Cloth Diapering: A Year in Review

My baby girl is now 18 months old and we've been cloth diapering since day 1. We've come a long way since that fateful day in July 2011. I love my diapers, I've learned to love diaper laundry. I love how cute my daughter's butt is compared to other baby's plain disposables. When we started I was committed to playing the field, not buying into one style 100%.

That worked great for us. Every baby has a different shape and grows at different rates. I found that at those awkward growth stages, we stuck to prefolds and covers. When she filled out in the thighs we had great success with one size pockets. Now that she's about 22 lbs I find we lean towards fitted AIOs.

eBay, Craigslist, and Consignment

Buying on Ebay, at diaper consignment sales, and off Craigslist offered us the best prices. Locally, my favorite diaper store Top To Bottom Baby have a bi-annual diaper consignment sale called Fluff Again, they've even expanded into Kansas City. Not only could I cycle through the dud diapers and make some of my money back, but I got the chance to find fully prepped diapers I knew I liked. As long as you're willing to take the gamble, Ebay is awesome (and addictive).  I know there's a lot of debate about the cheap Chinese pockets you can get on Ebay. They are knock-offs and hurt the American market. yackety shmakety- I bought about 10 of them and we STILL use about 5 of them regularly. They didn't fit right way, and they aren't the kind of diaper I'd use if we were going to be out. But they are great at home, day time diapers.  On several of the other more 'respectable' brand name diapers I've purchased on Ebay, I've more than made my money back in resale.
         The key is responsible shipping. DON'T GUESS! Weigh your diapers and price accordingly.

Craigslist has also been a cornucopia of goodness. I got 10 Kissaluvs size 2 and 9 Kissaluvs doublers for $50. Most of them had never even been used, not even prepped.

Personal Favorites!

hands down, I love my Swaddlebees Simplex 2.0 fitted diapers. I've had 4 and currently have 2. They're a bit pricey for my budget, but totally worth it. Side Snap diapers are the bees knees, seriously. They are trimmer, and you can size the waist and thighs differently.  Some pants don't fit exactly right with the fluffy butts, but side snap diapers tend to fit in there a bit better.

Almost Graduated

I am taking 7 minutes away from writing my research paper to do a little blog post. I need to keep writing, but if I have to think about railroad passenger cars for one more second my head may burst.

That's right, Railroad Passenger Cars .   Not just any old cars. I'm talking about ALL mother fucking passenger cars. Coach, Sleeper, Dining, Observation. You name it, I've got 6 paragraphs on it.  Pullman, Wagner, leaf spring, berth- All keywords I wish I could forget.

You know the funny thing? This is not my first research paper. It's not my first 25 page paper. But it is the first time I've been forced to write on a topic so dull and dreary that I actually despise history.

Side note- as of 6PM this evening I'll be finished with my college education. Only took 10 years. Not bad for a mother, wife, and outstanding full time employee.
(dammit, only 4 minutes to type all that)

A favorite of mine.

Pasta E Fagioli from Veganomicon

  I made this today!

Super excited because it was easy, and delicious. 

Reminder: All good things you see are coming from Veganomicon.

I also made breakfast this morning. Basic tempeh hash. Super flavor, great texture.

---

Last but not least. A classic Riley picture to remind you that there's always a place for silly hats.

A new adventure in vegan cooking.

I can't hide it anymore. I have a total vegan/creator crush on Isa Moskowitz. She's the creator of Veganomicom (as well as many other cookbooks,but that's my favorite). I am a consta-scanner of her Post Punk Kitchen as well as fervent fan on Twitter and Instagram. Am I starting to sound creepy? Cause sometimes it feels creepy. On top of all that, we live in the same damn city- so I even run into her at a few vegan hot spots in town. I get silent and stare-y EVERY time.
Back to the point though. I finally bought Veganomicon (and Vegan With A Vengeance) for my family. It's my gift to the vegan in my life. No more scouring the internet for recipes. 
So please, be expecting photos and links to the fucking amazing meals I am soon to make.
I should also tell you, in the interest of full disclosure, I'm sitting in the Whole Foods parking lot at 7:30 am waiting for them to open so I can make some breakfast.

---

Follow @IsaChandra

A messy kitchen and the bigger statement.

Last night I had two goals
1. Make a killer award winning salsa.
2. Make fantastic white chicken chili.
I accomplished both, but the resulting kitchen chaos was ridiculous. I took some pictures to commemorate the disaster. Whatever, it was acceptable- I was both emptying the dishwasher and loading it while putting away various ingredients.
What struck me almost immediately was how I would have reacted to someone else making that kind of mess in my domain. Namely, my husband. I would have shit bricks had I walked in the room at the point of my pictures. And I can assume my tone would have been bitchy and accusatory.
It's not fair and it wouldn't have been nice. But I know it would have been angry. I showed him the pictures and explained my realization. He agreed.
Being a wife is a tricky game sometimes. I didn't fail last night, but I could have. Score 1 for me!

