Extreme?

Last night, I was flipping channels and stopped on TLC's Extreme Cheapskates. I have seen the show before and have heard lots of people who are shocked by people featured. I have seen some things on there that disgust me but, honestly, there are a lot of things I currently do or would consider doing. I was contemplating this as I watched last night. Additionally, I couldn't help but think that we really are a wasteful society. And it is fine if you want to be wasteful and can afford it, but most of us can't afford it. According to CNN Money, the average family has nearly $16,000 in credit card debt. Yikes! Think about it, this is consumer debt with nothing to show for it. Now THAT seems crazy to me - living or going further into debt while living wastefully. I will be the first to admit that I, too, am guilty of not being as resourceful as I probably should. But I recognize that and am always striving to find new ways to save where I can. Even if you aren't in debt, could you not put more money into savings or retirement or give a bit more to your church or favorite charity? We can all strive to save more, right?

Here are some perfectly sane (in my opinion) ways to save money that have been featured on the show:

• Buy food from discount grocery outlets. This includes scratch and dent items and items which are just outside of sell-by dates. I have done this. If I had a large family to feed, I would likely do this more often.
• Sell your car and ride a bike. Exercise, frugality and saving the earth? Many urban dwellers discovered the benefits of bikes long ago. 
• Make household products or cleaners. This includes cleaning your home with staples like vinegar and baking soda or making homemade toiletries. I clean most of my house with vinegar and baking soda, so I obviously see nothing wrong with this one.
• Recycle cooking water or bath water for watering plants. I don't see how anyone saves a lot of money doing this, but it is efficient, I suppose.
• Eat alternative cuts of meat. I probably won't be buying goat heads or eating cow brain but I don't see it as flame worthy, either. Kudos to these people for eating parts that often go to waste in our country. They are often very nutritious but the stigma of eating them prevents most Americans from ever trying them.
• Scavenging for wild food. If one is savvy (I'm not), then they can pick edible grasses and berries from the wild and eat them.
• Upcycling items. Basically, finding other uses for items that would traditionally be seen as trash. There are a lot of items that can be reused. You generate less trash and don't have to buy additional items for household needs. It can be a win-win! Just a note, here, though - there was one individual featured who was making gifts out of upcycled items. Sorry, but I view this as tacky. Be frugal on your own but don't give your trash as "gifts" unless e recipient is a fellow cheapskate or has requested a specific item.
• Washing and reusing Ziplocs. I frequently do this, especially if the bag has just held bread or a similarly non-threatening food. I will not reuse bags that have held raw meat or pungent items like onions, though. But bags can get expensive and they'd go right into the trash, so it is basically throwing money away each time I use one, so why not reuse thr ones I can?

There have been some other practices featured that are a bit further than I think I would ever go, though. Among those are the following cheapskate practices:

• Dumpster diving for food. Yuck. Sorry, but just yuck.
• Washing clothes in the shower while you shower. No...
• Not flushing the toilet. Honestly, how much are you really saving with this?
• "Family cloth" aka cloth toilet paper. Um, I'm all for reusables but I can't imagine giving up toilet paper.
• Asking strangers for their leftovers. I'm sure they are probably fine but this one is way too much for me.

All in all, though, I have to laugh a bit. What do people think their ancestors did or used? Even the things that I'm not willing to do (like family cloth) were likely normal practices in our country as recently as 100 years ago.  And I obviously still drive a car and don't do many of the things that I find acceptable. But I guess I'm not seeing where the controversy is with many of them either. To me, some of them seem worthy of consideration if times get tough. But maybe I'm an extreme cheapskate too.

Dishes

Have you ever thought about the safety of your dishes? I hadn't until relatively recently. I stumbled upon something mentioning lead content in many dishes. Lead poisoning seems to be more common than I ever would have thought since I have heard of several friends and acquaintances who have discovered that their children have high amounts of lead in their systems. We didn't have A tested since our Pediatrician didn't think it was necessary given the newness of our home and the places he spends most of his time. But lead in dishes? That seems scary since it leaches into our food and is very indigestible.

