I've been taking 2,000 IU of vit D since my symptoms started. Maybe I need to bump that up. I also started taking additional calcium (I always take my multi) and zinc. I figure it can't hurt.
Those lamps are pricey. Tanning is cheap. Sigh. Let me see how I feel with the supplements for a few more days, I suppose. It's not like tanning is the end of the world if I limit it to 5-7 min a session.
Well, part depends on where exactly we are living when the kids are "school" age - My parents are really fine with homeschooling - my mom homeschooled my sister for several years. My MIL is just clueless, I think. Though the ILs are pretty um. . . anti government is quite the word, but maybe libertarian fits better? so if approached and given stuff to read from that perspective, they'd probably jump all over it. I think MIL does worry alot about appearances - she worries about how to explain things to family, if the state will butt in and could we get in trouble, all that crap- though, and also college, etc. DH and I are firmly in the - if our kids want to go to college, great, if not, great - camp.
Norah does a lot of pointing. She's adding words all the time now that she's kind of plateaued on the physical development. Today we added "quack" yesterday was "crap" It's not consistent all the time, but she babbles constantly, and clearly says things at times. I love it!
Norah does a lot of pointing. She's adding words all the time now that she's kind of plateaued on the physical development. Today we added "quack" yesterday was "crap" It's not consistent all the time, but she babbles constantly, and clearly says things at times. I love it!
My ILs are the same way. They actually lied to family when I had Nora at home. 
I told my MIL it was on her for lying. I never told her to do that. So she had to back pedal a bit when I started talking about homebirth. At first she said she thought she wanted me to do that but I was so proud that I said absolutely not, ever, so she took the heat.
As for school -- idk. Idk what she would do if I decided to home school, but at this point I'm sure she'd butt out. She knows I do everything pretty different. I think she'd respect choices.
Unschooling tho I think she'd have questions. But that's it.
It's hard when your circle isn't very supportive. Lately I feel like my circle is really, really supportive. I'm happy with who I have these days.
Kat - haha to crap! LOL!
I scored a great deal on diapers for the squish! 6 covers (practically new), 24 prefolds, a few prefitted, for $60, including shipping. I want some AIO I think for when we are out and about (or maybe I will use some disposables for then . . .) but that should be pretty good. I have a couple covers already, so I have a bout 8 ish covers. Should that be enough? and I need a snappi . . .
And photobooks for the grandparents have been purchased. yay. only DH and my sister/BIL are left to buy for for Christmas. 2 weeks!
I scored a great deal on diapers for the squish! 6 covers (practically new), 24 prefolds, a few prefitted, for $60, including shipping. I want some AIO I think for when we are out and about (or maybe I will use some disposables for then . . .) but that should be pretty good. I have a couple covers already, so I have a bout 8 ish covers. Should that be enough? and I need a snappi . . .
And photobooks for the grandparents have been purchased. yay. only DH and my sister/BIL are left to buy for for Christmas. 2 weeks!
Yay for dipes!! GREAT deal! For AIO I love grovia AIO. I love the shell with the insert, too, but I love their AIO. They are pricey tho.
Get at least 2 snappis! LOL!
True that! I only used my bachelors degree for my retail jobs, believe it or not. They didn't care that I had a degree when I got my spa job, they only cared about my certification.
You're describing me! I'm paying $170 a month paying off my loans. I still have a couple thousand left to pay off. I've been out of college since 2003. It would be one thing if I were using the degree, but I'm not. I mean, I had a great time in college, but ...
I wanted to go to cosmetology school out of high school but my mother said no. I didn't want loans but she said it was the right thing to do, to have opportunities in the future. I was so angry about that. Still am! And so is chris since he is paying for it!
DH is still paying on student loans, and will be for a long time - he started with around 40K when we got married. He uses his degree - it's an AA for graphic design (Art Institue online, which is why so much $$) but it's not required for his job - his school for massage therapy was a gift from MIL. And he is using that, obviously. His AA comes in handy for when he's working on the business website and marketing materials.
