oh jiminy...

crickets.

That's what you hear around this blog space. I have not been writing for a couple of weeks and the time has just flown by me!

Let see, what have I been doing?

Good question...

I know I have been thinking about and researching a TON of new things for our family. I am still working on better ways to be a thrifty, yet healthy shopper and chef. I have been working on learning how to cook more wholesome meals, trying to use more vegetables, legumes and less meat. It is hardest on my husband I think. He is not used to the lack of usual snack food around the house, a lot less bread, and many more beans. He'll get into the routine soon and I'll get better at knowing what he likes. I hope.

I have also been working at getting most all the cleaning chemicals out of the house. It is hard for me to just throw these things out. I am by nature a (wanna be) thrifty person, and throwing out perfectly good cleaning supplies is hard for me to do. But then, I think about how if my now crawling nine month old baby got into any of it, or if my two year old boy who climbs on everything and can open anything were to find these things, it would be a terrible day. I already won't let them into the room where I spray fabreeze on the carpet until it is dry. I guess that is a hint I need to change something.  So, I have started cleaning with vinegar, baking soda, hot water, sometimes some essential oil and a reusable cloth. I have found, I actually like cleaning with just those simple products....

Talk about cheap. Talk about easy. Talk about healthy.

My third and most recent project has been researching the world of cloth diapering.
Do I sound like a greenie or what?!
I swear, I have been doing all this because our budget dictates it. But the more I look into all these budget friendly ways of living, I find that mostly they are much more healthy options as well! I love that. I love feeling like I know what is happening to my family, what is going into their mouths, what is being put on their skin, and what is being used to clean them. I worry less, I feel better, I stress less and hopefully, my family feels it too.

Anyway, back to cloth diapers. Holy COW. There are more options for cloth diapers than for disposable ones and let me tell you, I know there are a lot of disposable diaper options. I am overwhelmed by the amount of things to figure out.  What I wanna know is, because this cloth diapering thing is such a big, upfront investment, how do I know what diapers are going to "work" for my child? I don't want to just buy ones that look good, or that I think will work. I want them to work dagnabit, if I am going to pay $200 or more for enough diapers and their accessories to get us through this.

I am convinced that this is something I want to pursue, I just have no idea where to start and how to make this a project I don't have to save for the next year to start on. Blah.

Other than those aforementioned projects, I have been wrangling children, loving my husband, trying to push deeper into my relationship with God, and visiting my sweet sweet friends.

I love this life.