So many things to post about!

Three things actually.  :)

#1 Happy Easter!  Kayla is wearing her Easter outfit today.  We did not put a basket together for her, which I feel a bit guilty about, but Justin and I joked, "What would we put in it? A bottle of breast milk?" :)  She received to little lamb stuff animals on our trip to the midwest so I guess that is her Easter gift for her first Easter! :)





#2 The remainder of our midwest road trip went pretty well.  We drove out to Columbus OH to spend some time with family, a gathering at my mom's cousin Kathy and Harvey's house on Friday, a wedding reception on Saturday for my 2nd/3rd cousin Alex and Virginia, his new bride, and a baby shower for my other cousin's wife Leslie.  A busy weekend for us and Kayla but she was a champ.  She was very well-behaved on our trip considering all the travel.  We were glad to be home however everything has been SO off this week with Kayla.  She isn't sleeping nearly as well at night, she was so fussy during the day, she isn't eating as well and as usual isn't napping great.  It's been rough, but we are getting through it.  She's 3 months old now!!! And hopefully this potential growth spurt, possible teething cranky period will be over soon.  Last night, she slept for about 5+ hours so that is a step forward!



#3 and what I really wanted to blog about was my cloth diapering experience this week.

So far, it's going pretty well (minus the first day when I put one of the inserts in the wrong way and he gave her some serious bum rash).  Here's is a quick review of a few of the diapers I have tried:

Bum Genius 4.0s: One size pocket diapers.  I have 6 of these, all you do is stuff an insert into the pocket and it snaps on just like a normal diaper.  These are super easy and no explosions out the diaper thus far.  I have them in blue, green and a yellow color.  Con: they are a bit bulky and kinda annoying to stuff.

FLIP system: This is a hybrid one size diaper.  I have two covers and 6 inserts.  The inserts are basically a rectangle that you tuck into the front and back of the diaper and the snap just like the BumGenius do.  So far, these are my least favorite.  They are pretty easy and if Kayla only has a wet diaper, you can just switch the dirty insert with a new clean one.  However they are the most bulky of all of my bulky diapers and the poop by no means stays off of the cover.  These were the least expensive of the diapers though so that is a plus.  I think I will like them more when Kayla is a little bigger so they don't rise up so high on her back.  They also have disposable inserts to use when out of the house which is nice but I haven't tried them yet!



Fuzzibunz:  Another one size pocket diaper.  (Most of these one size pocket diapers come with two sized inserts so I'm not even going to bother adding that as a pro or con.)  This is my favorite one size pocket that I have right now.  Instead of snapping smaller and larger up the front of the diaper, the leg elastic is adjustable to fit to your baby's size.  I only have one of these as I bought it with the cloth diaper one size trial package so I'd really like to get a couple more of them but for now, what I have is working.  I think these are the least bulky of all the diapers I have which is another reason I like them.



Rumparooz:  One size pocket diaper.  Very similar to the BumGenius but has extra gussets in the lining.  Really not much different to say about this one.  Again, I only have one and it's pretty bulky and I probably won't buy any more of these.



Happy Heiny's:  Another one size pocket diaper.  Very similar to all the other ones.  This one seems SLIGHTLY less bulky and is therefore higher on my list of ones to grab when in need.  Same snap up the front and around baby to adjust size.  Oh, however, a really great pro to this diaper is that the snaps around baby can cross over in the front, unlike all of the other diapers, which is nice when you have a skinny minny like Kayla! :)


Kissaluvs: A one size diaper.  I haven't tried this one yet as the way you adjust the size is folding down the front flap and it seems it would be ENORMOUS on Kayla.  But I can say I can't wait to give it a go when she's a little bit bigger and there is no pocket to stuff and the print is SUPER cute (and the inside is super soft!)



GroVia: One size, hybrid diaper.  Kinda similar to the FLIP system but a million times better!  They are still a little bulky but here's why I really like them.  Although I don't mind the snaps, but these have snaps up the front for sizing but they have hook and loop closure (most similar to disposables) around Baby.  Also, the insert snaps into the inside and it has extra gussets to help keep poop under control.  I only have one of these and I'd really like to get a few more covers and a few more inserts because I really liked them.  These also have disposable inserts for outings.



