DIY Tutu

Ok, I honestly can't remember where I saw this tutorial, but there are so many on the internet that use the same method.  Here is a great one from Simply Real Moms.  This is incredibly easy to do and is so inexpensive!  I used 1 long ribbon that was about 10 inches longer than my baby's waist and 2 yards of tulle.

first cut your tulle into long strips.  you will fold them in half as seen above, so you will cut them twice as long as you want your tutu.  fold them in half and place them behind the ribbon (sorry the picture above shows it in front of the ribbon).

pull the long ends through in a "slip knot"

pull them tight and continue with all strips until tutu is as full as you would like.

 

trying to get the full effect! :)

Cloth Diapers

We are loving our cloth diapers!  I had no idea I would like them this much!  I wanted to do a little summary post to share why we are using them, how we are doing it, the costs associated, and what we love about them and hopefully it will help someone out!  When I was pregnant I had no idea where to start, it was all pretty overwhelming.  But I'm thankful to have two great friends who helped me out by sharing all their experiences and plenty of advice (thanks Emily & Heather)!  (Please remember this is only our experience through 3 months, who knows how things will change down the road.)


Here are the main reasons Corey & I decided to use cloth.  While they are also great for the environment, I'm sorry to say that wasn't the main motivator for us, mainly just an added bonus!!!  Oh and while they are also pretty adorable, but this wasn't a motivator for us either.

1.  Cost savings!  Total we have spent $208 and have been gifted about $141, so our total stash including diapers and all accessories is $349.  You also have to take into account the added cost of doing the extra laundry every other day.  But in the long run, especially if we are blessed with more than one baby, I'm positive this will save us plenty of money.

2.  Safe and more comfy for baby!  First of all, cloth diapers do not contain any of the chemicals that disposables do.  Second of all, they give baby less diaper rash.  Reese had a little red bottom at first with disposables, but we haven't had any issues with the cloth...they really wick away the moisture from her skin.


How we are doing it:  we use mainly covers and flats/pads/inserts (whatever you want to call them) and a few pocket diapers for nighttime mainly (it is easy to stuff them with multiple inserts to help with absorbancy for long hours).  Covers are the cheapest option since you can get away with only a few and reuse them multiple times (with different inserts).  Knowing what I know now, I probably have more covers than I need, and could have got away with just one system.  Here's what we have:


GroVia Hybrid System:

3 grovia covers - I bought them during a memorial day sale, 3 covers for $30, unfortunately they only offered pink, purple, and tangerine, so if we have a baby boy some day these might be night time diapers only :)  I love the grovia system with a newborn who is exclusively breastfed for now.  The pads have "gussets" that hold in her runny newborn poo really well.  They covers are also adorable.  While I love the Grovia system, if I would have known what I know now, I probably would have gone without buying these.  I think we could have gotten away with just flips (which are much more affordable) and a few pockets for nighttime.

2 stay dry soaker pads - these were gifted to us by a friend and are my favorite of their two soaker pad types.  They seem to wick the moisture away from baby much better and are more absorbant.  They run around $18 for two.

2 organic cotton soaker pads - we bought these off amazon and paid $17.  They also work great, but the stay dry are my favorite.

here is one of the grovia covers, one of the stay dry inserts (on top) and one of the cotton inserts (on bottom) - (i took pictures on laundry day so i'm missing some in the pictures)

here is the cover with the stay dry insert snapped in, you can sort of see the gussets on the sides

Flip Cover System:

3 flip covers & 9 stay dry inserts - I bought the covers in a buy two get one free sale for $28 and bought 3 packs of 3 inserts for $12 each, total of $36.  I really like the flips, its pretty amazing how dry they feel against the baby's skin when they are soaked through.  Since they are flat, when baby poops it most of the time will get on the cover so it will not be able to be used again without washing.  However, I've heard this will be great when baby eats food (not just breastmilk) and their poo changes.  (Also now that she is 3 months, she really only goes once or twice a week).

2 of our covers and some of the inserts.  One side of the inserts is microfiber and the other is stay dry which goes against baby's skin.  Its amazing how soaked they can be but feel completely dry to the touch.

an insert sitting inside the cover

Pocket Diapers:

Bum Genious 4.0 - We received two of these as a shower gift.  They run around $18 each.  They so far have been great, while they are a little bulky, they seem to be pretty absorbant.  Having pockets is really convienent for night time because you are able to stuff them with multiple inserts when you need more absorbancy.  I love these and am thinking ov getting one more for laundry day.  Right now she can wear them 12+ hours at night with onlhy 2 inserts and have no leaks.

stuffed with two inserts, these diapers as well can be soaked but feel completely dry against baby's skin

Charlie Banana - I bought this one on clearance at Target for $12.  I love how trim it is and the materials are all really soft.  However, I have had trouble with this one leaking on me when stuffed with one insert after only 2 hours...I guess I need to try two inserts, but I feel like they aren't nearly as absorbant as the bum genious.  I don't use this diaper too often.

