Diary of a Wetbag

          Hi! I'm Goldie, the large wetbag designed by BumEssentials ClothDiapers. Those Bumbino diapers are always getting ALL of the attention, so I'd figure I'd share my story with you.

           I first arrived at the Sayers' residence on August 23, 2010 all nice and cozy wrapped in plastic. I was quickly removed and placed in the washer along with those Bumbinos. A few tablespoons of Rockin'Green soap and a hot wash -cold rinse later, I was found staring into the wide-eyes of my new owner (I'm not TOTALLY sure, but I think she fell in love with me based on the starry-look in her eyes).

Notice I'm to the left in this picture :)

          Next, I was placed on a 30-gallon black trash can to await my first dirty diaper... The owner was observed from time to time with her nose sniffing close to me, always followed by a goofy grin...

          When I reached my full capacity (about 20 or so diapers), the lid of the trash can was removed, my drawstring was pulled, and off to the laundry room I went. My owner placed the drawstring over her shoulder and easily carried me down to the basement to be cleaned. Dirty diapers were removed, I was thrown in and enjoyed a cold soak followed by a hot wash and double cold rinse.

          After I was done spinning, my owner threw me on the line, and I was dry in about 15 minutes. The owner asked me to inform you to please ignore the hot-mess of a picture above and also to not hold it against her that laundry is that exciting- I guess I make it easy for her....

Ok, so I'm kind of in a goofy mood today but really wanted to share my love for the Bum Essentials wetbags! LOVE, LOVE, LOVE them! Not only are they practical , keeping the smell of dirty diapers at bay, but they also are color coordinated to the Bumbinos and  are reversible- so fun! The small wetbags are equally as fun! I ended up purchasing another one for on-the-go and now carry two small wetbages-one with clean diapers, and one for dirty in my diaper bag! I highly recommend these wetbags for their stink coverage as well as the awesome material. Even if you don't cloth diaper, they are amazing for dirty clothes and especially wet swim gear! 

Paper Mama Photo Challenge- "Hint of Color"

Diaper changes are wrestling matches these days so I thought I'd use it as a photo opp- LOL!

This one's entitled "Escape Artist"

Overheard at the Mall...

Me (upon entering Pac Sun); "Are we getting too old for this store?"

        Looks around to see various 16 -year olds dawning skinny jeans and beanies.


Hubcap: "Maybe..."

Me: "OHMYGOSH! This is so cute!"

:)

Living Well on a Budget

         So I love to buy organic food and healthy products for my family, however, on one income, the truth is, it's sometimes really hard to fit natural, organic, and healthy products into our monthly budget. Luckily, I've found some awesome resources that I wanted to pass along to you all that actually have ideas, coupons, and deals all for ORGANIC/ natural products- hooray! Posted below are some blogs that I have found very helpful:

Saving Naturally 

Frugal Green Living

Ecobunga! 

Organic Deals and Coupons 

          If you check them out, please let me know what you think (which ones are the most helpful, user-friendly, etc.) And, if you have any sites that you use that I didn't mention, please share them with me :) I'm learning more and more that you can still live well even on a budget! 

Wordless Wednesday- Jeremiah 29:11 and GRATEFUL

Paper Mama Photo Challenge- "Fingerprint"

Here's my submission for this weeks photo challenge. Not expecting to be picked, but I had a lot of fun taking the pics and playing with my camera :)

Here's two more I played with:

 

Homemade Pumpkin Spice Lattes

          Nothing says, "Autumn" to me like Pumpkin Spice Lattes...mmmm. They bring back so many awesome memories of my days sitting out by the Dilly Deli in Mariemont with some of my favorite girls after work talking about life. Somedays I long for those days again... 
          Anyway, I LOVE Starbucks signature drink, but not the price tag. I recently came across this recipe and have decided to try it: 

Ingredients:

2 cups milk

2 tablespoons canned pumpkin

2 tablespoons sugar

2 tablespoons vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

1 cup of strong brewed coffee

      Can't wait to try it and share the results with you all! Making a Wal-mart trip today :) Anyone else have any tried and true Pumpkin Spice recipes that they want to share? 

FluffaLumps Wool Dyer Balls- Review and Giveaway!

