Housewarming Party On A Budget

I realize that it’s a bit early to be planning a housewarming party, as we haven’t actually even moved into our new house, but we’re so excited (as are our friends and family) that I wanted to take some time to celebrate with those who have been with us on this house-hunting adventure.  As you know, I try to do everything as well and cost effective as I can, and this party is no exception.

• Digital invitation = FREE
• Food: 2 ingredient cake, punch and coffee = $3-$5
• Party games = FREE

The entire event will cost about $5, and be a blast!  Really looking forward to taking a little break from the decluttering, packing, cleaning, unpacking and organizing that moving entails to spend time with family and friends.

Parenting

Is it just me, or is parenting more complicated these days?  There are talk shows and self help books everywhere you turn, and it all seems to encourage a hands-off parenting style.  How sick is that?  We’re told to protect our fetuses, nurture our infants, protect our toddlers, but when our children begin to develop their own personality, and want to test boundaries, that’s when we’re told to back off.

I believe in a hands-on type of parenting.  Nurturing, protective, encouraging and disciplining.  Now there’s another hot topic – discipline.  What is okay and what’s not?  The government seems to slowly be tying our hands when it comes to disciplining our children, and it’s showing in the increased prison inmate numbers.  Personally, I see myself as raising future men.  My boys will most likely be employees, husbands and fathers.  Can you imagine these men lacking boundaries?  That quickly becomes a very scary thought.  My decisions today will affect more than just my children in the future, so making the right choices now is very important.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m nowhere close to being the perfect parent, but every day I get up and try again.  That’s really all any of us can do.  Feel free to follow my parenting adventures. 🙂

The Plan To Cloth Diaper

I’ve been up and on Pinterest all night, and come to a conclusion – I want to try cloth diapering 🙂  This is something I’ve considered previously, but was only supported by one or two friends, so I went with the simpler disposable diapers.  My friend (who also has four children) cloth diapered all her little ones, and raves about all the benefits.

Cost Savings

Over a three year period, disposables will cost around $2,625, while cloth diapers will cost around $1,105, which equals a saving of $305, but that’s if you BUY the cloth diapers – I intend to make them myself and buy some second-hand.  Making them myself will save me even more money, which is fantastic!

Diaper Rash

Apparently, using cloth diapers causes less or no diaper rashes, which is pretty great.  I’m also going to use reusable cloth wipes, which will also help in this area.

Potty Training

Also, potty training tends to go a lot more smoothly when using cloth diapers.  That benefit is almost more impressive to me than the monetary savings.

Environment

In the course of a child’s diapering phase, a baby wearing disposables will contribule 8,000-10,000 diapers to the landfill.  This kind of diapers takes 500 years to decompose.

My plan is to make a few with removable liners, and see how it goes.  If it goes well, I’ll continue to make more.  If it’s a flop, I’ll give away or sell what I made.  Either way, I will have tried, and I can be proud of that 🙂

Happy Valentine’s Day to me – Mike told me a few hours ago that when we move, I’ll be getting a craft room!!!  I’m so excited!!!  I have so many projects that I want to do with and for the kids, but I don’t want the craft supplies in an area where they can be messed up or destroyed by little hands, so this is going to be a dream-come-true, and I didn’t even know it existed until my Mike told me about it and suggest it be my craft room 😀  It’s a 12’x6′ insulated room just off of the house and garage.  I have so many projects that I want to get done:

• tutus
• baby skirts
• barefoot sandles
• infant headbands
• onesie dresses
• wall art
• aprons

The kids are gonna be so excited to be able to have a space to be creative with Mommy 🙂

Birthday 5.5!!!

Today is my Kaleb’s half birthday – 5.5 today!!!  I began celebrating the kids’ half birthdays a few years ago, and the LOVE it!  I’ve decided this year to surprise Kaleb – both for my benefit and his.  Surprising him would make it that much more exciting for him, and I don’t have to hear him asking all day about when we leave 🙂

I wrote out invites for all of his classmates and teacher, and since Kaleb can’t read, he had no clue what he was handing out 🙂  I let his teacher know it’s a surprise so that she wouldn’t spill the beans, and she played right along 🙂

I’m pretty pumped about it, and am really looking forward to his reaction 😀