Cloth Diaper Review - Alva Baby & Kawaii Newborn

It's been a long time since I've reviewed or discussed cloth diapers. I thought now was a great time to do it!  We've just had our 5th baby.  He's 11 weeks old and just the most perfect thing ever!  If you've read my blog you know that we started cloth diapering with our 3rd child.  I sewed all his diapers myself and did some reviews here about my favorites.  When we moved to Spokane 2.5 years ago I decided to not cloth diaper our 4th. With the move happening so close to his birth I knew I wouldn't have time to make any and honestly I just didn't want to deal with cloth in a brand new house.  Big mistake! When we found out we were pregnant with our 5th I knew I wanted to start cd'ing again.  Our now almost 2 year old was showing signs of wanting to potty train so I got out the few cloth diapers I had. Our cloth diaper stash at this time consisted of 6 Kawaii diapers, 2 Medium Fuzzy Bunz, and a few of my pockets from cloth diapering Cael.

 AlvaBaby OS Pockets from Amazon.  This is two 6pc sets. One in the "Boy" colors and one in "Neutral" colors.

The last month of my pregnancy was supposed to be my "sew everything up" month.  But, a car accident rendered me to the couch for most of my last month and no sewing was done.  Thus, an alternative had to be found.  I ended up finding some size small gdiapers at my local children's consignment store.  I used some stuffers left over from previous diapering years.  I also found online a whole host of new "cheap china diapers".  I researched some and decided to try some AlvaBaby OS pockets.  So affordable and they come in a whole host of super cute prints and lovely solids. I purchased 6 (I think) for us to try on our toddler before baby arrived.  They have a USA warehouse and shipping was free with my order. When they arrived they looked almost identical to the Kawaii diapers.  The PUL seamed a bit thinner and I liked the bamboo inserts that I chose.  They washed up good and I really liked them.  We also purchased a diaper sprayer and it made it sooooo much easier to deal with toddler diapers.  If you don't yet have a diaper sprayer get one.  Get one now!!!

 Current stash for baby Henry.  (some not pictured as they are dirty) The far left 4 rows are all AlvaBaby OS Pockets.  The 6 minkies on the far right are the Kawaii NB OS Pockets.

Fast forward to 3 weeks post partum and I found that I didn't love the gdiapers.  They just didn't work well on my son.  They are awesome cloth diapers, just not right for me.  I'm a OS pocket girl.   I also saw that we were using our pockets on our toddler more than I thought we would. I tried the pockets on our newborn.  He was about 9 lbs or so.  The Kawaii baby diapers just seamed chunky and huge.  The AlvaBaby diapers fit much nicer so we decided to invest in more of those.  I ended up purchasing 3 - 6packs on Amazon of their OS pockets.  One boy colors, one neutral colors, and one boy print pack.  All came with two microfiber inserts each and were under $36 a pack!  Amazing deal!  They arrived and somehow Amazon had messed up my order.  Instead of the boy print back they sent and extra neutral colors pack.  Amazon refunded my money and said to "keep, toss, or donate" the diapers that were sent wrong.  Seriously!!!! I kept those babies and went to the AlbaBaby US website to purchase some prints.  I really wanted those prints.  I purchased some cute pocket prints and decided to try a few AI1's as well.  The AI1's that are cut the same as the pockets are awesome.  The ones that have the different style tabs and rise setting are terrible.  Stay away from those!

Baby Henry 10.5 weeks old and 15 lb.s 6oz. AlvaBaby OS Pocket diaper on the smallest rise setting.

 Alaina & Henry. Henry is 9 weeks old and just under 15 lb.s  He is wearing the Kawaii NB OS Pocket.  Medium rise setting with room in the waist velcro tabs to grow.

Henry in Kawaii OS NB Pocket. He's just over 14 lbs. here.