Get creative with potato chips

I've been getting 8-10 little red potatoes per week in my CSA bag from Wenninghoff Farms . Lately I've been baking them in light oil. Creating either crispy dark brown chips or slightly soft potato slices.
I enjoy adding any number of spice combo. Tonight for about 5 thinly sliced reds I added:

1. 1/2 tsp garlic powder
2. 1/2 tsp cumin
3. 1/2 tsp curry
4. 1 1/2 c canola
5. 2 tbsp sea salt
6. Pepper to taste

Mix, coat, layer on baking sheet.
Cook for about 30 minutes at 350 degrees. Flip them halfway, and remove the smaller ones as needed.

Canning/Pickling Okra

Tonight, I'm pickling okra and canning it. For those of you afraid of canning, or fearful of slimy okra- be not afraid, for I am lazy and still manage to do it.

I'd like to say quality okra and great fresh spices are the key to great pickled okra. I'd also like to say I take the time to make cute little labels for each jar that have a 'made with love, eat with joy' caligraphy sticker label on them....

I used my brother's left over okra and last year's pickling spice mix for my canning this year. I do have some pointers on okra though.

1. Pick it yourself. I know there's a U-Pick field within 5 miles of you. Find it and utilize your local market.

2. If you can't get it from a field/ farmers market or backyard garden- get it organic. I always feel better when the food I eat is organic (especially when you eat the entire food, skins and all).

3. Size matters- You want pliable, softish okra that's no more than 3-4 inches long. My personal opinion is under 3 is optimal.
4. I freeze my okra before I put it in the jars. I don't know if it's just an old wives tale or not, but I do it every time. I think it makes them crispier. 

2 Ways to Prep your Jars

1. Wash in warm soapy water then rinse and set in a low temperature oven until ready.
    - I've seen any temperature from 100 degrees to 250 degrees called for. 
2. Run them through the dishwasher alone, no soap, heated dry. Don't touch them until you're ready to use them.

Okra/other ingredient prep:

• I like to include 2-3 garlic cloves per jar - regardless of what I'm pickling.
• I use either chilies or hot banana peppers, cut however you like. I like long slices.
• In each jar I'll use a dime-quarter size amount of Ball Mixed Pickling Spice
• My briney mix is 3 cups white vinegar, 2 cups water, 1/4 cup salt, little pinch of sugar(I forgo the sugar). 

Putting it all together!

1. Sterilize your jars, bands, and keep the lids in hot (not boiling) water.
2. Bring your briny mix to a boil.
3. Pull out 1 jar at a time and pack it as full as you can. Careful not to get your hands on the jar insides.
4. Ladle in the boiling briny mix until there's about 1 inch of space left at the top of the jar.
5. With tongs or a lid picker uper place the lid on the jar and the band over the lid.
6. Tighten it down to just what you can do with your fingers. Hot jar and clean lid mean you won't want to man handle the jar to get it super tight.
7. Place jars in your boiling water bather for 15 minutes.
8. Set them on a cooling rack or cutting board covered in a towel overnight.

The towel is to prevent air currents hitting your jars and making them crack. You'll hear the telltale lid 'POP' when they've sealed themselves shut!.

Love is A VERB

I came home from the gym tonight and the apartment was clean. The girl's clothes were neatly folded in individual piles (pants, dresses, shirts, shorts) for each child. The dishes were done. And the toys were nicely piled.

It reminds me that I love being married. And that sometimes I forget that my husband is a nice guy that isn't always trying his hardest to do as little as possible- Yes, I have used those exact words at him.

Love is a VERB- and I ought to remember that when I see it in action.

Work is hard, friends are a challenge, and my kids drive me crazy- But my partner in awesomeness makes it all a little bit easier.

Okay, I know I know, sappy and all said before...... but it also doesn't hurt that he still has a great ass.

A little birdie told me to do it

I got myself a fun little tattoo yesterday. Of course, for same day tattoos in the Midwest I went to Sailors Grave .

How to Kill time.....

On occasion, I get really bored and internally grumpy that my loving spouse is busy with college homework or being anti-social. So I need to find quiet, non-stabby ways to clice a few hours from my life. Tonight, it's live blogging my boringness, then tweeting about the live blogging. Seriously, I couldn't be much lamer.

80s Movie Quiz!

DUI protocol ( I've always wondered)

What do people Google?  A topic near and dear to my heart.

Vegan Cajun Risotto Bites- video!

Tonight, I was YouTube scanning. And happily enough I ended up watching The Vegan Zombie for about 20 minutes. My favorite- and also my dinner- were the Cajun Risotto Bites.