I have about an assoc worth of credit hours, loan free. I'd get my bachelors if I was wanting to move into a career that required it, like nursing. I make decent $$ without a degree, proof that it's not absolutely necessary. I have no problem with people putting aside money for college educations, but I also hate the assumption that we SHOULD be doing that. Sorry, we don't exactly have an excess of funds, and if we did, that's just not a priority for us. I'd rather grandparents, relatives, etc, just give us $$ straight up and let us decide what to do with it. DH's gr. grandma is always asking about bank accounts for the kids, etc. They don't have their own accounts. why? Plus, for me, getting my own account was kind of a milestone, and special, and I'd like to keep that up for the kids (I was 10, I think)
How do the grovias fit on a newbie? I had them when they were grobaby and I wasn't horribly fond. but I also had the aplix version which SUCKED. The prints are sooo cute. I never really needed more than one snappi - unless I misplaced one . . .hmm
If I get the AIO I want, I'd probably have about that many - but with 2 in diapers, the diaper pail is usually full after 2 full days of diapering, I rarely make it 3 full days without doing laundry (and that's with 2 toddlers) I do diapers 2-3 times a week, depending on poops. Norah is pooping alot. Gabe is going naked butt as much as I can, and he has been doing really well on the potty, pee wise. Need to get him to use the big potty, so we can start maybe trying to go diaper free out of the house too.
The kids will likely have bank accounts at some point, I'm just in no rush for it.
MIL pays for DH's car payment, and we pay for the student loans. It used to be 1/2 and 1/2 of each, but that seemed silly, since the payments are about equal. She will be done paying on the car long before we are done on the loans. UGH.
Student loans...ugh don't even get me started. My parents have paid some of mine but I still have some. DSS 17 is looking at schools and honestly, I don't know where he thinks the money is coming from to pay for even the first semester at a community college. DH has made it clear that we don't have it. Maybe his mom has some money stashed away that she isn't talking about or maybe one of her relatives has agreed to pay for him to go to our local community college. IDK. I've been trying to get DH to take him to talk to the Airforce recruiter.
GroVias...I have the AI2s and I love them. They are very trim though so they are only good when I can change DD frequently. I think they would fit a newb well. Ava still has plenty of room to grow in her Flips and 4.0s but she's almost at the end of the GroVias.
Signs...yeah I know that's what she's signing and I should just run with it. She modified "potty" too so I guess I shouldn't be surprised.
At what age do you guys feel comfortable setting boundaries for milk? I feel like Ava is asking for it more and she's starting to walk around again just holding the bottle in her mouth. I tried today just giving her milk at sleep times and I guess it went ok but I don't know. It doesn't feel quite right. She didn't get upset or anything. She asked for it once when she woke up but I didn't have any ready because I needed to pump so I told her she could have some later and then she didn't ask me again. I gave her a full bottle when she went down for her nap. What do you guys think?
I miss you guys!! I've been reading along, but almost always on my phone, and I've been trying to do productive things while I'm on the computer (like backlog of photo editing, since my computer seems like it's about to bite the dust!)
Lauri-- Does she have water offered in a sippy? I try to always have a sippy of water around for Tenley to grab. She only really gets milk in a bottle or sippy when I'm not around though, so I'll have to ask DH and the babysitter what the 'procedure' is for that. I don't think she normally has it for cruising around, if I'm not home, it's really more for sleep time or meal times. I would think at 18 months ish it's reasonable for you to offer water to her and see if she's satisfied with that. If not, then obviously I'd give it to her in the cup or bottle. It's hard though, because what you guys go through is different than what my experience is. We try to put off the amount of milk Tenley has from a bottle or sippy, and give it only when she 'needs' it, but that's because I'm not pumping enough/ getting enough to be able to keep up with her demand. If I had unlimited supply or stash in the freezer, then I suppose I'd be a lot more lenient with letting her have it whenever and wherever. But right now, if DH texts me and says he had to thaw a bag of milk, and I know I left them with 6oz fresh or whatever, then I cringe inside, and find myself mentally chastising him for not being able to make that 6oz last longer, even though if she drank it, she obviously wanted it.
