Mister's Random Love Notes

Click to enlarge the first photo and you tell me what you think the eyes are made of. This is one of the many sweet and hilarious surprises Chris gave me tonight after we went shopping for batteries to power my brand new lap desk and for the "eyes."

Merry Christmas! =]

Not really the picture I envisioned for this post, but here we are at 28 and 1/2 weeks. This face doesn't say it, but I love being pregnant!!

I hope everyone had a very merry Christmas! We love you!

Wild & Crazy

You know who we are...



























We can be cute sometimes, too!

*Enlarge the first photos by clicking on them and enjoy a good chuckle on our behalf.

First Thing This A.M.

I noticed just how "baby" I'm becoming.










<--- 27.5 weeks

Don't dump 'em

In addition to the Cleaning Machine post, I wanted to include a link to the website that can direct you on how and where to dispose of your old cleaning products (and much more). You can visit Earth 911. It's a pretty easy site to navigate, but there are limitations depending on the area you live. I haven't found the hazardous waste info on this site, but waste management had some great ways to Think Green From Home and to be informed. Happy recycling to you!
**You may want to right click the links in this post and open the link in a new tab or window**

Cleaning Machine

Over the past 10 years of cleaning houses, I have been exposed (in both meanings of the term) to many cleaning chemicals. Some have been excellent in living up to my expectations and others have left me high (probably literally) and dry (which no lotion can heal), scrubbing till my shoulders hurt. But since I've been pregnant, I have thought a lot about what effects the cleaning products are having on "Mo" and me and the environment.

A few weeks ago I published a post on cloth diapers from the same resource that I'm using for the info in this post, called Green Housekeeping. I hope this helps you simplify and save money when it comes to your cleaning regimen.

It's as easy as 1, 2, 3.

1. Baking soda.
2. Hydrogen peroxide.
3. White vinegar.

Buy them in their bulk-size. Sam's Club offers a handy, resealable 12 pound bag of baking soda for under $7.00.

Find 2 spray bottles of a different color. One should be dark and opaque to keep the peroxide from degrading (3% strength). Put white vinegar in the other bottle. Grab a couple of clean rags and, for this demonstration, go to your kitchen sink.

Rinse the food out of the sink and empty the strainers into the trash. Dampen a rag with water and then sprinkle baking soda to cover the surfaces in the sink. Scrub and shine all the surfaces and fixtures, then rinse the rag and the sink out with water.
To disinfect, spray the vinegar on all the surfaces of the sink (if you didn't rinse all the baking soda away, there will be a fizzy reaction that is especially useful for drains. More on that in a second). Then spray peroxide. No rinsing is necessary. Dry vinegar does not have an odor, so don't worry about smelling like pickles and sauerkraut. =]

Forget about the deadly drain cleaners! To clean stinky or slow drains, use 1/2 c baking soda chased with 1 c white vinegar. Wait until the impressive amount of fizzing stops and pour a kettleful of boiling water down the drain.

If you're in to disinfecting produce and/or meats, use a spray of vinegar and then a spray of peroxide. No further rinsing necessary. Make sure to spray the sink and knobs off after handling raw meat with the same system.

**Be sure to avoid using this system on marble or natural stone! Use dish soap and water instead**

Other acceptable "green" cleaning products
White vinegar
Baking soda
Liquid castile soap
Murphy's oil soap
Enzyme-based pet stain remover
Olive oil
Beeswax
Glycerin-based liquid saddle soap
Hydrogen peroxide
Citrus solvent (not the one derived from petroleum!)

What are you going to do with all the poisonous and odorous cleaners you aren't going to use anymore? Don't dump 'em!

The possibilities are endless when it comes to what you can do with this simple cleaning system. I just thought about cleaning the old toilet. Sprinkle in about 1/2 c baking soda, scrub around the bowl and flush. Follow by spraying vinegar on all the surfaces, wiping down with a dampened rag. Finally, spritz all the surfaces with peroxide. No rinsing necessary. You may want to run a dry rag over it to prevent water spots and falling in!

Any other innovative cleaning tricks out there?

Happy 26th Week

Bunny Meadow

Awe! It's a meadow! Finally, bunnies that aren't cartoonized living on a farm looking crazed with huge buck teeth carrying giant carrots!

What fun it is dreaming about and growing with this baby! My big sister, Bree, and I went looking around at a couple stores last week to see what kind of baby-style I have. When she found the "Bunny Meadow" theme bedding, I was giggling and squealing with joy! It's absolutely perfect, (and not to mention, eco-friendly!) so I started searching the internet for something close to or at a more reasonable price. SUCCESS in both missions and more! The crib I LOOOOOOOVE is inspired by the photo of the bunny meadow nursery.