          So when I first started cloth diapering, I had no idea that something like a wool dryer ball even existed! But now that I have found them, I am TOTALLY in love and couldn't imagine my laundry life without them- LOL! 

         SO, you're probably thinking, "What the heck is so great about dryer balls anyway?" First, let me start out by sharing with you the benefits of the wool dryer ball in general:


1. The dryer balls bounce around making your clothes and diapers SOFT , much softer than with dryer sheets!


2. The dryer balls bounce around therefore separating your clothes and decreasing your dryer time!


3. Dryer balls are a natural and chemical-free alternative to the classic dryer sheet, therefore, no residue is left in your dryer or on your clothes/ diapers!  


4. Dryer balls last for years- that's right, YEARS making them much more cost effective than purchasing dryer sheets! ***MY FAVORITE PERK :)


And now, WHY I LOVE FluffaLumps: 

          Fluffalumps are dryer balls made by a very sweet WAHM that is passionate about cloth diapering. She started making wool dryer balls to help make her cloth diapers nice and soft without creating build-up like dryer sheets do. 
        Victoria was kind enough to send me four 100% Peruvian Wool FluffaLumps- 2 for my review and 2 to giveaway! The first thing I noticed about them was how soft they are! I also  LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the bright vivid color pallet that Victoria has chosen to use for her dryer balls. I've been using two of her balls for almost two weeks now, and I have definitely noticed both an increase in softness in my laundry and a decrease is dryer time- (although with only two balls, the benefits are only slight. Victoria recommends using 2- 4 Fluffalumps depending on your dryer size and load size if you are wanting to experience a signifiant reduction in drying time and increase in softness).      
      Overall, I'm very impressed and cannot WAIT to get some more! I especially LOVE how soft my diaper inserts have become. I'm also thinking that with winter on the way I will be line drying less and the Fluffalumps will help me save energy and time by drying my diapers faster! So what are you waiting for? Go try some Fluffalumps TODAY! 


FluffaLumps Pricing (from the FluffaLumps Facebook Page): 


Any single color wool dryer ball- $8.00

Custom color combination dryer ball (pick up to 3 available colors in photo album)- $9.00

Total custom (You tell me the color you want and I find it)- Cost of skein of wool plus $5.00
**With a total custom you will receive however many dryer balls I could make out of the skein for the price listed above**

Buy 3 dryer balls get the 4th for 50% off

      


 SO, how would you like to win 2 100% Peruvian Wool FluffaLumps?!? 

        Up for grabs are two wool Fluffalumps in colors Caribbean Blue and Pink Elephant! HERE's how to win:

1. MANDATORY ENTRY: Please visit the Fluffalumps Facebook page and "like" them. Next, go to Victoria's photo album here and choose your favorite wool color. After completing, come back here and leave a comment with your FAVORITE dryer ball color! NOTE: PLEASE LEAVE YOUR EMAIL CONTACT so that I can get ahold of you if you win (you only need to do this on the mandatory entry). 


Extra Entries (Please leave a separate comment for each):


1. Visit Victoria's Etsy page, and tell me what other product you would be interested in trying (1 entry).


2. Follow Victoria on twitter (1 entry). 


3. Follow my blog through Goggle Friend Connect (1 entry).


4. Tweet about this giveaway something like, "2 AWESOME Fluffalumps (100% Wool Dryer Balls) are up for grabs over at @ShortyRobs blog! http://tiny.cc/s409c #win #clothdiapers " Leave me the permalink in your comment. (1 entry per day)


CONTEST RUNS FROM SEPT. 16 through, SEPT. 30, 2010 at 11:59 PM ET. Winner will be chosen via Random.org and posted on Oct. 1, and will have 48 hours to claim their prize! GOOD LUCK!


Disclosure: The items listed above in the giveaway are donated to me for the sole purpose of review and giveaway; I was not in anyway compensated for this review. Please read my disclosure policy for more info. 

Wordless Wednesday- This Time LAST Year...

Paper Mama Photo Challenge- "BROWN"

 

          This is my entry for The Paper Mama Photo Challenge- "BROWN."  

I'm titling it "Chocolate Buddies."

