2010 August

Little things

August 28, 2010 by Diana 8 Comments

Our house is under contract.

I am giddy with excitement. Yes, it’s a short sale. Yes, it’s way below the original price.

None of that matters. We are so glad this finally happened. The couple initially said they wanted a three bedroom, but Monday morning came back with an offer. The house will be used to store skis and as a vacation home in the winter. (Must be nice, huh? Lol)

So we accepted their offer, they sent earnest money, and barring the bank being stupid, we close October 15th.

It’s hard to go back. I still have to go clean and get stuff out of the garage. I went back Wednesday and started crying, thinking of all the memories our home holds. I will miss it dearly.

However, this journey has made me grateful for an offer I might not have considered 4 months ago, and ready to say goodbye to the stress of a home and mortgage that I didn’t think I could say. The unknown and the mess that got bigger with an apartment payment thrown in the mix, is fixed by the house being gone.

The relief is much greater than the sadness.

We have a lot of other stuff going on, but this chapter is closed. Out of it comes a stronger faith, a shame of the stress and worry I spent on it over the months, a better knowledge of our finances, and what buying something you can’t afford long term can really end up costing.

Lessons learned. Good, and tough. But I wouldn’t change it one bit.

Filed Under: Moving, Thankful ·

Protected: And we’re here.

August 24, 2010 by Diana 28 Comments

Filed Under: Marriage ·

Seventh Generation Diapers Review

August 20, 2010 by Diana

If you’re considering disposables, want to start a newborn out in something eco friendly before making the switch to cloth diapering, or looking for a great alternative to cloth – even for just trips or daytime use – this is something you’ll want to read.

When we moved, we sold our washer/dryer and had to go without cloth diapers for just under a week. After tweeting about what kind of disposables I should go with (something eco friendly, no harsh chemicals, and that worked) I decided to try Seventh Generation’s diapers.

I bought 2 packages of size 2′s (12-18lbs and 40 in a pack) and they fit Bella (15.5lbs) perfectly. I was surprised that they were brown, but then realized it was because they aren’t bleached out like regular disposables.

Chemicals: I did find that the light brown texture is not due to the “natural” color, but rather they ”use brown pigments to help distinguish Seventh Generation Chlorine Free Diapers from others in the marketplace that are bleached with chlorine-containing substances.” – Seventh Generation.

Wondering about the safety of this, I learned that they, “offer an alternative that is not bleached with chemicals containing chlorine, and are working hard to further improve the sustainability of our diaper products.” The brown coloring is made with pigments that cause no known harm or effects. The white coloring of others is caused by the chlorine bleaching it out.

Which makes me wonder – if you need to wash off after being in a pool filled with chlorine, why would your kid be safe 24-7, for 2+ years in a diaper that uses it? :/

Biodegradable: No, Seventh Generation’s diapers (to the best of my knowledge) are not biodegradable, but the process of making them has significantly less of an impact on the earth than ordinary disposables.

I have tried several biodegradable options, and I’m not impressed. They either fell apart in use (which made a holy mess) or were impossible to get in a diaper cover. If I find a good one, I’ll let you guys know.

Overnights: I worried the most about this – Bella can be a heavy wetter. I never, ever had a leak or problem at night. Also, she didn’t wake up in a sopping wet diaper that weighed a metric ton.

Price wise: Diapers.com sells a pack of Seventh Generation (40 diapers, size 2) for $11.29. Pampers Swaddlers are 11.29 for 33 diapers, and Huggies Snug & Dry are $11.29 for 36. So, Seventh Generation is the better deal.

Likes:

They were trim.
They were gentle, left no red marks on her skin.
They caused no diaper rash (which was great).
They were perfect fitting around the waist and thighs.
We never had a blowout or leak – even at night.
No matter how much Bella wet, they didn’t become saggy.

Dislikes:

One of the packs I bought (from Diapers.com) had great elastic on it. The other pack (from my local food store) had this elastic that curved in on the ends. It was harder to grip and maneuver.

That’s it! We loved them, and would use them again anytime. I highly recommend them for any use.

Filed Under: Babies, Cloth Diapering, Disposable Diapering ·

Angry, Foaming Kitties

August 18, 2010 by Diana 14 Comments

Our move was one of the funniest things that has happened to us in a while. We left Sunday morning. I took 3 cats and Bella in the SUV, and Sam took a cat and the rat in the giant UHaul. (Yes, we have four cats. No, we are not crazy.)

Remember how I said UHaul upgraded us to a 26′ over a 17′ because they didn’t have a 17′?

Yeah. :/ That upgrade meant we got a UHaul that looked as if we were moving a small circus – not a 2 bedroom home. Surprisingly? We needed the extra space. We have that much crap – how sad is that?

View from my car

So once everyone (and thing) was loaded in, our walkie talkies (W/T for short) had batteries, and both us us had food and water, we headed out. All I could think of the entire time was, “The UHaul is going to tip over and I am going to watch Sam fall off a cliff.” But he did awesome driving that sucker – only once did it really lean to the side and after a mild heart attack I was fine.

