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Hey guys! I am now on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/journeywithaslightlycrunchymom
You can find me there and message my page or leave a post to get in touch with me :)

Get $30 worth of clothing free!

You can get $30 worth of clothing free from Schoola and help schools raise funds!

https://www.schoola.com/stitch?ref=cp-3X7s0j5B5

1. Click the Link Above ^^
2. Sign up. You get $20 just for signing up! This will be applied at checkout.
3. If on a mobile device, switch to desktop view located at the bottom of the page.
4. On the top of the page click collections.
5. Click add or create new collection.
6. Name & Create your collection. You get $10 credit!
7. You now have $30 free credit!
8. Choose $30 worth of clothing & select the free shipping option!
9. You clothes will be mailed to you!

This website helps schools raise money! 40% of all sales goes to the school that donated the clothing to Schoola. You can be helping children while getting some clothing in return :)

Flats Challenge, Challenged Me.

Every year Dirty Diaper Laundry does a flats challenge. This inspired me to try out flats to diaper my baby. I realized that this was an affordable and economical way to diaper. The flats challenge starts off with everyone diapering with flat fold diapers & covers for one week. They must hand wash the diapers and show that it can be done by any family no matter what their financial circumstances. Some people use a wash board, while others use a breathing plunger or yet others still wash them in the bathtub or sink. This challenge shows that anyone can cloth diaper and when it comes down to keeping food on the table or diapering you LO you can use flats and a diaper cover to be able to cover all of the necessitates. You don't even need to buy flats or flour sack towels to diaper. You can take an old t-shirt and turn it into a flat. You also can make several covers out of blankets that you cut up and tutorials for this can found online. Cloth diapering is more than just putting cute cloth on your LOs bum it is also about frugal living.

Tragedy In Paris

As you hear the news about the tragedy in Paris and all of the lives lost. Sit down and hold your family, be thankful that they weren't hurt. My heart goes out to the families of those who were injured or killed in the shootings or bombings. Not only in Paris but in all parts of the world. People are hurting each day and we just don't notice it. This pain is caused by sin and we can just send prayers to those around that world in this time of turmoil. Everyone has stopped to notice what happened in Paris last Friday night, but do we stop to think of all of the pain and suffering that is going on in the world every day? Or is it that we only notice it, because the media has taken a hold of this story and sensationalized the deaths of over +100 people. We should reach out and help not only those in Paris but also in Beruit where there was also a terrorist attack on the day before. There are many other attacks like these that happen worldwide that never get reported, because they aren't deemed important enough compared to the rest of the days news. As we sit and watch the aftermath of the tragedy in Paris, remember to be thankful that our families weren't involved or hurt in any way. And if they were my heart goes out to you. This should remind us that we never know what day will be our last and we should tell those who are important to us that we love them.

Cloth Diaper moms can be crazy!

Blueberry (a cloth diaper brand) had a 50% pre-black friday sale. This was hosted on blueberryandme.com in only 8 minutes 3,000 diapers were sold. The diapers were sold in packs of 4, so that means 750 grab bags were sold. I was able to get 2 grab bags with coveralls (diaper covers.) One came with a wet bag and the other didn't. Peoples complaints began to flood Facebook and the baby center community about how they didn't get what they wanted or they didn't like that they wouldn't know what prints they were getting or they didn't want duplicates of prints. Dude, you got a $20 diaper for $10 why can't you just be happy with that? And the fact that Blueberry even had a sale is amazing, because I figured that they wouldn't do anything with Black Friday, because they are a major company and are so popular as it is.

The Flooded Closet- The nursery is now our bedroom.

Since our closet got flooded and mold and mildew contiued to grow. We have moved our bed and belongings into the nursery and we now realize that we could literally survive with one bedroom in our house. This has led me to purge and get rid of all of our excess stuff. And further our journey with minimalism. I realize that I have so many clothes and extra stuff that I have been packing around that I don't need that I have decided to get rid of it. Maybe someday family will realize my goals and stop giving me all there excess stuff that they no longer want, but don't want to part with.

Nursery... Do you really need one?