And here are the other images I played with for the theme:

Wordy Wednesday- Play by Ann Morris

          Have you heard about the author, Ann Morris? If not, please check her out! I used her books all the time in my kindergarten classroom because she has several awesome simple nonfiction single concept books. I also love her books because they contain multicultural photographs.
         One such "single concept" book is Play. In this story, each page has one simple sentence about how children play around the world. For beginning readers it's awesome because the sentences are really simple yet not generic or silly (like I find so many easy readers to be). Big Boy loves looking at the photographs of the different children in this book and commenting on what they are doing. The pages are great vocabulary builders for preschoolers. In addition, there is a section at the back of the book that identifies the country in which each photo was taken and includes a brief explanation of the activity portrayed. 
       If you are looking for some quality and simple nonfiction for your child, Ann Morris is a great place to start! ENJOY :)

Wordless Wednesday- In Awe of HIS Wonder

Bum Essentials- We are BUMievers!

        About a month ago, I had the awesome privilege of winning an AMAZING diaper package from Bum Essentials (if you'd like to read my winning essay, click here).  In our package we received 6 BUMBINO Diapers, 6 Classic Bum Pads, a large wetbag, and a small wetbag.

        
          The Bumbino is an AI2 (all-in-two) diaper meaning it has a shell (1), and a snap-able insert, or Bum Pad (2). The advantage of an AI2 system is that you can take the insert out and replace it with a new one when soiled while reusing the shell , and therefore, having much less laundry! Another perk of AI2 systems is that they tend to be trimmer than pocket diapers yet as absorbent as AIO (all-in-one) diapers, but dry much quicker (saving you time and energy). 
         The Bumbino system has several particular unique perks. The first are the Bum Pads. The pads snap into the front of the diaper only. This makes it easy to clean and change the pads (especially the poo). Another great perk is the elastic in the front of the diaper  that works to protect against leaks (especially awesome for boys). In addition, the Bumbino Bum Pads are made from 100% organic materials and come in two different styles- The Classic (organic bamboo and cotton blend) , and the Terry Towel (organic bamboo, cotton and polyester). Both are luxuriously soft even after multiple washes! 
        And FINALLY, here is why we LOVE the Bumbino! You've heard of the phrase "Beliebers" right (describing people that are super fans of Justin Bieber)? Well, I'm coining a new phrase "BUMievers!" That's right, we are now super fans of Bum Essential Diapers! Not only is the fit of these diapers AWESOME on both Big Boy and Little Man, but they are also extremely absorbent yet remain trim! 


Exhibit A: Note the great fit on both boys (please ignore Big Boys facial expression- he's decided that smiling at the camera is NOT ALLOWED). 

Exhibit B: Action shots on Little Man

Exhibit C: Big Boy Action Shots

         SO, have you tried the Bumbino? If you do, I'm confident you will become a BUMiever too! More detailed Bumbino and wet bag descriptions and reviews to come! Do you have any questions or comments about the Bumbino? I'd love to hear them :) 

Dirty Diaper Laundry's Cloth Diaper Carnival VIII: Cloth Diaper Awareness

This post is part of Cloth Diapering Bloggers’and Dirty Diaper Laundry’s Cloth Diaper Carnival VIII: Cloth Diaper Awareness. Please visit the other bloggers participating by following the links at the end of this post.


      My BIG IDEA for building Cloth Diapering Awareness is to start a local Cloth Diaper Circle here in Cincinnati! I recently became a member of the Real Diaper Association and I'm training to start a local circle (hopefully to be launched in January of 2010). The goal is to partner with both Park and Vine and the Cincinnati Family Enrichment Center to get the word out. 
     Basically, the circle would meet once a month and cater towards the needs of local families. As part of my circle, I'm hoping to build a Traveling Cloth Diaper Suitcase that has samples of all kinds of diapers so that moms and families can really get their hands on diapers and see the features of various styles and brands. I'm a big believer that there is a modern cloth diaper out there for everyone and I want to have these diapers on hand to be able to show local moms. (If you have any that you would like to donate to me for this purpose, please contact me). I'm also hoping to launch a sister-blog called Real Diaper Reviews where I do reviews and giveaways for local mamas only (again, if you are willing to help me in this endeavor, please contact me). 
    I see the circle as a springboard to raise modern cloth diaper awareness here in Cincinnati. I'd also really like to connect with local childbirth teachers and bring my Traveling Cloth Diaper Suitcase along to allow expecting couples to see how great and easy modern cloth is :)



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Who am I as a Woman in Christ? A 30-Day Shred Prayer Journey Devotion Days 4-9

So since I don't think anyone is really reading this, and I'm mainly posting for myself, I'm going to go ahead and put the rest of the verses for Part I in this post.