Fuzzibunz - I bought this one at a consignment sale for $9.  Its the same trimness as the Charlie banana, but the fabrics are not as soft...maybe because its been washed many times already?  I use the charlie banana inserts because it didn't come with any.  It was an impulse purchase when I was using multiple diapers at a time during the night with her, I really don't use this one now too often.

Accesesories:

Wet bags - I just purchased two of these, one small one for my diaper bag and one large one for her bedroom.  To tell you the truth, you could get away without buying these if you wanted.  We did for well over a month and survived no problem.  I would just bring a grocery type baggie with me in my bag and would just carry the dirty diaper down to the laundry room after each change.  However the bags are much more convienent.  Both the bags we have are Monkey Foot Designs.  They are so great and withold the smells really well. ($42 total)

Cloth wipes - We have 12 bumgenious ($12, purchased for us), 10 ragebabe ($15, purchased for us), and 10 charlie banana (I bought these on clearance at target for $12).  I love them all and have favorites for whatever diaper situation we have going on ;)  I think 32 is the perfect amount to have.

Detergent - At first we used Rockin Green - I loved this stuff, but have since switched to plain old tide after doing some research.  Since the RG was $16 for a small bag, the tide is much more affordable.  We wash on cold once without detergent.  Then we wash on hot with detergent.  Then we do another rinse to make sure all the detergent is out.

Diaper Sprayer - Will use this later when she eats solid foods.  Exclusively breastfed babies poop is water soluble, meaning it can be thrown right in the washer.  This was a gift and they are around $60.

Three Months

Little Peanut, how sweet you are!  My absolute favorite thing this month are the constant baby smiles.  It is so sweet when I come in to get you in the morning or after a nap and you smile so big and start breathing really fast and kick your legs.  You are just so excited that mommy is there to get you out of your crib!  You have also started to really look for me when someone else is holding you and you will also follow me (or whoever was holding you) around the room with your eyes when I set you down. 

It is really amazing to watch you grow into a baby rather than the little newborn you once were.  I was nursing you in the mothers room at church next to a tiny 8 pound infant last weekend and I swear there is no way you were ever that small!!!  You are just growing and changing so much, I wish I could pause you right here and just savor every moment.  I also told Corey the other day that I wish we could go back to the hairy newborn days, if only for 15 minutes, just to hold you and snuggle you again.  I will truly treasure things even more if we are blessed with another baby because now I realize how fast the days go!

Some other things you have picked up in the past month, this funny fake cough.  It cracks me up.  At first I thought maybe you had come down with a little cold, but you were acting fine otherwise, and are still doing it a month later.  You mainly do it when you are wanting attention I think, funny girl.  You absolutely love your hands and usually are trying to get them in your mouth, both at the same time sometimes!  You not only suck on them, but seem to be chewing on them too now!  You are drooling like crazy too...but I'm sure it will be awhile until you get teeth.  You are also going through a new "I hate my car seat" phase.  I now truly appreciate those newborn days where you would go to sleep in it every time and we could really take you anywhere. 

You are standing like crazy on those legs.  They are getting so strong.  I can hold onto your little hands and arms and you will stand on your own.  You will also squat down a little like you are going to sit and then push yourself back up, strong girl!  Oh and another favorite thing you have picked up this month, glancing up at me and smiling occasionally while you are nursing.  Its like it finally clicked who was feeding you this whole time and its just the sweetest thing ever when you look up to say "hi mommy!"

You are nursing so great now!  I can't believe how much of a breeze it is!  I will know now, next time when its tough in the beginning, that it really does get easier.  It is just so special and I'm so glad it has worked out for us.  Its our little snuggle time and I absolutely love it.  You are still really quick, 10 minutes per side, and still don't always eat on both sides every time.

You are sleeping great too now!  After talking with your ped at your two month appointment we started putting you down around 7:30 or 8 and then waking you for a "dream feed" around 10 (before we went to bed) to see if we could get you to sleep longer.  However, you would wake up around 230, and I would stick your paci back in, then it seemed like every hour or so after until I would eventually feed you around 5 or 6.  I had some friends suggest dropping the dream feed to see if that would make a difference and it totally has!  Now I feed you the first time you wake, unless its less than 8 hours (because I know you can go at least that long and also going by the doctor's advice) and then you will sleep until morning, 8 am.  So much better waking just once (or maybe twice) at night rather than like 5 times!  I've also started just keeping you swaddled during this middle of the night feed and not changing your diaper so you basically just fall right back asleep.

