Cloth Diaper Liners

I am planning to use cloth diapers with this next child (a boy!) due in August. My debate right now is whether or not to try the newborn size prefolds and covers. I don't currently have any newborn sized diapers, only infant/smalls, which my daughter didn't grow into until she was over 2 months old. Although the bumGeniuses (which I love) do have a newborn setting, I am planning on my daughter still wearing those until sometime next winter or spring when we will hopefully do potty-training. So I need something to get by until this new guy will be big enough to wear the infant/small prefolds and covers that I already own. I want to do something economical and easy. Hmmm. Thoughts?

Anyways, on another related note: diaper liners. I started using these once my daughter started foods other than breastmilk. There are two kinds that I have found that work well for me.

1. Imse Vimse Flushable Liners

Pros:

• Flushable - makes it easier to change a dirty cloth diaper when you are not at home.
• Reusable 1 more time (Holds up for one washing in my front loader if not soiled. Makes me wonder on the flushablility... no problems yet, though.)
• I can get by with the baby size on my 25 lb. daughter. (Slightly cheaper than the toddler size.)

Cons:

• You are paying for the convenience of "throwing something away". Will need to buy more.
  

2. Dollar Store Washable Wipes - dry, from the cleaning section

Pros:

• Cheap. If you have to throw a nasty one away, the cost is negligible. You can get several out of one package.
• Soft after washed.
• "Endlessly" reusable.
• Rinses well for a reusable liner. Much easier than rinsing the diaper itself. (It is perforated so stuff doesn't stick to it that much and the water flows through it when you swish it in the toilet.)
• You can cut them to the size you want.

Cons:

• If you want to use them when you are out of the house, you would need to dispose of a soiled one in a ziploc or other sealed bag (out of courtesy) just like a disposable diaper. (If I am throwing away a really bad one at home, I put ours where we put the dog poop. Gag.)
• Probably not made of eco-friendly material.

My compromise:

I use the Imse Vimse liners when we are out and about. (You still need to change the child near a toilet, though!) I use the Dollar Store Washable Wipes for liners when we are at home. (Thanks to my husband's mother for telling me about the washable wipes that she used to use for liners on her kids back in the day!)

As for baby wipes, I use disposable ones for when we are out and about, and I use flannel wipes with my homemade wipes recipes when at home. Sometimes, I will get caught without some flannel ones ready at home and have to use disposable ones. Then I will toss them in with the diapers to be washed once and they come out nice and soft and clean and great for wiping runny noses!

Visit the Green Baby Guide for more thrifty, green tips!

Menu Plan 4/27/09

Can you believe it, I still haven't made the meatball sandwiches all month? They've been on the menu at least twice, I think. Last week, I made Mom's Lasagna instead, because I didn't have the meatballs made. Well, now I do. So, they are on the menu again. Surely we will get to them this week since it is the end of the month and the pickings are slim! :)

Breakfasts:

Oatmeal

Oatmeal Buttermilk Muffins with Raisins

Strawberry-Mango Smoothies

Lunches:

PB&J Sandwiches

Carrots

Zucchini Bread

Apples or Oranges

Dinners:

M - Quick and Easy Alfredo Sauce over Angel Hair Pasta, Broccoli

T - Meatball Sandwiches, Baked Zucchini

W - Leftovers

T - Chili (with taco seasoning), Lettuce Salad

F - Leftovers

S - Southwest Pizza, Lettuce Salad

S - Homemade Macaroni and Cheese, Lettuce Salad

Notes:

When I first wrote this, I tried not assigning dinners to specific days, but I couldn't do it! I guess it is just because my/our schedule can really use "leftover" days, so I have to plan to have the bigger meals the day beforehand or I am stuck with nothing "leftover". Also, I am being particular and waiting to buy additional cheese until after April's budget is over, and so I had to arrange for those "cheese heavy" recipes to wait until the end of the week. We also got 3 avocados with our produce order last Friday. Yum! We will definitely eat those on the side somewhere in the menu this week!