Another lucky find at the local children's consignment store were 6 Kawaii Baby NB Pockets.  I didn't know such a thing existed!  They were just $3.99 for 3.  So I purchased the 6 and brought them home.  All I have to say is AMAZING!  Where have these been for my past 3 babies?!  They are cut trimmer and are of course smaller all over.  Love Love Love them. (I'm adding that I've since looked on the AlbaBaby website and they to carry a NB pocket.  I bet I would love those just as much)

In conclusion I'm going to say this.  I've tried almost everything in the cloth diapering wold over the past 5 years. (I've never owned big name brand expensive pockets as they are out of my price range) If doing cloth all over again from the start I would purchase at least 14 NB OS pockets from either AlvaBaby or Kawaii. (maybe even 28) I would then also purchase 24 - 36 OS Pockets from AlvaBaby.  Would I sew my own stash? Probably not.  With the china diapers being so affordable I don't think I could make them for any cheaper.

*I know there is huge debate online right now about cheap china cloth diapers.  My opinion is this.  The big US brand diapers are lovely and I'm sure they are worth every penny. But, many simply can't afford them.  I think the china brand ones are still better for the environment, baby, and my pocket book.  These things make them better than paper diapers any day of the week in my book. 

Liam Michael

I don't think this little man has yet to have his own post. Shame on me! He turned 7 months old just a few days ago. It really is amazing just how fast the days run by. But now.... Now its time to really introduce our sweet little surprise boy.

He was born November 20th. I wish I could say it was a peaceful beautiful birth. But I would be lying.  It was the longest and most difficult delivery of my four babes. I had hoped to have a quick natural birth. But after 12 hours I was ready for that epidural. In hard labor the anesthesiologist tried 4 times to get in the epidural. I finally told him to stop. Less than 20 minutes later our son was born. He was healthy and soooo beautiful. 7 lbs 4 oz and 19 3/4 inches. We were in the hospital an extra day.

We were lucky to have my folks staying with us for the month he was born. It really made it nice to have the extra support around.

Cael took to Liam right away. We had been worried that Cael would try and hurt a new babe. He's of the jealous type after all. Even the hospital pediatrician said we should watch carefully. Gee thanks....because I wasn't already worried! As it turned out I didn't need to worry just then. He loved him. Cael was always telling us when Liam was crying or when he was just fussy. Even if we were already holding him. It was very sweet. The girls loved their new little brother. Rachel had an amazing touch. Liam would sleep on her chest for hours. And she would him and give him kisses.

As a newborn he was amazing. He slept well and loved to be cuddled and held. He never fussed unless there was some reason. He nursed beautifully and snuggled so sweet. He really reminded me of Alaina when she was new. And still does today.

He's hit his milestones as he should. Alert and grasping things by two months, fussy during one time of the day between 6 and 10 weeks,  cooing and smiling and just being adorable by 3 months. He rolled over at 5 months....would have been sooner if his belly wasn't so big! And now at 7 months he is rolling, scooting, sitting, and eating first foods. And still, he has this peaceful calm to him that reminds me so much of Alaina. He's such a sweet boy and we are thankful for him everyday.

Just look at those sweet chubs!!!

We love you sweet boy!

My Favorite Room In The House

 

The boys room.  It's my current favorite room in the house.  In our first home my daughters got a fresh nursery with pale blue walls, and fluffy clouds on the ceiling.  When we moved to our next house, they each got their own "big girl" rooms.  When Cael came I was really uninspired with his room.  He was taking over what was Ray's room so it had pale yellow walls and pistachio green trim.  I knew we would be moving and didn't want to completely repaint it.  I posted about that nursery here.  It was cute... but not awesome.  For this house I knew exactly what I wanted the nursery to be.  Grey with blue, orange, and green accents. With a trains, planes, and automobile theme.  I wanted it to be fun for Cael but still cutesy for Liam.  All that's left to do in this room is make the curtain for the closet.  That will be done while my folks are here this next week.  I love love love this room.  So perfect for my sweet boys.

