Mile High Momday: DIY Baby Wrap Carrier

When I had Jackson, I had a baby sling that I put him in all the time.  About a year later, it was recalled.  It didn't really matter too much to me, because he had outgrown it already, but then when I got pregnant with Gavin, I started doing research on something to replace the sling.  Everything I read was saying that the wrap style baby carriers were the way to go.  I had seen these before, but to be honest, they looked WAY too complicated for my busy life.  Sure, they were great once you took 15 minutes to tie it around yourself and put the baby in, but I just don't have that kind of time or patience.  I was talking to a neighbor of mine about these wraps and she said she had one that I could borrow.  So I did.  And it sat in the nursery for the first two weeks.  Then one day I got the motivation to try it out, and Googled how to wrap it around me.  It took me a couple minutes the first time, but once I got Gavin settled in, he loved it.

 He fell right into a swaddled baby sleep and that's how he stayed until I took him out.  

And it was so much more comfortable on me than most other carriers.  It's super lightweight and not bulky, so you can still go about your business.  And after I figured out how to wrap it, it only takes me a minute to wrap it around me and put Gavin in it. The other thing I loved about using a wrap is that I felt that Gavin was so much more secure than any other carriers I have.  I have both the Ergo (with the infant insert) and the Bjorn, and while they are both good for older babies, I always feel like I need to support his head with my hand when I moved around.  When you wrap the baby, their head is firmly on your chest and not going anywhere. Being truly hands free is a necessity for me right now because of Jackson.  So I fell in love with this wrap, the only problem is that I was just borrowing it from a neighbor and needed to give it back.  Similar wraps can run you upwards of $70 (or more), and that's just not a possibility right now.  Enter DIY.  For about $16 a wrap, I made my own, and you can too.  No, seriously.  You don't even have to know how to sew!  Here's how:

This is what the original borrowed one from the neighbor looked like, all laid out.

1)  Go to your local fabric store and get 6 yards (5 if you have a smaller frame) of a knit or rayon blend stretchy fabric.  Like t-shirt material.  The key with this is to get something that rolls on the ends and doesn't fray.  You'll want something with a little give in it.  A jersey knit is best.  The fabric I got was a little more expensive at almost $13 a yard, but I never shop at Joann's without a 50% off coupon, so that brought it down to $6.50 a yard.  That's still really expensive fabric, but I was being really picky and wanted something super soft and lightweight, since it's still in the 90's here.  You could get it for as low as $2.50 a yard, (with a coupon) if you really wanted to.  This fabric will be enough for you to make 2 wraps.  (Sorry, you can't get 3 yards and only make one wrap, you'll see why later....)

2)  Now that you have your fabric, find a place with lots of floor space and lay out the fabric.  Fold it in half long wise and in half long wise again, so that the fabric is shorter, but it's still the same original width of the fabric.  

3)  Now you cut it in half, width wise, so you have 2 pieces of fabric that are 6 yards long and about 25-30 inches wide (depending on how wide the fabric you bought was).  You don't have to sew a hem in it or anything, because the fabric doesn't fray!

 

4)  You're done!  Take one of those puppies and wrap your baby around you and go about your business.  

Now, for those of you that want extra credit, here are a couple more steps that I took, to give it a more finished look.  

1)  Take one of your wraps and fold it width wise.  

2)  Cut a triangle off the open side at the end, like this:

So it tapers at the ends, like this:

3)  Do that to both sides.

This step makes it a little less bulky at the ends, where you tie it and it hangs down.  

If you really want to go above and beyond, you can hem the edges. 

I'm a pinner and found that pinning and ironing this material really does help to keep it in place. I also fold it over twice, so you don't see the raw edge.

Ta Da!

 

 

I realized after making this and looking at the pictures that I look an awful lot like the Statue of Liberty.

Here's the best part, this DIY project makes two wraps!  That means that I have an extra one that I'll be GIVING AWAY!  All you have to do is leave a comment (any comment) and I'll randomly pick someone to give it to on Friday.  I'll even ship it to you for free! 

The one where I talk about my body....

It's been nearly three weeks since giving birth, and I'm starting to feel much better.  I have more energy (even though I'm not getting much sleep) and I'm not as sore.  It's so nice to be on this side of pregnancy.  I love being able to bend over, lift things and be on my feet for more than a few minutes before having to sit down.  I've been really eager to start working out again.  When I took Gavin in for his two week checkup, I asked our doctor (we all go to the same doctor) if I was allowed to start working out.  She said no.  She said I could stretch and walk, but that I can't do any real working out until after 6 weeks.  That's disappointing.  I'm almost never motivated to work out, so I'd like to capitalize on this new found desire.  