So I guess what I'm saying is that health wise, I think she's ok for you to limit her times a bit more. So go off of how YOU feel. I can't imagine exclusively pumping for that long, so I can't even pretend to really understand what you go through, but having this little glimpse of it, I can see how cutting out even one bottle a day, would decrease some stress of not having to pump that milk. *hugs mama* What hard choices you have!!
Kat-- Yay dipes!! I'm finding myself starting to eye pretty dipes again. Like different patterns and fun ones. I love my AMPs for function, but I'm starting to covet the pretty prints some of the other brands have!
We're having stink issues with the dipes btw, and DH is ready to give up. Ugh. It's been like a month of off and on issues, and we can't seem to fully fix them.
I work tomorrow and wed 3-1130. I'll leave the house with Ten at 1pm, leave her at Ash's at 1:45pm, and I won't be home until 12:40am. It's not any longer than the other shifts I work, but it seems so much worse when it's that late at night!!
She's been sleeping like CRAP the last two nights. Up for substantial amounts of time in the middle of the night, babbling and talking and trying to crawl out of bed. Almost as if she doesn't realize it's night time. She's got so much going on, so it could be any number of causes- teeth, so close to being a real walker, language explosions, me being away, more time with daddy, time with cousins. Ugh. So much she's going through.
I graduated from University debt free, but I also have a degree that isn't really worth anything. I call it my expensive artwork, since all it's good for is to hang on the wall and look pretty. But... when I started uni, I really DID want to use it, I just changed my mind along the way. Anyways, I just mean that you -can- get through school without a ton of student loans, it doesn't have to bury you in debt necessarily. Though obviously I also understand that one doesn't -need- to have college or university to have a good career.
She always has water in a sippy that she has access to. She's been asking for milk around mealtimes, almost as a replacement for a meal. I know her teeth are still really bothering her and it's probably making her sick to her stomach so she doesn't want food? Ugh. My supply is struggling right now and she really really wants milk at bedtimes and I don't want her to go without then so I kind of feel like if I can redirect her, she must not want it too bad. Am I just rationalizing here? I didn't feel good redirecting her. I've increased my pumping sessions again so I'm trying to keep up with her.
Annie/Laurie - If you were nursing, and she was asking frequently, but could be redirected, I'd say that she's probably isn't all that interested, really, I don't know that the theory changes much for pumped milk. BUT if she's not eating solids, I'd kind of be offering the milk, if I could, iykwim. at 18 months, she could be also getting another kind of milk, like almond or soy or coconut if you don't do cow's - if you are worried about her using up your stash/supply.
JJ: I have no brand loyalty, LOL. there are some I know work better for us than others, though. The grovias have such CUTE prints, but even used, they are a little more than I want to spend per diaper. I think I don't want to spend more than 8-10 ppd per diaper. for a used AIO, that's reasonable (though if I could do more like 5-6 per diaper, that would be AWESOME!) there are some co-ops I may look into after the first of the year too.
Sorry Ten's sleep has been crap :( it will get better, right?
Now, since you are Canadian, does the state/province/whatever contribute any towards uni? Just curious.
What have you tried on the diapers? and what kind of fibres are the AMPs?
Norah didn't take a second nap yesterday, and Gabe didn't nap at all, so they were OUT by like 7:30. and slept until around 7 this morning. so freaking awesome. I don't want them to do that all the time (we do a lot of family stuff in the evenings this time of year) but hey, it's fabulous when it does.
