Mistakes in Motherhood

Today I ran into my front snag. Liam fell asleep in my arms while I was talking with a neighbor after taking Matt to the bus stop. Since he rarely does this, I figured I would ray him in his crib and get some nice baby free time. He rarely naps out of my arms, so it was awesome when I was able to lay him down and get some chores done. Unfortunately I forgot to change him before the trip to the bus stop. I also forgot that I was testing a single flat in a pad fold. I also had him in a larger cover that I normally use for night time, so it was not as snug. When he woke up he had this first leak. Not bad I guess considering it was probably the 40th flat. I blame this on user error, not diaper failure.

Last night, it looked like we might be clearing up, so I decided not to wash diapers and to wash and hang them in the morning, so I can sun them in the afternoon and dry them in a couple hours vs. overnight, and naturally bleach them. Mistake #2. I KNEW the forecast wasn’t calling for sun this week. I had one clean cover left, and he had already had a big poop earlier, I would be fine. I washed and hung his diapers and I noticed him turning red. I guess the poop earlier was just a warm up, and this was the main attraction. I cleaned him, got him nice and doubled up, went to grab a cover and none was to be found! I looked on the rack and four were hanging and I just put the 5th into my soapy bucket so I could wash it too. So if I really was without a washer and dryer, today I think I would have run screaming to the laundromat or to a friends house. Since this was an emergency, I decided to think of a way to rapidly dry the diaper that the average family home and the only thing I could think of was the hair dryer. I may have been cheating, but while the baby happily chewing on his feet in a diaper sans cover, I was washing the newly pooped in diaper and had the hair dryer angled to blow on the dryest of my 4 covers. It got done just in time too, after he nursed, Liam was exhausted and went to bed.

Overall though, I still wish I had known about flats when I was a new mama. My hubby had just joined the Army and we were struggling and living paycheck to paycheck. I remember letting him wear his diapers an extra hour or so because I knew how expensive they were. I remember counting change and hoping we could scrape together enough for a small bag of generics because we were a few days from payday. Even if I had cloth diapered part time, it would have really stretched our budget. However, in 1997, I didn’t know anything about cloth back then outside of the diapers my mother used one me. Even back then, I would have had options outside of the rubber pants my mom used on me. That is a picture of my mom and I in 1980. I was 15 months old.

2 Comments | In: A lot about nothing | tags: Cloth Diapers, Domestic Diva, House Stuff, Lame-o, Liam, Me, Parenting, Photography. | #

I didn’t have time to write an update for yesterday, and really I didn’t have much to say. I have been trying a new fold each day, yesterday I did the pad fold, which would be awesome for mamas used to pockets (you could use this fold to stuff a pocket) or to use with the hybrid cover, like a Flip, where flaps are sewn into the front and back of the cover to hold the flap in place. I fold all my diapers into the pad fold when I put them away on my changing table because they fit so nicely in the bin on my table. I stack them standing up on their hem and they look so pretty and clean lined up. I absolutely LOVE my changing table, I made it myself out of items I could re-purpose when I no longer need it. The entire thing was from items purchased at Target, and except for the shelf, the bins and pad are things I would have to buy for the table anyways (maybe not as many bins) but I have twice the storage at half the price and this thing is STURDY.

It rained all day yesterday, and I knew it would because we are not supposed to have sun until Saturday according to the forecast, so I decided to start a cold soak in my camp washer when the boy was laid down, and when he was asleep I quickly did a wash and hung in my bathroom to dry. With the exception of my wipes, by morning everything was dry. To soften the flats up a bit I beat them against my bed before pad folding them and putting them away.

Today I am focusing on the diaper bag fold. Super simple and I can fold them ahead of time and stack them on my changing table and just toss on my babe and go. Changing with flats gets fast now that I am used to it. I also have started trusting the flats more and am no longer needing doublers. Little man’s diapers are so trim he’s back in 0-3 month pants that never fit over his butt and onsies, which I have ALWAYS hated with cloth diapers because they tend to slide into the leg gussets and wick moisture.

