Zoo

Right now, we are city folk. And while I dream of one day having a backyard for my kids to play in, that is not our current reality.
Trips to local playgrounds involve battling. Battling to get everyone dressed, battling to get everyone sunscreened, battling to prepare snacks and bikes, and battling the drug dealers, broken glass, trash, and crappy, broken equipment. Not to mention, juggling my three kids while being ordered by other small children, whose parents aren't around, to "Help! Watch what I can do!" etc.
Living in the city.
Today we met some friends at the zoo. I kind of hate the whole premise of zoos, but there I was. The kids had fun and I'm exhausted.
F's favorite goat died a few months ago, she was bummed. This one liked being brushed though!

ps: I am working at this not being a battle. I've at least identified that it's a battle, right!?

Caring for your wool diaper covers

I have wool pants, called "longies", that I made to use as a diaper cover for my second child. She wore them for probably a whole year, as I made them long and folded the cuffs up for a while. They were made from a wool jacket, so they didn't have any stretch. Over time, they pilled (got little nubs of fibers all over them). As a mom who never irons clothes for her husband or children, I also am not a big worrier about stains (I never soak anything or use and oxi clean or any bleach on clothes), and I prefer to use simple eco-friendly laundry detergent. I confess that right now I'm using Target brand detergent as I had a coupon and it was on sale, but I HATE IT.
Back to wool care: I thought I'd take some photos and explain how I have taken care of wool diaper covers over 3-4 years.
Firstly, laundering them by hand is the best. Using a lanolin enriched laundry soap, like Eucalan, has been ideal for me. If you have a ton to wash, or are lazy like me, you can use your machine. I use warm/cold (our hot water is not very hot), and the delicate cycle. I use about a teaspoon (cap full) of Eucalan to every gallon of water, which I eyeball. I put the wool in (inside out) and the soap in as the machine is filling, and let it fill. I then let it gently agitate for about 30 seconds, to make sure the wool is saturated. Then I turn the machine off, leave it for 30 minutes, and then put the machine to spin. Hang to dry, gently shaking each item to get wrinkles out.



(here the top leg is shaved, the bottom is yet to go)
To care for the pilling, I use a wool shaver, sometimes called a fabric shaver or lint shaver. I bought mine at Joann's Fabrics with one of my 40% off coupons. It is handheld and battery operated. I should have invested in a stronger one! This one is fine, it just starts to putter about 1/3 of the way through one pair of wool pants.They looked significantly better when I was done, and after a good gentle wash, they will look great! My son has started on solids and the weather is warming up, but I will bet he will fit in these next fall!! I love wool, can you tell!?!?!

Tub time

Here are the oldest and youngest playing in the tub:


They have a special bond that I find so sweet. R lights up when he sees S, and he giggles and reaches for her.

Isn't this shirt sweet? My oldest brother and his wife are having their first baby in a few weeks, and she asked me to make baby boy a onesie with this slogan on it to wear home from the hospital. Shh! Don't tell daddy.

woolies coming soon

Here is my chunky boy at his 6 month checkup, 18 pounds. I thought he would maintain his over-average weight, but he is just a little over average. He is however, taking after his mom and sisters with his 90th percentile head size. Hah!

And here is a sneak peek of the woolies I'm working on:

I stocked another diaper to my shop today, there will be more to come as time allows me to photograph, edit and post.

I go to bed at 8 every night

And I feel a little better!
Baby has his 6 month checkup in an hour, crazy.
The weather has been so nice lately. We have gotten out on our cargo/family bike:
(I can only handle one kid at a time, but S and I had a great ride the other night).
S got a big girl bike: (don't worry, she had a helmet on before she moved from this position)

And I'm actually finally done those diapers I started weeks ago:

So Tired I Could Cry

This has turned into a whiny blog. Sorry bout that. I'm really tired, and I'm going to leave it at that. I need a few weeks of consistent REM sleep. Maybe then I will have the desire to do anything other than eat.

Here is something I'm grateful for:
My husband is a manager at a bike shop. He is a bike mechanic part of the time and the ordering manager. He is quite handy but he doesn't have any experience or confidence in doing home renovations. He just started ripping up our (nasty) carpet and laminate tile floor and preparing the ground for a new laminate floor. He has been busting his butt at all times of the day, and it is finally ready to be laid! I can't wait to see something other than this plywood ground!! Here is a picture of what our living/dining room looks like (our house is 850 sq. ft. on three floors):