Maybe they just have a lot to say

Jonathan has been trying to convince me the past couple weeks that Juliana has been saying “Dada,” on purpose. I didn’t believe him. Gabriella started saying “Mama” at just short of six months (the exact same age Juliana) and shortly followed up that first word with several more. At nine months I think she had close to ten words. However, I had been told about three thousand seven hundred and ten times that second babies talk later. People said that Gabriella would talk for her etc… etc… and I figured that she would indeed talk later. Actually, I kept thinking that she would probably talk much later. I pictured myself with a non-talking 1.5 year old and I wondered if it would be strange after having an early talker the first time. So that sets up my skepticism of Jonathan’s claims of “Dada.” Then, this past weekend she started talking up a storm. Not only did she convince me beyond any doubt that she says Dada and means Jonathan, but she followed it up with a second word… nuh nuh. “Nuh nuh” is our family word for nursing. Gabriella called it “nuh nuh” as a baby and so we used it with Juliana from the start. When your babies speak early it is very handy to have a discrete nursing word. It is much nicer for them to say “Nuh nuh” than “Boobies!!!!” I’ve been trying to get Juliana to say “Mama”, but so far no luck. All I get is a lunge at my chest and an enthusiastic "NUH NUH!" She is such a Daddy’s girl. This talking age is a fun one. As a bonus, my sister Amy is visiting so it is fun timing for her to be able to hear Juliana enjoying her two new words.

Return of the Cloth Diaper

I love cloth diapers. I really do. I first looked into cloth diapering when I was pregnant with Gabriella. I was really intrigued by the newer styles of cloth diapers... they look a lot different than the cloth diapers my mom used (prefolds, pins and rubber pants) and even the cloth diapers my sister used (fitted cotton diapers with covers.) I ended up chickening out because the initial purchase is a bit hefty and I was afraid I wouldn't like them.

We used disposables quite complacently until at about 4 months Gabriella started to blow out. We're not talking about a little diaper leakage here and there. I mean, every single poop every single day would explode out of her with impressive force. It would shoot right out that back of her Pampers, up her back and often it nearly reached her shoulders. Jonathan and I would compare horror stories, "I had one that went through three layers of clothes and covered the bouncy." "Oh yeah? I just changed one that got so far up it got in her hair." Seriously. I swear to you that it made it up to her hair more than once. We tried different brands of diapers, different sizes, but none could contain our sweet baby daughter's poo-explosions. I got so sick of trying to get poo stains out of clothing every single day that washing cloth diapers started to look a whole lot more attractive. They were at least meant to get pooped on. So, I ordered some diapers online, snapped them on her and waited for the poo-explosion. Lo and behold... they held. No slime up her back. No stain treating. No daily bath (OK, so we did still have to bathe the kid, but at least it was on our own terms.) That alone would've been enough to convince me to use cloth, but I discovered that there are a lot of good reasons to cloth diaper.

Why I love cloth diapers

• It is better the environment.
• It is better for my baby's bum. I use fleece lined pocket diapers. They are very soft and very good at wicking away moisture. No diaper rash. No exposure to the chemicals and bleaches used in disposable diapers.
• It is better for my checking account.
• They are way cuter and come in lots of colors.
• Studies show that cloth diapered babies experience a reduced rate of childhood asthma (because they are not exposed to the chemicals in disposables.)
• Did I mention that they look super cute and I can coordinate diapers with outfits?

I cloth diapered Gabriella quite happily until we moved to Portland. In Portland we encountered a big obstacle... married student housing only offered a shared coin operated laundry room. The coin-op front loaders didn't have options for adding extra soaks and rinses and pretty soon I was spending more in quarters than I would spend on disposables, not to mention the lugging the diapers down to the laundry. I did it for about four months, but finally put Gabriella back in disposables. When we moved to our new place I was very excited to have a washer and dryer and to be able to get the cloth diapers out for Juliana.

Here is Juliana in her ballerina print Happy Heiny

Cloth Diapering is easy. I use pocket diapers. Mostly, I use Fuzzi Bunz. They have an outer waterproof layer (called PUL. It is thin, soft and flexible. It is nothing like the rubber pants I sported in my infancy.) The inner layer is soft microfleece that wicks away moisture. You simply stuff the diaper with an insert to the absorbency you need. I stuff my diapers when they come out of the dryer and they are ready to snap or velcro on. Diaper changes aren't any more difficult than with disposables. Jonathan was the biggest skeptic of the whole cloth diaper venture, but before long he became a huge fan. He finds them easier than disposables (probably because I do the washing, but whatever.)

After the diaper change the diaper goes into the diaper pail which is lined with a reusable waterproof PUL liner. When I was the diapers I toss the liner in with the diapers, no touching anything icky. I wash every other day. Easy Peasy.

When I started I didn't think I would use cloth at night or out of the house, but I do both easily. I also now use cloth wipes. If you are interested in using cloth diapers I would love to answer your questions or point you to more information.