It is overcast, but bright and windy today, the PERFECT day for a line dry, and of course I have barely any diapers to wash! I never thought I would be sad I didn’t have enough dirty diapers. I did get some night time trainers for The Princess though, so I at least got to wash those, although I used my machine for that. I have noticed that I cannot get my flats quite as while as the wash machine does. The diapers all come really clean, but I did have some staining on one particularly dirty diaper. However, I am really shocked how clean they get hand-washing, my expectations is that they would all be stained when I hung them up to dry and it just is not the case, they all come beautifully white with just a little Tide and hot water. My routine is: cold soak in the bucket, swirl, and go find something to do. Come back, drain, rinse diapers. Add hot water and 1T of Tide to the bucket. Add diapers. Agitate for a few minutes. Soak some more. Come back, agitate some more, drain and rinse diapers and bucket with shower head. Add more hot water, put the diapers back the in and agitate with my hands. Then I ring them out, shake them good, and hang to dry. For covers, I roll them in a dry clean towel, and then hang to dry.

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Today was diaper washing day! Using my bucket from Home Depot with a hole poked in the lid, the plunger (with holes drilled into the rubber) I was able to churn my diapers like butter. First in cold water without soap for a couple minutes to rinse them. Then with super hot water with a tablespoon of powdered Tide for 4-5 minutes, then I rinsed the diapers and bucket and ran some more hot water in the bucket, churned for another minute to get out all the soap. Drained, rung out and hung them outside on the line to dry. I did take breaks between these steps as I was trying to get my kindergartener ready for school. He also churned it a few minutes for me. Washing took maybe 10-15 minutes, hanging took a little longer, but maybe another 10-15 minutes. While I was busy washing, Liam was busy making more work for me, because after I changed him and washed the diaper he was in and was hanging my clean diapers, he made me a dirty diaper. I ended up washing a 2nd load because it was so gross I didn’t want it sitting there until my next wash day.

Aren’t they lovely?!

***

Yesterday I said I would upload a tutorial on folding a flat. There are many different ways, some easier than others, My favorite is the “origami” fold. I was a little intimidated at first, but what I love about is that you can roll in a preemie prefold, or another flat. All the material is concentrated in the middle of the diaper, so it is trim without much material on the hips. My boy is a heavy wetter, so I will be showing you how to add a soaker, or this could be a night time diaper.

You will need, two flats, a snappi, a waterpoof cover. The flats are folded into squares, you can see the size difference between the Target Flour Sack Towel (bottom) and the birdseye flats The cover is a Thirsties Duo, size 2, in Cool Stripes on the smallest setting.

I have folded the smaller flat into 3rds without unfolding it from the square I had it folded in. Set the soaker aside.

On your primary diaper, locate the part of your square that has four finished edges. Grab the top of the four edges as shown and pull it straight across to the left.

Keep pulling.

See how a triangle appears? Smooth this out and here is where I got lost the first time. Grab your two bottom corners closest to you and you are going to flip the diaper upside down. The long edge will now be facing away from you, and the triangle will be under your new shape.

The square shape on the right, that is your soaker layer.

Lay the diaper you set aside on the right edge and start folding the diaper around it.

You will start seeing your triangle again as you fold your soaker layers towards the center.

When you are done, your diaper will look like this. Lay the baby down on the diaper.

The bottom of the triangle will go between baby’s legs. Hold the front of the diaper and grab one of the wings and lay it across the front of the diaper.

If you want to get fancy, you can roll the wing edges inwards towards the baby’s bum. They will act sort of like “poop barriers” to keep any messes in the diaper, not on your cover, as well as keep the diaper trim.

You can either tuck the wings under the front of the diaper and put a cover on now, or if you want a more secure fit you can use a snappi.

To put a snappi on bite one set of teeth into one of the wings, then stretch it and bite it into the diaper over the other side of the baby, finally, stretch the shortest piece downward and bite into the front of the diaper.

Slide the cover over the baby and secure, make sure you check around the legs to make sure there are no gaps, or no pieces of diaper sticking out. Poke those pieces in, or tighten the diaper if you need.

Here is a video I found on youtube that showed me how to fold a flat with the origami fold.

Super easy!

1 Comment | In: A lot about nothing | tags: Cloth Diapers, Domestic Diva, Liam. | #

A few weeks ago I heard about the Flats Challenge, over at Dirty Diaper Laundry. The general gist of this, is for one week we are to use flats, which are a single layer of material, usually cotton, limiting ourselves to only 5 covers, and then hand washing and air drying these diapers for one week. The point of this challenge is to prove on a small budget, you can cloth diaper. I will break down some prices:

For the diapers, my ideal flat stash would include:
1 dozen size large birdseye flats from Green Mountain Diaper (GMD) – $27.
1 dozen small birdseye flats from GMD – $25
1 dozen Target Flour Sack towels in the kitchen towel section, (I have 20) and they are 4/$4, so a dozen would be $12.
I would also splurge on a dozen preemie prefolds from Little Lions, $10. They help you get through the skinny chicken leg stage and work great to make a flat extra absorbent for overnight.

