Do your homework

I am a researcher. I always hated researching stuff in school, but I really like doing it for my own purposes. A few examples of the type of stuff I like to look into:

• When I was engaged, I read books about marriage
• When it was time to get pregnant, I read books/sites on trying to conceive (it's trickier than you might think when you have irregular cycles)
• When I was pregnant, I read books/sites on pregnancy, labor and newborn care
• As my kids grow, I read books/sites about their current stage of development
• I research new ideas or theories and decide for myself if I want to implement them or not. 

As I've interacted with friends, family, and strangers about my various topics of research, I've realized that there are two kinds of people: those who research, and those who rely on others' research. Both are good and needed. For example, both my sisters have called me with questions about stuff they know I've researched but one of my BFF's recently had her first kid and she hasn't asked me anything. She is finding out what she needs to know on her own. Which is fine. At first I was prideful and was kind of miffed that I wasn't being consulted for advice. But then I realized she is like me: she finds her info straight from the source.

Now don't get me wrong, I enjoy finding out what works for other moms and I love sharing and hearing about different experiences we've all had with our kids and parenting methods. But I don't really have a "go-to" person to ask questions of. Hmmm.

Do you know what these are? They are cloth diapers. Yup. I am officially a CD mommy. I did "sposies" with my first two, and did a bunch of research {surprise, surprise} on cloth this time around. Another one of my BFF's is a CD mom and while at first I was appalled and grossed out by the idea, I poked around a few cloth diaper sites and found that it's actually not as gross as one might think. Everyone always jumps to the conclusion that cloth diapering is just as it was in 1983 like when I wore them as a youngster.

I am pleased to tell you they are much improved, ladies and gents! For one thing, they are fitted like a disposable diaper with snaps. The waterproof-ness of it all is in the outside fabric and plastic pants aren't needed. They are super soft and absorbent and keeps moisture away from baby's skin. And poop? For the first 6 months for babies that are exclusively nursed, you just toss them in the wash as-is. As they begin to incorporate solids and their poop changes, you get a diaper sprayer that connects to your toilet. The strong stream cleans any solids off and into the toilet--no swishing required.

On one site it stated that if you use cloth for two kids from birth to potty training, you save around $4,000. Not to mention the massive amount of diapers that will be spared from landfills on your kid's behalf. I do believe in being as green as you can and this is a way to do it better. It is also good for baby's skin. My Little Peach never gets red in the bummy, when my toddler (in disposables) does occasionally get a bit of redness.

Plus, they're CUTE!

Me and my three munchins on Mother's Day. 

Yes, that is grammatically correct.