.p-sling.com/

Cloth Diapers 101...

When I made the decision to cloth diaper our son my husband was not excited.  Some of my friends and family told me I would not last.  Well here we are one year in and our son is in cloth 99% of the time.  The 1% is when we have a young sitter that is not comfy with the idea of using cloth.  We always use a biodegradable disposable. 
My husband has learned to love our cloth diapers and thinks they are pretty easy to use.  He also loves all the money it is going to save us.  Our son will be in diapers for approximately 3 years.  Disposables would cost us approximatley $1000.00 per year, the cost of our cloth diapers was $500.00.  So in the end we will have saved $2500.00.  Plus another bonus is that these cloth diapers will be able to be used with our future children as well.  Increasing our savings!
After lots of researching I decided that gdiapers were going to be the cloth diaper for us.  The nice thing about gdiapers was that they offered a flushable/biodegradable insert as well as a cloth insert.  I used the flushable insert for the first 5 weeks and then I started using the cloth inserts and have never looked back.  I was hesitant at first to use cloth when taking Everette out of the house but after a few outings I realized that it was just as easy as using the flushies or a disposable.  I just had to plan ahead and be prepared. 
I chose to use a dry diaper pail.  I keep it in the bathroom and I am lucky that I have enough counter space in my bathroom to have my change pad in there as well.  I found that this had made clean up a lot easier.  My husband also installed a diaper sprayer for me. 
There has certainly been a learning curve using cloth diapers but I have been able to find a lot of great resources.  The biggest challenge I have encountered is finding the right detergent to wash my diapers with.  I have battled the dreaded ammonia but once I found the right detergent it was easily defeated.

Pamela

http://rockingreensoap.com/

http://www.gdiapers.com/

Diapering decisions - Great info

Made in Canada Baby...

It has always been important to me to shop locally and to buy made in Canada products.  When I was outfitting our nursery I knew that I wanted the things I bought for our new baby to be made in Canada.  What I didn't expect was how hard it was going to be to find them.  It took a lot of searching and a lot of time on the computer but I was eventually able to find almost everything made in Canada.  I was even able to buy some of it locally from a little baby boutique.  I had all my bedding sewn by a friend of my Mom's (I am eventually going to have to learn to sew) and our furniture was handmade by a neighbour of my in-laws (the furniture came second hand from my husband's sister).  It took the whole 9 months of my pregnancy to find everything but I am proud to say that I was able to find 90% of what I needed made in Canada. 
What has been most difficult is finding clothing for our son that is made in Canada and  does not cost an arm and a leg.  I am sad to say that as of yet I have not been able to find a great clothing line made in Canada that is affordable. 
In the last year I have been able to find 85% of what I need for my baby made in either Canada or the USA.  I have included a few links to some of my favorite products and places to shop for all my baby's needs.

Pamela


http://www.lilbitbaby.ca/index.php

http://www.sweetkyla.com/weeorganics.php

http://www.live-clean.com/

http://www.gdiapers.com/

http://www.caterpillarbaby.com/