People get all hyped up about baby stuff and they start designing a nursery with dreams of pinterest in their minds, they get all this baby stuff that their registry checklist says is a "must have" and then bam the baby is here and they are just swimming in stuff. However instead of having a million articles of clothing that my son will grow out of right away or the newest and greatest electronic toy I have decided to take an approach at minimalism. We don't even have a nursery set up. It is literally a crib that we will end up bringing into our room and converting into a co-sleeper. Yes, my son has all the clothes and diapers that he needs but most importantly he has my time. Babies aren't going to remember what color there nursery room wall was painted or what the theme was. Instead what really matters in that they have loving and caring parents to bond with them. No amount of "stuff" could ever replace that. My parents were not the most available people when I was growing up and I want to change that for my children. So I have decided to opt with not having a nursery, I know that it may be a big uproar for some people, but how can families all of the world survive without having a designated area for babies. People have done this for generations and we still managed to turn out all right. So my minimalistic approach will not cause problems to my child just because it isn't the mainstream thing that most American parents are doing in 2015.

Flooded Closet!

Earlier I talked about in the blog post "Unexpected Adventures" that I came home Tuesday after school to find that the apartment's water heater above us was leaking and I soaked our closet floor. Two days later it still smells like mildew and I'm not sure what to do. I can't open the window because it is just too cold out so we have a commercial size drying fan running in our master bedroom. Last night I noticed that the power strip that is plugged in behind our dresser wasn't working. I'm hoping that the water didn't get to the electrical socket. And that there is no damage. A power strip is an easy thing to fix. We are just lucky that it didn't damage anything important. :) Hopefully I will be able to get the mildew smell out and that the carpet won't start to mold.

Revised Black Friday Shopping!

Before I start to say anything, the baby center community is amazing! If you need any advice on cloth diapering go to their "Cloth Diaper" board! I have gotten a ton of advice there and other moms are more than willing to pour out their wisdom on us newbies :) I have also been able to get a ton of cloth diapers from the "Cloth Diaper Swap" board for good prices! Most of my stash has now come from there! So now I realize that I need to redo my Black Friday wishlist!

- 2 Wet bags
- 1 to 2 dozen Diaper Rite Bamboo Flats (Large)
- 2 to 3 snappis

With the help of the Cloth Diaper Swap boards I have been able to fill out my newborn and one size diaper stashes! :) Now all I need is a few more items and I will be able to be ready for LO to get here! And that is three months away :)

Unexpected Adventures! The Flooded Closet!

So the family in the apartment above us just moved out and the manager went through to do a carpet inspection today. Well guess what they found... The hot water heater was leaking. The hot water heater in the apartment upstairs is directly above our closet. So I came home to maintenance with steam cleaning our bedroom floor and our closet is completely soaked. Now we just have to wait for it to dry out for a couple days. Luckily our cats didn't get outside.
Also the ceiling in our kitchen now has bubbles that they drained, due to water damage. I'm thankful that we have wonderful apartment staff to clean up what could have been a disaster. If they hadn't been their our whole apartment could have been flooded.

Cotton Babies Sale!

Right now cottonbabies.com are having a sale on bumgenius 4.0s for only $12.95 each (normally they are $17.95 each.) And if you spend over $100 and use the code "SWEET" you will get a free bumgenius 4.0 pocket diaper in white. They are also having a buy one get one free sale on Econobums for only $11.95! That's less than $6 a cover!
https://www.cottonbabies.com

Bumgenius 4.0 Pocket Diaper Review

I ordered 6 Bumgenius 4.0's through Cotton Babies and this is my review. I have to say when I first saw them I thought they would be a little bulky, but after taking them out of the package and washing them my opinion changed. The Bumgenius 4.0 comes with two microfiber inserts the newborn and the one size inserts. Overall I am impressed with the 4.0 and I think they will be great daycare diapers, because they are easy to use and are almost like a disposable diaper. This diaper can be sized to fit 7 to 35lbs. And would be a wonderful pocket diaper to add to you stash.
Note: I received no compensation for this review.

Black Friday: what are you after?

