Below is a video that has not only saved my storage space, but more than likely the storage space of every person who has watched it.
We buy them because they make bed making easier and they don't end up around your neck with the top sheet in the middle of the night. But how on earth to you fold the darn things after you've washed them? Below is a video that has not only saved my storage space, but more than likely the storage space of every person who has watched it. Now spread the gospel with your friends and let them know that it can be done!
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While at Plunket the other day for my son's three month check up, the nurse asked if my son has and shows interest in a favorite musical or noise making toy. We only have a handful of toys that make noises, we've been lucky and haven't needed to buy a lot as most things have been handed down from family members or friends.
I have noticed in this last week however that my son seems to enjoy Elvis. I've started a bit of a routine where I put on "Elvis Presley - The 50 Greatest Hits" in the morning while I have my shower. As soon as he hears "That's Alright" (track one, disk one) his face lights up with a smile and he kicks his legs as if he is all excited. There are a few tracks (generally the slower songs) that he doesn't seem too keen on and he will whinge a little bit, skip past them and he stops grizzling, for the most part though he will listen to the album gooing & gaaing to himself or his toys. I'm still trying to decide if the smiling and general cuteness is because of Elvis & his like of the music, or if it is just because of routine and this is something he does every morning at around the same time. His approval of my musical taste isn't anything new either. I listen to a fair bit of music, I have done all of my life, I enjoy it and it gets the creative juices going. I have a love of dance music and for a number of years I was an event photographer. I would go to A LOT of dance parties (sometimes up to 3 or 4 in a single weekend) and photograph the people & happenings of the event. While I was pregnant I noticed that when I was listening to breakbeat, in particular Stanton Warriors, my little spawn would go nuts (some mixes & tracks more so than others). I took the kicking as a sign that he liked what I was listening to, but we will never know for sure. I hope my love my music is passed on to him and he gets as much enjoyment as I do, from all the different styles that music has to offer. It would seem that music already brings him joy, but whatever the reasoning behind the cooing & kicking of legs, I get to see him grinning away to himself and a happy child isn't a bad thing. Does you're child have a favorite type of music or song? Leave a comment in the messages below. When I was born I refused to breastfeed, it was 1982 and the pressure to breastfeed wasn't as intense as it is today. Since having my own child, I've often wondered how different my mothers experience of being a new mum would have been if she had all the support that we have today when it comes to breastfeeding. I'm not saying she had a bad experience because I was bottle feed, I'm just saying it was a lot different to what I'm experiencing 32 years later.
Aside from some mastitis, I haven't had any problems with establishing breastfeeding with my son and I am glad this is the case. The pressure on mothers to breastfeed is more intense than the heat of the sun and I can't imagine how stressful it must be if you're having a few teething problems. We all know how good breastfeeding is for babies, but the emphasis & pressure to breastfeed can be a bit overwhelming and makes you feel like your a bad mother if you don't/can't breastfeed; and as soon as you let people know you are struggling the floodgates open & you hear all the remedies to fix your problem. Eventually all of the suggesting, the pressure you place on yourself & that which others place on you, topped off with a screaming baby who isn't putting on weight and that you can't satisfy with something that "should come naturally", becomes too much and you just want to hide in a hole. It's no wonder that most mothers give up on breastfeeding in the first month, I just wish they weren't made to feel bad about it. To use nappy liners or not to use nappy liners is a personal choice, just as the choice between disposable and reusable is a personal thing. Nappies liners are there to catch anything solid, make it easier to dispose of and to make nappy cleaning easier. I am in the early stages of my reusable/cloth nappy journey (just under 3months in), and therefore still exploring the many options of liners that are available. I have tried three different nappy liner brands so far, two available from supermarkets and one from The Baby Factory, each a bit different from one another. WOOLWORTHS HOMEBRAND NAPPY LINERS A box of 100 non-flushable liners in a tissue box dispensary. These liners are available from Countdown for $5.49 (works out to 5cents per liner), we purchased them when we couldn't find the usual liners that we had been using and worked at a pinch but they aren't liners I would use regularly (I used roughly 20 of these wipes before I caved & replaced them). A wee bit of folding is required to fit the nappy size of a newborn, but this means you end up with a double thickness liner, which isn't a bad thing when you're dealing with newborn poop. The main thing I don't like about the Homebrand liners is the feel of them, the material they are made of feels like thin hospital booties. So definitely not flushable. The non-flushable part is the biggest mark next to these liners when you have a newborn, for those who are yet to experience newborn poop, lets just has it isn't solid; so emptying the waste into the toilet for disposal isn't an option. SILK BIODEGRADABLE FLUSHABLE NAPPY LINERS These were my introduction to the world of nappy liners. A box of 60 flushable liners in a tissue box dispensary. These liners are available from New World. The Silk liners are more of a paper liner and a quite a bit thicker than the other liners I have used, this makes for great clean up and keeps that cloth nappy fairly clean. Like the Homebrand liners these also need a bit of folding to fit and it is easily