After investigating the subject a bit, I found that the government spot checks dishes and that most are okay. But there have been problems with a few manufactures, including Pfaltzgraff, the brand of our dishes. In particular, there had been problems with Pfaltzgraff's products since they moved production to China about 10 years ago. Yikes! Our dishes were made in China. This was enough for me to want them out of my home. I quickly found that several major companies were considered to be universally safe, which included Fiestaware, Denby and Corelle. Stoneware and traditional pottery dishes are considered to be the most risky, as lead is commonly used in the glazes on them but Denby and Fiestaware do not use lead at all. Some of the older Fiestaware did contain lead, though. Corelle is made from Vitrelle glass, so it is also lead-free (Corelle does make a stoneware line, which I did not research so I have no idea if lead is used in its manufacturing). Now, at this point, my husband wanted to kill me as he subscribes to the ignorance is bliss theory...can't we just assume our dishes are fine? No, honey.  Fortunately, I saved my old college dishes which were basic Corelle. They are ugly but I would much rather use a product that is safe for my family than one that is pretty. Corelle is also much cheaper to replace if it gets broken and it is lighter weight. All in all, probably a much better choice for a family with young kids. 

Speaking of kids, I will not give anything breakable to A yet since he is still prone to throwing things at any moment, for any reason. It's okay, he'll usually say "uh oh" before he throws it. (Obviously it is really accidental.) He has been digging eating his food off of dishes as of late, though. I was dubious of many of the kid plates and bowls I found locally. I won't use melamine dishes at all and I really wanted ones free of BPA and phthalates. I couldn't find anything that met my criteria that wasn't breakable. But alas, Ikea makes children's tableware that fit the bill. We have been using the tableware for a few weeks and I really like it. The pieces are dishwasher safe (upper and lower racks) and microwave safe too. I won't put plastic in the microwave, personally, but it is handy to know that it is okay if one wants to do so. Plus, all of the pieces are bright, fun colors and they are a great size for little portions. As a bonus, they were very economical. I would highly recommend them if you are in the market for toddler dinnerware. 

Stainless Steel Cookware Love & Tips

I love to cook and bake and I enjoy having nice kitchenware. I used T-fal for years because of how convenient it was for clean-up as it virtually cleans itself. It is the cookware my parents have always used so I guess it was just what was comfortable for me.  Then, I started hearing rumors of it not being safe a few years back. Basically, the speculation is that anything treated with the Teflon coating can be dangerous as Teflon is a carcinogen. Great, huh? After researching the claims a bit more, I discovered that DuPont, the company who developed Teflon has even admitted the potential for danger. According to them, Teflon cookware should be discarded once it is scratched, scuffed or damaged as it becomes dangerous at that time. They say that it is safe so long as it is intact and not heated empty (apparently this also releases toxins).

Well, suffice it to say, I really wanted to rid my home of this chemical. In general, I didn't view it as a necessary risk since many people love their stainless steel cookware. And I no longer felt safe using it.  So, we saved and I eventually replaced all of my T-fal with Cuisinart stainless steel cookware.  We have had the stainless cookware for about a year and I have been pleasantly surprised by just how much I love it. It heats quickly, cooks evenly and is much easier to clean than I ever expected. A little Bar Keepers Friend and scrubbing takes most foods out very easily. Really the only food that frustrates me is pancakes. It isn't so much the pancakes themselves but rather, the oil I use to cook them in. It tends to burn on the edges a bit and is very difficult to clean out.  Bar Keepers Friend helps with the issue, but it usually requires lots of scrubbing and multiple rounds. Yuck. Who has time for that? Anyway, enter baking soda!! Just sprinkle a bit on the burnt oil spots and let it sit overnight or for several hours. Don't scrub or do anything, just sprinkle a healthy amount over the burnt spot. After it has set overnight, scrub it and most of your burnt food/oil will come right off.  Sometimes, this removes everything but I will frequently need to scrub a little with the baking soda to remove the last few bits. This is such a handy and cheap discovery. See below for before and after pics:

Before

During

After

And really folks, this is minimal to no scrubbing, just putting the baking soda on the grease spots. I love my shiny cookware :-)

Mystical Magical Dr Bronner's Soap

One of the first earth mama products I tried was Dr Bronner's liquid Castile soap. Described by Dr Bronner's and his peeps as "magical", these soaps boast 18 different uses. Considering can you buy this stuff by the quart for about $17 and it's super-concentrated, it's not a bad deal for an Eco-friendly product.  Most of my interest stemmed from a desire to use this as a basic hand soap in my home. Long ago, we'd stopped using antibacterial soaps in our home but I wanted a greener option overall. So I figured any additional uses for this product beyond hand soap were gravy.  I excitedly picked up a couple bottles at my local Target to try.