Find more menu plans here.

PS - By the way, if anyone tried to make this Cherry Cheesecake Pie, my sincerest apologies. I totally left the sweetened condensed milk off of the ingredients list until I realized it just yesterday. Can I blame that on being pregnant, please? Hopefully, you figured out it needs something to sweeten it up! (The recipe is now written correctly.)

8 Things + Awards

I was recently tagged by my blogging buddy, Katie from Three Blondes and a Redhead, to write about the following "8 things list"... and since I don't have anything else brilliant to share right now, here goes:

8 Things I Look Forward To:
1. Going to the lakehouse
2. Falling in love with a newborn again
3. Running again
4. Getting some tan this summer
5. Decorating my daughter's room when she gets her big girl bed
6. Getting paid
7. Sleeping
8. My husband coming home from work

8 Things I Did Yesterday:
1. Packed lunches
2. Worked morning and afternoon at church
3. Bought birthday presents for my dad and sister
4. Laundry
5. Made pizza and lemonade
6. Played outside
7. Gave my daughter a bath
8. Watched Grey's Anatomy and Private Practice

8 Things I Wish I Could Do:
1. Sing beautifully
2. Pull out the viola and play in the symphony
3. Have our dog not shed at all
4. Keep my white kitchen cabinets pristine
5. Take pictures like Jessica Leigh (I copied this from Katie, but who woudn't want to do this?)
6. Buy newborn cloth diapers. Can't justify the cost for so short a time :( Still thinking on it.
7. Go the the pool in the morning. What's with our pool that doesn't open until 1:00?!
8. Buy my husband his dream truck.

8 Shows I Watch:
1. Grey's Anatomy
2. Private Practice, sometimes
3. American Idol, sometimes
4. The Bachelor, sometimes
5. So You Think You Can Dance (my fav)
6. Golf or other sports (with my husband on Sunday afternoon while we take naps)
7. ??
8. ??

I don't feel like my list is that interesting... Did you learn anything new?

I am challenging the following people to step up and create your own list on your blog:

4 real life friends...
Morgan @ Adventures in Diapering
Staci @ Baby Steps Through Motherhood
Abbie @ Simple Kansas Girl
Mrs. Hibit @ Love in the Suburbs

4 hope-to-meet-you-someday friends...
Michele @ Frugal Granola
Suzanne @ Steece's Pieces
Amy @ The Finer Things in Life
Jenny @ A Latte Talk

Additionally, I am honored to receive and pass along 2 bloggy awards! Thank you to sweet Sarah @ Clay in His Hands for thinking of me! Sorry it took me so long to do this!

This first award is the Friendship award (which consists of 4 buttons):
I say just pick the button you like the best!

The explanation of receiving the Friendship award goes like this:
"These blogs are exceedingly charming. These kind bloggers aim to find friends and be friends. They are not interested in self-aggrandizement. The creators hope that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships will be propagated. "

The second award is the Kreativ Blogger award:

For the Kreativ Blogger award you are supposed to list 7 things that you love, and then pass the award on to 7 other bloggers that you think deserve it.

I love God, my husband, my daughter, my family, being healthy, vacations, and creating.

I think everyone I've mentioned above deserves these awards as well! :)

Have a great weekend!

Happy Earth Day!

Here are a couple of semi-related movies/documentaries that are thought provoking. If you haven't seen them before, you should watch them sometime. (The links take you to them on Hulu, where you can watch them for free.)

Super Size Me

The Future of Food

Enjoy! And make informed choices!

Baking Experiments

This morning, while my daughter and our babysitting charge were happily playing and reading together, I made homemade bagels!

I have been wanting to try this for quite some time, but thought it would be too time consuming. Everytime I've looked at bagels in the store, they contain high fructose corn syrup. Well, making these took me a couple hours plus with interuptions and all, but it was pretty easy! I let my mixer do the kneading and that worked just fine. If you want to try them, give this recipe a shot.

