Imse Vimse Cloth Diaper Liners



These are awesome! Every working mom, trying to do cloth diapers, needs to try these. Diaper liners are a thin film of paper that you place inside the cloth diaper between baby's skin and the dipe. When baby poops, you peel out the liner and flush down the toilet. The poop ends up in the sewer/septic and the diaper goes into the machine. Not only do you keep sticky poop out of your washer, but there is no messy swirling or spraying the diaper in the toilet. Plus, if you are doing the swirl or spray method, you are not using any extra water to flush the liner. In fact, you'll probably save water, since the sprayer takes more water than just one flush.
I prefer the diaper liners made by Imse Vimse. I use the toddler size and cut them in half (I'm not only green, but also frugal!). If I use a liner and baby only pees, I toss the liner into the wash with the diapers. I have successfully washed the liners twice, before they fell apart beyond use. I also skip a liner based on baby's schedule (sometimes it backfires....). If your baby has a pretty set schedule, you can save by not using liners, when you know that baby's probably not going to poop.
I found these liners for $7 for a pack of 100, which I cut in half to be 200 liners. After three months time, I am 3/4 through 1 package of liners. I estimate at that rate, I'll use 6-7 packages by the time baby is potty trained (less if he trains before 2.5 years). That's less than $50 spent to make laundry and cloth diapering much easier. It's well worth it!

You can find Imse Vimse diaper liners at these sites:

http://www.greenmountaindiapers.com/doublers.htm
http://www.jardinediapers.com/Flushable-Liners-Imse-Vimse-p-72.html

Cloth Diapers and Daycare

It can be done! I have spent the past four weeks sending cloth diapers with my son, to daycare. If you are using cloth diapers at home, you can find daycare facilities that will allow them. I was quite surprised, when we first started scouting daycares, that every one of them agreed to take cloth diapers. Based on the type of facility you choose, the rules may be different. Check your state's childcare regulations to find the rules regarding cloth diapers in your area.
If your daycare center will not accept cloth diapers, you can still continue to use them in the evening or on the weekends. Here are a few simple tips, to help make cloth diapering a workable system for you.

#1 - purchase plenty - make sure you purchase enough cloth diapers, so that you only have to do laundry once a week. If you have to wash diapers every other day, it will become a nuisance. We working moms have very little time to spend doing extra laundry.

#2 - simplify - choose a cloth diaper that is easy to put on, take off, and wash. If the diaper requires multiple pieces to put on the baby, you won't stick with it. Not to mention, your partner may balk at the idea of having to put multiple layers of diaper onto a baby. I highly recommend an All-in-one or pocket style diaper. They resemble the shape and fit of disposables, but can be washed and reused.

#3 - diaper liners - these are an invaluable tool! Diaper liners are thin paper inserts to be placed inside your cloth diaper, against baby's skin. When baby poops, the liner catches it all. So, you simply fold up the liner, and FLUSH, yes, flush, the poop! These little suckers are invaluable at saving time with laundry and saving you from icky clean ups. Swirling diapers in the toilet is pretty gross....

#4 - leave the guilt behind - it is okay if you need to use disposables for night-time, daycare, traveling, etc. Everytime you use a cloth diaper you save money and resources. If you only use them a few times a day, or just at home, you are still helping the planet!

Cloth diapers can be easy and fun! We have purchased all types of bright colored diapers and frequently let my son sport just his dipe in public. They're sooo cute, and look like little pants. You can't say that about disposables....

Making your own baby food: it's easier than you think!

After eating all natural and all organic foods while pregnant and nursing, I could not feed my baby just anything. I have pledged to give him the best start, by feeding him healthy all natural food. He can eat whatever he wants, once he turns 18. Unfortunately, organic baby food can be expensive. It is almost double the price of regular jarred baby food. So I needed to search for an alternative. I'd heard of making your own baby food, but figured that would be difficult and time consuming. I was wrong. Making your own baby food is not only easy, but can also be done quickly.
In the beginning, I gave baby jarred food until we were sure he didn't have an allergy to single ingredients. Once he had a list of fruits and veggies that were ok, I began to make his food. I simply purchased extra veggies that we were eating for dinner. I served everyone their portions and then pureed the extras in the blender. Once I reached the desired consistency, I would pour the puree into ice cube trays and freeze. I currently have a whole variety of cubes waiting in the freezer to be served. Next, I'll begin mixing multiple ingredients, to create "meal" cubes that contain both fruits and veggies or veggies and meats, etc.
To make pureed baby food all you need is a blender and ice cube trays. I purchased some of the new silicone trays and found they worked great, since you could easily pop the food cubes out. I keep my cubes in labeled ziploc baggies, right in our freezer. I tried to make my own cereal and found it was too much trouble. So I do purchase his cereal. However, I am saving money by making my own fruits and veggies. I also know exactly what goes into baby's food, when I make it, myself. This way I can be sure baby gets a variety of fruits and veggies each day in addition to whole grain cereals.
If you want to try making your own food, check out the following site for recipes and suggestions :0 Good Luck!
http://www.wholesomebabyfood.com/

