Ergo Will

After Saturday's cloth diaper class, doula-extraordinaire and Little Seedling employee Erin Barnes gave us tutorials on our two carriers of choice: the Moby Wrap and Ergo Baby. Picked because of glowing friend and online recommendations, we'd never actually tested these suckers out.

I went first, loading my 7.5 lb. test baby into the Moby Wrap - a giant strip of fabric that wraps 'round your body. A tad complicated but do-able. Of course, I did awesome. (Will didn't have the camera for my tutorial.)

Will went next, with the Ergo. Went something like this:

Erin: "Okay, now just reach back and clip this strap." Will: "Ummm - arrrrrgggh... I think it's adjusted wrong." Erin: "Let's see. Ah, looks alright. Try again." Will: "Grrrff. Erchth, Arrrrrrggg... I. Need. To. Do. More. Yoga." (panting) Erin: "Maybe your hood's in the way." Will: "Yeah. Yep. That's it. My hood." Erin: "Okay. Again?" Will: "I think I need to sew an extension. Or have you on speed-dial." Erin: "I'll help just this once." Will: "Alright. I'll figure out this front thing." -END SCENE-

And a close-up. (Take note, Erin, a Little Seedling employee, is wearing her baby. At work. Love that place!)

Wish us luck!

Prefolds, Inserts or All-in-Ones

 Meet Molly. Mom, cloth diaper expert and owner of my new favorite baby store, Ann Arbor's The Little Seedling.

On Saturday, (after my cliché pregnancy breakfast), Will and I travelled to this unassuming little shop, located on Zeeb Road off of I-94, to attend their free cloth diapering class. I didn't know what to expect and was ecstatically surprised. The store carries a slew of cloth diapers (check out Will by the diaper wall), multiple baby carriers, car seats, toys, furniture, clothing for baby and mom . . . basically, everything you need, and not a lot of what you don't. While my heart races each time I set foot in a big box baby store (the Buy Buy Baby in-person registry experience nearly killed both of us), when I walked into The Little Seedling, my heart sang.
Muffins and fresh strawberries were out for the taking, employee children are welcome (and sometimes, I was told, can be seen napping in the floor model furniture) and the employees themselves are smiling, walking, fountains of baby gear knowledge.

Granted, you won't find a lot of budget gear here. And no primary-color-plastic-bedazzled Fisher Price play mats. So, it's not the perfect fit for every parent. But it did seem to be the perfect fit for Will and I. Though we've already registered at Buy Buy Baby and Amazon.com, and don't want to add another option to the docket, we will undoubtedly be spending some money at The Little Seedling. On diapers, and multiple other items. Anywho, onto the free diaper class. Held the first Saturday of the month, no registration required, Molly walks through the basics of what is truly an overwhelming topic. (I could have saved myself hours of internet reading had I attended this a few months ago.) First, an intro to cloth diapering. Then, a run down of different cloth options and how to care for them, and lastly, what accessories you may need.

Cloth diapering is less expensive than disposable diapering. (For one child, an average family spends $1800-$3000 on disposable diapers. Cloth diapers are $600-$800.) It's heaps better for Mother Earth. Many babies experience little or no diaper rash. And, rumor has it that many cloth diapered babies potty train earlier. (The supposed reason? You change cloth diapers more often. Baby pees, feels wet, you change the diaper. They are regularly exposed to, and possibly learn, cause and effect early in life.)

There are five basic types of cloth diapers. Prefolds (the classic cloth diaper), fitteds, pocket diapers, all-in-ones and hybrid diapers. Prefolds and fitteds require a cover. Pocket diapers and all-in-ones don't - the entire unit is washed each time. Hybrid diapers work much like prefolds – you use a washable or disposable insert and launder the cover every couple changes.