Yeah that's true, regarding the milk-- it would depend on whether I thought she was hungry and using it as a substitute for food, or whether she just wanted it out of boredom/comfort. Obviously if she's acting like she's hungry and there's a reason she might not want to be eating solids, then I'd be more inclined to offer the milk. If you're stressing about your supply, and you think she's asking just kind of 'because', then I might try to redirect her first. We have almond milk in the house, as does Ash, so that in between meals and bedtime, if Tenley wants something, she has a bit of that in a cup. She'll drink that kind of casually. But if we give her the sippy with breastmilk in it, she'll down the whole thing, no matter how much it is. Like you, I -need- to make sure the milk is there for bed, so -for us- that means limiting a bit at other times.
Kat- Oh I get it. I mean there are a lot of people in the group here who probably don't have more than 2 of each brand, and they love it. I think part of my AMP brand loyalty is from not liking the first dipes I got, so when I liked the AMPs it's a sure thing, kind of, you know? And obviously being able to support a local mama and local business, makes me even more anxious to support them. But- that said. I'd love some minkee covered or fleece or something, and she doesn't do that. I think now that Tenley is wetting less, I'm going to take a look at some of the lesser quality ones, for like $10 each or less, and just buy some of the cute prints, with the understanding that I won't be able to resell them, or even leave her in them for a long time. But I feel comfortable doing that now-- not so much when she was a newb and I was looking at leaks all the time! lol
The province doesn't contribute any towards schooling, though you can get provincially and federally funded student loans, that are interest free until you graduate. And I think school is a bit cheaper here. An arts degree averages about $4000 a year for tuition. Of course it goes up a bit when you add in all your books, and transportation, library fees, etc etc. My first year I had $2000 worth of scholarships, and I took out a student loan for almost $11,000. But I was living with an aunt who only charged me for groceries and the difference in utilities that resulted from me being there, so it was like living at home. I also worked twice a week. I ended up buying a car at the end of that year with my loan money. lol. The next year I had an education bond come due- it was for about $1200, so it covered almost one semester of tuition, plus I used the extra money from working and from my first years loan. Same thing with third and fourth years... I worked 2-3 days a week pretty much the entire time I was in university. And then I paid off the loan entirely when I decided to drop out after the end of my fourth year. So yeah, I had help with it in small terms, with the $1200 each year, but didn't receive help from my parents other than that for school. They couldn't have paid for it either.
With the whole savings account thing-- We want to set something up. My education bond was actually something my grandparents started when I was a baby. My parents wanted to pay them for watching me (they both went back to work full time pretty early), but my grandparents wouldn't let them. So they just took the money and put it into an account for me. Anyways now we're running into that with Ashleigh- she refuses to let us pay for the babysitting she's doing (average rate here is about $25 a day). She says it's just karma, and she's doing her part, since her sister and her mom do a ton for her (she doesn't drive, so the two of them do all of the driving her kids to and from lessons and montessori etc). Anyways, so I'm tempted to take the money and split it between accounts for her daughters and Tenley. It's not a lot, but I mean, if I do two days a week even, then that $100 a month in theory I could be putting into an account for Tenley, and $50 for each of her kids. $600 a year to save for schooling of some sort isn't bad I guess...
Anyways, I should go- It's 930, and before 1245 I have to prep and cook lunch, eat lunch, shower, get prettied up for work, get Tenley ready to go, oh and nap in there somewhere!! lol
Oh, and last night last better. More like normal wakeups, though still up earlier than I was ready for!
The dipes are a normal PUL and microfleece cover/shell, similar to fuzzibunz, and then organic bamboo inserts. Obviously I'm sure it's the inserts that stink. We've tried vinegar washes, we've tried just tons of hot water wash/rinses with no detergent, we've tried soaking. We RLRed them a few days ago, and then the next day we tried to use them, they still smelled, and 4/5 leaked!! So we threw them all back in the washer for more rinses. I did an additional 2 cold water rinses, and 2 hot washes (no soap) yesterday, so I'm crossing my fingers that'll finish clearing everything out.
And yeah, I think we're due for a machine clean too.
what always works here is washing with blue dawn with lots of rinses; it's how we strip.