I had read a bit about the Dr Bronner's Castile soap and knew that it needs to be diluted for most purposes since it is so concentrated. For hand soap, I had read to dilute it with about 4 parts water for each part of soap. This creates a really thin liquid which would be tough to use with a traditional dispenser so I picked up some cheap foam soaps so I would have their dispensers. (Technically, you can just buy the dispensers as well but I wasn't able to find any that weren't outrageously priced.) We have been using the Dr Bronner's soap I our house for about five months and, overall, I'm very pleased! I have begun diluting the soap a bit more than I was in the beginning but we have a water softener so soap goes a long way at our house. Also, the Dr Bronner's can be drying to skin so I try to use the minimal amount to get the job done. Overall, this is a great use for this green product and I have no doubts that we save money by using it. Plus, it is a toxin-free soap, which I love. (No icky triclosan or sodium lauryl sulfate here!) There are a variety of scents you can buy, including lavender, peppermint and almond and there is an unscented version as well.

Another use I'd read about was using the Dr Bronner's as a toothpaste. Since I've already ventured into natural toothpastes, I figured why not try this too? I put a little of our peppermint soap on my toothbrush and began to brush. It started out lovely and minty. Mmm...so healthy!! Go earth mama! Then, it suddenly wasn't lovely at all as it began to taste like...tar, maybe? Whatever the nasty taste was, I couldn't get past it. I never used it to brush my teeth again as it took a couple hours to get the putrid taste out if my mouth (even after using evil, chemical-laden Colgate).

Lots of people also love this soap for shampoo and body wash. I may try it as body wash at some point but I really love my (non-hippie) shampoo.  All in all, these are great products that are very economical as well. Dr. Bronner's is definitely here to stay at my house.

Fabric Softener, Who Needs It?

Growing up and into early adulthood, I thought fabric softener was a necessity. I mean, if I didn't use it, I would surely have crunchy, staticky clothes, right? And it smells so yummy! I had heard of using vinegar as a softener but I hate the smell of vinegar so I certainly didn't want my clothes smelling like it. Well, fast forward to when I was pregnant and researching cloth diapers. Fabric softener is a huge no-no as it keeps the diapers from absorbing properly. Diapers that don't absorb = no bueno. So,  I just wouldn't use softener on my diapers, right? Many things I read recommended not using it at all as it can (supposedly) leave residues which will create problems for diapers even if you just use it on your regular laundry. *sigh* During this time, I also read of numerous other reasons to not use softener, including the following:

• They contain chemicals which are linked to a variety of health issues including neurological disruption, lung irritation, allergies and even cancer. Those wonderful scents I mentioned earlier singlehandedly cause lots of issues for people with allergies and asthma.
• The liquid softeners are known to make clothing more flammable. The manufacturers even warn against using them on children's pajamas for this very reason.
• It makes your towels repel just like diapers and really should never be used on them. This makes sense, I just never really thought about it.
• It just isn't necessary. HUH?? Of course it is, right? Many sources mentioned getting dryer balls to increase dry time and decrease static but they aren't even necessary.

So, I decided to try to eliminate fabric softener from our routine. Guess what, I don't miss it at all! Apart from the strong smell (which really bothers me now), I don't think it ever did anything for my clothes. I have also tried using vinegar in the softener dispenser on my machine (more on why in another post) and it works wonderfully! There is no vinegar smell at all afterward, I promise! Static is a non-issue too, so long as I don't overdry the clothes.

I also purchased some wool dryer balls. These help a bit with static (again, I only have issues with it when I overdry clothes). And they definitely help things to dry faster. But they're noisy and our laundry area is next to A's room so I don't use them too often. You can also buy dryer balls which are scented with natural oils if you really wanted clothes and linens that smell yummy.

I am thrilled with this little accidental discovery as it is one less thing we have to buy or store. And I am excited to have eliminated a few more chemicals from our home. We have been softener-free for about 18 months and I really don't miss it. I just kick myself for buying it for so long! You should try leaving it out for several loads of laundry as well and see what you think.

DIY Laundry Soap

In my quest to save money, I recently tried making my own laundry soap. There are many different "recipes" out there for powders and liquids, but many require that a large batch is made and stored. Storing a large bucket of detergent is less-than-appealing to me, even though we go through some serious detergent in our house (the poor washer is always running!). I have read lots of divided opinions on the liquid detergents, too, so I thought I'd start with the basic powder.

