Reflection of 2011 and Coming of 2012

Happy New Year! 2012 is finally here! We started the day doing a few local errands and heading home for lunch. After lunch, both RaeRae and I took an almost 2 hour nap, while hubby only napped half an hour (didn't want to sleep too much, he said). 


We spent the afternoon walking along the San Leandro Pier and eating some good food at a restaurant called Horatio's since DH had a gift certificate for there. The food was quite good and the service was excellent. I got Smoked Chicken Tortellini, DH got some crab cakes, and RaeRae munched on bread. She sat in a high-chair and did so well. 


In all, we had a nice family day...a great way to start the new year.

As we start 2012, I stop to think about the past year. A reflection of the sort.


2011:


A lot of things happened this past year:

• I gave birth to a beautiful baby girl.
• I became a cloth diaper consultant.
• I became 26 years old. 
• Made new friends and visited with old friends.
• Traveled a bit within the state. 
• Moved!
• Playdates with other mama friends and their kiddos.
• And more...

I told my hubby earlier today that I believe my greatest accomplishment for last year was giving birth. "Such pain for such love," were my words and ain't that the truth. One year ago today, I was in my last trimester and four weeks away from giving birth to the greatest joy of my life. 

When she finally arrived, I remember feeling such awe and yet overwhelmed at the neediness of a little being who depended on me 24/7 for her survival. I could barely walk the first week or two from the labor and delivery pains. Second degree tears. Post-delivery contractions as my uterus shrunk back to its normal size. The mother-load of all periods. A baby who would not latch on right for the first month. Ouch. Breastmilk coming in. And at 3 weeks postpartum, oral thrush which made my nipples itch like crazy and where we had to boil my breastpump parts and wash my bras after each wear. We got through it all. I was also thankful my hubby could stay home the first month with paid paternal leave. And still so thankful he is a great husband and wonderful daddy to RaeRae. 


RaeRae continued to grow and charm us with her dazzling smile, beauty, and personality. We fell in love and the over-whelmingness feelings started to go away. I became a stay-at-home-mama and loved it. I still do. I felt such responsibility to taking care of my daughter, especially for her first year where she nursed and napped on demand. We are grateful we are able to make do for me to stay at home for her. I am happy to say that as she is almost 11 months old, I am still exclusively breast-feeding. 


What else happened last year...

When RaeRae was about 3 months old, I became a cloth diaper consultant for a wonderful business called Diaper Parties by Everything Birth, Inc. I mostly did personal consultations for friends and acquaintances. I went into this business because I loved all the cute cloth diaper options out there and wanted to help educate others about the modern easiness of cloth diapers. In addition to the cuteness factor, it was important for us to use cloth diapers on RaeRae because they were healthier for her bum, better for the environment, and saved us a lot of money (well, sort of--I got addicted and spent more than I really needed at some point, but that got better). 

Diaper Parties was a way for me to soothe my addiction and make a little extra income each month. I love teaching people about cloth diapers and how much easier they are to use than ever before. Using cloth diapers also helped us to evaluate how we could be more eco-conscious with our other daily habits. I learned how to use the sewing machine so I could make some cloth napkins in our kitchen colors for our everyday use. Very proud of myself for that.


Last summer, we traveled a bit. 
We drove to one of my favorite places in the world: Irish Beach near Mendocino.  All my family was there--parents, sisters, nephew, etc. It was good quality family time. The three of us flew to San Diego for the 4th of July holiday and RaeRae got to meet her other grandparents for the first time. They couldn't get enough of her.  They came back with us for a week to help with packing and visit more with their granddaughter. 

A few weeks later, we moved to a bigger place! Goodbye 600 square feet 1-bedroom apartment, and hello to 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom 1000 square-feet condo, across street from a cute park. Moving with a baby was not easy, but we did it! And the space is so much better for us. RaeRae currently crawls a storm from room to room, chasing the kitties and playing with her toys. Sometimes she will chase us or crawl away from us as if she's trying to run away. Lol. 

At least once a month, we drove for overnight trips to Sacramento to stay with my parents and visit friends. 