With the walkie talkies, we got to chat the whole way. We bought them when we moved from San Diego to here 3 years ago – the drive then was 2 days and we only needed a 10′ UHaul back then. (At one point in this marriage we only needed a pickup truck and Jetta to move. Talk about accumulation.)

Bella immediately fell asleep, but the kitties were a mess. First, they HATE the car. Hate it. And they hate being in their cages even more. So behind me were a chorus of unhappy meows – for 3 straight hours. It was pretty funny at one point because they all took turns.

Sam let me listen to his kitty, Mews, on the speaker since she was a disaster and beyond terrified, and then got back on the W/T to tell me that, “Mews has no color in her eyes. She looks like she just licked a toad.”

I almost wet my pants laughing at that one.

My oldest kitty, Jynx, was out of the cage and on the passenger floorboard. I thought he was doing great – just hanging out – and I had the air conditioner on to keep them all cool. Suddenly, he pulls himself up onto the seat, barely making it up, pants, lays down, looks up at me, and I see this:

Jynx and the Foam

I freak out. Obviously my cat has contracted rabies somewhere along the way. I tell Sam, “Jynxie is foaming at the mouth.”

There is a pause and then, “What?”

I repeat myself and try to drive while watching Jynx for signs of madness. He looks very unhappy, and begins to foam more. It’s long and stringy and all shiny. Ew.

“He did this before,” Sam says into the speaker. “From California, and he got so overheated we stuck him in the ice chest – remember?”

I do, and this is reassuring. My cat is not rabid, just hot. I point the air directly on him.

However, the foam is getting out of control. It’s everywhere, and it’s nasty. Jynx attempts to crawl into my lap, and I push him away and touch the foam.

“Aaaah!” I shriek into the speaker. “He got foam on me and it’s not coming off. He’s foaming all over the car!”

He really did get it everywhere. The seat was all shiny, his neck and head, the console in the middle. I couldn’t get it off anything, so I grabbed Bella’s hat and began trying to wipe it off his face, which made him angrier.

Once he began meowing, things picked up in the back with the other two, who believed they were going to die in their cages.

I now had 3 angry kitties – one of which was a foaming mess.

Realizing I needed to drive and clean up later, I let him continue to foam while trying to push him to the floor – so he could just do it on the mat. He didn’t budge and I gave up.

We finally got to our apartment, where the kitties hid in the bathroom and hissed at each other for the next 2 days.

Kitchen/Hall to Bedroom

Once we got everything unloaded and up the three flights of stairs- thanks to my brother, his friend, and girlfriend, and two of the most awesome moving guys ever – I just sat and surveyed the damage.

Notice how amazing I looked (hello mascara) and how tired Bella was.

Hawt

And now? We’re unpacking and getting everything set up in here. I love our new little place.

The kitties still have some adjusting to do. I think we’re all praying we don’t have to do this again for a while.

Filed Under: Kitties, Moving · Tagged With: A funny, Paranoia, Something New, Things that make me smile

Protected: Highs and Lows

August 13, 2010 by Diana 18 Comments

Filed Under: Home, Moving, Sam, Thankful · Tagged With: Family, Head Explosions, Moving, Sleepless Nights, Things that make me smile

I eat chipmunks.

August 11, 2010 by Diana 10 Comments

There is this cool little town up north of us that has one major attraction – chipmunks. You can go up there, sit on these boards that have been piled into an area, and the chipmunks come flying to climb on you and eat the sunflower seeds you can buy.

We took Bella a few weeks ago – naturally Sam and I were beyond excited to see what she would do when the little creatures started to climb on her. She loves all animals so I figured she was going to adore these guys.

I was right. And, not only did she love them, she also wanted to eat them. All. Immediately. She spent the hour we were there trying her hardest to catch one with her little hands so that it could go directly into her mouth to be gnawed on. (You’re welcome for that cleavage shot right there.)

They are quick, like lightning from all the kids up there trying to capture them, so she never got one. But she put up a good fight.

They are so tame they just jump right on you – and if you have a plastic baggie they will actually tug it out of your hands, or climb into the opening to get more seeds.

There were 2 little boys there who took to Bella like she was their little sister, calling her by name and trying to show her how to feed them. It was so cute. They kept saying, “Bella, Bella, listen to me! Don’t pet them because they run away and they need to eat the seeds. Why are you eating the seeds Bella?”

One of the boys knocked his seeds on the ground (he was about 4) and sadly said, “There goes my only hope.” It was all I could do not to crack up, and I gave him more seeds, as Bella protested because she wanted to eat those.

That was the other problem, she didn’t just want to eat a chipmunk, she wanted the sunflower seeds too. It was like a small wrestling match to keep her away from all of them. She was determined to eat anything with in reach – and had to try to get a chipmunk while attempting to stuff seeds into her mouth when I wasn’t watching.

At the end, we were in the gift shop and saw a small chipmunk finger puppet. Sam bought it, and we gave it to her on the way home. Her eyes lit up light Christmas morning, and she grabbed it, squealed in delight at being able to hold one in her hands finally…