Anyway, I stumbled upon this simple recipe and tried it:

1/2 a bar of Fels Naptha soap, grated
1 C washing soda
1 C Borax

All of these "ingredients" can be picked up at your local hardware store but they are also available at many grocery and discount stores. These items are all pretty old-school. I also picked up a cheap cheese grater from the dollar store and grated half the bar of Fels Naptha. To be fair, this took a little time and elbow grease. I grated it into a clean cottage cheese container and added the washing soda and Borax. Then I stirred it up. Easy-peasy! I keep a tablespoon in it and use one tablespoon for each regular load of laundry; I use an extra half tablespoon for really big loads. For kid clothes, I also add a quarter scoop of Oxyclean as my kid's clothes seem to always be covered in food and grime.

So far, I've been pretty pleased. It seems to do really well on Rick's greasy work clothes and most stains come out of A's toddler attire. I haven't been brave enough to try it on diapers and probably won't (I have something that works well for them and that's worth every penny to me). Still, this little concoction has worked better than I ever expected. I think it even works better than our old standby, All Free & Clear.

All of the ingredients are cheap and have various other household uses, so you really have nothing to lose by trying to make the detergent. Fels Naptha bars cost around $4. They work well for removing stains (just rub the bar on the stain - much cheaper than Shout :-) ). Borax costs around $4-5 for a small box. It works well as a laundry booster as it softens water and boosts your other detergents' cleaning power. It also works as a natural insecticide. Please note that it is toxic if directly ingested by humans or pets, though. It works well in crawlspaces, sprinkled around your foundation or anywhere inside your home where kids or pets won't eat it. I recently mixed a little in with sugar water to combat an ant problem we were having. Voila - no more ants! I have long been a fan of Borax, if you couldn't tell. Finally, washing soda costs around $5 for a small box. It is the base for many laundry detergents but can also be used around the house for general cleaning. It works well for degreasing your range or oven or it's pieces. If you want to be extra frugal, you can make your own washing soda from baking soda per the Penniless Parenting blog's instructions here. I haven't ever made my own washing soda beacusse it isn't that much of a staple in my house but baking soda is cheap, so this is handy knowledge if you love the stuff. Many people also make their own dishwasher detergent and use washing soda as a base but I have not tried this,

Based on my use, the homemade detergent costs approximately $0.08 per load. Each batch of the recipe above washes around 45 regular loads of clothes. I have always bought All Free & Clear? It is not an expensive detergent but the cheapest I can usually find it is for $11.99 for the 110-load bottle and that is on sale. Occasionally, I am also able to find coupons for $1.00 off but I can't always find them. At $11, the 110-load bottle costs $0.10 per load. Two cents per load isn't much but it's all savings. Considering we wash about 5 loads of laundry a week (excluding diapers), that adds up to more than 250 loads a year. That much laundry means $5 a year. And really, it's even more when you consider that you can't always find coupons or buy detergent on sale. Each little bit counts. Give this a try today - you have nothing to lose!

Clearing a Drain the Green Way

A couple weeks back, I completed the dreaded chore of steam cleaning my bedroom carpets. Yuck. This back-breaking task always reminds me just how disgusting carpet is to me. I clean our carpets a couple times of year and am grossed out every time by the amount of gunk that comes out in the water. This time was no different. Unfortunately, I created a new problem for myself as I dumped the dirty water in my bathroom sink and ended up with a semi-clogged drain. Don't you hate a slow drain? I know I do.

I've never been a big fan of the strong, caustic chemicals that can take care of these things, and our curious toddler makes me even more adamant about not having them in my home. I am also not a big fan of taking the drain apart and cleaning out the p-trap, although that's probably the best way to solve this problem. So, I decided to try to clear the drain using baking soda, vinegar and hot water. I've read about using this little potion but honestly, I was pretty skeptical. I mean, I've seen the nasty crap that came out of my carpet and... Anyway, I put about a cup of baking soda down the drain. I then dumped about a cup of vinegar down the drain and closed it with the plug (making the bubbly solution work it's magic down into the p-trap rather than up into the sink). After doing this, I let the mixture sit while I heated 3-4 cups if water in my tea kettle to a boil. After bringing the water to a boil, I let it sit for about 30 seconds to cool just a bit, then I poured it down the drain.

This concoction seems to have completely fixed my problem! My drain is completely clear again. I doubt this would work if the drain were completely clogged but I will definitely remember this little trick in the future.