accomplished with their papery like texture. Silk nappy liners are so far my preferred liners of choice, because of their thickness, how well they protect the cloth nappy, and they are flushable. The downside is that these liners only come in a box of 60, whereas most liners are in boxes/rolls of 100. BABYCO FLUSHABLE LINERS These liners were available from The Baby Factory, however after a search through there website I've been unable to find them, so they may no longer be available in New Zealand. The Babyco liners come in a roll of 100, which is a bit easier to deal with...no jamming your fingers into a box trying to reach those last few. Although the Babyco liners feel similar to the Homebrand liners, they are thinner, biodegradable as well as flushable and require less folding to fit, making them more appealing to purchase. However it's surprising that the Babyco liners require folding to fit the Babyco cloth nappies (my nappy of choice). Being thin doesn't seem to make these liners less effective in holding the contents of a newborn poop factory, however like any liner there is still the odd leak through onto the cloth (nothing major). I'm sure over the months and years to come my preferences for liners will change as my knowledge on the topic grows, new products become available and the needs for my baby & lifestyle change; and as long as my reusable cloth nappy journey continues so will my research into liners. Today I received a vanilla Complan sample in the mail from the forbaby.co.nz website, although I am yet to test that flavor out. I read about Complan a few months before my son was born and made a mental note to give it a try if I needed a boost once the tiny human arrived. About two weeks into breastfeeding I needed that boost, so sent the husband off to the supermarket to pick up a box of chocolate Complan. I didn't know what to expect taste wise, but for $17.00 I hoped that it was half decent, otherwise I was going to have to struggle through to finish the box. I opted to use milk (blue top) for making my Complan, rather than water, so it was almost like a shake and I was surprised by how little milk you need to make a glass (although with 6 scoops of powder to make 1 glass of Complan, I can see why). It is really easy to make, however some patience is required with mixing (I mixed by hand, would be much easier in a blender) & getting rid of lumps of powder (my husband was better at this than I was). Complan is on the pricey side and there are only nine servings per box, but it is worth spending the money on. It tastes great and is really handy for filling the gap on those days you can't get off the cluster feeding couch. While I was pregnant I decided that like my mum, I would use a mix of reusable & disposable nappies when my wee boy was born...well I would at least try. Some days we are more successful than others and do as planned; reusables during the day and disposables for overnight. Then there are the days when I think "thank goodness for disposables", because the reusables are all in the wash or the boy is having an extra busy day in the nappy department. Today in my adventures around the internet I came across a company that allows you to hire reusable nappies, costing between $130 - $220NZD (plus a bond) for 8 weeks. It's a great idea in which you get to try out lots of different nappy brands and find one that you like & works for you, even see if reusable nappies work around your lifestyle. But if you know that reusable nappies is something you want to pursue & you're trying to parent on a budget, the cost seems a bit much and somewhat makes the reusable nappy hire service disposable (spend money but don't keep the product). It is estimated that each child will need their nappy changed between 4,000 and 6,000 times between birth and toilet training, that's a whole lot of nappies. The New Zealand Nappy Alliance (www.nzna.org.nz) calculate that outfitting one child in modern reusable nappies, including all the laundering expenses, will cost a total of $1,068 (priced using premium cloth nappies), compared to a whopping $6,095 for disposables. My nappy of choice is the Babyco Reusable Nappy. This came about not from trying other style or brands, but simply because this is what was given to me at my baby shower & they work for me, so why tinker if it ain't broke. The Babyco Reusable Nappy is as far as I am aware the cheapest on the market ($9.99 at BabyFactory) and include 2 microfibre inserts. They are a pocket style nappy made from polyester with PUL with a microfleece lining and are one size fits all. Unlike old style nappies the covers/shells/cases (whatever you want to call them) on the Babyco Reusable Nappy dries super fast, they feel almost wearable when they come out of the washing machine, which is probably why they provide you with two inserts as they take a little longer to dry. Being one size fits all/adjustable is a great saver on money. No need to get bigger nappies as your baby grows, simply adjust how tight you do them up. I pair mine with a liner to make cleaning up easy, although the liners don't always catch everything (especially if baby has been moving around a lot & the liner shifts), but overall they make life easier. The only thing I find with reusable nappies that if your baby is having big sleeps (like mine does), then they will wake up wet & need a change of clothes; and nobody wants to be doing a full clothing change in the middle of the night in a dimly lit room with a crying baby because they are also hungry. So rather than disturbing my sons sleep, I use disposables over night. Disposables are also much easier to fasten when you're half asleep in that dimly lit room. An epiphany I've had about reusable nappies is that it is a lot like breastfeeding. It's really something you have to keep at & push through till it becomes the "normal". Once you are in the habit of not just throwing the used nappy in the bin and work out a routine for it, then reusables are great and save you on so much money and cut down on a lot of weekly waste (which is great & saves you more money if you have to use council rubbish bags). Which ever you decide to use there is a lot of choice out there and don't forget you can pick up second-hand bundle packs of reusables on the likes of Trademe as well. |