Re: other brand diapers: I LOVE the Alvas and GoGreens we have. They are the same design and pattern, but Alvas are made and ship from China (and are a good bit cheaper). They even have a bamboo option: http://www.alvababy.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=60 - and YES you can resell these. They sell like hotcakes on the for sale or trade sites, serioulsy. If you've not already joined the cloth diaper swap on FB, you should, you will see lots of these, some NIP. (I think people buy intending on resale, or because they buy a big lot or in a co op and get extras). They function really well, and I haven't had any leaks.
Yay for good sleep!
Ava is not a fan of anything other than mama milk! She takes polite little sips and then shoves the cup in my face to drink the rest. I'm just so frustrated with my supply right now. I know it's because I'm stressed from work and I'm not able to pump as often because life is just busy but geez. And to top it off, I seem to have a clog or something in my left breast, which is my bigger producer. I feel like I can't get it empty, it's sore and my production is down. Ugh. I'll try one of my bigger flanges when I get home tonight.
I'm working day shift today and mama no like! Ava was pissed this morning too. She did not appreciate the change in routine. We usually lounge in bed and snuggle while she's waking up and I had to get up and start getting ready. I tried to get her to snuggle with DH but she didn't want to have anything to do with him.
At what age do you guys feel comfortable setting boundaries for milk? I feel like Ava is asking for it more and she's starting to walk around again just holding the bottle in her mouth. I tried today just giving her milk at sleep times and I guess it went ok but I don't know. It doesn't feel quite right. She didn't get upset or anything. She asked for it once when she woke up but I didn't have any ready because I needed to pump so I told her she could have some later and then she didn't ask me again. I gave her a full bottle when she went down for her nap. What do you guys think?
It's a milk/nursing/pumping relationship. Your stress and your feelings matter too. I think that although she is asking for it, it's perfectly fine for you to use your judgement and redirect her (or offer an alternative milk) if you don't have enough to offer of your own, or think she needs to wait, or you want her to attempt to eat some solids.
Using me and Finn as an example, if he asks for milk but has JUST nursed within the hour, or has a snack nearby, I will put some almond/soy/ whatever milk in a sippy. Sometimes he rejects that, but usually not. But it depends on how he is about it. If he's upset or clingy as well, I would nurse him. If he seems just bored/hungry/thirsty, and alternative is always an option.
I don't think it's rationalizing. It's setting a boundary. I think that's perfectly fine.
That said...
I'm noticing now that Finn drains me so fast and then asks for a snack. So. I got myself some herbs and tea and oats and am chugging water to see if it's a supply issue. So I think I"m actually going thru the same thing you are. Maybe it's a growth spurt for both Ava and Finnley?
Ooh yay for a good night!
Finn sleeps way better with out Nora in the bed. She joins us some nights, a couple times a month if she has a bad dream or is frightened of something. The two of them are such bedhogs!
Oh, and last night last better. More like normal wakeups, though still up earlier than I was ready for!
The dipes are a normal PUL and microfleece cover/shell, similar to fuzzibunz, and then organic bamboo inserts. Obviously I'm sure it's the inserts that stink. We've tried vinegar washes, we've tried just tons of hot water wash/rinses with no detergent, we've tried soaking. We RLRed them a few days ago, and then the next day we tried to use them, they still smelled, and 4/5 leaked!! So we threw them all back in the washer for more rinses. I did an additional 2 cold water rinses, and 2 hot washes (no soap) yesterday, so I'm crossing my fingers that'll finish clearing everything out.
And yeah, I think we're due for a machine clean too.
Hooray to you too for sleep!
I hope you figure out the stink soon. Ours was def detergent build up. I would use a drop or two of bleach, honestly, or oxiclean to see if that helps.
What does the stink smell like? Fishy, ammonia-y, poopy? Is it just musty?
Chris is in NYC til late, Nora is at school, and Finn is currently napping. AHHHHHH.. Relaxing for a few min before I start wrapping presents.
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