Liza and Chloe

On Friday, I got the opportunity to take pictures of Liza and her 2nd cousin Chloe.  It was quite an event and I learned some lessons for the future, but most of all I had fun.  I really enjoy taking pictures and am thankful for the opportunities I get to do that.  Here are a few!

Maintaining the Diapers

So you are probably wondering what does it take to maintain cloth diapers and how does it work.  I honestly am no expert on this but this is what I do right now.   After I change Liza’s diaper, I put it in the diaper pail, which is really a plastic trash can from Wal-Mart and a pail liner (a must).  For a while I used a small trash basket but that didn’t work too well so I used some Wal-Mart gift cards and got the trash can.  I got the pail liner using a giftcard I got from Swagbucks to Euphoria baby.  I really like this pail liner and I think the price was fairly reasonable ($20 after giftcard and shipping).  Mark and I just traveled for almost a week and the pail liner worked great for packing the diapers!

Diaper Pail

I wash the diapers about 2 times a week sometimes 3.  I do a cold rinse with nothing, and then a warm rinse with Arm and Hammer Baking Washing Soda ($2.50 at Kroger) and Charlies Soap ($15 at Cloud 9 Baby).  My last rinse is cold with some distilled white vinegar to get the diapers back to a good ph.  I put the prefolds and inserts into the dryer and hang dry the bum genius covers and other covers so that they will last longer.

Supplies

I also use cloth wipes which are just a simple flannel fabric that you can buy at a fabric store.   I boil water and then pour it over the wipes in an old wipes container.   I also have a spray that I make to spray on the wipes.  The spray is so simple and I refill it once a week.   It is mostly water, a little witch hazel (found next to alcohol $2.50) and some olive oil.   I have a spray bottle at home and one for the diaper bag.   I still use disposable wipes at one nursery I got to but at Central I don’t need them.  By the way, I think Central has the best church nursery ever!  I really really love it and they do a great job of taking care of Liza and using cloth diapers!  Thanks so much!

Lastly, a needed thing for cloth diapers is hand sanitizer!  I am not the biggest germ freak but really this is a must.   In the picture is a snappi which is used to hold the prefolds together.   The last picture is of my nursery supplies.   If you have any questions feel free to post them.   Also here is a great post from Passionate Homemaking that compares different all in one diapers (like the bum genius).

Snappi and Sanitizer

Nursery set up

Diaper Bag!

Our Stash

I am finally getting around to posting about our recent move to cloth diapers.  The main reason we switched was cost.  After we began to run out of the diapers we were given and began to use credit cards, I realized that it would cost us $40 a month to use disposable diapers.  So I started doing some research and asking some friends.

So here is our stash!

The green and yellow diapers are Bum Genius diapers and these are my favorite!  They really are just as easy to use as disposables.  The velcro works just like the tape on disposables and there is an insert inside the diaper that has to be taken out after they are used.  We ordered these from Target online and have been pleased with them.   They cost $36 for 2 and on some diaper websites you get one free when you buy 6.

We couldn’t afford to go all Bum Genius so we also use prefolds and diaper covers.  Prefolds are kind of old school but they have upgrades. Instead of diaper pins you can use a snappi which doesn’t poke you or baby! We have unbleached prefolds and chinese prefolds.  I honestly haven’t noticed a difference between the two kids but it could occur over time.  We have 24 prefolds and they cost about $2 each.  I got the chinese prefolds from Green Mountain Daipers and the unbleached from Cloud 9 Baby (a local store in College Station).

Prefolds

Our diaper covers are great!  We use M0mmy’s Touch one size covers that we got a Green Mountain Diapers.  They are great because they work for babies 10-30 lbs and use snaps which will last longer than velcro.  We have three – cow, brown and orange.  I try to keep everything gender neutral for the next kiddos.

Covers

So there is our stash.  I post more about maintenance and other cloth diapering items!  Have a great weekend!

Blogs

One thing I probably do everyday is read blogs.   I really really enjoy this and could probably call it a hobby of some sort.   I have been trying to figure out why I enjoy it so much.  There are a few reasons but the main one is I so enjoy hearing and learning about how other people view life and do life.   There are so many different perspectives on so many different topics.  I do find that I have to be discerning about what I read as I would with anything because thoughts and lies can so easily be sown in my mind.

I read my friends blogs fairly consistently because I love to know what they are up to or what their kids look like but I also read strangers blogs, too.  My favorite blog right now is Passionate Homemaking.  This woman is a believer who is, as her blog says, passionate about homemaking.  It is always encouraging to read her ideas about homemaking or being a wife or mom.   She is also passionate about natural living.  This is where my thinking is often challenged.  After do things different with Liza’s birth, I have become more open to learning about living life differently.   So this blog encourages me in godliness and challenges me to consider living more naturally.