I think the reason behind my motivation is that I know I can get my body back.  When I had Jackson I was told time and time again by other moms that I'll never really have my pre-baby body back.  That having a baby changes your shape forever.  Then I had Jackson.  And at first I wasn't motivated at all to get my pre-pregnancy body back.  I thought maybe that spare tire would just come off.  It didn't. Not a single inch. So I finally got motivated to try to take it off.  And guess what?  It worked.  It took almost 18 months, but I finally got down to my pre-Jackson size.  I was actually smaller than I was when I got pregnant.  So now, knowing that it's totally possible to get back to the way I was makes me really motivated and eager to get it started.  

Okay, here is the part where I justify myself.  I know I shouldn't have to defend my desire to get back my pre-baby body, but I also feel like if I don't justify myself, I'll get a lot of "you are so small, you don't need to lose weight" comments.  So, listen.  I'm aware that I have skinny arms and legs.  And I also know that the number on the scale is completely normal and healthy for my frame.  My goal isn't to lose weight, although that will probably happen when I lose the fat in my stomach.  My goal is to feel comfortable wearing shirts that hug my stomach.  And when I have babies, all the weight goes to my mid section.  And it stays there.  And people think I'm pregnant.  Because when you have really thin arms and legs, people assume that you should be thin everywhere.  And when you aren't, they assume you're pregnant.  And this isn't some sort of weird body image issue I've conjured up in my brain.  I've had people ask me when I'm due.  Lots of people.  Up until Jackson was 18 months old, people regularly asked me if I was pregnant.  Which never feels good.  


So, until my doctor clears me for that bootcamp that I bought on Groupon, I'll walk with the boys, and say no to ice cream.  Maybe.


Probably.


Eh, probably not...

A love letter, part two

Dear Sweet Baby Gavin,
I love you so much. You are so sweet and laid back and easy. But oh my God you are such a NOISY sleeper! So tonight, I'm kicking you out of our bedroom. I'll miss having you right beside me in your bassinet, but Mommy is SO tired and desperate for a decent nights sleep. I've set up a great crib for you in your nursery. If you need me, cry nice and loud and I'll come to you.

Love,
Mommy

Mile High Momday: DIY Laundry Detergent

I'm starting up a new weekly feature called Mile High Momday.  Every Monday I'll post about a DIY project, a money saving tip, recipes, crafts, activities for kids or really anything I'm loving at the moment that I think you might love too. 

I'm starting off my very first Momday with a recipe for making your own laundry detergent.  I'm in no way a laundry snob.  I'm not picky at all about my detergent.  As long as it gets the clothes clean and they smell good (or at least don't smell bad) I'm game.  What I am a snob about is paying an arm and a leg for detergent each month.  The average cost per load for name brand laundry detergent is about 20 cents (and higher).  With this recipe, the average cost per load is about 1 cent.  ONE PENNY!  Yes, please!  The other great thing about this recipe is how fast and easy it is.  You only need three ingredients, a couple household items and about five minutes.

What you'll need:

*1 bar laundry soap like Fels Naptha, Zote or Ivory (I've read that you can use a variety of soaps not listed above as well)

*1 Cup Borax - found in the laundry aisle
*1 Cup Washing Soda  (Note:  This is washing soda, NOT baking soda.  I found it in the laundry aisle at my grocery store)

First you grate or shave the bar of soap.  My food processor has this neat grater built right in, so that made it even easier.  You can just use a hand grater too.   

Put the grated soap in a food processor along with the Borax and Washing Soda and blend until it's a powdery detergent.  

That's it!  You only need to use 1 Tablespoon for average loads, but you can use 2 if your laundry is especially soiled.  I doubled the recipe and it fit perfectly into this glass container.  

Okay, I know what you are thinking.  That's great Michele, but does it work?  Well, I just made this for the first time last night, and have only done one load of laundry, but from what I've seen (and read on numerous other websites) yes.  It totally works.  I did a big load of whites last night and it got our clothes just as clean as the name brand detergent I have been using.  Although the Zote soap has a kind of lemony smell to it, I didn't think the clothes had any smell at all when I took them out of the dryer.  (And as I mentioned in my Steam and Sweep post, no smell = truly clean) I even gave underwear, socks and shirt armpits a sniff and didn't smell anything.  I also used my name brand fabric softener in the washer still, so I don't know how that effected it.  But I promise you, if I end up not liking this home made detergent after using it for a while, or think it doesn't clean as well as it should, I'll tell you.