Total for diapers: $74, however, you can get away with only half these, either the Target Flats and newborn prefolds ($22), or newborn prefolds and small flats ($35).

Next, you would need a few covers, 5 size 1 and 5 size 2. I love Thirsties Duos, because the size 1 really does fit from birth until 16/18 lbs. Again, you only need half in the beginning.
5 size 1 @ 12.25ea – $61.25
5 size 2 @ 12.25ea – $61.25

Total for covers: $122.50

For baby wipes, you can either get cheapie washcloths for about $6 for a dozen and it looks like $6 at the dollar store would get you 24, or if you have rags or old receiving blankets you can rip those up for free. I also would get a triple pack of snappi’s for $8.

Total cost of accessories: $14

Finally, the diaper washer. I found a tutorial here for a camp washer. After taxes, I paid $17 for the bucket and lid, plunger, and drill bits. Borrow a drill with a 1″ and 1/4″ bit, and your total would be closer to $8. Use it to store dirty diapers and then on wash day just add hot water and detergent, agitate, rinse and hang to dry.

Total cost of “washer” & pail: $7

So for $217.50 you could comfortably diaper your baby for life. Only $104.25 would be needed when the baby is born. And really, if the flour sack kitchen towels work out well for you (they are fine for us) you could even get away with spending $28 less on diapers. If you figure your baby is in diapers to age 2 1/2, the breakdown is about $6.32 – $7.25 a month! Compare that to the the $2671 Babyworks estimates you will spend the first 2 1/2 years on Huggies. Can you think of a better use for $2,450? Would an extra $74.50 come in handy each month? This doesn’t even take into consideration for baby wipes, or if your baby doesn’t potty learn at 2 1/2. What if they wet the bed? I know many children who use disposable training pants long after they turn 4.

Today I started day one, and it is a lot easier than I anticipated. I have not had to wash any diapers, but tomorrow it will be in the mid 60′s and sun is predicted, so I might do a small load in my camp washer just to get them out on the clothesline. The rest of the week I will probably be hanging them over shower rods overnight to dry. I took pictures today, and hopefully tomorrow I can set some of those up here to share with you.

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Okay, I am going to geek out on you guys here so bear with me. Six years ago, I set out on a quest to cloth diaper my kiddos after a girl in a pregnancy forum mentioned Fuzzi Bunz and I started looking into the modern cloth diaper. Fuzzi Bunz are a type of diaper called a “pocket diaper”. Rubber pants are a thing of the past and now most cloth diapers can be sorted into four categories:

• AIO, or All in One
• Pockets
• Covers
• Hybrid or All in Two

Let me go deeper into the difference. All the diapers mentioned above are just the main part of the diaper, and what make them waterproof. I will explain to you the difference between each one and discuss the pros, and cons.

All in One
The simplest of all cloth diapers to put on the baby and to prepare, these diapers are often called dad/babysitter/daycare friendly. This is because they truly are wash & go. These diapers have improved in the last five years and now are easier for to get cleaner in the wash and dry faster than the older AIO choices. Most now have an absorbent pad that either lays on top of the diaper, agitates out on the wash, or many other creative solutions. The older style had the absorbent layers sewn in, without any way to add extra layers for long car trips, sleep, or a heavy wetter. They also did not dry as fast, or get as clean. Manufacturers are listening and have come up with some wonderful creative solutions to solve the problems the older all-in-one diapers had. At $18-27 per diaper, AIOs tend to be the most expensive cloth solution.

Pockets
Also dad/babysitter/grandparent friendly are pocket diapers. That is because with a little more prep work than the AIO, the diaper can simply be snapped or hooked on with aplix or touchtape (think velcro-like). These diapers are what they sound like, a pocket. The layer closest to the baby is usually made up of suedecloth, fleece, or other stay dry material, like the outer layer is made of polyurethane laminate (PUL). The difference between a AIO and pocket, is that the pocket diaper alone has no absorbent properties. The second step to these diapers is then to stuff them with an insert, or a long, thin pad that pulls the moisture away from the baby and holds it until the baby is changed. Some of these inserts are made of microterry, hemp, cotton, or other similar material. Pocket diapers usually include some sort of insert, but many moms will chose to buy more to either add absorbancy, or upgrade the quality of washability/antimicrobial properties. The disadvantage of this diaper is that the opposite of stuffing, is unstuffing; the peed/pooped on insert must (usually) be removed from the diaper before they are washed. Some diapers have openings on both sides of the diaper, allowing the insert to agitate out in the wash. Depending on the quality of diaper, and if you chose to upgrade inserts, pocket diapers can run between $10-24.