Getting Down & Dirty With the Truth About Cloth Diapering

Ever since I was a child, I planned on cloth diapering. My parents cloth diapered me and they always spoke pretty positively of their experiences. Add to that, my desire to live with the fewest chemical exposures realistically possible, especially for my baby, and I was all about exploring cloth diapering. When I found out I was pregnant, I envisioned the old fashioned system my parents used - prefolds and rubber pants. I hoped there were better options but was willing to consider these, especially if I could find a way to stay at home with my baby. I quickly discovered that there were loads of options for diapering my child! And that this would be totally doable. There is a lot of false information about cloth diapers which seems to have permeated our modern culture, though. I'm here dispel some of those false ideas. Here goes...

 1. Today's cloth diapers involve rubber pants and other antiquated supplies. Technically, they can if you want them to. But I don't know of a single mama who chooses to use rubber pants. Options abound and diapering can be as easy as you want, with many diapers functioning as a single piece which is used just like a disposable. And with options as adorable and simple as these, who would ever choose rubber pants? See below for images of the Swaddlebees Capri covers, some of my personal favorites! The Capris, like many covers, can fit for a long time. (I bought these when A was around 9-10 months old and I expect they will fit him through potty-training.)

 2. Cloth diapers are unsanitary. Wrong. Diapers should always (in my opinion) be washed in hot water with the proper amount of detergent. This alone will kill most bacteria. A splash of bleach can also be used sporadically (and should be used if there is yeast or Staph infection) if needed. Beyond that, the dryer or the sun will further sanitize the diapers. Did you know that the sun's rays do that? They also help to make stains disappear, which is handy for diapers and kid clothes in general. Cloth diapered kids tend to have fewer rashes and avoid the exposure to controversial toxic chemicals such as dioxins. In recent years, many questions have also been raised regarding the safety of the absorbent gels used in disposables. Furthermore, many cloth diapers are breathable, which is healthier for baby's skin. The chemicals found in disposables are linked to cancer, reproductive problems, chemical burns and skin irritation. 

3. Cloth diapers don't work as well as disposables. Sorry, but this one is wrong too. With any diaper (cloth or disposable), a good fit is imperative! This usually involves trying a few out to find out what works well for your baby. But with the right diaper, the dreaded blowout is rare!. Honestly, my son as yet to have a blowout in cloth. Don't get me wrong, we've had the occasional leak, including poo leaks, but they have been few and far between. Talk to any parent who has used both cloth and disposable diapers and they'll assure you that cloth will win this fight every time.

 4. Cloth diapering is expensive. Did you know that you can expect to spend approximately $2,400 diapering a child from birth to potty training? Please note that this is just the cost of diapers, not including disposable wipes and accessories like the Diaper Genie. Cloth diapering costs vary greatly based on the number of diapers purchased and the brand/type. A baby can be diapered with cloth for as little as $200. There are a plethora of options but a full stash of big brand all-in-ones (one of the most expensive cloth options) only costs $800, so it's still far cheaper than disposables. And the diapers can typically be used through multiple children or sold to recoup some of the original investment - you certainly can't do that with disposables! Many parents (myself included) also use cloth wipes, which saves even more money.

5. I send my child to daycare, so I can't cloth diaper. Not necessarily. From what I've read, laws on this subject vary greatly between states. Some states completely prohibit cloth diapers in childcare facilities (why, I have no idea) while others have little to no regulations on the subject. I've been very pleasantly surprised that every daycare I have used or seriously considered welcomed them. This has shocked me since I live in an area where very few parents use cloth. Plenty of providers will use any diaper you provide but I'm a proponent of using a simple, disposable-like option such as an all-in-one or pocket diaper and always providing a clean wet bag do store them. These aren't the cheapest diapers but they are the simplest to use. I would certainly find out what your daycare's parameters are before buying a stash. Cottonbabies.com offers the full line of BumGenius diapers which are very daycare and babysitter friendly. One of them, the Elemental, is shown below. (Forgive the messy picture, but I wanted to show all the layers, which are sewn to the diaper. Just snap it on baby and go!)

