Cloth Diaper Update #2

Okay. . . We are now 6 months into this cloth diapering journey and it has really been a journey. I have been so blessed with a sweet little girl that has the most sensitive skin EVER!!!! Cloth and disposable break her out! Oh and there is the ear infection she got which was treated with a good healthy dose of antibiotics that gave massive diarrhea oh and a yeasty rash!! (she is gonna love reading this one day) After many trips to the cloth diaper store, a venture into wool covers, and multiple combinations we are now in pampers until I can get her rash cleared up! So what I have learned is that when all is clear all is good! When all is not clear all is not good!

Washing is really not that hard! If you are like me and hate folding and putting away well the laundry is a pain. I have had an issue with them stinking and come to find out I was not using enough soap. To get rid of the stink a little overnight soak and problem solved. Now for the yeast I have to bleach them and rinse and bleach and rinse and so on and so on! A little more work.

I read a blog not too long ago about how easy cloth diapers are. Easy is not what I would call this. I still think cloth is worth it but I did not know that having a sensitive skined child could make this journey so . . . interesting!

For my girls

One night as I was perusing through Pinterset I ran across this pin that put a few things into perspective for me! You see when I was pregnant and had Lindsey I was 24 years old. Little did I know I was in the process of a complete makeover on the inside! Faster than I would have liked I was growing out of college girl and becoming a wife and a mom. The wife thing was not too hard but becoming a mom was a whole different story. I was not ready! I was still selfish. I was just out of school, I just started a job, I was still young, I just got married! So when the first stretch mark appeared at around 30 weeks I was devastated. I was too young to have stretch marks. I mean I had bikinis to wear!!! It seemed like overnight my abdomen was covered in these silvery marks. To make matters worse after I lost all the baby weight and then some they were still there but now my abdomen just hung and was saggy! I was 24 years old with a abdomen of an old lady! I allowed my view of beauty to be all wrapped up in the way my belly appeared. I have spent the past 3 years shedding that selfish self and becoming a mom my girls deserve. Any who, as I saw that pin my perspective changed almost instantly.  Here is what I am coming to know as truth:

Each mark reminds me of each month God allowed me to carry my girls. Every line is a reminder of each breath you took, each kick you kicked, and even each punch to my bladder. Each mark is a reminder of the nights I prayed for your healthy arrival. Each line reminds me of God's love for me and you. Each mark reminds me of the love your father and I share that created you! Each line is proof of God's grace and mercy. The belly that now hangs and sags was your home that kept you safe and nourished you until the time came that I could hold you in my arms and make you feel safe and warm.

No longer will I allow myself to look in the mirror and be disgusted. I will now stand in the mirror with pride knowing that each stretch mark and the saggy skin is a reminder that God allowed me to be a mother to 2 beautiful girls. Those marks are an outward sign of the inner change my sweet Jesus has been doing in me.

***A special thanks to my sweet friend Cheryl for taking this picture for me! She is by far the best photographer and friend I could ever ask for!!

Been a little busy

Introducing Ella Clair Beth Dunks aka EC! She made her arrival on Aug 21st! She was 9 lbs and 21 inches long! No wonder my ribs were hurting! She has beautiful RED hair and long fingers and toes. I think she is pretty darn cute!

Lindsey thinks that Ella Clair is pretty awesome! She is a great big sister! I am so proud of her. 

Thank you to all who prayed boldly that we could have this baby naturally. I was suppose to have a C-Section since Lindsey's birth was so traumatic. However as the time got closer my heart knew that God could deliver this baby safely and naturally. So I put all my trust in God and began to pray that God would allow us to have her naturally. Our Dr. agreed that it would be safe and so we went in for a natural delivery! Please don't read this as anti C-section. I just knew in my heart that it was not the delivery we were suppose to have! 

So on Aug 20th we went into the hospital at 2:00pm to be induced and at 5:00 am on Aug 21st a beautiful little ginger was born with NO complications. The delivery was pretty close to perfect the way I knew God could provide. God is so amazing. I was so relaxed I fell asleep between contractions when I was pushing. 

From the moment she was born I was able to hold and love on her. No having to sneak out of the room to the NICU to see my little girl. It was just my little family all together from the beginning! I feel incredibly blessed!

She is so long! 

So pretty. She is my little snuggle bunny! If I sleep with her in the recliner she will sleep for hours on end! She just wants to be close! She is the opposite of big sister!

I have so many posts to share with ya'll! Eventually I will get caught up! o and cloth diapering is going great!