There are a plethora of brands out there – the most prominent being bumGenius (great momtrepreneur story), Kissaluvs, GroVia, Thirsties and Fuzzibunz. The Little Seedling carries all of these, and more. Molly said all of their diapers work for most babies, and if not, they'll help figure out a solution for your child. Will and I know we want to cloth diaper, for all the reasons mentioned above. We're just not sure which “system” is right for us, so we plan to take advantage of the trial program. You can test out different brands and systems before you invest the big bucks. Just return what doesn't work for store credit. (Of course, there are explicit policies, so if you're interested, be sure to contact the store.)
Care sounds pretty easy. Maybe not as easy as tossing a disposable into a diaper genie and grabbing a new one from a pack, but not too gross or complicated. That said, I can't really speak to it yet, so I'll refrain. Accessories are minimal – diaper pail, liner x2, special detergent (no whiteners or brighteners – both of which kill absorbancy – if a diaper is stained, just set it out in the sun and let Lady Nature do the bleaching), wet bags for travel and if you choose, washable wipes. Molly explained, under an hour, what I'd spent hours Googling. It was well worth the trip! And we will definitely be back. I think Grandma Betty would be especially keen on the shop itself.

In addition to the diapering class, Will and I got hands-on tutorials for the two baby carriers we chose – the Ergo Baby Carrier and the Moby Wrap. Stay tuned for pics of Will with the Ergo. Manly shoulders make the “putting on” part a tad more trying.

Breakfast cliche

On our way to yesterday's cloth diapering class (and after a Home Depot closet organization component shopping excursion), Will and I stopped off at the Brighton Breakfast Club.

Usually a corned-beef-hash kind of gal, I instead decided to go the cliche "pregnant lady breakfast" route.

My order? "Our World renowned oven baked French Toast. Made with cinnamon rolls, Texas toast and croissants.Topped with blueberries, raspberries, strawberries and streusel topping."

Though I agree with my midwives that pregnancy is a natural state, this, my friends, is not natural. Some of it did come home with us. In a box. And on my ass.

Cardboard couch

One of the reasons behind our difficulty in finding the right sleeper sofa is the office configuration. While most couches make it into a room by angling their way through a door, we have narrow doors and deep walls.

I didn't want to buy a sofa, have it delivered and discover it the delivery dudes couldn't get it in the room. So, I turned to Grandpa Bob for a solution.

Duh, Maggie . . . make a cardboard couch silhouette, cut to the prospective couches dimensions, and see if you can maneuver that through the door.

Good news - the Kerry, being delivered today, fits. Bad news - pretty soon Will is going to have to make a cardboard silhouette of me to see if I will.

Shower Countdown

Our golf outing/couple shower is one week from today! And with my Grove Street MSU college roomies at the helm, I'm sure it will be phenomenal. Thanks Kerri, Linda, Karyn, Jen and Sue for all of your hard work. Not to mention Linda's rockin' invite?! Even Kip and Owen got billing.

With a golf scramble, lawn games and an open bar, things could get shower-crazy. Stay tuned for photos.

Flat Footed

I have flat feet. Pregnancy symptom 824.

Though my RLP has subsided significantly, running hurts and has, for the home stretch, been shelved, along with 98% of my wardrobe. Even my bi-weekly weight training sessions leave me aching. Main complaint now? Foot pain. My shoes are as loose as they could possible be yet my arches ache. My shins hurt too.

Enter internet research trip 568,477.

Results?

It might have to do with the 23 pounds I’ve packed on. “To support this extra weight, most women adjust their walk by tilting their pelvis forward and curving their lower spine. Because this stance changes the amount of pressure on your feet, you may experience overpronation, a condition also called 'flat feet' in which your arch flattens and your feet roll inward when you are walking.”

It probably doesn’t help that my body has ten times more of the hormone relaxin, “Relaxin is good in the sense that its function — as you might guess from the name — is to relax the joints in the pelvis so the baby has room to pass through the birth canal. Unfortunately, relaxin also causes abnormal motion in many other joints of the body, causing inflammation and pain.”

Solution?

Orthopedic inserts for my shoes, more elliptical and less speed walking, frequent foot rubs (thanks, Will!) and saying goodbye to my four-day-a-week heel policy. Fingers crossed I get some relief.