Green With Baby Diaper Serivce “Kick Off”

So, after much wrangling, budgeting, worrying, and excitement we are starting our diaper service! We are very excited to be offering this service for parents and their babies. My parents were lucky enough to have a service back in the mid 70s (yes, I did just date myself–but I’m ok with it!). Things are much different now and today’s cloth diapers are just as easy to use as disposable diapers. They’re better for you baby, our environment, you pocket book. And they’re a lot cuter than those box diapers. But I digress…

We already have a handful of customers and some ready to sign up as soon as their precious newborns arrive. I never thought about this before, but a serious perk to this business is getting the awesome opportunity to witness parents’ joy and excitement over the birth of their babies and getting to know these green conscious families!

So, if you are thinking about cloth diapers and want a laundry service be sure to contact us through our website or directly at greenwithbaby@gmail.com! You too can make a difference with every change!

GO GREEN TAMPA BAY!!!

BLOG-You’re it!

The more I blog the more I enjoy it and think of things to write about. If I had more time, I’d probably have several entries a day! But then I wouldn’t have time to check out other cool and interesting blogs, so the present output is sufficient–with ample opportunity to develop.

What I really like about blogging and blogs is that I find so many interesting things and people. It is this neat-o and spiffy community where you can drop in at any time and make a connection–virtually and personally. For instance I met Calley The EcoChic, a local blogger, when she contacted me about our mutual interests in being moms who promote green! She recently posted 6 random things and green with baby as a top cool blog. She then asked me to do the same! She had got tagged by Modern Lime, another local green mom blogger. This game of tag sounds found so here it goes!

Here are the rules for Six Random Things:

1. Link to the person who tagged you.
2. Post the rules on your blog
3. Write six random things about yourself
4. Tag six random people at the end of your post by linking to their blogs
5. Let each person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their website
6. Let your tagger know when your entry is up

Six random things:

1. I’ve been taken to the hospital in the ambulance. It was all pretty surreal. I don’t even remember hearing the sirens. I felt embarrassed at first, but then so thankful when I didn’t die!!!
2. Like my younger brother, we both only had three wisdom teeth. Now, some would say that is evidence of our immaturity. We like to think that it is evidence that we are living examples of evolution at work.
3. I attended and won a top three slot at my county’s science fair for three years when I was in middle school. We had to do science fair projects for our advance science classes. I wish I had taken it a bit more seriously because looking back on it, those were some neat experiments.
4. When I was younger I did a lot of traveling. I’ve never been to Europe but I did enjoy quite a few nights in a tree house on the beach of Tavarua, Fiji.
5. I’m a closet astronomy buff. When I was little, our family would walk our dog to the local church and walk around its vast parking lot looking at the heavens above. Later, I took an astronomy class in undergrad at UF. Not the easy survey class, but the one with elementary physics and an actual astronomy lab. I thought I was going to get an easy A in my last semester but ended up having to study-lots!
6. I “heart” siestas! I studied abroad in Merida, Mexico and lived with a beautiful and caring family. The major shock to me was that they all slept in hammocks and took a siesta everyday. So, being the good anthropology student that I was I got my very own and learned the fine art of taking siestas in hammocks. I know longer have my hammock up, but I do love me some good siesta time.

Six not necessarily green, but still cool blogs

1. E.J. Ford 2008 is a colleague and a friend who is running for State Representative, District 60 (serving Lutz, parts of New Tampa, Temple Terrace, Mango). If you’re interested in a regular guy trying to make some real change, especially for education and teachers, stop by, leave a comment and send him money!
2. I just found out about The Tampa Bike Co-Op yesterday. They hold a critical mass ride the last Friday of the month. They’re a growing group. I hope to get my front mounted baby-bike seat soon and join them!
3. MomAdvice is a Twitter friend. She’s the spunky and energetic founder of MomAdvice.com She’s got all types of things going on there for the moms in need of resources, tips, recipes, and a little laughter.
4. Another mom blog is RookieMoms. I’ve mentioned them before. Check it out, even if you’re not a rookie!
5. This is for all of you bloggers out there. BlogCoach is a wonderful resource for keeping up and learning about the blogosphere! I never realized I had so much to learn. Stop by to see how you can spiff up your blog.
6. This one is for my little one Play-Activities. They have some fun activities that we both like doing. Sometimes I’m too scattered to remember all of those great visions I had of what to do with a baby that I had when I was pregnant. I need all the help I can get.

So there it is. I hope you enjoyed learning a few random things about me. Take a moment and check out my cool blog list!

Diaper Service Biz Support-Yahoogroup

A few months ago I started a Diaperbizsupport Yahoogroup for Diaper Service start ups. It is geared towards the moms & dads and families who have, are trying, or want to start a diaper service in their communities. We currently have a few members, but we want more! The starting members decided to protect our plans by limiting membership by allowing only one biz/member per region/city. That way we aren’t inhibited to share our ideas and plans by the fear of having our hard work swept up and implemented by others. This hasn’t been an issue yet but this “rule” of sorts aids our willingness to share.