Kevin & Lia & Gabriella's Wedding

Yesterday was a very momentous occasion. It was the day of Kevin and Lia and Gabriella's wedding (or so Gabriella says.) Kevin is Jonathan's friend from seminary and Lia is a super super nice person that we've been lucky enough to get to know over the past year. Not long after they became engaged they asked Gabriella to be their flower girl. This is HUGE stuff to a small girl and Gabriella has been very excited about weddings for the past six months or so.

The mother of the flower girl isn't a role that garners a lot of attention. However, keeping a not yet three year old (who hasn't napped) content, perfectly coiffed and spotlessly clean through two hours of pictures and an outdoor wedding ceremony is no small task. It was Gabriella's day to live the life of the diva and it was my job to keep her in good spirits, provide non messy snacks/sippy cups and make sure she didn't end up playing in the fountain or picking the flowers from Lia's aunt's perfectly manicured landscaping.

The actual wedding ceremony went very well. The aisle was a fairly long one and in interest of taking her duties seriously Gabriella carefully dropped one petal at a time and walked slowly as instructed. A little loving encouragement from Lia's mom saved all of us from having to wait an hour for her to make it down the aisle. Gabriella stood through a few minutes of the ceremony (while quietly trying to chat up a bridesmaid) and then opted to sit with Jonathan and I. She made it back up in time to walk out with the ring bearer, but she did trip on her way back up the aisle (I blame the pesky runner.) By the time the reception rolled around I was so relieved that everything had gone without major incident I was quite fine with her crawling under the table to play "tent" with the ring bearer.

Gabriella certainly enjoyed her day in the limelight and didn't seem to tire of the endless compliments on her cuteness/behavior/vocabulary/sociability.

....Oh and Lia looked gorgeous and all other aspects of the wedding went perfectly. The personality of the couple really shined through and that always makes a wedding have so much more flavor.

The scary thing is, these next two pictures were not posed at all. Doesn't she look waaay too grown up? Doesn't she look waaay too comfortable holding that boys hand?

This is what passes for a good family picture nowadays...

Congrats Kevin & Lia!

Up and Running

I know many of you have been waiting patiently for new blog posts since we moved. We finally got our internet hooked up Friday (after our first order to move service somehow failed to go through.) However, it turns out that unpacking is a slooow process with two small children. You'll have to wait until we get a few more things in place for pictures of the new place. I'd like to get pictures on the walls etc.. before I post house pictures. However, I just uploaded three bazillion other pictures so hopefully I'll get several posts up in the next few days.

Moved

We survived a crazy hectic moving weekend, but we're here and so is all our stuff. I'm finally excited about our new place and getting all settled in. I think we'll really like it. I certainly enjoyed the 3 minute drive to work and I have aspirations to eventually give walking to work a try... once I'm not so darn tired.

Moving

This will be my last blog post from seminary family housing. We got the keys to our new house (duplex, we're still renting) Tuesday and we'll do the big official move on Saturday. We're excited to live in the community that our church is a part of so that we can develop stronger relationships with our church family and better serve that community. It also happens to be the community that I work in... all around, it is a good place for us to be.

We still have a LOT to do in the next couple days. Mostly, I'm trying not to stress about all of that and just focus on the positives of our new home and community. We're gaining a little bit more space, central air conditioning (major plus because it isn't super common out here) and a garage. We will also have a small fenced back yard.

Gabriella and Juliana check out the living room. The kitchen/dining/living room is one large open area, which we really like for keeping track of kiddos. There is a half bath upstairs and the three bedrooms and main bath are downstairs.

Oh... and Juliana started to army crawl today. Before she was just using her legs to scoot "inchworm" style, now she is using her arms to crawl with her tummy still on the floor. Guess I have to figure out how to gate that tricky stairway (iron banister on one side, closet door on the other) ASAP.

Chubby Thighs for Amy

My sister Amy requested a picture of Juliana's chubby little thighs. I certainly won't be posting any pictures of my thighs, but on a five month old chubby legs are pretty cute.

and the other end...

This little Carter's romper (from Grandma & Grandpa on their visit!) is a size 9 months.

Juliana- 5 Month Update

At 5 Months Juliana Jayne...

-wears 6-9 month sleepers, onesies and one some one piece rompers. The rest of her clothing is still 3-6 months. She has completely outgrown the last of the 0-3 month things she was wearing. Where did my tiny baby go?

-likes to suck on her three middle fingers, but sometimes she gets a bit overenthusiastic and ends up gagging herself.

-loves toys.

-thinks it is funny when her sister gets in trouble. How on earth did that start so early? I have no idea why watching Gabriella get a time out is hilarious. Should I be worried for the future of these sisters?

-goes to sleep pretty easily without nursing to sleep. Gabriella nursed to sleep for a long time. It didn’t really bother me that Gabriella always nursed to sleep, but it is nice that Juliana is so easy to put down without it. It makes it easier on Jonathan if I need to be gone at bedtime.

-is still all about exploring the world with her mouth. We call her " Droolie Julie" sometimes.

-likes standing better than sitting. She can't do either without support yet, but she can stand while holding onto something for very short periods of time. She just isn't very interested in sitting, she would rather be on the floor where she can roll and scoot to get at what she wants.

-has a meltingly sweet smile.