Covers
Covers are the most economical and most versatile diaper of the three, however, it also has steepest learning curve of the three. Covers can be made of PUL, wool, or fleece. They can either enclose with snaps, hook & loop, or pull on. However, they cannot be used alone. The diaper must have something underneath it to catch the mess, these can include fitteds, which are made of bamboo, cotton, hemp, and snap or hook and loop onto the baby, with the cover then placed over the top. Another option is to use a prefold diaper, either hooked together with pins, or a Snappi (T shaped stretchy object, with small hooks that grip to the diaper and hold it closed), or folded and laid flat into the cover. The cheapest option is to use flats, or a large single layer of material, folded in various styles to improve absorbancy, and like the prefold, then laid into a cover, or closed with pins or a Snappi. The other advantage to a cover, is that they can be used for multiple changes, as long as the diaper is changed and the cover is not soiled. Some can be wiped dry, or like wool, can be worn many times before washing. If you use wool or fleece, the other advantage is breathability.

• Covers or wraps are usually made of PUL are the most common of the types of covers, the easiest to find commercially, and can be wiped out with a cloth wipe and re-used, unless soiled. PUL covers usually run around $10-18.
  
• Fleece either comes with pull on options, or fasten on like PUL covers. They can also be sewn as pants, shorts, or skirts. Like PUL covers, there is no need to wash these after a single use, they can be hung to dry an used until the end of the day, until soiled, or until stinky. Fleece also breathes better than PUL, and if you can sew can be made for the cost of materials. However, very few commercial manufacturers make fleece covers, so to get fleece your best option is etsy, or Hyenacart. Prices run from around $7-18.
  
• Wool covers are probably the most expensive of the three options to buy, but if you want to avoid man made products, wool is the very best choice. Like fleece, wool can come in covers that pull on, or wraps that button, and can come in pants, shorts, covers, or skirts. If you can knit, crochet, or know how to upcycle sweaters, wool can be inexpensive, however commercially made wool diapers can run from $30-90, and SAHM made can run from $10-50+. Wool also needs to be prepped once every 1-2 weeks by soaking in a solution of lanolin, baby shampoo, and water, and then laid flat to air dry. Wool must be hand washed, but with its antimicrobial properties does not need to be washed often and does not immediately get stinky.

Hybrid or All in Two
Similar to PUL wraps, hybrids are simply put a cloth/disposable option. Instead of putting a cloth diaper/insert into the hybrid (or just occasionally) hybrids can house a disposable option. A eco friendly soaker, that will either break down in a landfill, compost, or flush (depending on the manufacturer’s instructions) is placed into the cover, and when it is wet or soiled it is disposed of and a new disposable insert is put in. Some parents prefer this option when traveling, or when at daycare, and then use prefolds or inserts in them when not on the go. The advantage of this type of system is you are not carrying waste with you when you travel, the disadvantage is that even after the initial investment, the cost can keep accumulating. The cost is around $14-18 for the cover only, and disposable inserts run between $5-10 for 20.

Up front, diapers may seem like a big investment, but they will pay for themselves before the baby is born, even when you use the most expensive diapers. According to Diaper Decisions the cost of cloth is between 6 and 23 cents per diaper change, including the cost of washing. Where the cost of disposables is about 36 cents per diaper for the most common brand. That doesn’t even count the extra washes of clothing from blowouts. 30 to 13 cents may not seem like a lot, until you figure that if your child potty trains at 2 1/2, you will have changed 7200. At a minimum, you are saving between $1,000 to $2,200, now imagine how much more you would save if you re-used those same diapers on another child, or sold them when you were done to recoup between 50-75% of your original purchase price.