What about a High Efficiency washer?  We do have an HE front loader and were told we HAD to use special HE detergent in it.  From what I understand, the reason behind it is suds.  HE washers can't have detergents that suds up a lot, which makes this home made detergent even better.  It is low suds.  For those of you with regular washing machines, don't be fooled by the fact that this detergent doesn't suds up.  It can still clean your clothes without the suds. 

Let me know if you decide to try this at home and what you think of the results!

And then there were four.....

 

We've been home from the hospital for ten days now and are definitely in the swing of things.  Gavin is such a laid back baby.  He rarely cries, and mostly sleeps all day and night.  I know that most newborns sleep most of the time, but I'm still feeling really lucky to have such an easy baby.  The nights are the hardest part, for sure, but even at that, he is sleeping for 2-3 hours at a time.  I get up and feed him, and he usually goes right back to sleep.  Sometimes he'll fuss for a while, or want to eat even more.  Those nights are harder, but we are making it work.  It's been business as usual during the day.  Running errands, going to birthday parties, and playing with friends.  I try to keep Gavin either on my body (wearing him in a carrier) or all covered up in his car seat/stroller combo.  They are so easy and portable at this age.  It's great!  I'm still pretty sore, and being on my feet for a long time hurts, so we tend to not be gone all day anyway.  Plus, having a three year old makes it more difficult to run around all day.  

 
 
 

Jackson is doing what I would expect.  He loves his baby brother and likes to help out with him.  He'll get concerned when he cries.  But he is definitely acting more whiny and wanting my attention more.  I've been trying to give him some one on one time, completely away from Gavin, here and there.  And my mom is here with us, so that really helps.  I'm sure that when my mom and mother-in-law leave, there will be quite an adjustment for him.

 

I'm doing well.  Sleep deprived for sure, but I don't care.  I absolutely LOVE this stage of having a baby!  Having a newborn in the house makes me want to have ten more babies.  He is so sweet and cuddly and sleepy and soft and I am so in love. 

P.S.  These are the pictures that were taken at the hospital when Gavin was 1 day old.

What would have been 39 weeks

Okay, okay.  I know I'm not actually pregnant anymore, but I thought I'd share how this last week has been going for me, physically and mentally.  Then, I promise I'll stop with these weekly updates.  

I've totally fallen in love all over again, which has made anything else I've been going through totally worth it.  I thought, given that Gavin is my second child, maybe I wouldn't want to just sit and hold him and stare at him night and day, but I totally do.  I am one smitten kitten.  He is so perfect and laid back and the everything we could hope for in a new addition to our family. 

As for how I've been feeling, physically.  Eh, pretty good.  Considering I just shot a baby out of my lady business like a canon.  I'm still extremely sore, you know, down there.  Walking or standing for any extended period of time gets really uncomfortable, so I have to try to remind myself to sit down regularly.  I was super crampy for the first few days, but that has almost completely stopped now.  

Now, for my boobs.  They are broken.  I tried pumping this past week.  One day, I got about a half ounce total at one sitting.  I was ecstatic.  I thought it was the beginning of a good thing.  Then about two or three hours later I pumped again, and got a little less.  Two hours after that the milk barely even covered the bottom of the bottle.  Every time I pumped after that I got less and less, until absolutely nothing came out.  Not.  One.  Drop.  I can't say I understand why.  I continued pumping, like I should have.  My milk came in and I was engorged, but nothing came out.  I'm also not going to lie and say that I'm terrible surprised OR terribly disappointed.  I went into this not even sure if I wanted to pump or breastfeed at all, so I'm proud of myself for even trying.  It didn't work out.  It's okay. 

