Cloth diapers - The Saga Continues

Hello Cloth Diapers!

I did a post a while back about cloth diapers and the learning curve. Well......We're back to that. Because I've been one frustrated momma again!

After all that time, research, sweat, and tears, those stinkin' microfiber diapers stopped absorbing again! After a frustrated growl and very loud WHAT NOW!!! I went back to the inter-webz to look at what might be causing all the seepage. I couldn't find anything that would help. SO I start seriously scrutinizing my already nit-picked over diaper routine.

I found something....something so common place as to seem insignificant that I had never even thought to consider it.

Dryer balls.....(and yes I took this opportunity to say balls as a curse word)

Wool dryer balls, lovingly wound, felted, and gifted by my mother-in-law, and very happily received by me.

Those innocuous, common place, helpful little balls were completely derailing my attempts to successfully use my cloth diapers!

You see, sheep naturally produce this stuff called lanolin. It helps them shed water, and helps keep their wool from felting. I have a strong sensitivity to this stuff, but the dryer balls weren't putting enough onto my clothes to have a reaction so I never thought about it. But apparently there was enough of a coating coming off those balls to repel the liquid the diapers were meant to absorb.

I stopped using the dryer balls with the diapers, and washed and dried like I was prepping them for the first time. AHHH much better!

But then I noticed they still had a faint smell after being washed. I had remembered some detergents used Epsom salts to act as a water softener, and surfactant, so I added that to my diaper detergent concoction. Now the recipe reads as follows:

1 part baking soda
1 part washing soda
1 part oxy
1 part Epsom salts

Use: 1 scoop per load (scoop came from old oxy container that I store diaper detergent in)

I also started washing the diapers differently after reading even more about how H.E. washers work

Rinse and spin on warm
Wash once on warm with cold rinse
Wash again on warm with cold rinse
Rinse and spin on cold
Rinse and spin on cold

Yes that makes three rinse cycles after all is said and done. I did try to add extra rinse at the end of the wash cycle but it just didn't seem to work as well for whatever reason.

Little A's bum is happier, I'm happier, and we are loving life. Now pardon me while I stop her from pulling all the laundry out of the hamper......again.

Making the switch, for good!

SO a while ago I posted that I was switching to baking soda and vinegar for my hair care routine and I would post back about how it works. I wanted to wait a few months because my hair has a tendency to react wonderfully to new stuff, then all of a sudden freak out a few months later. So far

I'M LOVING IT!

Not only is it cheaper, it's actually easier as i no longer have to fight with a farting bottle to get enough conditioner, my shower is less cluttered (or it will be once I take the unused bottles out) and I have noticed the two times I've used store bought shampoo and conditioner since switching, I've had a migraine the next day. Possible trigger? Who knows, but just not using it again sounds good to me.

So here is what I do:

I pre measure two tablespoons each baking soda and apple cider vinegar while the water is warming up. Then while in the shower I mix the baking soda with about 2 cups of water in a tupperware cup (because I'm clumsy and baking soda water is surprisingly slippery and that does not mix well with a Mason jar) and dump it on my head while rubbing it in. It was weird at first, not feeling any lather, and it didn't really FEEL clean like I was used to. I do not work the baking soda into the ends, they get clean just by it running over them. Then rinse the cup and hair well

Then I  mix the ACV and water in the cup, and let my ends soak in it for a minute, while I switch that shower head to a massaging spray and let my back relax. Hey why shouldn't a momma take a chance to relax? Just don't relax too much and forget that cup isn't holding a heavenly momma friendly drink! Don't ask why you need that warning......

Any-who, then I pour the remaining ACV water over the rest of my hair and let it soak while I go about other normal showerly duties like wiping down the shower walls (hey I'm a multi-tasker!) then rinse like normal.

Once my hair is dry some time the next day, I rub a tiny bit of coconut oil on the ends and brush thoroughly. Brushing I have found is the secret to this. The more I brush my hair the happier it is. I picked up this random brush at the grocery store because it combined two of my favorite types of brushes in one. It has the longer wider spaced de-tangling bristles and packed around those are little boar bristles to distribute the oil/shine.  If I brush my hair twice a day, it stays nice longer, and the oil travels down my hair keeping it healthy, shiny, less tangled, and less frizzy!