6. Cloth diapering isn't really very Eco-friendly because of the extra electricity and water required for washing. There is certainly extra laundry involved with using cloth but it is only 2-3 extra loads per week, as I wash every 2-3 days. Unless you have multiple children in diapers, you really shouldn't need to way more frequently than this. There are many different scenarios with regard to laundry cost but the actual cost differs greatly based on your cost of utilities. You don't need a fancy washer to use cloth. In fact, the old fashioned top loaders are generally considered the best washers for getting them clean. And most detergents can be used. For us, our utility bill has gone up since having our son but it has only gone up a very small amount (maybe $10-15 a month?). Not all of this increase is related to diapers as he generates plenty of dirty clothes and bedding too. And there is obviously additional wear on your washer (and dryer if you don't line dry). On the flip side, there are never late night diaper runs (which also require fuel and wear on your vehicle). When one considers the paper, water and petroleum products that go into making disposables, shipping them and getting them to and from your home, cloth wins again, hands-down.

Like many things in life (and parenting in particular), there is no right or wrong. Cloth diapering has definitely been good for my family, but I realize it isn't the right solution for everyone. I am obviously passionate about cloth, personally. I just hope that new or soon-to-be parents will consider the issue objectively rather than from assumptions.

Flats Challege - Final Thoughts

First of all, I apologize that this post is painfully late. Still, I really want to write my final thoughts regarding the Flats Challenge, using flats and hand washing diapers. So, onto those thoughts!

I was surprised at how much I actually liked my flats. My son pees a lot when he goes and they certainly aren't our best option as I ended up with a couple leaks during the week. I have to change A every two hours on the dot when using a single large flat or I am tempting fate and risking leaks. Still, I am convinced that my son is a heavy wetter (the term cloth diapering mamas give to kids who pee more than average). We use heavier duty diapers for day-to-day which work great but I believe that flats would work well for most babies, including mine, if I didn't have the resources to buy other diapers. If I used flats daily, I would definitely use something else as a doubler for him, such as small flats, flour sack towels, preemie or newborn prefolds, etc. As I've mentioned before, flats are extremely economical so I was very pleased to discover how versatile and easy they are to use. It excites me to think that many mamas truly could diaper their baby from birth to potty training on a very limited budget!

I was also very surprised that hand washing wasn't that bad. Don't get me wrong, I still use my fancy washing machine and I have a whole new appreciation for it. (I know I'm a spoiled mama!) But hand washing in my camp bucket was very doable. I think it could be done long-term but one would really have to be dedicated. And it did take me 20-30 minutes a day to hand-wash the diapers and covers and hang them to dry. Finding the time for hand washing was certainly the toughest part of the challenge. It also was physical work to wash the diapers. If I did this all the time, I would definitely have some buff arms! I frequently hang my machine-washed diapers to dry, inside or out so the time spent hanging them and taking them down didn't faze me. Line-drying is a great way to decrease your utility bill and, when dried outside, the sun keeps your diapers fresher, helps sanitize them and gets rid of many stains.

There were several things I learned from hand-washing, which included the following:

• Flats truly are the easiest diapers to wash by hand. They are very thin and you can really move water through them, which is important for getting a diaper clean. They will also dry very quickly since they're thin. Thicker diapers can also be hand-washed and it isn't the end of the world (I hand washed Flip organic inserts during the challenge without any issue). Sure they require a little more work (which would, admittedly, get old if I were doing this every day with no known respite). Yet, it wasn't a big deal for just one overnight diaper a day. If I were hand washing every day, flats would certainly be my diaper of choice, though. They're so thin that it's easy to move water through them and really get them clean. Plus, they dry super-fast! I definitely can't argue the drying point with my Flip organics, which took 3-4 times as long to dry.
• The camp-style washer was/is worth it's weight in gold. It got the diapers so much cleaner than I expected and I didn't have to touch them while washing! The fact I didn't literally wash them by hand meant that I could use our hottest water too, which I prefer to do when washing diapers. 
• I only needed a teeny bit of detergent to wash. I used my regular detergent (original liquid Tide) and I quickly learned that I was using way too much. Rinse, rinse, rinse. We also have soft water, so I really should have known better. Still, lesson learned.
• Again, it really wasn't that bad! If I didn't have power or my washer was out of commission for a few days, I wouldn't hesitate to grab my flats and use this system for diapering. 

All in all, I am very glad I completed the Flats Challenge! It gave me great insight into the most basic forms of cloth diapering and really made me think about how things used to be done before modern cloth diapers and washing machines.  I would love to use my experiences to help others, in particular, less fortunate mamas looking for economical diapering solutions.