Lastly, Econobum.  Another one size hybrid very similar to the FLIP system.  I didn't like this one at all.  The insert is hemp and all organic, etc, but Kayla wet it through so fast and she was screaming because of it.  Needless to say, this diaper will be going to the back of the drawer!



So far, I don't have much to say regarding differences in the diapers as it has only been a week, but I'll keep you updated.  So far, BumGenious, Fuzzibunz and GroVia are my favorites!  I am getting some of another brand called Oh Katy in the mail this week which are supposedly "trimmer" but I'll let you know when I try them out!

P.S. Laundering is super easy with my washable pail liner and all.  The hardest part is using disposable wipes since I can't just wrap them up in the diaper.  I'm actually considering cloth wipes since it would almost be easier to just toss them in the wash with the diapers, but for now, I'll just focus on the diapers!

First half of Midwest Road Trip

Thursday 4/7: We left the house at about 12:30 pm to head to Bellaire OH to stay with Graunt Shirley and Gruncle Steve (Great Aunt and Uncle) on our trek to Milwaukee.  I love introducing Kayla to all of our family, and they sure love her!  It was also a special day because Shirley got her chemo port taken out!  She is the person I rode my bike for (with Kayla in my belly) around Lake Tahoe last June, and I couldn't be happier this part of her life is past her!  It was so nice to see her and Steve!  She bought Kayla some very cute clothes and a little lamb for Easter.  Unfortunately this was a short trip, but hopefully sooner rather than later we will see them again!

Friday 4/8:  Kayla slept for about 7 hours straight and when she woke up at about 4, Justin and I showered and got ready to go.  I fed her again at about 6 and said hello and goodbye to Shirley and Steve and headed out towards Milwaukee.  Kayla did surprisingly well in the car.  She slept some and smiled/played some and certainly cried some.  We actually only stopped once as we fed her from a bottle in the car a couple times and we arrived in Milwaukee at around 4:00 pm.  We had dinner with Great Aunt MEM and great grandparents #2 and 3 Kayla has met, my Grammy and Papa, as well as Aunt Lauren and we saw Great Aunt Terri and Kayla's other great aunt, uncle and 2nd cousins for a few minutes!





Saturday 4/9:  One of Justin's best men from our wedding, Will was also visiting Milwaukee so he arrived around midnight.  Kayla slept from 9:30 to 7 am!  That's 9.5 hours people!  I'm sure she was wiped out from the car ride, but I woke up at 5 in amazement and then was up for about an hour just basically waiting for her to wake up:).  We went to Buy Buy Baby and the mall to do some shopping.  Kayla slept a lot of the time, except when we went to lunch but she was very well behaved.  Pretty low key day but it was fun!










Sunday 4/10:  This was supposed to be the big Markowski family get together day.  (P.S. Kayla slept for 8.5 hours.)  My dad was coming up from Illinois and we were all going to be having dinner at my Grammy's house.  However, in the morning, my Papa wasn't feeling too great in church.  He had an irregular heart beat and started feeling faint.  They admitted him to the hospital and wanted him to stay overnight.  At first they thought he was dehydrated and overheated, then overnight his heart stopped for 6 seconds.  They decided they were going to put a pacemaker in.  Needless to say, Sunday was a pretty low-key day, people coming and going from MEM's house to the hospital, but Kayla got to see everyone (except Papa - I'm glad she got to see him on Friday!) and she got multiple walks on the weekend!

Monday 4/11:  (Kayla slept for about 6 hours.) We hung around for the morning to get some things done (big secret :) ) and then went to lunch with Lauren, Will, Aunt MEM and Aunt Terri at Potbellies.  It was a nice ending to our Milwaukee leg of the trip.  Cross our fingers, we will see them all again soon!  On our way to Papa and Gigi (my new name for my mom) Markowski's house, we stopped at grandpa's office to show off Kayla to his employees (I call them his minions ;) ).  Not too many people were there so we made plans to come back later in the week.  We got to their condo and my Dad had to go to dinner so Justin and I spent some time with Kayla on our own and put her to bed at about 8 pm.