No Comments | In: A lot about nothing | tags: Cloth Diapers, Domestic Diva, Finances, Parenting, Something Worth Mentioning. | #

When I was a kid, we frequented a lot of home and garden shows, or attended the displays at the state fair. I didn’t really care for the rides at the fair, my two favorite things were the livestock (I loved the cows, llamas, and sheep) and the home & garden areas. Not because I was planning my future home or anything, but because I adore swag. I loved the pens and pencils displaying whatever window company, or the personalized notepads with the name of the fencing company. My dad let me put the stickers on his file cabinet, and I would joyfully color the coloring pages advertising hot tubs, or landscaping companies. My mom still has my tiny promo mugs from A&W that are my kids’ favorite for tea parties or treats when they visit grandma. It is easy to see why I would enjoy browsing GOPromos promotional items, I bet my professional friends could find some pretty neat personalized items to hand out as swag at their next child & baby fair!

No Comments | In: A lot about nothing | tags: Confessions, House Stuff, Something Worth Mentioning, Sponsored. | #

I have been so very busy. On May 7th, the day before Mother’s Day, I declared I was going to proclaim today as my mother’s day. My oldest son presented me with a card he bought and he and all his siblings filled out. He traced Sophie and Liam’s hand on it. He also had gone to three different different store looking for a specific candy I like without luck, and settled on three of my favorite candy bars. Our sweet neighbor gave him a pretty gift box. Matthew planted me a plant in a flower pot he decorated, and made me a card. My husband told me if I didn’t go buy myself a Keurig, he would buy one for me, spend a lot more, and have to mail it to me.

I was also feeling sentimental, so I sent Austin’s birth mom a text message thanking her for allowing me to be his mommy. She called me right back and we talked for about 30 minutes. It was nice to hear that she had no regrets, I have always worried she consented to the adoption out of desperation, and not because she truly wanted the best for him.

On Sunday, Austin turned 15. This is why I did Mother’s Day early. I knew he would make a fuss about it, and I didn’t want anything to distract him from his birthday. The little stinker still did, he made me breakfast in bed, and made eggs and bacon for the little ones. For his birthday dinner, he wanted me to make him BBQ Ribs on the grill. I also made corn bread and green beans. It was delicious. He played with his friends most of the day, he literally came home when the street lights came on. It was glorious. Our gift was delivered on Monday, a trampoline! The “t” was partially obscured on the package, so now the kids call it “the rampoline”.

For three days Austin and I built the rampoline together. Christopher helped keep the little three busy. I may or may not have taught Austin some new words as we stretched springs, and pulled safety nets tight. On the first day, I took a break for dinner, and just when I was about to put the last 5 of 8 safety net poles up, I asked Austin “do you smell something chemically??” He looked downstairs, and I looked in my bathroom, and I do believe my head exploded. That is a full bottle of deep purple nail polish, and some bare minerals face powder. I scrubbed on that thing for probably 6 hours (I was up until 3am) and I managed to lighten it to a lilac color, but it didn’t come out. I will need to replace the carpet in my bathroom. Right now it is half vinyl, half carpet, and I am hoping our landlord will let us rip out all the flooring in the bathroom and replace it with coordinating vinyl.
Liam is growing so fast, too fast. His new name is Mr. Grabbyhands. He has learned how to play with the toys on his bouncer to activate music. He has also learned how to make mama yelp in pain by grabbing onto a huge handful of hair and yanking really hard. He also can roll from his belly to his back, and most recently his back to his belly.

No Comments | In: A lot about nothing, People, Places & Things | tags: Adoption, Austin, Christopher, Domestic Diva, Family, House Stuff, Liam, Milestones, Parenting, Updates. | #

What a joyful day! While our nation collectively celebrated, I had a ton of mini triumphs. I met a woman on Craig’s List last week who was buying diapers, I had some I had bought, picked out a few and decided to pay them forward along with a couple dozen other cloth diapers I either decided not to use or that Liam outgrew. I refused payment for them, so she thanked me by making these really amazing carrot cupcakes. They were fantastic!

After her visit, my MacBook died mid sentence again. The battery was almost fully charged, and it wasn’t just sleeping, it just shut off for no reason at all. One call to AppleCare and it was decided I would drive to the closest Apple Store, 40 minutes away, and they would take a look at it. My battery was swapped out, the inside was cleaned and I was sent home. I am letting it drain the battery after a full charge and it is down to 85%, dipped into sleep a few times, and seems to be working better than ever.