 Now, did I follow the recipe exactly? No.   I didn't follow through and fry the bites. I didn't use home made veg stock. Also, I used a little less rice and a little more stock. Oh, and I didn't make my own Cajun  spice.... But what I did use all came together GREAT!

Definitely for a quick and easy dish. Simple enough that I might even teach the husband how to make it.

Vegan Onion Fried Rice

I'm basically a lazy person. Deep down inside I have pep and spunk- but on a day to day basis I keep is pretty low key and lazy.

My simple weeknight meal that can be 3 ingredients or it an be 7 (depending on what's in the crisper) is:

Onion Fried Rice

2 - 2.5 Cups Cooked Rice
3 green onions (or more if you like), chopped
Minimum 3 cloves of garlic, sliced/chopped/minced
+/- 5 Tbsp Soy Sauce
2-3 Tbsp Cooking Oil

Optional:

dab of ginger paste
can of water chestnuts
1 c. frozen peas*
1/2 c. Shallots or Onions, chopped
1-2 tsp. Hoisin sause
Healthy dash of Sriracha

Directions:

Steam your rice.
In a bowl mix 2-3 Tbsp Soy Sauce, Onions, and Garlic
Heat oil in your wok, add Onion mix and saute until every thing's good and translucent.
Turn heat to low and add rice.
stir a lot if it looks too dry add a little soy sauce or even a good dash of water (2tsps)

*If you're adding peas wait until the very end when you add your rice.

Simple, Vegan, and easy to reheat the next day. It's great for clearing out the crisper and super cheap if you're on a budget.

5 TIPS FOR DIAPER RESALE

1.      Take care of them. Spray well, wash well, and maintain them. Diapers with lots of staining are FAR harder to sell than diapers with wear signs
   
   
2.   Be honest and descriptive in photos. If the diaper has a worn spot along the elastic, take a photo. Moms know what will and won’t affect function. 
   
3.       People love to win, so start your bidding price low.
   
4.       Research and be aware of shipping costs. Shoot- you can use a stamp for anything less than 13oz that’s in an envelope of any size. Yes is easy to just give in and pay for the flat rate box.  But personally, are you willing to spend $8 on shipping ever? Nope, me either. The average AIO only weighs like 7 oz. It shouldn’t cost more than $2 to ship in a large manila envelope (from the dollar store). Which leads me to my next suggestion.
   
5.      Buy your shipping supplies from the dollar store. You get like 5-6 large manila envelopes for $1! 

If you're buying smart and taking care of your stash- there's no reason you can't make a majority (if not all) of your money back on the diapers you need to destash.

Cloth Diaper Resale

Recently I decided to get serious about paring down my diaper stash. I have just too much to justify holding on to the diapers I like less than others. I’ve been at the cloth diapering game for almost a year now, which puts me in the latter half of the stash cycle anyway.

I like to use eBay. It’s where I bought a lot of my diapers, so it’s only right to sell them there as well.  What I discovered was that my diapers held up well in the resale market.

I sold a Coolababy, Velcro Pocket OS diaper with insert for $5 + $2 shipping. I paid $8.99 for two originally + like $3 shipping.

So $5.99 originally and sold for $7 used. Not bad at all. 

I sold a BumGenius Elemental Organic All in One Aplix for $9.50 + $2.77 shipping.  Originally I spent $6.50 + $2.77 shipping. So again, I made more on the diapers than I spent.

I participate in a local diaper consignment sale, which I didn’t sell as much or for as much profit. Maybe it’s a Midwestern thing, but we don’t like to go out and spend money. I had a couple of Kissaluvs Size 2 in that sale and only managed to sell them (unused, just prepped) for $5 each. 

Obviously, not all sales are going to yield a profit. But, if you take good care of your stash and present it well, there’s no reason why you can’t make almost all of your money back on the diapers you don’t like as much as the others.

It tastes so good ...

Today's amazing breakfast juice is
1 blood orange
3 carrots
3 apples
2 regular oranges
Handful of blackberries

Made 4 cups ish

Usually one handed typing is a fun thing

Tonight, and probably tomorrow, it's a sad thing. My easy going, never crys baby is in full on teething PLUS a cold and an ear infection. She has no voice because of the coughing. And there is nothing more heart breaking that a 6 month old's raspy babble.
Anyway- I've only got one arm because she FINALLY calmed down and passed out on my arm. And there is no fucking way I'm going to wake her up. I'm not even going to attempt to put her down.  I've watched two episodes of Portlandia and plan to watch the rest of the first season shortly.

my sleeping baby

A sick baby will break your heart. But knowing that you just have to suck it up and not shake the crap out of them after 6 days of crying - that's killing me. Why isn't her amber necklace making this all go away?

While I was looking for this webcam picture, because I am incapable of saving pictures to logical places, I found this scarey picture of our dog Grimm.