Let me add that this is not a wish list of exact items. I do NOT want everything to be in this specific theme, although I love the meadow/forest idea and love the green, white, and espresso colors, and I think a lot of the set is adorable. We want to keep it simple, minimalist, and clean looking. Check out the inspiration, ehem...dream room (minus the mobile, the dotted crib sheet, lamp, hamper, diaper hanger, and valance):
And I know you're all going gah-gah (pun-intended) over the two-toned modern crib I love. No where in the world wide web is there a retailer with this exact crib. Well, good because I found the identical style crib for $100+ less than the other ones that looked very similar. We will probably paint-to-match, but no matter. It's THE crib!

(Attention crib-shoppers: this exact item is available at www.overstock.com/Home-Garden/Roxanne-Modern-3-in-1-Espresso-Crib/4146548/product.html) I know...I see the wheels, but this is not a foldable, portable crib. But I think the wheel-option is a nice one if we want it!
This is another identical crib with the Willow theme:

I think the wall art is so creative. Chris and I are going to make something similar from scratch. I love being married to an artist =]


Come on. How cute is this theme?! I had no idea how strong the desire to buy the cutie baby stuff would be. I have control, thanks to my oldest, bossy (just kidding) sister. I know what is necessity, but it is really fun dreaming, isn't it?! Look at the little forest critters from these receiving blankets. I'm in love!


**Other items seen in this "advertisement" can be found at these web addresses, but may be less expensive elsewhere:

Bunny Meadow: www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3341350
Willow Theme: www.babysupermall.com/main/products/kli/kli8307bed4.html?gclid=CKiyuqPkrZ4CFZho5QodpVcFsA

What are you doing?

In the wee hours of this morning, Mo-baby was up and running and doing things I never felt before. And for the first time, it felt WEIRD. I said to myself, " What the heck was that? An alien?" Oh yeah. It's a growing baby that felt like it was dancing the samba on the left side of my belly while unknowingly jabbing my belly-button with each step. Crazy little miracle going on in there, huh?

From Diapers to Rags

I recently checked a book out from the library that was all about green or natural housekeeping. There were so many great tips that I wanted to begin sharing with you all. This first tip is probably only applicable to me right now, but I still would love feedback from those of you who have tried this method with your family. I summarized and paraphrased parts of the reading for the blogs sake. This is a lengthy post, so grab a warm drink and enjoy!

Cloth Diapers are made of cotton which is soft, durable, absorbent, allows the skin to breathe, and is easily washed.

Health Effects of Disposable Diapers
A study entitled "Acute Respiratory Effects of Diaper Emissions" was published about 10 years ago and the authors wrote, " The airborne emissions of some disposable diapers can produce acute respiratory toxicity--including asthma-like reactions--in normal lab mice and several other chemicals identified in the emissions cause respiratory toxicity."
The emissions included the following chemicals: toluene, xylene, ethylbenzene, and isopropylbenzene. Their respective data sheets state that all of these substances are dangerous if inhaled, eaten, or absorbed through the skin, and that exposure can cause the following problems: serious skin irritation, severe respiratory tract irritation, birth defects, impaired fertility, liver and kidney damage, and central nervous system disorders.
The research concluded, "New cloth diapers appeared to be the least toxic choice for a consumer. However, they could acquire toxic properties from laundry detergents."

The Bottom Line
It requires a staggering amount of energy, water, and renewable and non-renewable resources to paper a baby's bottom from birth until toilet trained. The 18 billion diapers that are discarded each year make up about 4 percent of the nation's total household solid waste stream.
Growing enough cotton to produce a few dozen diapers necessary to sop up after baby for a few years is a light task compared to growing enough pulp to manufacture enough plastic to produce the more than 5,000 disposable diapers that will be used for an average of seven changes per day in those same 2 years....

(The author talks about the 25-50% of savings during the diaper years for parents who home launder diapers and then mentions the option and efficiency of diaper services.)

Getting Off to a Nappy Start
If you decide to forgo a diaper service, make sure you buy enough diapers to last a couple of days so baby won't have to go naked while you do the wash. We started with about six dozen and never ran out, even when we had two in diapers. Twenty years later, those diapers are still serving as useful cleaning rags.