Nom, Nom, Nom for Baby

I make the majority of A's food and have found it to be much easier than I expected. Recently, several people have inquired about this with the impression that it's difficult. If you're considering it, please be reassured that it is easy! I'd contend that no one should ever buy some foods for their baby as virtually no extra work is required for feeding baby at all. Bananas and avocado are two of those foods which anyone can make - just peel and mash it up! For these foods, I really love our Mash and Serve bowls by Annabel Karmel. They're a simple product but get used multiple times each week in our home, especially now that A's eating more textures.  Also, I recently saw them at Walmart for much cheaper than the Amazon link, if you're interested in finding one to try.

Many other foods are easy to make as well, but a time and energy are required (two things that are tough for mamas to find).  Last weekend, I had a little baby food-a-polooza and made pears, squash, sweet potatoes, chicken and apples for A. Yes, it was a couple hours worth of work, but this will also cover many meals for him in the coming weeks.

I put the chicken in a baking dish with a little water and covered it in foil. Into the oven it went. Sweet potatoes just got scrubbed, then baked. And I split a squash down the middle, scooped out the seeds and goo, then placed it "meat" side down in a shallow baking dish with a little water and foil over the top. Peeled pears (and later, peeled apples) just got cooked in my steamer basket on the stove until they were soft. 

Once cooked, I just scooped the sweet potatoes out of the skin and mashed them up. Yum!

I then either serve it right away, store in the fridge for up to 3 days, or freeze the food for later feedings.

Squash is a baby food staple and is so easy to make! I baked the squash as described above. It should be baked until the skin is lightly browned and the squash is soft.

Then, scoop out the "meat" of the squash, discarding the skins. The squash is usually still a little thick/chunky, so I run it through my food processor with a little water.

Process until the squash is smooth and creamy (or the desired consistency for feeding your baby).  A blender or immersion blender can also be used for squash or similarly textured foods. Once your food is smooth, prepare it for the freezer.  There are lots of fancy trays out there, but I just use basic, plain ice cube trays and they work well (note: do NOT buy the really cheap, lightweight plastic trays as they do NOT work well at all). My trays are a hard plastic and are made by Rubbermaid. I spoon the food into the tray, shake it a bit to get it to settle and pop it in the freezer for several hours. This is the exact same process I later used for apples and pears as well.

Sometimes, I also freeze food in jars if that will be easier. I bought a couple dozen 4-ounce quilted canning jars from Ball and their plastic lids (not shown). These are old fashioned but work very well as baby food jars. They're also great for feeding on the road as the lids screw on and can't pop off in the diaper bag - a very important feature in baby food transport. The plastic lids with the jars are great for food on-the-go.

Meats, in particular are scary to many mamas but I have found them to be easy! Just cook the meat however you'd like (I baked my chicken, as previously discussed), then process it, adding water as necessary.  Here's my processed chicken, before I added water:

It was chunky, as you can see.  A isn't ready for this much texture yet, so I added a little water to it and processed a bit more (below). (It looks yummy, doesn't it? That's the only downside of making meats for your baby...they look less than appetizing.  But canned baby food meats also aren't terribly appealing and at least you know what's going into this, right?

I then freeze the chicken into cubes as well. Once my cubes are frozen, I dump them into large Ziploc freezer bags and put them in my deep freeze.

Then, each feeding, I thaw a cube or two for A's meal. Fruit cubes are great with oatmeal and a little formula or breastmilk. The meats are good with rice and a little formula or breastmilk.  I tend to serve the veggies on their own or mixed together, although I occasionally mix them with meat too (this is just personal preference).  One observation I recently made was that many commercial baby foods use squash as a base with "meat" foods so that's an idea too, even though I've never tried this personally.

I have found that the time and energy required for baby food-making is well worth the satisfaction of knowing what my baby eats and the monetary savings (baby food is expensive!). Hopefully you will find it equally satisfying and easy!

Vinegar is Magic!

For years, I've read about how fantastic vinegar is but I generally didn't care. Sure, it's cheap, but it reeks!! And there's no way it could possibly do all the great things my tub o' cleaning products does, right? Wrong!!!

In my quest to make our home healthier and save some cash, I decided to try it. I mixed a solution of 50/50 vinegar and water and have used it for a variety of purposes. See below for my review of each use.

Cleaning glass - I use this solution and a microfiber towel to clean the glass in our home. Beware, it starts off looking like a big, smeary mess but just keep wiping. All those ugly streaks will quickly disappear and leave you with a sparkling clean mirror or window.

