Reusing old things

Introducing...




the Breast Pad Coaster!

Inspired by Finn discount

Inspired by Finn, maker of Baltic amber teething necklaces, is having a 40% off sale on everything. Baltic amber is used for pain relief in adults and teething infants. I haven't tried it yet, but I know a lot of moms swear by it.

My mom just ordered one for Henry as an early Christmas present (since Hyland's teething tablets have been taken off the market. Grrr... My bottle is almost empty.) and one for both of us. Mine will be an actual Christmas present, unfortunately.

I'm not sure how long the sale lasts, so hurry! Use the code THANKYOU at checkout.

My baby's rear smells like lavender and vanilla.

When I started looking into cloth diapering I kept coming across reusable cloth wipes. I'll admit, I thought it was a little ridiculous. Disposable wipes are so cheap, why bother?

But after I starting cloth diapering I found that it was a pain to have to separate the disposable wipe from the washable diaper, and I often found crusty wipes in my diaper pail, and later in my laundry. So I decided to experiment with my own homemade ones. After all, whether you're choosing cloth for the environment or for your wallet, this makes sense.

This is so simple I don't even need to show pictures.

1. Gather all of those receiving blankets you don't know what to do with.
2. Cut them up.
3. (optional) sew around the edges. The wipes will fray if you don't, but really, they're here to get covered in poo, not to be pretty.

Now, for my wipe solution, I use witch hazel, water and some essential oils. I was using just water, but I didn't feel like that was doing enough. I also bought some Thirsties brand Booty Luster, which I love, but I couldn't justify the 11 bucks a bottle.

This is a great use for those milk storage bottles you hopefully didn't but probably did get at the hospital. I mix one for use right away and then keep another in my diaper bin for use later.

one part witch hazel (witch hazel is a natural astringent and a great cleanser.)
3 parts water
2-3 drops of your choice of essential oil or blend. Today, Henry's heiny is wearing lavender and vanilla.

I'm also messing around with putting some soap shavings in and letting them dissolve. I use Indigo Wild's Zum bars, which are all natural goat's milk soap. I love them and we've used them for years in my family.

Be sure you check to make sure the oil isn't going to be harsh on your baby's butt. Here's a good list of oils and their uses that I found. Don't assume that because it's natural it's safe. Also, keep your oils out of reach of little hands.

I fold my wipes up and put them in a glad container instead of a regular wipe container. The glad container is airtight, so I don't have to worry about them drying out.

Almost ready to make dryer balls, but....

I've been seeing wool dryer balls pop up all over the place, and I figured they look easy enough to make, and 5 bucks for one is ridiculous, so, of course, I'll just make my own. I found some instructions, got some wool, but I forgot to buy batteries for my camera. My poor son is going to wonder why there are so few pictures of him.

I'm really looking forward to doing this. Our dryer suuuuuuuucks. It doesn't have a timed setting over 30 minutes, so it usually takes three goes on the 'more dry' setting to completely dry a load. I'm hoping these will cut our time down and make laundry day less frustrating for me.

Speaking of baby-wearing...

Seven Everyday Slings has a promo going for a free sling! All you pay is shipping and handling. Use the promo code "halloween".

From what I understand, they do these free slings a lot. I had my mom order me one for Christmas, so I don't have personal experience with them yet, but I have a friend who likes hers. FYI, a lot of the sizes and styles are back-ordered, but for free I'm willing to wait.

How to make your own wrap-style baby carrier

When my first, Josie, was little I had a bag style carrier and a Baby Bjorn for her. I didn't really like either. With the Infantino bag sling I couldn't see her very well, and it didn't adjust for me, so it really was like carrying your baby in a bag. I even had one guy ask me, while I was on a walk, ''Hey, whatchoo got in that bag?"

The Baby Bjorn I didn't like because it make her fat little legs turn purple. Plus, now it's being said that the front facing structured carriers are bad for a baby's hips and spine.

Before I got pregnant with Henry, a friend of mine kept raving about her Moby wrap. Basically, it's a long piece of fabric that you wrap around yourself to hold your baby. For 40 bucks. 40 bucks!

So.... I found these instructions. http://mercysmom.blogspot.com/2009/10/how-to-make-wrap.html

I could explain it here, without pictures.

All you need is 5-6 yards of jersey knit fabric from Joann Fabric or whatever hobby store you have close by, a pair of scissors, a flat surface and a ruler. No sewing required! I used 5 yards of plain grey fabric for 5 bucks a yard.

Get your fabric, fold it long-ways in thirds and cut. Voila. You'll have three wraps 5-6 yards by 20 inches. Save one or two (nice to have a backup) for yourself and give one or two away! Three wraps for 20 dollars.

For a long list of different carries go here: wrapyourbaby.com

Welcome to my world!

Hello and thanks for coming! I decided to start a blog to share my journey into green-ness and give tips on how to save money by being green. Also I'll share how to make things yourself whenever possible.

Now I have to go find something to write about!