What are you after for black friday? Or are you even going black friday or cyber monday shopping?I'm after cloth diapers of course. But mostly stuff for my newborn stash. I've split my list into three tiers according to my needs/wants.  My goal is to get all the diapers we will need for LO on Black Friday since he is due Feb 2016.

Here is my wishlist for Black Friday
Tier 1:
-Newborn Stash
  6-12 Thirsties Duo Sz 1 Covers

-Other
  2 Pail Liners
  2 Medium Wet Bags
Tier 2:
- One Size Stash
  3-6 Nicki's Onesize Diaper Covers
  3-6 Thirsties Duo Sz 2
  2 Sm Disana Wool Covers
  2 Med Disana Wool Covers

-Other
  1 Doz Large GMD Flats
  1 Doz Bleached GMD Flats
  1 Doz Diaper Rite Bamboo Flats
  3 Snappis
Tier 3:
  6-12 Bumgenius 4.0 pocket diapers

Nicki's Diaper Cover Review

I just got my Nicki's Diaper cover in the mail today and I was really excited to give a review. 

I really like the fact that it has double leg gussets to keep any poop explosions in. And that it has extra strength behind snaps to prevent from tearing the PUL by an over zealous caregiver. The elastic in these is very strong and I don't think that it will wear out like some other diaper covers. On the label it says that the diaper cover goes from 7 to +35 lbs so this is a diaper cover than can go from birth to potty training. Also the price for these covers is very affordable ranging from $10 to $12 dollars for a quality cover that will last. Onto the ascetic appeal. This cover is adorable it has constellations on it and it is the Little Dipper pattern. The cover is more of a cobalt blue, I originally thought it would be a bit more of the navy, but it is still so cute. It's a great gender-neutral pattern. I definitely would recommend this diaper to anyone, and I will be adding more to my stash.

Note: I received no compensation for this review.

Econobum Diaper Cover Review

I got my Econobum covers in the mail last Friday. And now I am going to give a review of them.
They are thinner than the Bumgenius that I got in the same order and the PUL is of lower quality. When I snap or unsnap them I'm afraid I'm going to tear the diaper cover. The cover itself is very thin and it makes me nervous about it would actually work as a good diaper cover. Needless to say I am not a fan. I definitely wouldn't have a whole stash of these. But I have to say ordering these covers was a rookie mistake. No wonder they were on a BOGO. You get what you pay for. Little one isn't here yet so I have time to destash these and find better covers. However I am disappointed with the overall quality of the product. But compared to plastic pants they are much better.
Overall I paid only $5.98 for each diaper but I would not buy them again. There are much better covers you can get out there for only a little bit more money.
If your budget is tight I would rather have you use Econobum covers than disposables.
Now on their aesthetic appeal. Econobums are very bland. Not many colors to choose from however as a budget option that helps keep the prices down. Even as a cheap diaper cover I expected more from Cotton Babies. I have learned now to do a bit more research and ask around before I just go buy a diaper since it is on sale. So I now have six zinnia diaper covers to destash.
 Note: I received no compensation for this review.

Cloth Diapering for under $100

If you are looking at a tight budget for cloth diapering you can get 6 Econobum Covers from cottonbabies.com for $35.85.
Cotton Babies are doing the special buy one get one free! However they only currently have them in Zinnia (it looks kinda pink.) So that's $11.95 for two covers! :)

You can get them here:
http://www.cottonbabies.com/product_info.php?cPath=138&products_id=6152

You can get 48 flats from Target. For $47.88 total. They come in packs of 4 for $3.99!
Note: These are the RE Flour Sack Towels :)

Thats a stash set up for only: $83.71! Just imagine a cloth diaper stash for under $100!

Cloth Diapering: My Favorite Stores

Here are some of my favorite cloth diapering stores: nickisdiapers.com, greenmountaindiapers.com, kellyscloset.com, and cottonbabies.com. My current stash includes: 6 Bumgenius 4.0, 6 Econobum diaper covers, and 16 Flour Sack Towels (to be used as flats) What are your favorite stores and what's in your stash?

Welcome to my Blog!

Hi I'm Dana Brumbaugh and I will be documenting my life as an young army wife and soon-to-be mom on this blog. Join Benjamin and I on this crazy adventure called life and hang on for the ride.