The only issue I had was my cookie sheets. I thought about using the baking stone, but wasn't sure, so I decided to follow directions since it was my first time. I used one regular cookie sheet greased with butter, and one non-stick cookie sheet also greased with butter. They didn't stick to the regular one, but they did turn pretty brown after only 17 minutes when I flipped them (as directed). And on the non-stick one, they totally stuck and so they don't look very pretty on the bottom side. Hmm, maybe I'll try the baking stone next time. Or perhaps I should use one of these baking mats.

Anyways, overall I like how these bagels turned out. I love how fresh and chewy they are. Not dry at all. We (I) will totally eat them all. And you can make them normal size if you want - not like the giant calorie laden ones from the shops. My sister would be proud of my work. (She has worked at an "authentic" bagel shop as a dough-maker where they still boil the bagels, as in this recipe.)

I also made some of this yummy cream cheese and chive spread. My daughter and I had it for lunch on the freshly baked bagels. Mmm.

Question: Does anyone know the difference between green onions and chives? I thought they were the same thing! I just used green onions (aka chives to me).

I also want to try slicing a tomato on top, as in this recipe!

On another note, last week I finally made the Lemon Cream Pie, omitting the whipped cream. I loved the flavor; it was very tart! My husband was not as much of a fan, and said he prefers this Key Lime Pie.

If I were to make the lemon pie again, however, I would definitely use a graham cracker crust instead. I had used this pie crust recipe, since it calls for all butter and no Crisco. I turned out pretty good, but in my opinion a graham cracker crust would compliment the lemon flavor better.

P.S. The picture is of my chives/green onions that came with our produce last week. I think I may plant them in a pot so I can just snip some off when I need them again... that is if I don't kill them first.

Menu Plan 4/20/09

Breakfasts:
Oatmeal or Organic Raisin Bran with Milk
Smoothies or Orange Juliuses

Lunches:
PB&J Sandwiches
Carrots
Fruit
Dessert

Dinners:
M - Leftover Cheesy Chicken & Rice with Broccoli
T - Homemade Pizza, Artichokes
W - BLT's, Crockpot Apples
Th - Meatball Sandwiches, Pickles
F - Leftovers
S - Talapia, Red Potatoes, Collards
S - Cheese Quesadillas

Dessert/Snacks: Not sure what to make this week... don't want to buy anything new. Maybe some sugar cookies topped with cream cheese and fresh fruit - like mini fruit pizzas? Or some zucchini bread?

Visit the Organizning Junkie for more menu plans!

To Do

I've been home with a sick little girl for the past 2 days. That's the reason for my lack of posts. Here are two (hopefully easy) craft projects on my list for the (hopefully near) future:

Moss Topiary

Hooded Bath Towel

Cherry Cheesecake Pie

I got this from my new recipe book and made it for our Easter gathering over the weekend. I love cheesecake, whether no-bake or the real thing!

1/4 c. lemon juice
1 (8 oz.) pkg. cream cheese
1 can sweetened consdensed milk
1 tsp. vanilla
1 graham cracker pie crust (I used Amy's recipe.)
1 can cherry pie filling

Soften cream cheese. Add rest of ingredients except cherries. Mix until smooth. Pour into crust. Chill for 3 hours. Add cherries. Enjoy!

Visit Kitchen Tip Tuesdays!

Menu Plan 4/13/09

This is our first week with our box of produce from Door to Door Organics. I was so excited to get it on Friday. I think it will make us dedicate a greater portion of our diet to fresh fruits and vegetables. And help us consume a wider assortment of fruits and vegetables than I might normally buy, as well.

Breakfasts:
Green Smoothies

Oatmeal Buttermilk Muffins
Carrot Cake Muffins

Lunches:
PB&J Sandwiches
Veggies and Dip
Fruit (apples, oranges, pears, grapefruit)
Dessert

Dinners:
Monday - Omletes, PW's Basic Breakfast Potatoes
Tuesday - Mexican Lasagna (only beans, no meat), Baked Zucchini
Wednesday - Leftovers
Thursday - Tostadas (will change like these)
Friday - Egg Salad Sandwiches, Baked Yams
Saturday - dinner with friends

Sunday - Cheesy Chicken & Rice with Broccoli, Salad

Snacks:
Organic Chips and Salsa

Desserts:
Lemon Cream Pie (still need to make it)

Find more menu plans on Monday here!