In the fall, RaeRae and I flew alone to San Diego for a good friend's baby shower. That was quite an experience--flying alone with a baby. For the most part, she did well. It was a bit of a challenge with the luggage because not only is there the suitcase, but there was the stroller, carseat, and diaper bag. And...carrying the baby too. The flight home was more eventful because RaeRae pooped on the plane, right before take-off. Luckily, there was a bit of time and the flight attendant helped with setting up the small plane bathroom with the changing table so I could change her. She hadn't pooped in 3 days so it was um...massive. But overall, the flight was fine. I wouldn't want to fly alone with her again though. 


The fall holidays were also fun: Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. RaeRae dressed up as a ladybug for Halloween and was sooooo stinking cute! We visited a couple of pumpkin patches and celebrated hubby's birthday, as well as my grandma's. We took RaeRae to the snow for the day. Thanksgiving and Christmas were more fun with all the food since RaeRae finally took an interest into table food at about 8 months old. She was also definitely spoiled at Christmas with toys and clothes.

2011 was a good year for us overall. Financially, we took some strain since I stayed at home to take care of Isabelle, but we made it work. We grew as parents, and still continue to seek balance each day for ourselves. I think that's just life though. You do what you can do, to the best of your own effort. 

As of 2012, I hope you will be another good year for us. My goals for this year are to:

1. Write more.
2. Come up with an exercise plan and stick to it! 
3. Meal-plan each week with healthier foods so we can eat better and save money.
4. Do one photo-book each month or every 3 months (see how it goes with pictures). 
5. Continue breast-feeding until RaeRae weans herself. 
6. At least one day a week, take a couple of hours for "me-time."

 That's it for now. I look forward to writing more about this year about our lives and just enjoying each day at a time.

Cloth habits: A father's reflection on cloth diapers

Guest blog written by Philip Jude Cole-Regis (a.k.a. PJ)

Cloth Habits: A father’s reflection on cloth diapers.

Sure – let’s go green with cloth diapers… wait, does that mean we have to wash and deal with baby poop?

These were the first thoughts that went through my head when my wife confided in me her ambitions of using only cloth diapers. I was very proud of my wife for dedicating to the movement of an eco-friendly means of diapers – though I had reservations about being involved in such an endeavor. I had to quickly dismiss the idea of leaving such domestic responsibilities to her as we had made the contemporary pact of equal ownership for our daughter’s upbringing.

We’re going with a diaper service right?

The thought of dealing with soiled diapers was an immediate turn off, and really it still is. You’ll find today that I am one of the fastest diaper changers in the west, especially when poop is involved. I still get a hard time for using too many (cloth) wipes on such messy episodes, I’m just not willing to fold or turn to the other side of the wipe and risking my fingers getting smeared with poop.

So I was more than ecstatic when we began our journey with a diaper service. Every Tuesday someone would pick up the quarantined pile of cloth inserts that resided on our patio – simple and clean.

I could get use to this.

But my wife wouldn’t let me. After 3 months we had switched completely to doing diapers ourselves, my wife making the tri-weekly rounds of washing and drying our plethora of diapers – diapers as varied in design as they were in print patterns. Needless to say I was overwhelmed with the cornucopia of choices and procedures, we tried everything. But as time passed we began to filter out those we didn’t like and expand our inventory of those we did – and soon I was trained and my diaper changing skills returned to some semblance of competency.

Wow, this isn’t so bad.

And it really isn’t. I love my daughter more than life itself and I’m willing to do a thorough job at every change to get it right so that she feels clean and happy – though I’ve still a reluctant inclination to wash them myself (but I do help fold – sometimes).

My advice to dads out there? Suck it up – the sacrifices we make are nothing compared to the trials of our significant others during their pregnancy and birth. With an undeniable paradigm shift in the role of contemporary fathers with regard to child rearing, you would be the jewel of every mother’s eyes for your participation in your baby’s diaper upkeep. I’ve read somewhere that it takes 30 days to develop a habit, get to it.

Additionally, the front investment of cloth is dwarfed by the long-term monetary cost of disposables, especially with empirical literary data supporting toilet-training by cloth-babies reaching upwards to 6-months earlier in juxtaposition to their disposable-diaper peers.  And saving a load of money is something every father can get behind.