Tuesday 4/12:  (Kayla slept for 6.5-7 hours.) Gigi had to work, so we planned to head to Glen Ellyn to see Great grandparents #4 and 5, my Nanny and Gramps.  Nanny and Justin spent a morning and early afternoon with Kayla while Mommy got some stuff done (secret again) and then Gramps, Aunt Lindy, Uncle Pete and two cousins, Kelsey and Makala, came for dinner and to meet Kayla.  She sure is popular!  I know I already said this, but I love seeing all of my family interact with her and seeing her smile at everyone, despite the overstimulation! OH!  And Great Papa Markowski had a pacemaker put in and seems to be doing very well!

Wednesday 4/13: Kayla did not sleep well at all.  Well, she slept for about 5.5 hours straight and then woke up after 1.5 hours and then another 1.5 hours.  She was so crabby...I think it was because of some overstimulation from meeting so many people!  I also am kinda convinced she might be teething a little bit early.  Gigi, Dad and Mom took Kayla back to Grandpa's office to meet everyone.  Kayla was pretty well-behaved, until the end of the introductions when she got a little cranky...too many people to meet!  Then the four of us went to the mall.  We had lunch, stopped at Land of Nod to sit in our glider we plan to get, went to Macy's, Coach and Best Buy.  Kayla napped the ENTIRE time!  MUCH longer than 30 minutes, more like 3 hours!  It was glorious and I'm so glad she was getting some sleep after a hard night!  When we got back to the condo, Kayla got to meet her first Hokie Volleyball player, Katie Esbrook King!  It is so great for me to get to see my friends I haven't seen in a long time and get to introduce them to Kayla!  Then Gigi baby sat for a little while so Justin and I could walk around.  We went to my favorite yoga store LuluLemon and then to eat sushi.  Kayla was asleep when we got home!

Today, Thursday 4/14: We are all going to rest up today.  Maybe go for a walk if it's nice enough out, but otherwise, we need to keep things a little low-key for Kayla before we head to Columbus tomorrow to spend time with our rather large but really fun family!  So many wonderful things going on on this trip!



P.S. If I don't get a chance to blog again, FOREVER A HOKIE 4/16 - I will always remember! <3

Today (and many days)...

I am reminded of a Barenaked Ladies song, "Who needs sleep?"  Sunday night and Monday night, we fed Kayla between 7 and 7:30 and proceeded to put her to bed.  Now granted, she usually doesn't go right to bed and it takes a few times to get her down for good, but she fell asleep by 9:30 on Sunday and by 8:30 on Monday.  Then, a miracle.  She slept for almost 7 hours straight, both nights.  And here I am thinking, sweet I figured out some sort of timing that may work.  So last night I bathed her and we fed her at 7 pm.  She was totally passed out while eating and Justin put her down.  Then at about 8:15 or 8:30 she's crying.  We try to let her lay there and get herself to sleep.  I pick her up, she falls asleep immediately.  I put her down, she's crying.  This continued for about an hour until she finally fell asleep around 9:30.  That's ok I'm thinking...wrong.  She was up at 11:30.  And then 3:15.  And then 6.  And then 8.  NO consistency.

This would be ok, but she doesn't nap during they day for more than 45 minutes if I'm lucky.  This means Mommy gets like NO sleep.  Not to mention my husbands snores like a chainsaw and Kayla isn't exactly the most quiet sleeper.  I'm surprised I am as chipper as I am during the day with her.

In cloth diapering news...

I ordered about 5 or 6 more cloth diapers of different brands so we can decide which ones we like.  I think we are getting a GroVia hybrid, a Rumparooz, a Fuzzibunz, a Kissaluvs and a Happy Heineys.  I just love the names.  Then if I really like one of them maybe when we have some more cash I can get a few more.  I'm totally dedicated to the cloth diapering now.  We have the diapers, the pail liner is on the way, I know all the benefits and I'm in!  And excited! :)

In other news...

Mom and Dad had a night out with friends while Aunt Meg babysat on Saturday.  I am personally starting to get very lonely at home and it was so nice to feel like a normal human being and not just someone's mom if only for a few hours.  Even though I talked about Kayla, birth and babies the whole time with my friend Christy who is due any day now!  I also wore heels and pre-pregnancy jeans and I felt awesome!

Tomorrow we leave for our very first road trip.  I'll try to update while we are there!  I can't wait...wish us luck!