My third victory is that my maintenance guy stopped by this evening to install my new water heater. I had been having a leaking issue for months now and a couple weeks ago I decided to get to the bottom of it. A quick release of the pressure release valve convinced me the water was from the tank. Maintenance replaced the PRV, and my back patio was still suffering from Chinese water torture. He suggested that maybe my 23 year old water heater was dying, but we would need to wait for approval for it to get fixed, etc. New one is in and I have hot water. However I didn’t know that when you replaced the water tank, the pipes would drain, and water would need to be pushed out. If you want to simultaneously convince the toddler, baby, and cats that the Apocalypses is here, run air through pipes. My daughter ran to her room screaming, the cats had to be peeled off the ceiling, and the baby’s eyes about popped out of his head and he screamed bloody murder.

Cherry on top was Skyping with my husband. I love him.

No Comments | In: This is how I roll | tags: A lot about nothing, Bobby, House Stuff, Liam. | #

Today has been the first real “bad mommy day” since the colossal mind melt earlier this month. Okay, so it is 12:30 am, and technically now May, so all that was last month, but we will go with my husband’s rule…. “time does not change until after I go to sleep”. So in my mind, it is still the last day of April.

So earlier today (or call it yesterday if you want to keep it real) my little three decided that if they all behaved equally naughty, mom would allow it with retribution, because of safety in numbers, right? *insert melting brain here*

It felt like a country western song. Mom wanted to sleep, the phone was ringing, the baby was whining for breast milk, the 6 year old was wanting to tattle, and the 2 year old wanted a “poopy prize”. I thought everything was settled back into place, and I was going to try to get a few more minutes of sleep, when the baby boy decided he was fat, full, and flippin’ jubilant! There goes my lazy Saturday.

I should have known it was going to be one of those days, everyone was crying and fighting. It took me a full hour to get a sip of my then cold coffee. By lunchtime I was DONE. I put the sleeping baby, and the 2 year old down for naps. The 6 year old was soon sent to nap too after he demonstrated his own fatigue. However, no one napped! All three were exhausted, but no one napped. By around 3pm, I was in tears.

Of course, as soon as I had sufficiently filled my bladder with iced coffee, and was about ready to start dinner, not only did the baby, but also the 2 year old fell asleep. Thankfully the 14 year old walked in from playing to get a drink, and I asked him to hold the (now crying) baby so I could make Fra Diavolo Sauce With Farfalle Pasta, and broccoli. I changed it up a bit, I used fresh tomatoes and added some white wine. I also used only shrimp (doubled), cooked it longer, and served over farfalle (bow tie pasta) instead of linguini. I thought it might be too spicy, so I made some Cabernet Marinara with Herbs for the little ones, but offered them both. I think they favored the spicy shrimp sauce. I had to giggle a bit because they started fighting over who could have the last of the broccoli, they all decided they had not had enough, and Austin rushed in to make sure everyone got two more pieces.

We made a fresh batch of chocolate chip cookies, and at them hot, with cold glasses of milk. We were all sleepy, and I decided after everyone was in bed, that I would slip into a hot bath and then go to bed early myself….. but first let me just fix this spam problem real quick. Real quick. Famous last words.

At 10:19 PM, my darling husband gets on Skype. I tell him “Don’t laugh, but I have such a headache. And it is all from reading confusing stuff.” He reassures me he is not laughing. “Owie, hurty head. .htaccess is so confusing.” He tells me he doesn’t know what .htaccess is (I didn’t either until today. I explain what it is, what it does, and what I am using it for. I will not quote what I said because it consists of several F bombs, and other colorful expletives… and I would like to remain classy.

I tell him “Half my face is limp. I must have stroked out somewhere between .htaccess ssh and ftp”. My darling husband says “I want to see”, and starts a video conference. *sigh* At 10:44, about the time I told him my brain was made of pudding, and drool was dripping out of my half-limp stroked out face, the butt tells me “I have worse problems btw. I can not find my hair brush.”

While his hair WAS quite poofy, by this time I was ready to hang myself by my shoe laces. I had no less than 15 tutorials open, terminal, my ftp, a glass of wine and my sanity was long gone. Four minutes later, he proclaims all is right in the world, he has found his hair brush. Well lah dee freakin’ dah! He then asked me if that was my soul he saw leaking out of my eyes. Well yes it is.