I've been feeling pretty good, emotionally, this week.  Much better than when I had Jackson.  I guess with Jackson I was so overwhelmed with everything and I wasn't expecting it.  This time I was prepared to be overwhelmed and I'm really not.  My extremely fast labor is really the only thing that has been bothering me.  Don't get me wrong.  I'm am so very grateful that I had a successful labor and delivery and that Gavin and I are both just fine and healthy.  But after doing a little research on the ever reliable Google, I found out just how scary that situation was and how wrong it could have gone.  Apparently, I had what is called a "precipitous labor".  It's a medical term for a fast labor, 3 hours or less from start to finish, and it happens in about 2% of all labors.  I definitely fit into that 2%.  As great as it must sound to some people, especially for women who have had really long labors, it can be quite dangerous, and is definitely not an ideal situation for moms or babies.  Google told me all about the increased risk of cervical lacerations, tearing, hemorrhaging, emotional distress and mother's loss of ability to cope with labor, hypoxia from intense contractions, fetal distress, and cerebral  or lung damage to the baby from going through the birth canal too fast.  Those are scary things.  And, thankfully, none of those things happened to us.  But it really was very traumatic and intense, and not something I'll ever forget about.  It's been hard to not think about it.  And hard to not think of "what ifs".  The biggest "what if" would be "what if I get pregnant again?"  Seriously.  I'm not interested in having a home birth.  And although it's completely useless to even think about that at this point, as I have no intention of getting pregnant again anytime soon, those thoughts are definitely creeping into my mind here and there.  Fortunately, I have time on my side.  Time to forget just a little bit.  And time to decide if we do want to have another baby.  

But all in all, I would say that I'm feeling pretty good.  I feel ready to get out of the house more and be active.  I just need to wait for my body to catch up to my mind.   

 

DIY Plush Owl

I looked long and hard for a stuffed owl for baby Gavin, and I just couldn't find one that I was happy with.  One that matched his room and was soft for babies.  Once again, my sewing machine saved the day!  (I should note that I made this owl the night before Gavin was born, not since he was born.  I suppose it was one last nesting push.....nesting.....get it?!)  I thought since I had made the quilt already, I might as well use some of the leftover fabric from that (and some additional fabric) to make a patchwork style owl that matched.  I didn't use a pattern or anything, I just knew what I wanted and drew out a basic pattern for myself.  Here's what I did:

I drew the size owl that I wanted, then I added 1 1/2 inches to that to account for a seam allowance and some thickness when I added the stuffing.  I did half of the owl and folded over the fabric, to make sure he was symmetrical. 

  

I folded over the fabric and pinned on my pattern, then cut.

 

Here he is all cut out

 

Then I did the same for the front side.  (I had already started cutting when I snapped this pic) 

 

Then I made the wings (again, adding a 1/2 inch seam allowance)  I cut two front wings and 2 back wings, out of the fluffy white fabric I used for the back of the owl.  

For the eyes, at first I used at Starbucks cup as a pattern, but I thought it was too small.

So I switched to a canning jar lid and liked that size better.

For the inside of the eyes, I found this coordinating fabric and picked one of the circles and just cut it out. 

For his tummy, I made another little pattern.

Then I laid everything out to make sure I liked the way it looked before taking it to the sewing machine. 

 

Then I took all of the pieces that were part of the face, and would have an edge showing, and used this fray check (with a special applicator tip) and applied it to all of the edges.  It only took a few minutes and beat the heck out of giving all of those round pieces hems.  

Now for the sewing.  The first thing I did was sew the wings together.  I just did front side to front side and sewed the edges together.  I didn't sew the seam that attached to the owl, no need.  I didn't stuff these, I wanted them to be floppy.

Then I started on the face.  His little nose is tucked under the eyes, so I started with that first, making sure to get it as centered as possible.  This was the only time I changed the thread from brown for this project.  I wanted the orange to stand out for the beak so I used orange thread.  I also used a zig-zag stitch, set on a medium width and sewed the edges down. 

Then I did the first layer of the eyes, followed by the top layer of eyes.....

And finally the belly.

It was at this point I decided to pass on the button eyes (that were in the picture where I laid everything out above).  They were really cute, but I didn't want to have to worry about baby pulling them off and choking on them.  They were perfect size for little hands to grab, and I thought that the pattern lent itself to looking like a pupil anyway.  If it weren't for a baby, I'd probably consider adding them.  

This is probably the most complicated step (and it's really not that complicated).  Attaching the front to the back, and the wings.  I put the wings on the outside layer (the "good" side) of the back side and lined them up where I wanted them and then put the face on (with the outside in.....good sides together).  Pin it like crazy.  Then I sewed a 1/2 inch seam around everything, leaving a small area at the bottom for me to fit my hand in and stuff him.

Then turned him right side out. 

And stuffed him until I was happy with how fluffy he was...

Then used a needle and thread to and sew the bottom shut, making sure to fold the edges in, so I don't have any edges showing.

Easy peasy!  Serious, the whole thing took less than an hour.  I am so inspired by how easy this project was I might even make a whole bird family!