My other favorite blog is the Girl Talk blog. I have been reading this blog since before I got married and have definitely been influenced and encouraged by their biblical perspective on life.  It seems that the topics they cover are very relevant and needed.

So here are some of my favorites… What are yours?  I would love to hear about the blogs you read frequently.

Swagbucks

I have been using Swagbucks as my search engine for about a month now.  Swagbucks is a search engine that is powered by google so I think you are supposed to get about the same quality of responses from it.   As you search, you randomly earn swagbucks.  Then you can use your swagbucks to buy their prizes.   I have already gotten 0ne gift card that I used to buy a diaper pail liner for Liza.  It didn’t cover the whole cost but anything helps.   The crazy thing is it is free.  There is not cost to signing up, and they don’t give out your info or anything like that.   If you get your friends to sign up then you earn swagbucks when they earn swagbucks.  There are a couple of other ways to earn swagbucks but really searching and getting your friends to sign up are the big ways.

Curly Mohawk

I took this pictures with my phone so they aren’t the best quality but she sure is cute!

Its Just a Season

Transition and Adjustment: These two words seem to describe my life for the last two years.  It seems that the Lord has seen it fit that I learn how to adjust and transition to new situations.  Here is a list of the transitions and adjustments that the Lord has given me:

• graduating from College
• 8-5 work world
• marriage
• 3 moves – 2 different cities but 4 different apartments/houses
• 3 pregnancies
• 1 beautiful baby
• 5 jobs
• staying at home
• hubby having had 5 different jobs

As you can see a lot of these transitions and adjustments are beautiful and wonderful and only a few are sad.   I write this list and see the goodness of God in my life and I see how faithful He has been in leading our family.  I also see why my heart longs to be settled for a while, and to know that I am not going to move again.  But I know that I am the Lords and that where He calls Mark and I, I want to go.  There is no guarantee for us that we will not move again shortly.

I write this to give you guys an update on Mark and I’s personal life.  With all of the moves and transitions, real deep relationships with our peers has been tough.  We find that we don’t have a place where we fit yet.  I long to have a place where we belong here in College Station.   Taking the steps to get there isn’t always easy, especially for two introverts.     While, we have some great relationships with college students and other people but are lacking in the area of married couples.

When I feel discouraged about this, the Lord is good to remind me that this is a season too.  Maybe a season of loneliness, maybe a season of building but it is just a season.   He has great purpose in this season and will continue to grow us and shape us through it.

If you think of us, please pray that the Lord would give us deep and real relationships with our peers.

Green Smoothie

Yesterday I was feeling quite under the weather.  While laying in bed trying not to think about how bad I felt, I began to crave a veggie/fruit smoothie.  I thought this was a little odd but then I realized it had been days since I had a green smoothie.  So my wonderful hubby asked if there was anything I needed and I explained that I really wanted a smoothie, not just any smoothie though- one with veggies.   He gladly left and came back with some frozen fruit and veggies and made me quite a smoothie.

I have to be honest, the concoction wasn’t quite what I had been hoping for.  Mark returned home with V-8, broccoli, carrots, and frozen strawberries.  The smoothie consisted of those items plus a banana, pineapple juice, ice and some sweet n low.   While I can’t say that I would want to consume this smoothie again, I can say that my energy level increased and I felt better the rest of the day.  So I thought I would share what has become my favorite breakfast food – the green smoothie.

Now I honestly don’t measure stuff out so keep that in mind if you try your own.

1/2 cup of milk, chocolate protein powder, chocolate syrup, ground flaxseed, banana, handful of spinach and sometimes we add peanut butter

Thats right folks, spinach… I love it!  Now I tend to eat wierd stuff but my hubby doesn’t and he loves it!   So that has to say something about the green smoothie.

Mark’s version of the green smoothie:

frozen strawberries, banana, pineapple juice, milk, ice and spinach

So really, you can just add spinach to any smoothie recipe and you are getting some greens in!   We aren’t too daring with this but I figure a few greens does the body good.

Shes almost five months old

I forgot to post a four month update for a little girl so we will just a 4-5 month update.   She is doing great!   She can roll over from her back to her belly, only on her right side.  She is working on rolling from her belly to her back on her left side but her arm just can’t seem to get out of the way.  So now tummy time is a must for her.  Once you put her on her back she immediately rolls to her belly and she sleeps this way now, too.  

She is making all kinds of sounds and smiles a lot!  We love her cute dimples.   One night she was playing with a bear that says “Gig’em Aggies” and plays the A&M fight song.  I guess she just really enjoyed this bear and began to laugh, not a squawking laugh, but a real giggle.  Mark and I were filled with so much joy!  She has only giggled once since then but we can’t wait for the day that we get to hear more!

She now weighs 16lb and is 26 inches long.   She is sitting up on her own!   We love our precious girl!