I’m very encouraged by the number of diaper services that are popping up all around the country. It is a good thing for our babies, our communities, and our environment. It helps to spread the good word on cloth diapers by providing parents and care givers with a “real” option for diapering their wee little ones (although I should mention the need for adult cloth diapers and services for that population too–but that will be another post!).

So, if you’re in the diaper service biz or hope to be–come check us out!

Click to join diaperbizsupport

my dear little one is 1

baby turns one

My dear little girl turned one on Monday. It has been an emotional roller coaster around here. I feel intense pride and joy as she grows. But I also experience a deep sadness too. My little baby is growing up and there is nothing I can do but watch. Maybe it is my issue of control or lack thereof. I want to hold that baby in my arms and keep her there forever. I never could have prepared myself for how fast the first year goes by. I am reeling. I can’t catch up. She has already grown into this fierce and independent personality and is quickly becoming a force in our family dynamic. So many things are changing–my head is spinning. It was all so overwhelming. I got a migraine and stayed in bed for two days. And I am told this is all just the beginning!

I found an interesting blog RookieMoms. I like their take on motherhood and up until Monday, I too considered myself a “new” mom. After all, my daughter was still an infant. Although she started walking at 9 months, she’s just a little baby! After reading some of their posts and their activities on their website I have to face facts–I am no longer a rookie. I might not know it all, but I’m definitely well on my way. In the past year I’ve become an expert lactivist–12 months and going strong with no signs of stopping. I am a knowledgeable and skilled cloth diaper dresser-able to fold and cover in the middle of a dark night or in the back seat at Yeehaw Junction while on a road trip. And I can now sing several nursery rhymes in more than a shy whisper and even enjoy singing about brushing teeth, laying our heads down, brushing the dog, going potty or any other mundane activities. I have also developed keen super human hearing and can distinguish between a little dream peep and a “I am going to need some help back to sleep” moan–rooms away while trying to watch Project Runway and folding diapers. This of course is much to the dismay of my two pre-teen step-darlings. I hear every word, whether I like it or not.

Looking back it has been quite a wondrous year. I’m proud of the mommy I have become. My little one is growing up. I am too. And that is something I can and will be happy about.

let’s take some time to downshift

In my not so spare time, I look for interesting and insightful green activities and resources. I found  Conscious Consuming an organization that promotes awareness of the impacts our purchasing and buying options have for our health and wealth.  An upcoming event, the US National Downshifting Week, July 7-13, 2008 encourages us to “slow down and green up”.  In what ways can you downshift?  I’m starting a long list!

I checked out the CC blog. There are some interesting things. However, I was actually really surprised that there was nothing posted regarding cloth diapers–at least nothing I could find via their search feature.  It would seem like a no-brainer considering their stance on reducing waste and purchasing as well as a focus on local community business and green options.  It goes to show that the good word of fluff still has a way to travel.  Cloth diaper advocacy is still needed so be sure to help spread the word.

Hey Shortie!

I did it! I sewed and dyed wool shorties!!! I ordered some wool blend from a wool co-op months ago in the hopes that I would sew some wool shorties or covers for punkinette. It finally arrived and I couldn’t be more pleased with my mad sew skillz!!!  I used a pattern from Katrina’s Sew Quick Soaker Pattern and am very happy with the fit and sizing.  I’ve made two shorties and have tried them both on over prefolds, double stuffed, and my goodmama fitted diapers (get one…IF you can!) and they fit really well.  Check them out!

At first I thought I would need an overlock machine, but a straight stitch from a regular sewing machine works just fine. Now that I’ve had the chance to make a couple, I may attempt to alter the pattern a bit for a dipped front. However, I’m afraid to screw up that lovely wool blend I got. Maybe I’ll try to make some out of fleece. 

As you can see in the picture I vat dyed some of the wool in my washing machine. I pretty much guessed at what I remembered from a dye tutorial. I also guessed with colors as I mixed powders to create the blues. It was really quite fun.  So much that I’m getting more wool and want to sew some for all my cloth diapering friends!  I’m also attempted to try my hand at diaper sewing.  I’d really want an overlock machine for that though. So if anyone wants to sell me a used machine, I’m in the market. 

Once lanolized they are a dream AND night time wonders! This natural fiber is so fabulously great–it is comfortable even here in schwampy Tampa.  If you haven’t tried wool yet, do yourself a favor and get some–FAST!

 

What I’ve been up to

It has been quite some time since I’ve posted. I’ve thought about it. A lot. I still feel like I’m in a whirlwind with my little one. And now that summer has started and the step kiddies are here (thank heavens!) I have even less time for myself.