Day 4: I am united with the Lord and one with Him in Spirit.
      1 Cor. 6:17- "But the one who joins himself to the Lord is one in spirit with Him."

Day 5: I have been bought at a price; I belong to God!
      1 Cor. 6:20 - "For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body."

Day 6: I am a member of Christ's body.
      1 Cor. 12:27- "Now you are Christ's body, and individually members of it."

Day 7: I have direct access to God through the Holy Spirit.
         Ephesians 2:18- "For through Him we both have our access in one Spirit to the Father."

Day 8: I have been redeemed and forgiven for all my sins.
        Colossians 1:13-14- "For he delivered us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins."

Day 9: I am complete in Christ.
       Colossians 2:10- "And in Him you have been made complete, and He is the head over all rule and authority."


Each day I'm journaling two questions from the day's verse.

1. What are my thoughts about this truth?




2. Do I believe God? (If not, what about my past or current situation is hindering me?)





and I'm also recording my prayers :)

Who am I as a Woman in Christ? A 30-Day Shred Prayer Journey Devotion Day 3

If you are wondering what this is all about, please read this.

Day 3: I have been justified

Romans 5:1- 

     "Therefore having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ."

1. What are my thoughts about this truth?

2. Do I believe God? (If not, what about my past or current situation is hindering me?)

MY PRAYER: 

Who am I as a Woman in Christ? A 30-Day Shred Prayer Journey Devotion Day 2

If you are wondering what this is all about, please read this.

Day 2: I am Christ's Friend

John 15:14- "No longer do I call you slaves, for the slave does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you."

1. What are my thoughts about this truth?

2. Do I believe God? (If not, what about my past or current situation is holding me back?)

My Prayer: 

Who am I as a Woman in Christ? A 30-Day Shred Prayer Journey Devotion Day 1

If you are wondering what this post is all about, please visit here

Part 1: I am accepted in Christ

Day 1: I am God's child.


John 1:12-
       "But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name."




1. What are my thoughts about this truth?








2. Do I believe God? (If not, what about my past or current situation is holding me back?)








MY PRAYER: 

Who am I as a Woman in Christ? A 30-Day Shred Prayer Journey

            So my personal 12 New Things goal for September is to start having a consistent quiet time with God. Yes, I confess that this has been a challenge for me since Titus was born (and he's almost 11 months now).  Titus is a very attached child which is awesome, but can also be admittingly exhausting so "fitting-in" my personal Bible study and devotions has fell by the wayside. I know "good" Christians don't "fit God in" they build their foundation on Him, it just seems that this season in my life has brought many stumbling blocks to that precious and important time. So today, September 1, I am making a commitment to get back into the Word and grow in relationship with my Savior; not because I have to, but because I so desperately need Him and my soul longs for His company. To put it not-so-eloquently- I suck without HIM.

          Anyone want to join me on this journey? I'm calling it my  30 Day Shred. I'm committing to both working out physically and spiritually. Not only am I hoping to shred some pounds, but more importantly, I'm longing to shred my flesh and increase in HIM. A few years ago, God laid a study on my heart and I wrote it out, but never actually completed the journey. The other day when I was cleaning, I found it, and again I felt a pull to embark on this journey with God. It's a super simple format- just one verse a day with 2 questions and a prayer space. Anyone up for the challenge of "shredding" with me? Workout wise I will be doing Jillian Michael's Shred DVD, Pilates, and/or running (feel free to do whatever exercise you want) and devotionally, I will be posting a "Life Verse" per day along with the two main questions. I DARE you to join me :) Comment below if you are joining the  30 Day Shred so that I can be praying for you :)

         The Day 1 devotion will be in the next post!