 

It's a small space, but it works.  On the wall next to the door is the changing table and Liam's crib.  He is still sleeping in our room, but he plays in his crib sometimes.  He will transition into here in the next month or so. It was a rainy day so the pics are a bit dull.  But the walls are a nice medium grey.  Lovely....  The art behind the changing table was made my by mom and I.  We found the wooden shaped at JoAnnes and painted them.  Then just hot glued them to some canvases that we also painted.

 Liam's crib is so filled with love.  The crochet blanket is one my grandmother made for our babies.  The cute fishie quilt was made for Liam by my mom. The black and white print was made by Ray for Liam's X-Mas gift and finally the doll was made by me for Cael... it's Liam's now.

 Cael's side of the room boasts the awesome rocking chair a shelf, wall decals and his crib.  Under his crib is the rug I crocheted up last year.  It was a labor of love that thing.  It weighs a ton, but boy is it cute!  On Cael's crib there is the robots quilt that I made him last year.

 Another shot of Cael's bed, but this one shows the cute wall decals.

The closet and then the small wall by the door.  Both the shelf and frames I found at thrift stores. I painted the shelf.  I printed off photos of each of the boys at 1week old.  I can't believe how different they were/are!

What?! Baby #4?

 

Yep... you see my sidebar and the above photo right.  We are expecting baby #4 on December 1st. Our little one in the ultrasound above is 13 weeks 4 days along. 

This little one is a surprise for us.  We are still in a bit of shock even though we are feeling excited about him/her.  I mean really.... just look at that profile.  For my past 3 babies the first ultrasound was done between 6 and 8 weeks for dating purposes.  Those ultrasounds look mostly like a peanut.  This little one shocked me.  He/she is a fully formed little person about the size of a lemon all curled up.  Perfect spindly legs and arms.  Pearly spine, stomach, bladder, and that beautiful fluttering heart.

How am I feeling?  Well,  I'm tired, cranky, nausaus, weepy and feeling huge.  None of my regular pants fit.  So Saturday I pulled out some older pants from my closet and revamped them into maternity pants.  They are much more comfy, but I'm still in that "I feel huge, but you can't tell I'm pregnant" stage.  This little one is pushing out much much faster than any of my last 3 did.  My midwife says it's because my muscles are good and stretched out by now.... yeah.  Soon shirts will be a problem too.  As most of the ones I have still fit but don't cover the maternity band.  That's ok though... just more sewing fun to be had.

How are the kids and hubby?  Well, the kids were shocked but happy.  And, of course Cael won't really understand what's happening until baby arrives.  Hubby is doing good too although he is certainly craving a good meal.  I can't seam to pull myself into the kitchen to cook lately.  I sorta fixed that today though.  I did some good freezer meal cooking today while I felt good enough.  There are at least 12 meals in there to help out on those days when I just don't want to eat... which is pretty much every day.

I figured I would kinda track my pregnancy here.  So far I've had just the 1 appointment with my midwife.  All is well but she wasn't able to find the heartbeat.  So, she sent me off to get an ultrasound.  I wasn't surprised by this.  It wasn't until my 16th week or so that they were able to get Cael's heartbeat.  Anyways.... the ultrasound went fine.  The tech said "Did you know you have a tilted uterus?"   Yes, I knew.. but just kinda forgot about.  She told me that that was why the midwife couldn't find the heartbeat.

Weight: -10 lbs
Food Cravings... well all I want to eat is bagels and chocolate.

Tutorial - Sleep Sac To Sleep Suit!

Now that my son is standing he no longer wants to sleep in a sleep sac.  During the summer that was fine, but it's starting to get chilly and he needs something to keep him warm and toasty at night.  Looking at his sleep sac I decided to just add some ankle holes to it so he can move all over his crib and stand without getting All Twisted Up.  Here's what I did.

To start you'll need a sleep sac.  Pictured is a fleece one in size 18-24 months.  But, this would work for any size.  Ribbing fabric or any stretchy fabric for the ankles.  And, basic sewing supplies.