All in all, it's cheaper, healthier for me and the environment, more convenient, and makes my hair feel amazing!

This is definitely something that gets the #LissaSmiles

Cloth diapers and the learning curve.

So since darling A turned 1, we switched her over to cloth diapers. I love my Grovia hybrids. I wasn't a big fan of stuffing pocket diapers, and I didn't like how long the all in ones took to dry, or how much room they took up. So the Grovia hybrids seemed like the perfect balance of everything I wanted. Snaps make it harder for my little houdini to break free, the soaker liners snap in and out easily and quickly during diaper changes, the flushable liners made dealing with the poopie diapers a breeze, and they are simple enough for a Grandma to use when they have time with her.

Like many mom's who decide to cloth diaper I have spent hours and hours reading, researching, and chatting with people about tips, tricks, successes and failures. I thought I had it figured out. Things were cruising along wonderfully....then the smells started, and ammonia irritated her little bottom, then the leaking and the whole house smelling like pee because she scooted around with a wet bum, leaving little bum shaped plop-prints up and down the floor.

I had been using the cloth diapers for close to two months, no leaks, no worries, happy momma. Now, a very frustrated, ready to cry momma because we were back full time on disposable diapers, and those things aren't cheap! I try to be frugal in many places in our lives, finding ways to save money without sacrificing simplicity, or comfort too much. Which is why I wanted to cloth diaper in the first place (not to mention it's better to not throw all those diapers away) and couldn't bring myself to spend the money on the fancy laundry detergent specifically for diapers. So I just used what I already made.

BIG MISTAKE!!

Like I said, at first it was fine. Then we started getting the ammonia smell that wouldn't go away, so I started researching and changed my wash routine. Since I have a wonderful HE Front loader, I started doing a rinse cycle, then washing with pre-wash, doubled the detergent, and heavy soil with extra water. Smell was gone, but now her bum was constantly irritated, so back to the internet I went. Maybe it was too much detergent? But when I backed it back down, it was getting ammonia smell again. So back up, and added an extra rinse to the end of the wash cycle. All seemed to be back to smooth sailing.

After a few weeks of diapering happiness, I started to notice that leg of her pants was wet, but when I went to change her, the diaper was barely damp. I thought it might be a fit issue, so I started playing with the sizing, After peeing through every diaper, and changing the shells every diaper change I had had it.

I started looking up troubleshooting guides, even contacting the company itself. It basically came down to, either the fit is wrong due to sizing or failing elastic, or the diapers are not absorbing like they should. Well that's an easy test. Using warm water I poured a little on a clean dry diaper....

NOTHING.
It just sat there, mocking me.

So I pressed with my fingers to simulate the pressure from little A's body and the water just rolled off the side. I found my problem. I had a build up of something on the diaper.

SO I started looking at detergent for diapers, to see what was in them. The brand Grovia recommends is Tiny Bubbles and at .22 cents a load, it was nearly three times as expensive as my homemade laundry detergent which works up to roughly .08 cents per load. If you don't have any desire to make your own, Pinstripes and Polkadots has done a wonderful job compiling a list of detergents and how well they work on cloth diapers.

Tiny Bubbles brand has the Ingredients: Sodium carbonate, Sodium sulfate, Sodium percarbonate, natural chelating agents, Sodium alkyl aryl sulfonate, Linear alcohol ethoxylate  

These ingredients sure sounded familiar....I checked my tub of 7th Generation Oxy, and lo and behold....

Sodium carbonate (washing soda), sodium percarbonate (mineral-based oxygen stain removal that works by breaking down in water to peroxide and oxygen), sodium sulfate, sodium silicate.

So I guess I'll use that as my base for diaper detergent. WHat's missing from Tiny bubbles still is the natural chelating agents, Sodium alkyl aryl sulfonate, and  Linear alcohol ethoxylate. Just what are these?

Natural chelating agents are mineral transporters that grab on to minerals like ammonia crystals that can build up on pee diapers.  A natural chelating agent is citric acid, although I have no clue what is in Tiny Bubbles. I have Citric acid on hand for canning,

Sodium alkyl aryl sulfonate, and  Linear alcohol ethoxylate are surfactants, that help to remove dirt.