First Shipment

Our box from Door to Door Organics came today! I am going to have to get my creative juices going in order to use this up in 1 week before the next box comes, but I am looking forward to the challenge!

My Latest Project

Here is my most recent creation. This time, I feel smarter for using iron on adhesive - rather than this lengthy process and adhering with hot glue which I've learned does not hold up so well with use. I was inspired this time around by someone else's blog post which I can no longer find, unfortunately.

Result = another practical birthday gift!

A New Recipe Book

The moms group that I help provide childcare for (while they meet) compiled a recipe book of mom-tested recipes that use 6 ingredients or less... and gave a copy to each of us nursery workers as well! I am excited to look through it - it really has quite a few entries!

Menu Plan 4/6/09

This pregnancy, as I mentioned before, I have not wanted to eat oatmeal or granola. I want boxed cereal with cold milk. Throughout the day. Over the past few months, I've been through corn flakes, rice krispies, cheerio's, frosted mini-wheats, and now am on to Costco's organic raisin bran. It is the second cheapest cereal there (per ounce) and I don't feel as bad eating 3 bowls a day when it is organic :)

Breakfasts:

Oatmeal or Organic Raisin Bran with Milk

Bananas

Lunches:

PB&J Sandwiches

Carrots Sticks

Cottage Cheese

Pears

Dinners:

Monday - Southwest Salad

Tuesday - Baked Talapia, Scalloped Potatoes, Steamed Broccoli

Wednesday - Meatball Sandwiches, Corn

Thursday - Leftovers

Friday - Pancakes, Fruit

Saturday - Leftovers

Sunday - Easter dinner at the neighbors, taking something...

Dessert:

Lemon Cream Pie

I had a hard time with the menu this week because I was feeling uninspired, but now that I've done it, it looks pretty good to me. Visit more menu plans here!

Easy Roast

I made an easy, tasty roast last week that we used for hot roast beef sandwiches. A friend at work told me the recipe.

A cut of roast (I can't remember what I used.)
A jar of peppercinos (She had to tell me what these are. They are the little, mild peppers that they put on sandwiches like at Subway and stuff. I call them banana peppers or salad peppers. You can find them with the pickles at the grocery store. The are not the most natural - the only brand I found contained HFCS and artificial colorings - but I wanted to try the recipe, so I got them. I got the sliced ones so we could add them to the sandwiches later.)
Dump the entire jar, undrained, in with the roast and cook.

I did this in my crock pot on low (with a meat thermomenter stuck in) and it got a little too well done after only 6 hours... so next time I will have to be home the whole time so I can keep an eye on it better. The taste was still fabulous, though!

Yogurt Coffee Cake Muffins

I made these Yogurt Coffee Cake Muffins this week. They were nice and moist without being heavy - a great snack or easy breakfast!

(Mine didn't rise much, so they weren't very pretty, but still tasted great.)

Door to Door Organics

I have wanted to join a CSA for the last year. But, it seems I always put it off and am too late to sign up, or they are just not right for me. Recently, though, a friend piqued my interest in Door to Door Organics, a co-op that delivers organic, and usually locally-grown produce to your front door weekly or bi-weekly. It seems like a great idea. You can even do all your ordering and order changing online at virtually any time - no commitment. I am thinking of giving it a whirl. I am wondering, does anyone reading this have any experience with Door to Door Organics, or something similar? If so, how is it?

Thanks for any input.

By the way, I love the idea of having my own garden and being barefoot and pregnant in it this summer, but I just don't think it is going to happen this year, so I am going for the next best alternative :)

For more backwards Works for Me Wednesday, head here and offer some advice to others!