Naps are a different story.  I am really trying to keep you on a "loose" schedule of eating at 8am, 11am, 2pm, 5pm, around 7 or 730pm, then middle of the night (around 3 or 4am).  So each time I will wake you and you'll eat first then play and go back down anywhere from 45 minutes to 1 hour 15 minutes (from when you woke up).  Then you will sleep for around 2 hours.  But really this is pretty rare, you usually wake around the 45 minute to 1 hour 15 minute mark and need to be rocked back to sleep.  I sort of struggled with this decision over the past month but after talking to friends and seeing what worked for you I've decided to stick with this for now.  You go back to sleep generally very easy, and if you won't then I'll just go ahead and feed you and adjust your schedule.  Your naps (the portion on your own before you wake up) have started to get longer and longer as the month goes on, so hopefully that will continue! 

Another phase you've gone through this month is not wanting to lay down easily.  We used to be able to lay you down wide awake and you would fall asleep by yourself or maybe cry a time or two to put your paci back in.  However, for a few weeks toward the end of this month you would cry whenever we tried to lay you down and want to be rocked to sleep.  It really made us appreciate when you would go to sleep easily.  But thank goodness now you are back to going down very easily.  These phases really make you realize how quickly things change and to remember to appreciate the easy times and know the tough times will pass!  I know some of this stuff isn't super interesting, but I know it will help me to keep in mind when we have another baby!

I should also share that my job has changed quite a bit!  Me and Corey are blessed to be able to have me stay home with our little peanut and I am so so grateful!  There is no where I would rather be!  However, when I went in to resign from my job they asked if I was interested in working part time from home.  We thought and prayed a lot about it and I decided to go for it!  I have been working for a week now and I love it!  Its hourly and we are guessing it will turn out to be about 40 hours a month.

And since I'm not posting this until a week late I can share this little tidbit!  You laughed for the first time this past Sunday and it was the absolute sweetest and funniest thing ever.  Me and Cor can't stop watching the video! 

i mean is there a cuter baby? not possible!  your first sweet little fleece :)

buster loves to hang out with you during tummy time

your first little colts cheerleading outfit haha

so stinking cute right after you woke up

you LOVE to look in the mirror and talk to yourself (haha, looks like i just got out of bed!)

funny face!

another funny face!

sweet little angel, one of the many smiles you gave us this month!

you are OBSESSED with this little bear that hung from your play mat so i moved it to your car seat (since you hate that), now everytime we put you in it you smile and talk to the bear...here you are flirting with him haha



great grandma

four generations

got a sweet bald spot this month

your first halloween!

you love holding your hands right here sometimes so you have quick access to get them in your mouth

all snuggly after a bath

you LOVE to stand!  started majorly drooling this month hence the bib

getting so good at tummy time and tolerating it much better!

you love to lift you legs up too!

and our three month photo shoot!

 

 

love trying to get both hands in my mouth

standing (and drool everywhere!)

daddy got home during our photo shoot and tried to get me to smile for the camera, but i'm still just way too mesmerized by the flash!

DIY Applique Onesies

I absolutely LOVED the newborn onesies I made for her!!!  They were honestly pretty easy too!  If me and my complete armature sewing skills can do this, you can too!  You can even sew it by hand if you want!  (I wish I had taken a picture of a close up of the stitch I did.   To be honest it was pretty tough to get around the intricate edges of the applique, and probably would have been a lot easier to hand sew.  But I do really love the look it gave it.)  We got a lot of compliments on these onesies and I plan to make more in a 3-6 month size onesie soon!  The tutorial I found via Pinterest from Daffodil Design.  She has the templates on her link.  You can add buttons or ribbons like she does, but I just kept it simple!

here is the heat and bond i used, make sure you get the one you can sew (and it says you can use for appliques)

print and cut out your templates, since i was doing these on newborn onesies, i actually had to "freehand" them smaller to fit on the onesie.  cut your fabric to the size needed to fit your template.

cut heat and bond to the size of your fabric

 fuse heat and bond to "wrong" side (or back) of fabric using the directions on the product.

trace onto heat n bond fused with fabric.

cut out template.  (not sure why this pic is sideways)

remove paper backing.

place design on onesie and iron on.

 

haha!  this was the only picture i had of her in this one...dead asleep throwing up gang symbols as my dad said! :)

 

 

ugh, quite possibly my favorite little outfit of hers from the newborn days.  i was very sad when she outgrew this one :(

close up for you!

 

 

 

onesie {solid colors work best}
an assortment of scrap fabrics
heat n bond or wonder under
printed template
sewing machine {or needle and thread if hand sewing}
iron
buttons or ribbons {optional}

 

1.  print and cut out your templates.  cut your fabric to the size needed to fit your template.

2.  cut heat and bond to the size of your fabric

3.  fuse heat and bond to "wrong" side (or back) of fabric using the directions on the product.

4.  trace onto heat n bond fused with fabric.

5.  cut out template. (not sure why this pic is sideways)

6.  remove paper backing.

7.  place design on onesie and iron on.

8.  use sewing machine or hand sew around the applique to completely secure it to onesie and give it a finished look.

7. embellish with buttons or ribbons if desired.