Step 1:  Take baby and place him inside the sleep sac.  Mark with a pen where crotch is and let baby roll away and get back to playing.  (no photo of this as he was way to wiggle to photograph and mark at the same time!)  My pins are on the inside back of the sleeper.

Step 2:  Place another pin 3" BELOW where the crotch pen mark is.  You can go further down if want to.  I wanted there to be plenty of room to grow and be loose enough for any jamies underneath.  Then lay the front of the sleeper on top and mark your zipper where your lower pin is.  This is where you will sew closed the zipper.

Steps 3 & 4:  Now you are going to sew together the zipper where you marked it with the pin.  Make sure your zipper is all the way open before you sew it down. In image 4 you can see that I've tacked it down good.  You don't want your zipper pull to come off when you unzip it.

 Step 5:  Now your going to mark where to cut to make the new legs.  I made a rounded top and slightly angled it down the sides.  It's 3" from the zipper on the top and 3.5" from the zipper on the bottom.  I just eyeballed the rounded-ness.

Step 6:  Cut out on your line.  Then cut the very bottom so that it's now open.  Then turn the sac inside out and sew along your legs as shown below.

Step 7 & 8:  Cut out two 6.5" X 6" squares of cotton ribbing.  You could use any stretchy fabric.  Just make sure it's supper stretchy.  Add.5" to the width if it's not super stretchy.  Fold your fabric in half and sew.  Then Turn it half way up so you have a cuff.  Do this to both pieces.

Step 9:  Sew your ankle ribbing into the leg openings to finish.  This was tough to stretch all the way around.  But, it did to and it fits great!

Step 10:  Turn it right side out and admire your handy work.

I also tried this with another sleep sac.  This one had minky on the outside and a layer of jersey on the inside.  It worked great with this one too.

He now has room to move around and still stay warm!

 

My Current Diaper Stash And Review Of My Favorite Pattern

I've been asked for an updated review of my favorite diaper patterns.  It's actually pretty simple now.  LDD aka: LaDiDa's.  This was a pattern that I heard rave reviews about for months before I caved and bought the pattern.  I've bought many many cloth diaper patterns and have now sold all but 4.  I've kept Fattycakes because I love them as covers.  Je'Mapelle because it fits nice and has many many styles.  A new one that I've forgotten the name of and have yet to try and of course LDD's. 

Daytime Diapering:  My stash currently consists of 11 of my altered LDD's.  I've made them medium long by adding about 2.5" through the rise and I've added some width across the front by cutting it at a bit of an angle on the fold.  This allows for more room in his front where he needs more soaking area.  For a girl you probably wouldn't need this.  I've made a few with a fun print on the outside back and tabs. (meaning that the print goes about 1/3 down the back)  I've found that these wick if he soaks his diaper good.  It doesn't happen often, but it happens enough for me to make new diapers with the embellishment just on the tabs. 

 

For soakers, I think I've tried it all.  Flannel, sweatshirt fleece, terry cloth, hemp, bamboo, jersey cotton, and microfiber.  But, my absolute favorite is ZorbII diamond.  This stuff is insanely soft, easy to wash, and absorbs like crazy.  All his diapers have one internal soaker of this stuff and a two layer soaker that snaps in.  This is the perfect amount for him during the day.  Non of my diapers have a wicking layer, but I do have some microfleece rectangles cut out and on his changing table if I think he'll be in a diaper for longer than usual. 

Construction of my diapers is fairly basic.  I use PUL for the outsides and something soft and wicking against his skin.  I usually use minky or suedecloth.  I like the minky better, but it costs more.  I prefer non cased elastic on the legs as I find they leave less marks.  My diapers are currently half cased and half uncased.

 

Nighttime Diapering:  I've been using sposies for months at night.  I know, I know..... shamefull!!!  But, I have yet to find the perfect way to diaper him at night.  I've tried fitteds with covers, super absorbent layers in an AI2, and even 2 prefolds with a cover.  Now only did he have a massive cloth diaper bum that looks terribly uncomfortable, but I still had to change him in the night at least once or twice.  Now that he's older though I want to try again.  I'm thinking my basic diaper with maybe 4-5 layers of Zorb II.