California Baby


As a green mama, it is important that anything I put on baby's skin is made of natural ingredients. There are too many products that have been deemed safe one year, only to be recalled in the future as more research is done. While natural products have been known to cause problems, I feel much more secure using essential oils and herbs to treat my families health needs before reaching for "drugs." I also strongly believe that an ounce of prevention can go a long way! That said I have been searching for effective, natural baby products. I found exactly what I was looking for and more!
I love California Baby products. I cannot say enough about them. I discovered Cal Baby products when my baby was about a month old. At the time, he did not experience any maladies, but several moms told me what was coming. Having sensitive, allergy prone skin, I began searching for anything that would combat the cradle cap, diaper rash, thrush, and heat rash that would soon crop up. Having heard of the wonders of tea tree oil, I have always wanted to try it out. I purchased the California Baby Tea Tree and Lavender Baby wash and the Calendula cream. The company I purchased these from was running a promo and sent me the calming cream as a free gift.
The baby wash has done far more than I ever expected. My son has been rash free since we began using it. We have started using a tsp of the wash to make a cloth wipe solution. I use the wash as a face scrub and have noticed an improvement in the condition of my skin! The calendula cream is a great natural first aid cream. We use it on baby's bottom if he has minor irritation (this happens if he poops at night) and by the next diaper change he is good as new. It also works well on minor cuts and scrapes. Plus in a moment of desperation we discovered that it does ease hemorrhoids. The calming cream makes a great lotion for after bath. We put it on baby right before bed. We have been so pleased, that we have since gone through three bottles of baby wash and 1 bottle of calming cream.
If you are able to, check out these skin care products. I have found California Baby products in both of the major grocery chains near our home. They are also available online. Or check out there site! You won't be disappointed.
http://www.californiababy.com/index.html

The CSA - healthy inexpensive produce...

Working full time and trying to cook healthy meals can be a daunting task. When you consider the costs of fresh produce, organic meats and dairy, and natural ingredients, healthy cooking on a budget can seem impossible. However, it can be done. The way that I get all of my healthy produce is through our local CSA (community supported agriculture) program. For approximately $20 a week, we receive a large box of organic vegetables. There are enough vegetables and variety to feed an average family of four.
At first I was skeptical. We had to pay for the full season ahead of time. The list of produce available contained items that I had never before heard of, let alone eaten. Not too mention that we could not pick out which vegetables we wanted. Each week we would be at the mercy of the farmer and mother nature as to which vegetables (or fruits) made it into our box. Still, $20 a week for fresh produce was significantly less than I was already spending. So, I decided to try it out.
The first week was like Christmas. I couldn't wait to go pick it up to see what was inside. Our box contained eight varieties of veggies. Some tomatoes, eggplant, greens, herbs, summer squashes, salad greens, and more. I immediately got on the net and looked up recipes for cooking greens. I found a great recipe that both my husband and step-son ate without much argument or fuss. As the summer went on, we had plenty of great fresh veggies to eat and tons of extras.
The benefits to CSA's are enormous. By joining a local farm and pledging to support them for a season, you are investing in your community. By purchasing local produce, you are helping to reduce the costs of emissions, etc for bringing produce from faraway to your grocery store. One of the biggest benefits is member only pricing. The produce you receive can range anywhere from $25-45 dollars if purchased in separate quantities at the grocery store. If you are lucky enough to find an organic farm in your area, you are supporting and encouraging earth-friendly agricultural practices. The added benefit to the working mama is simplified shopping. It takes 2 minutes to get my box of produce into my car and the pickup site is near my office.

So, try it out! You may be very surprised and impressed by the benefits of joining and supporting your local CSA!

For resources to find a CSA in your area, check out the following sites:

http://www.localharvest.org/csa/
http://www.slowfoodusa.org/index.php
http://www.eatlocal.net/

Greetings

Welcome to the Green Working Mama!

It can be done. There are many ways to be thrifty, environmentally conscious, and time savvy, while working 40+ hours per week. I am not the greenest mom. I am not the career-driven mom. I am the average mom, who is balancing, motherhood, job, grad school, and marriage. My desire to be eco-friendly comes from my desire to have a healthy planet for my children and grandchildren. While there are extremists and die-hard "greenies" out there, there are a lot more everyday people. If we can all spend a few extra moments each day checking product labels, etc, we can make a difference.

Each week, I intend to post an entry (or 10) about products I've used, tips I've gained, and things I've learned about raising a healthy baby, while minimizing our environmental and global impact. I hope that the knowledge that I have gained can bring you help, support, or a laugh. Enjoy!