"Managing the Messy End of the Diaper Cycle"
1. Half fill the diaper pail with warm water and add 1/2 cup borax. This will help reduce odors and staining. Or if baby has trouble with diaper rash, substitute borax for a couple cups of white vinegar. The vinegar will help kill the bacteria that can cause diaper rash. Make sure the pail has a tight fitting lid.
2. Rinse out the urine and scrape the solid waste into the toilet before putting the diapers in the pail. (Keep a plastic spatula in the bathroom for this purpose; store it as you would a toilet brush.) Soak the baby's waterproof pants in the diaper pail too.
3. When the pail is full, drain as much water as possible into the toilet, and lug the pail to the washer.
4. Wash the diapers on the heaviest, hottest cycle. If the washer has a separate spin cycle, use that before washing.
5. Soap can leave a residue that may irritate a baby's skin. Use gentle, unscented detergent, preferably unscented, and free from dyes, bleaches, and brighteners.
6. Add 1 cup of white vinegar to the final rinse cycle.
7. Dry the diapers using the cotton setting of the dryer. Do not dry the waterproof pants!
8. If baby is having problems with diaper rash, sun-dry the diapers. Sunlight is a very strong disinfectant.

So there you all have it! I hope you have some stories and suggestions for me. This is a huge and stinky commitment!

(Hey Mom--you should be able to leave comments directly on the blog now. Let me know if you still have a problem.)

23

It's such a nice number, twenty-three.

I was married at twenty-three and now
I'm in week twenty-three of pregnancy.

What's happening on the inside...

This baby is constantly tumbling and flying all over the womb, making umbilical baskets with the placenta and layups with a fist of furry. It's like a full-on rave party with this kid. Mo will bust a hey-here's-my-booty move after breakfast and then be break-dancing for the rest of the night. No matter what correlation I have to the number 23, I love this week because we're that much closer to holding this little be-bopper!

Misses

He's on an artist's adventure, in Sandusky, Ohio, attending the National Caricature Convention.

She's never been away from him and his adventures for so long.

He's trying to remember the names of the people he's meeting.
She's trying to recall the baby names she's been choosing.

He needs home-cookin' like nothing else.
She could eat cereal for every meal.

He's gaining experience and getting out of his comfort zone.
She's gaining baby width and growing out of her comfy jeans.

She answers his calls twice a day
and she doesn't say much except, "misses" and "loves."
He calls her every spare moment he gets
and he says more than the past hundred convo's combined.

He is her best-closest friend, even if he's miles away.

What's in a name?

"What are you gonna name your kid?" My 6 year old nephew, Evan, asked walking toward me.

"Well, I like the name Levi for a boy."

"Why?"

And here I sit in the 21st week of pregnancy and Chris and I have not agreed on any names that we love or that Evan loves. Here we are when he was about 18 months.
We like original, artsy names, but not old fashioned ones. We like 'L' names and 'J' names and names with letters like, 'v' or 'z' in them. We have a very hard sounding German last name, so a softer, but not wussy, first name is something we're considering. But at the same time, for a boy, a masculine name is a must. Thankfully we have 40 weeks...nope, 19 weeks to decide.

Woodstock

Yes. I am proud to be a modern hippie and I'm so excited about the new old-world options that have been opening up all around me in the past months parallel to my style of living. Here's the latest...

How about a cherry teething ring? Or perhaps a cotton carrot for those sore gummers?

This is a sweet looking rattle. And the next is a colorful clutch toy (with spinny pills?).

This guy made me laugh...

And a more advanced, but completely righteous, wooden peg board for the not-so-newborn baby (and me).
That's just the start of a really cool bunch of things that are available. And since you, the readers, are giving people, I wanted to give you some insight into the few things that would be long lasting investments into our family (this baby is just the first). The photos here and links (on the sidebar) are only ideas, as some are ridiculously priced, but it's a fun concept to bring back natural materials into the playroom and to be able to pass them on and on and on!

**some of the websites sell a lot of plastic, so a little searching for the natural wooden toys is necessary**

In bloom

Chris and I are in a season of life that neither of us has ever been through before. As most of you know, we have been simplifying our home-life--clutter and twaddle things we don't "love," while other areas outside the home are becoming more complex. I feel like I can contain most of the treasured possessions we have agreed to keep in our tiny town-house, but there are a few BIG things we want to share. This online journal will be a way for you all to check in and keep in touch with "what's new" in our ever-changing life!

So much dreaming and growing is taking place and we are feeling stressed and pressed, but mostly blessed throughout the start of this season. We are expecting our first child in the spring and we are planning the move into our first home. Chris is revving up to become the sole provider for our family by finishing school and he's going full-time into his freelance design business, Schroeder Creations.

Don't worry about my Mister! God has proven this is the path Chris and I are going to take. He continues to provide us with unexpected opportunities for business and with long-term clients.

Things have been going excellently throughout my pregnancy. I am feeling closer to our growing baby every day. Especially on mornings like today, when little "Mo" was moving and shaking all over my uterus! Hehe :) It's fun being pregnant!