Well... That's my stash.  Let me know if you have any questions.

Altering The Fattycakes Diaper Pattern To Be Front Snapping

My hubby hates side snap diapers but I love love love the fattycake as a cover. So I altered the wings to be front snapping. Here is a picture of the altered pattern.

It was pretty simple really. I added about 1/2" to the length of the wing then found the center point of the wing. Then I maked 3/4" from both sides of my center mark so the wings would be 1.5" wide at the ends. Then I just tapered down the top and bottom of the wings all the way to the end. It looks a bit funny... but it works great. I then just put a single row of snaps across the front and two snaps on the wings. (I added a second snap to the overnights pictured below after the photo was taken) Let me know if you have any questions!

More pics of finished diapers. These first two are overnights that I made with 4 layers of ZorbII. They are awesome!!

This one is a cover. Love it! I also think this would be great as an AI1. I'm going to try that soon.

LDD's & Altered Fattycakes - Plus A Review Of ZorbII

 

I finally received some ZorbII from a very sweet mamma over on the Diaper Sewing Divas Forum.  Wazoodle is the only company that makes it.  And, it's been out of stock forever!  Anyways... The boy has been needing some good fitting AI2's so I got started when my ZorbII arrived.  My favorite 2 patterns are the Fattycakes and the LDD's.  I've altered both to fit my little man.

LDD's.  My favorite daytime diaper that I don't have near enough of.  These are all Medium Longs... meaning that I added some length to the rise.  I also cut the pattern at a bit of an angle on the fold so the front would have a pinch more width.  LOVE LOVE LOVE these.  The fit is perfect, they don't leak, they are so easy to use, and hubby loves them too!  I will be making another 12 or so of these and then I'm planning on thinning out his current stash of diapers in favor or these.

The above two (lime green and the space one) are with the same pattern but I use FOE and made them AI1's.   They were so big on his thighs!  I'm hopping these will fit him when he is needing trainers.  I know they will fit eventually... but it's a bummer that they don't fit now because I love how easy they came together and how cute they are.

Fattycakes.  My hubby likes front snapping diapers best, so I altered the pattern to be a front snapper instead of a side snapper.  Both of these are for nighttime with a total of 4 layers or ZorbII.  After many uses I have yet to have any leaks.  One is made with 2 layers of fleece and the other is PUL & Suedecloth.  I prefer the PUL one and will make 2 more.  I did add another snap to the wings after this photo was taken.

Mommy Dairy

Back in late January I was in the kitchen making dinner. Rachel was on the floor playing with Cael while he jumped in his jumper. She asked me for some string cheese and while she was eating it, I hear her saying to Cael...

Rachel To Cael: "Do you like cheese Cael?"
Cael: Cute co-oing and happy noises
Rachel to Cael: "I bet when you get older you'll love cheese. Well, maybe not. But, right now your only getting mommy dairy."

I immediately started laughing which startled Cael and made Rachel look up at me wondering what was so funny. Mommy Dairy.... only my Ray would think of something like that. I wrote down what she had said so I could remember it right. That girl just makes me smile. So creative and loving. And, I thought some of you might like a giggle!

The Busy Baby Placemat - Tutorial

 

Sitting in a restaurant over the weekend was an eye opener for me.  My son was sitting in a highchair and he was very very bored.  He kept grabbing everything he could get his hands on.  Needless to say he spent most of our dinner out in either mine or my husbands lap.  On our way out of the restaurant I knew something had to be done to insure a more hormonious dinner out next time.