Here is a link to more pictures of Liza!

The Nations Are Here Part Two

Sandra

Sandra was my first conversation partner at A&M.  She was married and from Taiwan.  We met up about once a week and did random stuff together.  Sometimes we got Boba Tea, or went shopping or cooked together.  Her English wasn’t as good as my first conversation partner’s but it was definitely pretty good.  She loved to design Asian graphics and I think she had a business doing that.

The first part of our relationship was hanging out and learning about each others cultures.  At times we would get to talk about Jesus but she didn’t seem to interested so it never went too far.  I often felt discouraged and longed to share with her the hope that is in Jesus but at the same time I didn’t want to cram it down her throat.  Her husband, Wimmy, and her came home with me for Easter that year.  I really enjoyed that because they were able to get a glimpse into more of American culture.   I noticed after that trip home Sandra was more interested in the gospel and there more opportunities to share.  Sadly though, they moved back to Taiwan and I didn’t hear from her for a while.

About a year after they had been gone, she e-mailed me and said they were coming to College Station to visit friends.  We got together and she was PREGNANT!  Yay!  That was really exciting but even more exciting she had been attending church in Taiwan and her friend had been sharing more about Jesus with her.  She was very interested and planned to go to church in California when they moved up there.  I have no idea if she ever decided to follow Jesus but I do know that God was working in her life and He used me to be a small link in her chain.

Renee

I met Renee at the BSM.  After I met her, she asked me if I could teach her the Bible… hmmm… that opportunity does not happen everyday.  We began meeting up once a week and going through the gospel.  Her and her husband had lots of questions and really thought through things.  Their parents were buddhist and it was pretty important to their parents that they remain buddhist.  Morning, Renee’s husband, eventually wasn’t as interested so it just became Renee and I meeting up.  We started studying through the book of John together and we hung out a lot.  We went grocery shopping, and cooked for each other often (I even taught her how to make some American food).   Then she became PREGNANT! Yay! Can you tell I like babies!

Renee is from Taiwan and it was very important for them to have a boy so that the family could continue.  It was also important that this child not have any physical disabilities or they might have an abortion.  I remember being so heart broken when told me that if their baby had down syndrome they would consider an abortion.  I prayed and prayed for this child.  Guess what… they were having a boy and the test came back negative.   Through a handful of other believers in her life and the pregnancy, Renee put her faith in Jesus.   I still remember the night she became a believer… we cried.  It was so sweet to hear her pray in her own language.

I had to leave for summer camp, but I really missed Renee a lot.  In September of that year, she had Calvin her son.  I love this kid and wish that I could see him now.  I know God has great purposes for him.  She gave him the English name Calvin after John Calvin.  I have no idea how she heard about John Calvin but she really felt like that should be his English name.  I got to go to the hospital and visit her after he was born.  I really love them.

Renee and I continued studying the Bible till they moved back to Taiwan.  I remember at the last meal we ate together, I cried.  We had been friends for a year and half.  We had been through so  much together.  Even to this day, I still miss her.  About 6 months after she moved back, she e-mailed me and her conversation partner to tell us that she had been baptized.  I was so excited to hear that because her mother-in-law told her that the one thing she couldn’t do while she was in the US was get baptized.   Again, it was such a blessing to get to play a small part in her life and see how God was continuing to work in her life even after she moved.

Jian

Jian is from China and she was my conversation partner during my junior year of college.  This was probably the most interesting and challenging International friend I had.  She was my parents age and had a daughter that was exactly my age.  She was here doing research for a university in Shanghai.   The most challenging part was that she hardly knew English and was very afraid to try.  This meant I had to be very creative with what we did together.

We ate lots of meals together and she would often come over to my house to hang out with my roommates.  Kind of crazy to picture your mom hanging out with your friends but thats what it was.  She didn’t know any other Americans and only really knew a handful of Chinese people.  Towards our the second semester she told me that she wanted to start studying the Bible and learning about Christianity.   We started studying Genesis and when she read about God being the Creator, she became so excited.  We read about sin entering the world and I remember her really understanding what that meant.   Once we hit the genealogies in Genesis we decided to study about Jesus.

One night we got together and she cooked for me and my friend Danielle a great Chinese dinner.  It was really good and she had put so much effort into it.   We watched the Jesus film together and that night she put her faith in Christ.  A couple of weeks later she moved back to China, but I got to visit her in China.   As it turns out, her husband was a government official in Shanghai.  They picked me up from the airport in a Buick with leather interior (not the norm in China).  She was the dean at a University in Shanghai and their daughter had perfect English.   It hit me that I had no idea who Jian was.   God had changed the life of a very influential woman.  Crazy stuff.

Calvin and I

Jian and I

Renee, me and Victoria

Sandra and I