So for my surfactant, I decided on baking soda. So I mixed up equal parts, baking soda, washing soda, and 7th generations oxy. After 5 washes, I still couldn't get water to absorb, so I broke down and scrubbed the diapers with Dawn dishsoap, rinsed well and washed again.

FINALLY! They adsorbed water almost instantly!

Now to use and test my new mix for detergent. If I find it lacking, I will add some citric acid in small amounts and test.

My biggest take away from this, is that just like any other aspect of parenting you learn as you go, and sometimes that learning curve is a steep climb, but it's always well worth it.

Happy diapering!

I am not affiliated with any of the companies or products mentioned in this post, and get no money for mentioning them.

Birthday's, Hair, and Welcome Home

Hi all, I know I haven't been blogging like I would like to, but life has been VERY full. My little girl is almost a year old now (OMG I can't believe it!) and I am full swing planning a very cute lady bug birthday party for her. I'm planning on getting lots of pictures of everything and sharing them later.

Also planning a 60th party for my mom, but not sure what I'm doing with that yet. More to come.

A very dear friend of ours is home from serving overseas in Kuwait and Afghanistan. I know I'm not the only one, but I missed him. A LOT. I'm so happy and relieved he's home. I'm the type of person that if I let myself think about something like someone I love being over there, in some of the places he was, it would consume me, and I'd be a mess of nothing resembeling a productive person. So now that he's home, I've been able to let myself think about it, and cry for his safety, and celebrate his return. There are no words to accurately express how I feel, and how all those who have people they care for deployed to dangerous areas. I'm just glad it's done, and proud of him for doing it.

Now on to the topic that spurred me to even write in here again. My hair. Deep Breath, it's ok, you can do this.....

I'm experimenting.

Those of you that know me, (and my hair, because let's face it, it's an entity in and of it's own right) that is HUGE. My hair is the kind of hair that everyone says they wish they had. Long, thick, wavy/curly, and typically pretty. However what most people don't know, is that it is a monster. It eats hair ties for fun, and has been known to take bites out of combs, brushes, and hair sticks too. My friend K normally trims my hair for me. It bites her. It fights back. It does not listen.

I have tried so many different things to keep my hair from being a monster, but short of sending it to boot camp (which I doubt would even work if it were possible) I've yet to get it to be truly wonderful and  something I'm happy with. The frizz, the knots and tangles that never go away, the flyaways, and always the fighting.

I keep my hair long. It's just easier to manage for me and I like how it looks on me much more than short hair. I put it in a bun with a single hair stick to avoid all the broken and short hairs stickingg out eeverywhere. I have dropped down to washing it only every few days and using minimal products, and I haven't used a blow dryer on my hair in more years than I can remember. All this has added up to the best hair I've had yet, but it's still not quite where I want it to be.

So I'm trying to switch to the baking soda and apple cider vinegar method of cleaning and conditioning my hair. ACV is amazing stuff, and I love it. I clean nearly everything with vinegar and baking  soda.  So why not my hair too?

Time to take to the internet and search. I looked through dozens of articles on 'No Poo' and natural hair remedies. I don't know that I could do the no shampoo thing. That would just be too weird after years of lathering my locks. But switching out my usual product for baking soda and acv, that seemed mmore palatable (even if it does remind me of a salad bar).

So after reading a post on TreeHugger I decided to give her method a try.  So tonight I  tried  it.  The oddest part, was the lack of that lather that I've always looked for to tell me my hair was getting clean. I felt a difference between when I started  and when the baking soda rinse started to work.. My hair felt and sounded squeaky clean. Then the ACV rinse. That one I wasn't too sure about. Myhair felt  greasy after rinsing. But I resisted the urge  to grab my shampoo  and  'fix' it. Once my hair got to more damp than wet, I rubbed a dime size drop of warm coconut oil on the ends.  Brushed and brushed to distribute the  the oil, and waited. And waited. And waited. Did I mention I have thick hair? It takes hours to dry. Finally the top of my hair was dry. It felt amazing! It was silky smooth, and light without being fluffy/frizzy. I'm looking forward to seeing how the ends look tomorrow after drying the rest of the way.