Enter ... "The Busy Baby Placemat"  A tutorial for all you families that could use some piece and quiet at dinner.  This isn't an "original" idea.  I've seen things like this around the internet.  But, mine has lots of rings and dings that will surely keep baby happy for years to come.  This thing has a chalkboard on one side with two holders for chalk, and an eye-spy mat on the other.  Either way you use it it's wipiable and has 4 rings to attach toys, silverware, etc.  The top of the mat sports two suction cups to adhere it to the table and it has an elastic strap with a snap to keep it all rolled nice and neat in your bag.

Materials Needed:
Basic sewing supplies:  sewing machine, thread, scissors, etc.
Oil Cloth (or any other wipiable fabric)
Clear Vinyl - Mine is nice and thin.  You don't want anything to stiff.
Chalk Board Fabric - You can find this online as well as most fabric stores.
70 2" Eye Spy Spuares - lots of different fabrics here... use up that stash of quilting cottons!
Fold Over Elastic (FOE) - Not necessary, but it's what I used.  You could substitute with regular elastic
4 D-Rings  - Again not necessary.  You could just attach ribbon and then clip on regular toy leashes.
Grosgrain Ribbon
Single Snap or Velcro
2 Suction Cups - Mine have a loop on top so I could thread 1/4" elastic through.  This allows the suction cups to be flipped over so the mat can be used on either side.

Step 1:  Cut out 70 2" quilt squares for your "Eye Spy" side of mat.  Arrange them on a table in a pleasing fashion and then sew them together using a 1/4" seam allowance.

Step 2:  Here it is all pressed.  I added a 3" wide border all around.  The "Eye Spy" side is finished!

Step 3: Time to work on the Chalk Board side of the placemat.  Measure your finished top.  Mine was 12 3/4" X 17".  So I cut my oil cloth to that measurement.  I then cut my Chalk fabric 2.5" smaller than my oilcloth and rounded the corners.  I used my pinking rotary cutter, but it's not necessary. Center the Chalk board fabric on the oilcloth and tuck your FOE (I used two strips of FOE per side so the chalk wouldn't fall out. If using elastic, I would use 2 1" wide pieces on each side)under the chalk fabric. Sewing this down on the oilcloth can be tricky.  I used some clear tape to hold the chalk fabric down and removed it as I was sewing.  You really don't want to use pins!

Step 4:  Gather your ribbon, FOR for closure strap, suction cups, d-rings, and 1/4" elastic.  Thread about 3" of 1/4" elastic through each suction cup.  Fold about 3.5 - 4" of grosgrain ribbon through each of your 4 d-rings and sew it down.  Roll over one side of your FOE and sew it down.

Step 5:  Place your FOE strap half way up one side and sew it down like shown in photo.  Next place your ribbon and d-ring pieces on the bottom and lower sides as shown and sew them down too.

Step 6:  Your doing great!  Almost done.  Now it's time to sew it all together.  Lay your chalk side like photo above. Then put down the clear vinyl cut to the same size as your oil cloth.  They lay down your "Eye Spy" side UPSIDE DOWN!  Don't use pins here.  I used some clips.  Hair clips, paper clips.... anything like that will work.  With a 1/2" seam allowance, sew the sides and bottom ONLY!

Step 7: Measure 2" from your sew line on the sides and make a mark.  This is where your suction cups will go.  Now this part and the next part are a bit tricky...  Sew across one side of the top and insert your suction cut between the vinyl and the oilcloth and sew down.  Do this to both sides.  You want to leave 8" or so open in the center of the top so don't sew all the way across just yet.

Step 8:  Now clip your corners and turn it all around.  This part was a pain!! The vinyl and the oilcloth was sticking to each other and it was hard to turn.  Be patient and it will go.  Top stitch around making sure you close the opening. Sorry, no photo of that.

Step 9:  Prep your chalk board by rubbing chalk all over it really good.  Wipe it off with a dry or slightly damp cloth.

 Step 10: Congratulations!  Your finished.  Find a cute child old or young to play with your new Busy Baby Placemat.  My son won't be using the chalk side for a while.  We'll be clipping toys onto the d-rings and he can look at all those pretty fabrics while we are at restaurants.