Well, its been a busy week.. I don't even know where its going, how did we get into March? This year is passing MUCH faster than I care to think about.
So my quest to pinch pennies wherever I can has spilled over from grocery shopping, coupon clipping and prioritizing to sewing diapers.. I have joined the ranks of the cloth diaper-ers! Oh my goodness did I choose to go about it the wrong way!!! My reasons were two... first, Isaiah and Lydia are extremely sensitive to diapers, each had to have his/her own brand and that was getting tiresome (especially when I'm tired and buy the wrong brand for the wrong child.. which sounds like it should turn out to be right in the end, but its not, its just wrong.. two wrongs do NOT make a right, not even grammatically!) moving on... they're both hyper sensitive to whatever it is they put in diapers to make them as absorbent as they are and both get rashes really easily. I, as I'm sure all other moms will agree, think rashes are for the birds! It is TORTURE to watch your sweet little babe in agony because you can't seem to get a handle on a rash.. so.. the other day when Garren told me that we were out of Isaiah's diapers (as we were getting ready to get him ready to go to bed) I got the bright idea that I would make him a cloth diaper.. how hard can it be? I have fabric, I have google.. on one hand, I was right. It's not that hard to make diapers.. on the other hand, children go through a LOT of diapers in one day and cloth is a learning curve! I am used to Pampers and Huggies, both of them are pretty leak-proof (except for my exceptionally leaky night time son! LOL) So we've had a few leaks and I've washed a few pairs of pants, and I've washed a lot of diapers, but I'm happy to say I did it. My children are officially, exclusively cloth diapered.. I have already noticed a HUGE improvement in the rash department. Lydia's is basically gone, and Isaiah has a minor one due to a reaction to something he ate, but its not lasting for days on end, its already on its way out. I also eliminated commercial wipes and made cloth ones.. might as well nix all the chemicals while I'm on this roll, in for a penny, in for a pound. However, I would not suggest to anyone that if you're out of diapers, sewing them right that instant is such a hot idea.. its quite exhausting and a little overwhelming, but if you're broke -- it CAN be done!
I am SO excited that I won't be spending $150 - $200 next month on diapers! It thrills my heart more than you know! There are so many other bills that could use that cash, and it will be quite satisfying knowing I don't have to put out that expense anymore.
On a totally separate front.. my sister inspired me on her blog when she brought up another blog called 365 Days of Crockpot Meals and since one of my goals has been to eat regular meals, and I'm just not inspired in the kitchen these days I thought I'd check it out. I have more energy in the evenings than I do in the mornings, and I have more motivation in the evenings to think about meals.. in the mornings I am tired, groggy and sleepy.. lol get the point? So while I didn't use a recipe off the site, it did inspire me to google crockpot breakfast items.. I have always done supper in the crockpot, usually potroast (which turns out phenominal by the way), but breakfast? Seems absurd.. but tomorrow morning I will be waking to the wonderful aroma of scrambled eggs, sausage, cheese, onions and hashbrowns in the form of a breakfast casserole.. I just put it on low before I began writing in here, and I'm looking forward to knowing breakfast (a hot breakfast that isn't oatmeal) will be waiting for me in the morning. I intend to set to coffee pot to go off as well, and then it will be like having a maid! Coffee and breakfast without having to get out of bed to make it!
I really want to get a handle on this whole eating thing, beyond not having an appetite these days, it doesn't seem to matter what I eat, I can't keep weight on.. I don't know how much I currently weigh, but ALL my pants are too big on me now.. I wouldn't be too concerned about that, except three of them I bought at Christmas time while I was in Detroit... they are ALL a size 0... I'm 5'9" ... those are bad numbers. I don't own a scale, but I'd wager I weigh about 105 right now, and at my height, that's NEVER a good thing.. so many people fight the opposite fight I do.. and oh my goodness do I ever empathize! I know most people listen to my complaints and roll their eyes while they're saying "I wish I had your problem!!" but its not as spectacular as it sounds.. being underweight is just as bad as overweight.. and the health problems are numerous.. insomnia, lethargy, depression, aching joints/muscles, irregular cycle, skin problems, blood sugar disorders (hypoglycemia for example), headaches, loss of appetite (ironic, isn't it)... I don't necessarily have all of those right now, but I have experienced all of them at one point in my life either individually or as a package deal.. I need to start being more proactive about getting my health back on track. So tomorrow is my renewed effort.. and along with eating more protein and upping my caloric intake I plan to finally realize my goal of working out.. I went to my mom's group today and the couple that were doing their presentation were showing us some exercises to do that will strengthen the core and seriously it looked SO difficult, but not technical, just intense.. however, they promised results from dedicated work, so I am going to put it to the two month test.. tomorrow I am going to take a "BEFORE" picture of myself (no, you're not going to see it.. maybe after the test).. and in two months I am going to take an "AFTER" picture.. and then compare the two, that will be the true testimony to whether or not I have done enough to get my body healthy again.. I want to be at LEAST a size 5, I think I'd even look healthy as a 7, but we'll see if I can get out of the negative numbers first.
So there we have it.. cloth diapers, crockpots and photographs.. wow this one's eclectic!