At 11:36, he tells me he has to go to work. And I tell him I have to bash my skull in with a baseball bat. A little after 12:10am, I figure out the problem. The file I was looking for could EASILY be created by opening a simple word processor, uploading it to my ftp (server), renaming it, and then editing it with the script I wanted, and voila, spammer would be 404ed. I have no idea if my 2-3 hours worked, but I guess I will find out soon enough when my spam folders keep filling up. AHHHH, what a nightmare!

So now that it is 2am, I can finally climb into bed, and in 4 hours I can start this all over again. Sleep deprived and crabby. As soon as I finish knitting this last row real quick.

No Comments | In: A lot about nothing, This is how I roll | tags: Austin, Babysitting, Domestic Diva, Family, Humor, Insanity, Matthew, Me, Parenting, Photography, Ramblings, Ranting, Sleep Deprivation, Sophia. | #

Nothing says “I have too many leftovers, no imagination, and a chunk of ground beef” like meatloaf. What other meal allows you to simultaneously clean out your fridge, hide produce, and feel good about giving your kids a hot meal with just some easy prep and patience. I found that after just a few times, I no longer needed a cook book, or as just meat. I do have a couple shortcuts to share though:

1. Use a good food processor. I like the Euro-Pro Ninja Master Prep Blender and Food Processor, it makes me feel like a real ninja with all the rogue veggies I can puree and hide into what the kids think is a pure hunk of meat.
   The problem with the Ninja though, is it attracts my 6 year old like a moth to a flame, or as I say a cat to an electric can opener. With an audience, you have to be even more of a ninja to toss in the green beans from last night, a couple raw carrots, an onion, a tomato, or whatever you have on hand that is raw or requires a good blending. You may have to threaten your kids with certain death, amputation of fingers, or starvation if they are picky and you don’t want them to see how you make your ‘secret sauce’.
2. Once you have your paste resembling a bowl of baby crap, scrape it into the Kitchenaid mixing bowl. You can also toss in more leftovers, some examples include: rice from when you had Chinese takeout, whatever that was in the Tupperware container that vaguely smells like potatoes, actual mashed potatoes, etc. Get creative here, this is where your leftovers get eaten up and not composted.
3. Toss in a couple eggs, and now raid your condiments. You can add ketchup, or BBQ sauce, mustard if you like, worshesher-whatever sauce, etc. Throw in some random spices that smell good, some milk, and a dry ingredient like crackers, bread crumbs, or oatmeal. Mix all these in your stand mixer, and let it sit for a couple minutes to turn into a gross looking, gelatinous mess.
   I read somewhere that the key factors to the perfect fluffy meatloaf are to let the dry ingredients sit and get soggy. Also, to not molest the meat… err, in other words, you don’t over-mix the ground beef, so pre-mixing the other ingredients well is really important.
4. This is where my love affair with my Kitchenaid mixer was born. Use the dough hook that comes with it, add your meat and then mix. No longer do I have to relish in the joy of cold, raw, ground meat between my fingers, the booger-eating cousin to the much cooler sand between my toes, illegitimate son of the promiscuous between my legs and the ever brilliant between my ears.
   But I digress. Once your meat and mush have gently been mixed together, plop the whole thing into a baking dish on 350 and cook for an hour. You now have time to watch a show on the DVR, play a Facebook game, or kick the kids outside and hide in the bathroom with a book.
5. When you hour of bliss is over, slather more condiments over the top, bake another 5 minutes, then serve. You can serve with a vegetable, or a starch or both. If I include enough veggies, I will let my kids believe they are getting off veggie-free and just serve with potato wedges or something. My boys are pretty good about eating their meatloaf, but my daughter isn’t as wonderful. Then again, for the child who hates vegetables, she would pick a salad and plain white rice for dinner over meatloaf any day of the week.

Tonight the princess thought she would be slick. After all the kids had eaten, including the baby who happily nursed while I dislocated my shoulder to eat cold meatloaf, the ones who ate got fresh chocolate chip cookies. The princess decided she could skip her meal and go right to the cookie. When that didn’t work, and screaming didn’t make me give in, she resorted to climbing onto the counter, grabbing the Tupperware and running as fast as her stubby little legs would take her. She ended up going to bed without finishing her meatloaf, or a cookie, but she did end up going to bed with tons of tears. I think tonight mommy is going to drink a nice glass of wine for dessert, because mommy drinks when you cry.

*This is not a sponsored post, but Kitchenaid or Euro-Pro is welcome to send me a free gift for this post if they would like. I really want the mixing blade with the rubber spatula built in for my mixer or extra bowls for my ninja. *wink wink*

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