So, what have I been up to? Lots. I’m happy to say that I’ve been busy keeping up with requests for information on the green with baby diaper service! Every day when I log on to my email I’m so happy to see that parents out there are interested in going with cloth diapers. I’ve done very little advertising but I have had a HUGE response. That can only mean good things for the greening of Tampa Bay. It is truly exciting and encouraging.

I’ve also added a few members to the diaper biz support yahoogroup that I started a few months back out of the need to connect with other moms (I say moms because that is who happens to be the ones interested in the group but dads or soon-to-be parents are all welcome!) interested in starting a diaper service. I hope the group becomes more active as we all start working on our plans and as we add members.

I also spend a lot of my computer time checking out cool green blogs. I added two to my FAVS that I’ve really enjoyed reading. The Accidental Environmentalist is written by a librarian from one of my favorite places–Gainesville, FL. She has a refreshing look on going green and the “Need A Bag” Project sounds really intriguing. Think I’ll sew up a few since I have my sewing machine out still from sewing wool shorties (more on that for another post–plus pictures). Another great green blog is the Green Baby Guide, written by two friends who share their insights on ways to go green with a baby. I think their approach on the little things to go green (as well as some big ones too!) are helpful for those of us out there without a lot of money to buy all organic, purchase a new hybrid, and install solar panesl–although I wish I could! My husband and I were just discussing how we are determined to learn to ride the bus with the baby this summer and they’ve provided some thoughts on riding the bus with baby in tow in a recent post.

There are of course the 1000 other little things that we all do that make up the majority of our lives that are blog worthy. However, it is my best friend’s birthday today and I have got to get this crew out to the beach. Doesn’t look much like beach weather but I wouldn’t dare miss out on birthday beach weekend! Now go check out those cool blogs!

Traveling with Cloth Diapers? What are you crazy?

We just got back from a trip to Tellico Village, TN to see my folks. We joined my three siblings and their families to surprise my father for his 60th birthday that is in November (yes, it was 6 months early and boy was he surprised!). It was a wonderful trip that served to reconnect our large and ever-growing family!

Since we cloth diaper, I was faced with a serious dilemma–how was I to cloth diaper on the road? I’ll tell you right up front, we did not end up cloth diapering. But I will also tell you how I regret that decision. Ask my husband. I was quite anxious about my little baby’s tushie being encased in plastic and unknown chemicals for four days straight! I used a popular alternative & natural brand of disposables but it still didn’t compare to the fluffy, soft and breathable cloth that we are used to. As I look back on the trip, it would have been very easy to cloth diaper with just a little bit of planning and some know-how.

I think the most important thing about cloth diapering while traveling is that if it is your first trip with cloth you will need to spend some time beforehand preparing and planning. I was overwhelmed with last-minute packing and other issues of my first flight with a baby and I let the cloth diaper issue slip until it was too late. I know, for the next trip, the cloth will be made a priority. Many things can be purchased or acquired once at the destination and do not even need to be packed–thus saving room for cloth. I was surprised by how little we really needed for the baby and ended up lugging a bunch of unused stuff from Tampa to Tennessee and back.

Cloth diapering while traveling is akin to a first foray into cloth diapering. There is a steep learning curve and the experience gets better with every change. So, as you build up your travel diapering supplies and confidence, I can imagine traveling with cloth diapers will be a no-brainer by the end of summer’s worth of trips.

So, for all of you cloth diaper lovers out there who are planning your summer trips, do a little research upfront and get your supplies now. Check out The Diaper Hyena’s guide to vacationing with cloth diapers. I’ll post back on how things go for us! Please come back to share your experiences or tips for traveling with cloth diapers!

The Poop Scoop?

Did you know there is a newsletter dedicated to bringing you the scoop on cloth diapering? Well, there is! Check out the Cloth Diaper News! Kristy de Gregory of Wee Willie Winks (out of Orlando, FL) started the newsletter to help all of us interested in cloth diapers keep up with all the latest CD happenings. Let’s face it, the cloth diapering world is ever-growing. Cloth Diaper News is a great resource to catch up on the newest trend or to find out about some killer sales!

I just joined as a contributing writer and just posted my first article–The Cloth Diaper Generation Gap. I’ve been enjoying reading previous posts as well as readers’ comments. Take a look. Be sure to leave a comment so we know how you like it!

Fun with the Great Cloth Diaper Hunt

The Great Cloth Diaper Hunt hosted by Diaper Decisions runs May 1-31, 2008.  I stumbled upon this annual event at the end of last year’s hunt as I was frantically researching cloth diapers before the birth of my daughter.  It was a fun and entertaining way to find out about all of the wonderful cloth diaper options that are available today!  It also served as a fantastic introduction to the WAHM world.  These industrious and hard-working moms are dedicated to bringing us creative and quality products that rival one of a kind artist pieces as well as the quality of trusted brand names. 

I encourage you to check out the event.  You can win prizes for your participation.  And you just might find that it gets your creative juices flowing and on a path to your own WAHM business!

Happy Hunting!