Cleaning countertops - just spray countertops with this solution and wipe clean with a sponge. The vinegar is a mild disinfectant so it will kill many germs, mold and ickies living on your counters. I have to admit, I still use bleach to clean up after something really bad, like raw chicken, on my kitchen counters. But for everyday cleaning, the vinegar solution works great!

Bathrooms - I have been extremely pleased with how well this solution cleans my bathroom too! I spray down the sinks and countertops as well as the outsides of the toilets (you can also clean the insides of the toilets but I haven't tried that just yet). I wipe everything down with a damp spomge. Again, I'm amazed at how sparkling clean everything looks! I have also tried this in our showers and bathtubs and have had mixed results. It didn't do a great job in our shower but we had some soap scum build-up. I cleaned with traditional products last week and am hoping that regular use of the vinegar solution (using it like the "daily" shower cleaning products) will keep the shower cleaner. It has worked well for our bathtub but, again, the bathtub doesn't get used as much.

As for the smell...it stinks while you use vinegar. Some people add essential oils to make it smell prettier but the smell dissipates really quickly. I 'd read this before and was still leary. But really, the stink is gone within 20 minutes or so. Kick all of your toxic products out and give vinegar a try!

Living green - things we're already doing

I first started thinking about going more "green" when I planned to get pregnant. My first goal was to create a healthier home for my family, but I also enjoy saving money and am all about helping the earth where I can too. I started contemplating ways to create a healthier home.  After a bit of research, I realized that we were already on the right path with several things we were doing in our home. Since that time, we've  tried some new ideas as well. These are some things that our family is already doing which are healthy and green and most of them save money too.

• Use a steam mop. These mops simply use steam to clean and sanitize floors. Since most of our home is hardwood or tile and we have a little rugrat, ours gets plenty of use. I love, love, LOVE our steam mop for a variety of reasons - there's no bucket to haul around, it's faster  than traditional mopping and, best of all, there's no chemicals! The only maintenance is washing the microfiber pad after each use. We have the Bissell Steam Mop (shown below) which I would highly recommend to anyone.

• Minimize paper towel usage. I've recently seen lots of buzz about "unpaper towels" such as these.  All of this buzz has made me wonder how many paper towels most people use and for what purposes?  We've always used lots of reusable alternatives in our home.  Some of these include the following:
• Kitchen towels and hand towels for hand-washing and drying dishes
• Flour sack towels for washing/drying produce and covering yeast breads
• Shop towels and old t-shirts for general cleaning
• Old bath towels for cleaning spills
• Microfiber towels for cleaning glass
• Baby washcloths for cleaning A's hands and face (especially after mealtimes)

We still use paper towels for a few things in our home, but they are pretty much relegated to really icky chores like cleaning up large pet messes, cleaning the toilets and cooking bacon.  We currently use less than 8 rolls a year which seems reasonable to me.

• Skip the dryer when you can. Get a basic clothesline (or make one) and dry your clothes outside.  The sun will work to sanitize and freshen your clothes and you'll save a little money.

• Eliminate unnecessary toxic chemicals from the home. We don't use air fresheners and don't burn candles very often. Sadly, these things bother my allergies too much to be used in our home  (I have to cheat with the occasional candle, though, because I genuinely enjoy them).  But in general, they are just unnecessary chemicals which compromise air quality. A far bigger elimination for us was no longer using fabric softeners. My original reason for eliminating fabric softener from our laundry routine was related to cloth diapering (see next bullet) and the fact that softeners can create problems with the diapers. After a bit more research, I was far more concerned about eliminating it for health reasons.  Commercial fabric softeners and dryer sheets contain chemicals which are linked to a growing list of health concerns from asthma and lung irritation to cancer. This was enough for us to go softener-free.  Oddly, we don't miss it at all as our clothes are just as soft without it. 
• We use cloth diapers. Cloth diapering means that our baby isn't exposed to the toxic chemicals in commercial disposables and he rarely gets rashes or has blowouts.  Plus, they're cute and they're very easy to use. We use a variety of brands and types, but the BumGenius 4.0 (shown below) diapers are among our favorites.

 





We still have a long way to go but I feel like we have a nice start.  My current focus (and the subject of a future post or two) is detoxifying our cleaning routine, which I know is completely unhealthy as it is. What is your family doing to be greener that works well?