Hello Fluff!

Ummm. Look how cute. They definitely have that going for them. I had a friend that used the same brand and never had problems with them, so we went with ALVA diapers. They are so cheap too. I haven't used them yet, but they are in the dryer and will be going on a very cute tiny bottom when Sis wakes up from her nap.

So I did quite a bit of research and asked lots of questions to fellow fluff lovers. I found out... this is kind of expensive(the way most people do it) AND people are freaking crazy about cloth diapering. Like it isn't something people just do to save oodles every month, but it is an obsession for most. I can see how you could grow to love this cuteness, but it is going to be a lot more work and I will probably need to remind myself on a regular basis how much money we are saving. There are lots of different kinds of diapers. Like I said, I just went off of what worked for one of my best friends because I trust her judgment 100%. These are a pocket diaper. According to this website (http://www.kellyscloset.com/Cloth-Diaper-Terms-and-Abbreviations_ep_208-1.html) the pocket-style is the most popular choice. This website was very helpful, I didn't even know where to begin researching but a friend sent me the link and then I was able to go from there. It has all of the different options and abbreviations (which helps when you get on the cloth diapering FB pages)

So for anyone that is thinking about it for whatever reason but wants the numbers. Well, I was spending about $30 a month per kid in diapers. I bought 13 diapers, (from an alva provider on Ebay-yes they come from Hong Kong, but it was free shipping, and it got here in a week) they were about $6 each which if you shop around that is less than half of most brands, some diapers can even get over the 20's PER DIAPER. 13 diapers is about half of a stash, it is all I had $ for right now though and oh well, I will be doing laundry more often for a month. I will be getting probably 13 more here in a few weeks(gotta stick to the budget people) So I spent under 100 and will spend that much again. All together that will be as much as 6 months of spending at once but then I don't have to buy diapers for my baby again. She is 6 months so she will be in them at least another year and some months, at least. Yes, there will be detergent and water that will cost money but it shouldn't be that much. It will only be an extra medium sized load every other day and a teaspoon of homemade detergent (super cheap)

I know what you are thinking, because it is what I was thinking. What about the poop? As of right now baby is strictly breast fed and that poop doesn't have to be washed off before washing because of the way it breaks down and what not. As for when she does start having solids we will be installing a $20 bidet sprayer from home depot that installs right onto the toilet. So really it won't be that bad. Hose it off and done. I hope. I will have to try it all out obviously and keep posting how it is going and what we are learning. For now I will using our leftover diapers for night time.

Ditching the regular old shower routine.

This week... oh man, this week. We will be potty training, trying out a new grocery list/meals to try and cut costs, skipping out on shampoo, going cloth (diaper), and making my own detergent.

I washed my hair for the last time (before trying the no-poo method) last night. got it cut today just incase my transition/greasy period is too long and I don't want anyone else touching my hair during that. So I will be mixing up little solution bottles this week and starting a baking soda scalp scrub and an apple cider vinegar rinse. I will take before pics to see in a month or two if it really does make your hair look healthier and shiny.

The main reason to ditch out on the products was because we are starting our new budget and any give in the budget is going to be helpful. With the cheap-o shampoo and conditioner we have been using it will save us about $60 a year. Yeah I know, that isn't that much, but it is something and if it works, well then hot dang, I will be saving and have pretty and healthy hair.

Recipes, pictures, and reviews will follow in the coming weeks. Some people hate this method some people have been doing it for over a decade and swear by it. We will see what category we fall under. Yes, the hubs is doing it too. He has really sensitive skin. He has constant rashes, redness, and sores. We have tried all of the different sensitive shampoos, this is said to be great for anyone that has sensitivities. Stay tuned.

The (new) first post

Well, I started this blog a long time ago. It was just going to be a goal/diet blog following my family through our journey of becoming healthy. It started with me writing everything about our beginnings with a 10-day juice fast that actually became a 7-day juice fast. Oh how I still hate that green drink. Well it turned out that I was a few weeks pregnant with our third. The blog and the diet went down the toilet. I don't have anywhere near a normal appetite the whole time I am pregnant. We did our best with eating healthy, but when I have super hard and sick pregnancies, it is more important to survive. My baby is now 6 months old. I feel like we are getting back to the norm and I am ready to jump on the blog horse again. This time with a lot more crap to write about.

A couple months ago I got back on track with more healthy eating, exercising regularly, and now I feel like I have a little more time to write about it. So that will still be around, but I also want to maybe help others that are trying to budget and all of the other things that came with me doing a strict budget ( no-poo method, cloth diapering, homemade laundry detergents and cleaners ) Yes, I did the math and it will be super beneficial for my family. I am willing to do the extra work. Even with us getting shampoo and conditioner for a few dollars maybe every other month, we should still save about $60 a year on switching up the routine. Some people love it some people hate it. I will let you know which category we fall under and after a few months if we hate any of things, well then we will have to figure out how to rework the budget to fit it in again. All of this stuff is going to be new to us and I will share about it here. Even budgeting. We have maybe done it a handful of times in the past 7 years but never this strictly and never on a regular basis.

I have a super addiction. Birth. I love everything related. I tend to sway to the natural side of things, birth especially, but I don't think that it is the only way or even right for just anyone. In my years of being pregnant, breastfeeding, and studying up on anything related I have had a strong passion and desire to be a doula. I have only done it once, for a sister. Becoming a doula will also be an experience I will be sharing. Not really birth stories, but my path to the doula I want to be.

These are my loves. My passions. My addictions, some bad, some good. I'm just here to share and give my experiences to anyone who has been in my position with a hunger for knowledge on a new adventure. Welcome! And please remember, I am human, I make mistakes, my opinion, is just that. Thanks.