Friday, October 19, 2012

The Book of Mormon App

I belong to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, otherwise known as Mormons. As a Mormon, I believe in The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ. The Book of Mormon is similar to the Bible, but is written by people who were living in the Americas before and at the time of Christ. Jesus Christ visited them after his resurrection and taught them many of the same things that he taught to the Jews while he was alive. Recently, the church created a free app that contains text and audio versions of The Book of Mormon. To learn more, check it out here. To download it from the Apple store, go here.
I've read The Book of Mormon many times in my life, starting as a small child reading with my family. I first read it on my own around age 14, and have read it over again many times since. I want you to know that I know that it is a true book. In my current reading, I am in 3rd Nephi, which is when Christ visits the people called the Nephites. It is beautiful scripture, and always touches my heart. I know that I can come closer to Christ by reading The Book of Mormon, and invite you to do the same.

And hey, if you read it and don't like it, you won't be out anything, as it's totally free!

Tuesday, October 9, 2012

Cloth Diapering

When my older sister told me that she was planning on using cloth diapers for her first baby, I finally convinced myself that I wanted to give it a shot, also. I've thought about using them for awhile, and just never wanted to take that leap. A friend of mine also uses cloth diapers and told me that the ones she uses are so much more affordable than some of the more popular cloth diaper brands. So, I checked it out. I looked at a lot of different brands, read many articles & blogs with advice & experiences, and in the end, while other brands may be better quality, or more absorbent, I opted for a good product for a great price.
I ordered from Sun Baby Diapers. For my first order, I didn't want to order a bunch of diapers without knowing whether I would like them, or not, so I opted to buy the pack of 6 diapers with 12 microfiber inserts. These are pocket diapers, so they have the waterproof outer shell and a fleece lining that creates a pocket, into which you stuff an absorbent liner. They also have tons of snaps (instead of Velcro) to accommodate many sizes. I was so excited when the diapers finally arrived! The shipping did take awhile as they shipped from China, where the seller lives, but it was also free shipping.

I have been so impressed with these diapers. I've had them for a few weeks now & have never had a problem with leaking. They are simple to snap on, even with my 10 month old squirming all around. They seem super comfortable & I haven't noticed any squeezing on my daughter's legs. As for the "what do I do with the poop" issue, it really hasn't been bad. I give it a quick dunk & swish in the toilet, and then just put the soiled diapers into my washing machine. I don't do laundry every day, so the diapers can sit there until I have enough to do a load. Six diapers is just enough to get me through the day, but I definitely wanted to have more, so I don't have to wash them every day. I recently placed another order, this time for 12 diapers with just 12 microfiber inserts. My two orders totaled $105. So, I've ordered 18 diapers with 24 inserts, which works out to about $5.85 per diaper, with a few extra inserts. That's a whole lot better than between $10 and $20 a diaper!
With cloth diapering, it kind of made sense to just use cloth wipes. Again, I researched a lot to find out the best way. If you want to pay tons of money, there are certainly organic wipes & special sprays you can use. For me, I like to just use a spray bottle filled with water to get her bum clean. I made some wipes by cutting squares of flannel & serging the edges & these work great. I also really like the wipes that I made by just cutting up some thrift-store-bound t-shirts into handy squares. I just stuff them all into a disposable wipes container for easy access.
I did buy a wetbag to use for dirty diapers while on the go, and it works perfectly. We are definitely cloth diaper fans & it certainly doesn't hurt to see those chubby baby legs sticking out of a big, fluffy cloth diaper.
I'm sure if you asked someone else about cloth diapers, you would get completely different advice, but I just wanted to share my experience with this seller because it has been so positive.
I wasn't compensated in any way for this post, I just wanted to share a good product with which I've been very impressed.